Lily Jebejian

“What Is the Deadly Coronavirus Illness Now Blamed for 17 Deaths in China?” CBS News, CBS Interactive, www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-china-virus-what-is-mystery-illness-deaths-toll-us-case-confirmed-today-2020-01-21/.

There has recently been an outbreak of a new strand of a coronavirus. There have been an estimated 540 people infected and almost twenty deaths. The outbreak started in Wuhan, China, where all of the deaths have occurred. The majority of the cases have been reported in China, but there have also been reports in Thailand, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and the United States. There is currently only one case in the United States, a thirty year-old man in Washington state who just recently returned from China. The virus is a new strand of coronavirus. There have been multiple types of coronavirus in the past, each a different strand. The disease in China is thought to have originated from a fish and animal market in Wuhan. The disease can be transmitted from animals to humans, and now there is evidence that the virus can also be transmitted through human to human contact as well, “many of the patients have reportedly been linked to Hua Nan Seafood Wholesale Market, a large seafood and animal market”. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) has input screening in major airports in the United States to prevent any further spreading.

This virus can have a major effect on society for multiple reasons. The first being that it had proven to be fatal in many cases, and has affected hundreds of people. The virus has also spread internationally and doesn’t seem to be contained. The disease has also caused a mass hysteria and panic. This is as dangerous as the disease because people have become very fearful and will do anything to stop themselves from contracting the disease. There has also been a mass race to find a vaccine which is not created yet. This causes even more panic because there is currently no cure. 

Overall I thought the article was very informative and I learned a lot from it. I was very concerned about the disease before I read this but now that I learned more, I have a better understanding about the disease. The article had good sources and addressed all of the issues relevant to the disease. One way the article could be improved was the use of outside sources. The sources were only from CBS and I think it would have strengthened their article to have other scientists or networks with the same data. But, overall the article was very informative and I enjoyed reading it.