Here Is a New COVID-19 Data Site That Needs to Be Kept up-to-Date
If you can’t look away from your climbing suitcases, take a look here. A visualization site called 91-DIVOC provides epidemic curve plots by comparing countries and allowing you to view them on a linear or log scale.
When cases grow exponentially, as you would expect from a pandemic, the big numbers get really big, very quickly. Switching the graph to a logarithmic scale makes it easier to mathematically understand the lines in the graph. Switching them back to a linear (normal) scale gives a better idea of the sheer number of people who have been affected.
The pandemic hit different countries at different times, so the interesting feature here is that you can see how the number of cases in countries has leveled off by the day they identified 100 cases.
These graphs do not show the reasons for the different curves. South Korea has done extensive testing, so they quickly discovered many cases, but testing has also enabled them to contain the outbreak. In the US, many sick people still cannot get tested, so our actual numbers are likely to be much higher than the confirmed cases shown in the chart. The number of cases in Japan is low and its curve is less flat, but the reasons for this are still debated . Maybe they do a better job of physical distancing ; maybe the lack of testing hides the real numbers.
Another important caveat: today’s case numbers tell us how well we handled content a few weeks ago . There is a lag between our actions and new infections, and between infections and confirmed test results. Keep this in mind if you are looking at the timeline.
So if you find some information, this is another website to update. But if you’re already worried about the state of the world , this may not be the best way to pass your time. Try making taco salt instead.