This is a quick update of where we are at now with the Covid pandemic. Needless to say, pretty much everything is on standby now. Conferences we planned for presenting data were canceled (was really looking forward EB2020 being in San Diego), DNA to be sequenced is sitting in the freezer, and with no access to labs even side experiments are stopped. Luckily we did not have any field trips planned until June. Logistically, with classes being run online now for the foreseeable future, we face challenges and opportunities. But basically, the only thing we can do now is literature review and data analysis. We are planning on still presenting the EB posters virtually and will announce when it happens.
Our Scripps collaborator Jeff Bowman is still out in the Arctic ocean, as the MOSAIC expedition and many others have suffered from logistical challenges as transport routes have been limited. The good news is that both the NU and the SIO personnel seem to be in good shape and mostly working from home. If you want to learn more about the Arctic, by the way, there is a course in Coursera that can be taken for free!
Needless to say, there is a lot going on at the global and national scale, with terrifying human and economical implications. There is a lot going on in the field of education of course- pivoting to online communications for teaching has been a challenging process for many. But who knows what will emerge on the other side. We are also facing challenges to the original design of the project in the grant and trying to think outside the box to carry forward.
An interesting aspect has been the issue of plastic use in the pandemic. With concerns of buying food and more reliance on food delivery, policies regarding reusable bags are being rolled back, and there is a clear increase of use in plastic containers to deliver food. Lively discussions ensue on different forums about how to balance safety with the desire to decrease the use of plastics in the world. And recycling, sadly, seems not to be the solution any time soon.
So, we hope to be back soon. In the meantime, stay safe. Stay healthy. Good health. Take care.
