At this point, most people have heard of the coronavirus. You may have heard of it on the news, seen someone post about it, or even seen the memes about it. Most people are still pretty unsure as to what the coronavirus is. Basically it is any sort of RNA (ribonucleic acid, present in all living cells) that causes a disease to both humans and animals. 

There are many different types of coronaviruses but the one that has been spreading lately is nCov. nCov is a respiratory disease that was first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. This isn’t the first time that we have had an outburst of the coronavirus. Back in 2002 through 2003, there was a huge outburst of a coronavirus that was called SARS (a severe acute respiratory virus) that also began in China. But unlike the coronavirus we are dealing with at the moment, SARS wasn’t as severe with only around 349 deaths in the span of two years. As of February 4th, 2020 China has over 425 confirmed deaths due to the coronavirus, and more than 7,700 cases around the world. This is a huge issue that, and people are beginning to worry that they or someone they know will become infected. 

Although the virus was first introduced in some areas in China, it has since spread throughout different parts of the world. This is because of the fast-spreading of diseases, as well as the fact that people infected in China could have accidentally spread elsewhere through traveling. Because of those two factors, the coronavirus has spread in various places throughout the world. It even infected a woman from Forest Grove that had been on vacation on a cruise off the coast of Japan. Although she has been reported to be doing okay, she is required to stay in a Japanese hospital for two weeks just as a precaution. As for the other 70 people that had been on the cruise, they are required to stay aboard the cruise ship as a safety precaution, due to the fact that 60 of these passengers have also been tested for being infected with the virus.

Most scientists believe the virus most likely originated from an animal source, but somehow managed to begin spreading to people. There are many ways to help protect yourself from this untreatable disease, for example, if you know for a fact that someone has the virus do not come in close contact with them. Also avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands. Make sure to also cover your coughing and sneezing with a tissue, and then make sure that tissue ends up in the garbage, you definitely do not want to be the cause of the virus throughout the school. If you are not sure if you or someone you know has the virus, some of the symptoms include lots of coughing, high fevers, and shortness of breath. If you have these symptoms, make sure to check in with a doctor just to be sure. And if you do get infected, stay home and avoid travel at all costs.