Why Iceland might be the key to understanding coronavirus
Iceland has a population of just over 360,000 — a little bit larger than Colorado Springs, Colorado. And that's precisely why it may ultimately be the country that could unlock a lot of coronavirus unknowns and provide much better data as the world fights the virus, BuzzFeed News reports.
The island country is providing large-scale COVID-19 testing for its citizens, which is made easier by its small population, but they're crucially offering tests to people who aren't exhibiting symptoms. That differs most other countries, who are saving their limited supply for people most clearly in need.
Much has been made, however, about the lack of good data floating around because there's almost certainly at least a decent number of undetected mild or asymptomatic cases. Iceland could help change people's understanding about both the number of cases out there, as well as transmission and fatality rates. "This effort is intended to gather insight into the actual prevalence of the virus in the community, as most countries are almost exclusively testing symptomatic individuals at this time," Thorolfur Guðnason, Iceland's chief epidemiologist, told BuzzFeed.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
So far, there have been 3,787 tests administered in Iceland (the government says that's a higher proportion of the population than any other country), which have yielded a total of 218 positive tests. The early results show "a low proportion of the general population has contracted the virus and that about half of those who tested positive are non-symptomatic." The sample size will increase, so it's probably worth keeping an eye on Iceland over the next few weeks. Read more at BuzzFeed News.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Is the Gaza war tearing U.S. campuses apart?
Today's Big Question Protests at Columbia University, other institutions, pit free speech against student safety
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
DOJ settles with Nassar victims for $138M
Speed Read The settlement includes 139 sexual abuse victims of the former USA Gymnastics doctor
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
14 recent scientific breakthroughs
In Depth From photos of the infant universe to an energy advancement that could save the planet
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Texas dairy worker gets bird flu from infected cow
Speed Read The virus has been spreading among cattle in Texas, Kansas, Michigan and New Mexico
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Dengue hits the Americas hard and early
Speed Read Puerto Rico has declared an epidemic as dengue cases surge
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Covid four years on: have we got over the pandemic?
Today's Big Question Brits suffering from both lockdown nostalgia and collective trauma that refuses to go away
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
US bans final type of asbestos
Speed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The hollow classroom
Opinion Remote school let kids down. It will take much more than extra tutoring for kids to recover.
By Mark Gimein Published
-
Excess screen time is making children only see what is in front of them
Under the radar The future is looking blurry. And very nearsighted.
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Covid-19: what to know about UK's new Juno and Pirola variants
in depth Rapidly spreading new JN.1 strain is 'yet another reminder that the pandemic is far from over'
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Long-term respiratory illness is here to stay
The Explainer Covid is not the only disease with a long version
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published