The Corona Virus

[Xyril]

I think it refers more to people whose jobs require them to be in constant contact with people or people who travel frequently. So stuff like School Teachers or Waitresses (who often get the double whammy of also being a student or having a second job)

I mean, it makes sense that the people who see a revolving door of visitors or customers would present a greater risk than others and that things might slow down a little bit once those guys are all infected and have done as much damage as they could, but I don't think it'll be asymptotic growth at that point. Once you look at the office drones and other people who primarily interact with the same group of coworkers, and see few, if any, outside visitors, you might see exponential growth with a larger time constant, but it will still be exponential growth nonetheless. And yes, for this population too, it won't be purely exponential because eventually you'll run out of these guys as well.

In defense of Strigon's position, if the growth rate is Wuhan is really slowing down already, then it's doing so at with a very high percentage of the population still (probably) uninfected. The confounding variable, however, is that China was able to impose stringent containment measures that may be logistically or legally impractical in other places.

The right way to prep is to mix the long-shelf-life foods and commodities into your normal diet and habits. For example, keep a two-week stock of canned or otherwise preserved food with a shelf life of over a year, and have one day a month where you eat and replace the oldest food in your prep stash.

Honestly, I never understood how so many people "waste" money stocking up on food. I mean, I understand the challenges for people living paycheck-to-paycheck who literally can't spend the money to buy food they won't use for a while without making substantial sacrifices elsewhere. Unless you normally eat out close to 100% of the time (in which case, you absolutely could have money to "waste" if you changed your habits a bit) or cook using 100% fresh veggies and other freshly-made ingredients, chances are there are dishes you like that incorporate some sort of shelf-stable food without noticeably sacrificing quality. Making pasta with fresh tomatoes and hand-made noodles is awesome when you have the time and inclination, but doing so with canned tomatoes and dried pasta can yield some great results as well, and tends to be more practical for people with a busy schedule.

If you can make even a single meal that relies on stable foods, and you like it enough to have it once or twice a month using Bucky's system, then you can keep a fresh stash without actually adding to your grocery bills. If you normally use more canned or preserved groceries than that, then your stash can be even bigger. Sure, after two weeks of the same thing it may no longer be one of your favorite meals, but at least you won't starve.