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It's interesting to look back at these sort of prescient events and laud the people who got it right and ignore all the people that 'got it wrong'. However in

It's interesting to look back at these sort of prescient events and laud the people who got it right and ignore all the people that 'got it wrong'. However in Bill Gates' case, he really was being realistic and not prescient given his close work with global healthcare. He must have seen up close how fragile this whole setup was.

throwaway5752 7y ago
Let's discard present circumstances, then, and notice that he just resigned from his board seats with Microsoft and Berkshire to focus all of his energy on climate change. He is treating that far more seriously than he treated pandemic preparedness. Also, we should forever be thankful that such a mild version of the coronavirus mutated a structural upgrade like the furin cleavage site. If this had happened with SARS, MERS, or a hemorrhagic fever it could have been real trouble.
- petilon 7y ago
  > to focus all of his energy on climate change. Not true. Press release says "global health, development, education, and his increasing engagement in tackling climate change".
- nikofeyn 7y ago
  > Also, we should forever be thankful that such a mild version of the coronavirus mutated a structural upgrade like the furin cleavage site. If this had happened with SARS, MERS, or a hemorrhagic fever it could have been real trouble. would you mind elaborating, because i don't understand or follow this. what is the relevance of mutating a "structural upgrade like the furin cleavage site"? forgive my lack of biology, but i both don't understand what this means nor its relevance. in "if this had happened with...", what is "this"? if it is the current coronavirus outbreak, isn't the current one much worse because it is more mild than sars?
buboard 7y ago
his wife is also talking about family planning in Africa, a difficult but earth-changing subject that politicians won't touch
- yyy888sss 7y ago
  And luckily they don't need to as lower birth rates means wrld population will likely peak at 10bn. African birth rates have dropped faster than predictions.
  - buboard 7y ago
    not fast enough for africa to avoid economic disaster

throwaway5752 7y ago

Let's discard present circumstances, then, and notice that he just resigned from his board seats with Microsoft and Berkshire to focus all of his energy on climate change. He is treating that far more seriously than he treated pandemic preparedness. Also, we should forever be thankful that such a mild version of the coronavirus mutated a structural upgrade like the furin cleavage site. If this had happened with SARS, MERS, or a hemorrhagic fever it could have been real trouble.

petilon 7y ago
> to focus all of his energy on climate change. Not true. Press release says "global health, development, education, and his increasing engagement in tackling climate change".
nikofeyn 7y ago
> Also, we should forever be thankful that such a mild version of the coronavirus mutated a structural upgrade like the furin cleavage site. If this had happened with SARS, MERS, or a hemorrhagic fever it could have been real trouble. would you mind elaborating, because i don't understand or follow this. what is the relevance of mutating a "structural upgrade like the furin cleavage site"? forgive my lack of biology, but i both don't understand what this means nor its relevance. in "if this had happened with...", what is "this"? if it is the current coronavirus outbreak, isn't the current one much worse because it is more mild than sars?

buboard 7y ago

his wife is also talking about family planning in Africa, a difficult but earth-changing subject that politicians won't touch

yyy888sss 7y ago
And luckily they don't need to as lower birth rates means wrld population will likely peak at 10bn. African birth rates have dropped faster than predictions.
- buboard 7y ago
  not fast enough for africa to avoid economic disaster