3 ms·
> How often do you get a result so incredibly close to one of the few sites in the world that intentionally collects these things? Very often for organizations
by flukus 6y ago
> How often do you get a result so incredibly close to one of the few sites in the world that intentionally collects these things?
Very often for organizations like that who have labs and offices over much of the country. Take a look at the CDC locations for instance (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centers_for_Disease_Control_and_Prevention#Locations https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centers_for_Disease_Control_an...) , if an outbreak were to start anywhere in the US there would be a "suspicious" CDC office nearby.
Even higher when you consider these things tend to be near major cities and that's where a new virus is most likely to be discovered and grow exponentially. It could have been spreading among rural areas for months with no one noticing, until one contagious person travels to a large city.
- andromeduck 6y agoExcept China has only 2 BSL4 labs and though both are in big cities by Western standards, neither are near the costal population centers in which the majority of China actually resides.
- kunfuu 6y agoNon-BSL4 labs shouldn't be ignored, though. Back in Feb 2020, a rumor circulating on Chinese social media said that there was a Non-BSL4 lab involved in researching bat viruses in the city. See my other comment as well.