Dr. Michael Worobey, Head of the University of Arizona College of Science Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, has made seminal discoveries using the genomes of viruses to trace the evolution of major communicable diseases, their origins, emergence and control. The 1918-19 Spanish flu epidemic killed more than 50 million people. The novel coronavirus has spread globally, overwhelming health-care systems and infecting millions. But fatigue with stay-at-home orders and the consequences of a sudden freeze in economic activity have brought diminished focus on the human cost of the disease. Impatience has reinforced a widespread misconception that saving fewer lives will be worth it if economic activity is restored quickly. Only saving lives will save livelihoods and enable an economic recovery.
