Olympics Postponed, Origin of Pandemics, Seed Vault

Olympics to Happen Next Summer in Tokyo (0:29) Guest: David Wallechinsky, President of the International Society of Olympic Historians There will be no 16 days of glory this summer in Tokyo. For the first time in modern Olympic history, the games have been postponed to next summer. Three other times the Olympics were canceled – and it took a world war for that to happen. Ebola Epidemic Is Almost Over, but That Doesn’t Mean We Should Celebrate (19:49) Guest: Trish Newport, Emergency Coordinator for the Ebola response in DRC, Doctors Without Borders The Ebola epidemic may be almost over – the last patient with Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was recently released. This outbreak has been going on since August 2018, with more than 3,000 cases and 2,000 deaths. Trish Newport’s not so sure we should celebrate – she says Ebola may be ending not because of international humanitarian efforts, but despite them. Evidence to Impact (36:52) Guest: Michael Donovan, Director of Policy and Outreach, Administrative Data Accelerator, Penn State University The coronavirus pandemic is giving us a real-world look at the importance of academics and policymakers working together. Researchers at universities around the world are studying the virus and data of its spread. Government officials are making the decisions about what to shut down and where to send resources. Often there’s a disconnect between policymakers and academics, though. Why Do Most New Virus Outbreaks Start in Asia and Africa? (50:38) Guest: Suresh Kuchipudi, Professor of Virology, Penn State University The virus that causes COVID-19 first emerged in China. Scientists believe it jumped from a bat to some other animal that was for sale in a live animal market, where it jumped into a human and began its global spread. That this virus emerged in Asia is not surprising. SARS, MERS, and Ebola all emerged in Asia and Africa. Plastic Roads Provide a New Solution to Handling Waste (1:09:29) Guest: Toby McCartney, Founder and CEO of MacRebur, The Plas