Self-initiated · Public science communication
COVID-19 impacted daily life across the globe for years, and its presence lingers. As science communicators, we can support public and professional communities in times of need by creating clarity from complexity.
Context
updates published
scientific references cited
months of tracking
disciplines on the initiative
The challenge
In December 2019 news was emerging of a severe acute respiratory disease spreading quickly in the Wuhan region of China. We knew something big was happening.
As the outbreak grew we watched information inundate societies — not all of it reliable, little of it easy to parse. As communication professionals who live and breathe science, we wanted to help increase understanding of an urgent situation.
So we researched, synthesized and shared vetted data publicly: a hub of digestible information rooted in credible sources and our own industry insight. We published the first version on February 13, 2020. A month later the WHO declared a global pandemic.
First signs
One of the earliest essential pieces we developed explained signs and symptoms. As of the last update, the CDC believed symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as long as fourteen after exposure. The clinical spectrum ran from mild, cold-like symptoms to severe pneumonia, respiratory failure, and in some cases death — with older individuals and those with underlying conditions more likely to experience complications.
Spread of infection
We tracked the case fatality ratio to understand relative risk of death and to help guide resource allocation and policy — noting that transmission may be underestimated where mild or asymptomatic cases go unrecorded, or where under-served groups have less access to care and testing.
Figures below are as of the final update, April 5, 2022. The WHO raised its Global Risk Assessment from high to very high on February 28, 2020, and characterized COVID-19 as a pandemic on March 11, 2020.
confirmed cases worldwide
individuals recovered
deaths, of which 977,913 in the U.S.
Visualizing SARS-CoV-2
Once in the body, SARS-CoV-2 recognizes and attaches to a transmembrane protein called ACE2, found mainly on the cells lining our airways. The Spike protein contains the receptor-binding domain for ACE2 and creates the virus's recognizable crown shape.
After binding to an ACE2 homodimer, the virus enters the cell through receptor-mediated endocytosis, releases its RNA, and takes advantage of the host cell's machinery to reproduce, escape, and continue infecting human tissue.
In context
As more cases emerged, medical professionals and researchers identified distinguishing traits. A comparison table offered perspective on how this pandemic differs from — and resembles — other pandemics and epidemics.
Vaccines and variants
Pfizer-BioNTech, preventing COVID-19 disease
Moderna, preventing COVID-19 disease
Janssen, preventing severe or critical disease at 14 days
Preliminary studies showed some protection against variants of concern, notably Delta and Omicron. Preventative measures such as mask use and distancing continued to be recommended in public indoor spaces. All figures as of April 2022.
Impact
We granted permission for the use of our visualizations so others could educate their own audiences. Versions of our figures were published in Nature and used in talks for organizations, universities and institutions around the world.
What started as a desire to understand the novel coronavirus became a cross-team initiative spanning scientific storytelling, science writing, design and development. We scoured government sources, peer-reviewed publications, preprints and reputable news outlets.
“You can always expect high-quality work and great visual storytelling from the Cognition team.”
Sema Sgaier, Ph.D.
CEO and Co-Founder, Surgo Health
Contents © 2020 Cognition Studio, Inc. Provided strictly for educational purposes; reliance for medical guidance or commercial use is prohibited. The full reference list and PDF were last updated April 5, 2022.
