How Fragile We Are

In less than 6 weeks since my truncated trip to Italy and at the time of writing this Editorial (April 8, 2020), there are more than 1.5 million reported cases and more than 85,000 deaths worldwide, and rising.1 Earlier today as I drove home listening to the radio in my car, Sting was singing, “How fragile we are ”. As I reflected on the lyrics, I became acutely aware that despite our collective human ingenuity, scientific discoveries, and technological advancements  such as space travel, sequencing of the human genome, massive live data acquisition and instant analysis, harnessing of these data for artificial intelligence, live-connecting people across the globe regardless of distance and time, and creating global economic growth with trade, industry, and innovation  we remain imminently fragile and infinitely vulnerable. A previously unknown tiny enemy, which belongs to a family of viruses that measure 120 nm,2 and carries a genome size ranging from approximately 27 to 34 kilobases, 3 suddenly challenged our globe beyond our capacity to fight or control it. More than 182 countries are in this battle, and world “super powers” such as China, Europe, and the United States, with all their technologic might and economic power, have been brought to their knees in their fight against this tiny unseen enemy and continue to endure catastrophic loss of life. This pandemic changed and continues to radically challenge life as we know it, across the globe. All over the world, major cities look deserted, students stopped attending schools and universities, travel restrictions abound, restaurants and gyms closed, masked faces are everywhere we go, families can only connect virtually rather than in person, and many people are working remotely or not working at all. Sports events everywhere, including the Olympics, are cancelled. Conferences and meetings across the world are rescheduled or cancelled. Religious gatherings are mostly online, and business or leisure travel came to a screeching halt. The economy continues to experience a free fall as supply chains are increasingly broken and markets face unabated decline. Our modern life has been turned upside down by a nano-particle. In contemplating our vulnerable and fragile existence, we all now have to reset our barometer of humility. Our collective humility as humans will probably be an essential weapon in this fight by enhancing our global collaboration and coordination regardless of geography, nationality, economic power, political system, social structure, or culture as we face this common threat to our life and even our survival.