coronavirus

In 2007, journalist Alan Weisman published The World Without Us. It was an international bestseller. The book tries to answer what is ultimately a simple question: What happens to the Earth if human beings disappear? Here's how Weisman puts it in the book: "Say a Homo sapiens-specific virus -- natural or diabolically nano-engineered -- picks us off but leaves everything else intact." Then what?

And over these last few months, we've gotten maybe a fraction of a percentage point there. Temporarily. Maybe not directly because of coronavirus, but indirectly because of our absence and scarceness due to stay-at-home orders and the like. And so... then what?

State and social service leaders announced a new public-private program Wednesday to help undocumented immigrants through economic hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Later in the day, education officials announced that in-person high school graduations, with graduates able to sit together, can begin in July.

Gov. Ned Lamont struck a partnership Wednesday with critics in the immigrant-rights community, promising $3.5 million in state and philanthropic dollars to help undocumented families ineligible for federal pandemic relief.

After weeks of controversy over inadequate COVID-19 testing at nursing homes, Gov. Ned Lamont has ordered mandatory testing of all staff and residents at nursing homes, assisted living facilities and elderly residential communities.

Right now, the state of Connecticut says restaurants could be allowed to resume indoor service on June 20. But some restaurant owners are pushing for inside dining as soon as this week.

Something different is happening in America at this moment. Do you feel it? We want to hear from you. Call us during our live show Tuesday, from 1 to 2 p.m., at 888-720-9677 or 888-720-WNPR.

People across America are protesting the same police brutality against black Americans that never seems to stop.

America has suffered more deaths from COVID-19 than any other nation, and we still don't have a federal plan to deal with it, despite the efforts of health care workers and scientists.

President Trump had threatened to deploy the military if the state officials he first felt the need to denigrate couldn't control the looting in their locales. He proceeded to order the police to use tear gas and flash grenades to disperse peaceful protesters so that he could pose in front of a burned church with a Bible in his hand.

Vape manufacturers have long been accused of marketing to teens with flavors like mango and cotton candy. Now vaping opponents say vape manufacturers are exploiting the coronavirus with face mask and hand sanitizer giveaways and #COVID-19 discounts.

The beginning of the month means the rent is due. But what if you lost your job during the COVID-19 pandemic?

This hour, we talk to a housing advocate about what protections exist for Connecticut residents who can’t afford housing costs right now. And we learn about the lasting consequences for residents who are at risk for eviction if the state and federal governments don’t provide additional protections.

Hair salons, barbershops and casinos reopened in Connecticut Monday after being closed for more than two months due to COVID-19 restrictions and precautions. Along with the good news of these reopenings came grim new projections from the state comptroller about the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Connecticut’s two casinos are taking paying customers for the first time in two months.

Tribal leadership shuttered the casinos March 18 for the first time in their history over fears of the spread of COVID-19.

The pandemic has laid bare how racism in housing, education, employment, and access to health care, disproportionately hurts Black Americans more than White Americans and leads to police brutality against people the police are supposed to protect.

After reporting for weeks that Connecticut Hispanics are only half as likely to die from COVID-19 as non-Hispanic whites, state officials now say that Hispanics here are substantially more likely to die from the disease.

State officials were also reporting that the state’s black population was only 26% more likely than whites to die from a coronavirus infection when in fact their likelihood of death is 2.5 times as high.  The death rate for Hispanics is now calculated at 67% higher than non-Hispanic whites.

Why the change? And why were they getting it wrong?

Protesters in Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, New London, and other parts of Connecticut joined a nationwide call for action Saturday following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. The protests come as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to unfold -- one day after the Gov. Ned Lamont signed an executive order that further relaxes state restrictions related to the virus.

Hospitalizations due to the COVID-19 pandemic experienced the largest one day drop to date, Gov. Ned Lamont said Friday. Meanwhile, state colleges and universities said they’re planning to have students back on campus this fall.

This is the ninth and final episode of US in the Time of Coronavirus.

We’ve surpassed 100,000 deaths in our country, and more than 3,826 deaths here in Connecticut as of Friday, May 20th. These numbers aren’t just numbers. They’re mothers, daughters, sisters, fathers, brothers and sons; Grandmas and grandpas, and best friends.

The push to get more people screened for the novel coronavirus continued Thursday, as state and federal officials converged outside a community center in Hartford to promote a new mobile COVID-19 testing unit.

Connecticut has significantly expanded its testing capacity in recent weeks, but the state has struggled to increase the number of residents tested in communities hardest hit by COVID-19.

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal sat under a pop-up canopy on the New Haven Green, tilted his head back and submitted to a nasal swab for a COVID-19 test. The moment was a photo op for a media-savvy senator and a public-service pitch for a state promoting testing as it slowly loosens restrictions on commerce.

Last week marked the beginning of a phased reopening of Connecticut. Several businesses are permitted to reopen under Phase 1 of Connecticut’s reopening, including restaurants that are able to open for outdoor dining. This hour, we hear how restaurants have fared through the shutdown, and what reopening looks like. 

A prison-rights advocate confronted Gov. Ned Lamont at an outdoor news conference Wednesday, accusing the governor of indifference to the health of prison inmates during the COVID-19 pandemic, not long after the Department of Correction announced that a seventh inmate has died from the disease.

Shortly after the pandemic shifted our weekday work scenario from one of shared space and bursts of spontaneous conversation, to one hour-long weekly Zoom meeting, Colin shared his urge to sit down with a few old friends to talk about life in the shadow of a pandemic. 

Gov. Ned Lamont gave Connecticut residents “pretty good” marks Tuesday for social distancing and careful pandemic behavior over the Memorial Day weekend but remains very concerned about plans to reopen the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods casinos early next week.

Families with loved ones in nursing homes–unable to visit while getting frustratingly sparse information about them–have found a champion in Mairead Painter.

As Connecticut and other states begin to reopen during the pandemic, data is more important than ever. Today, we talk about the role of statistics in shaping our understanding of the COVID-19.

We hear from one of the researchers behind the How We Feel App, a volunteer system of symptom tracking. They plan to turn the symptoms users record into useful information about emerging hotspots.

And later, we talk with statistician Talithia Williams about how all of us are using statistical thinking in our everyday lives.