The Conversation - Why flu shots help fight coronavirus

+ how suffragists used hunger strikes to get the vote‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

It's almost hard to imagine that the coronavirus is still circulating even as influenza season will soon be upon us. Public health officials are warning of personal disasters as well as overloaded hospitals and more overworked health care workers if the flu is worse than usual this year.

That’s why it’s more important than ever that you get a flu shot, explains Purdue University nursing professor Libby Richards. And tell your friends to do the same. She explains how the vaccine works, why it’s safe and when’s the best time to get one.

Also today:

Lynne Anderson

Senior Health + Medicine Editor

Hospital workers tend to a COVID-19 patient April 7, 2020 in New York City, where hospitals were so crowded they had to transfer patients to different facilities. John Moore/Getty Images

Getting a flu shot this year is more important than ever because of COVID-19

Libby Richards, Purdue University

The flu vaccine will be available in most places Sept. 1. A public health nurse explains why it's especially important to get vaccinated for it this year.

Health

How dangerous heat waves can kill

William H. Calvin, University of Washington

Heat waves can kill via dehydration caused by heavy sweating. Breathing or heartbeat may suddenly stop. Prolonged overheating can also create widespread inflammation.
Cloth masks do protect the wearer – breathing in less coronavirus means you get less sick

Monica Gandhi, University of California, San Francisco

In places where everyone wears a mask, cases of COVID-19 seem to be less severe. Evidence from labs and outbreaks suggests that masks protect not only others, but the person wearing the mask, too.

Science + Technology

Sketchy darknet websites are taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic – buyer beware

David Maimon, Georgia State University

The global pandemic has fueled illicit online sales of COVID-19 commodities, some of which are dangerous or illegal. Researchers are assessing the size and reach of this underground market.
A little-known technology change will make video streaming cheaper and pave the way for higher quality

Jason Schmitt, Clarkson University

A new standard for how videos are sent through the internet and read by your computer could make the digital world more inclusive, says media scholar Jason Schmitt.

Politics + Society

How to make sure your vote counts in November

Amy Dacey, American University

Double-check that you're registered, find out where and when you can vote, make a plan and tell your friends. Set a reminder on your calendar, and make sure you actually vote.
Ancient cancel cultures: The defacement of statues in America replicates a tradition going back millennia

Sarah Kurnick, University of Colorado Boulder

As US protesters deface monuments of once revered leaders, they are drawing from an ancient tradition used by both marginalized people and those in power.

Education
What will student protests look like when classes are online? Johnathan Flowers, Worcester State University; April Logan, Salisbury University; Samuel Abrams, Sarah Lawrence College Three experts weigh in on how college students will be taking activism from the streets to online this fall.

Ethics + Religion
Suffragists used hunger strikes as a powerful tool of resistance – a tactic still employed by protesters 100 years on Victoria W. Wolcott, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York As Americans celebrate the legacy of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote, it is also a moment to acknowledge how suffragists first used hunger strikes as a form of protest.

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Kids’ school schedules have never matched parents’ work obligations and the pandemic is making things worse

Taryn Morrissey, American University School of Public Affairs

For US parents, the health, economic and social crisis the COVID-19 pandemic brought about is compounded by the difficult if not impossible task of working, caring for and educating kids.
Oleandrin is a deadly plant poison, not a COVID-19 cure

Cassandra Quave, Emory University

Consuming the plant can be lethal to animals and humans.
How Howard Thurman met Gandhi and brought nonviolence to the civil rights movement

Walter E. Fluker, Boston University

Howard Thurman, a mentor to MLK, first met Gandhi during a visit to India in 1936. He came to understand nonviolence as a force more powerful than hate that had the power to transform the world.

The Conversation - Why flu shots help fight coronavirus

Getting a flu shot this year is more important than ever because of COVID-19

Health

How dangerous heat waves can kill

Cloth masks do protect the wearer – breathing in less coronavirus means you get less sick

Science + Technology

Sketchy darknet websites are taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic – buyer beware

A little-known technology change will make video streaming cheaper and pave the way for higher quality

Politics + Society

How to make sure your vote counts in November

Ancient cancel cultures: The defacement of statues in America replicates a tradition going back millennia

Education

What will student protests look like when classes are online?

Ethics + Religion

Suffragists used hunger strikes as a powerful tool of resistance – a tactic still employed by protesters 100 years on

Most read on site

Kids’ school schedules have never matched parents’ work obligations and the pandemic is making things worse

Oleandrin is a deadly plant poison, not a COVID-19 cure

How Howard Thurman met Gandhi and brought nonviolence to the civil rights movement

Older messages

A pillar of American life is being eroded

Tips for making the most of online learning

Some good coronavirus news, from Mexico

AI could make Black hires happen

Anti-racist views haven't been enough to make change

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