Our economies are addled; our psyches are shaken from the spate of tragic deaths; our abilities to deal with unexpected events have been shown, in many countries, to be flimsy. This may not be the time to sketch out, with great confidence, what the new normal will look like.
All over Europe, 5G telephone towers are being set on fire. These acts feel as if they’ve been imported from the past, and not just because of the atavism of destroying mankind’s newest technology with mankind’s oldest.
Countries have hoarded masks, and used them as chips in geopolitical games. Thieves have made off with them. One mask broker described it “the craziest market I’ve ever seen.” The global scramble for this vital item has exposed the harsh realities of international politics and the limits of the free market.
Container ships burn some of the dirtiest fuel there is and spew out huge amounts of greenhouse gas. But the business is poised for a dramatic shift. The ambition to clean up shipping is “like a moon shot.”
Around the world, more than 40 teams are working on a vaccine for Covid-19. We followed one doctor, living like a monk in a Cambridge college room, engaged in the most urgent quest of his life.
