Preface

With a year into the pandemic, more than 100 million individuals have been infected with Covid-19, and over 3.2 million worldwide have died from it. In the U.S. alone, 30 million have been infected and over 550,000 Americans succumbed to the pandemic. The global rollout of vaccines promises to reduce related infections and mortality rates, but epidemiologists warn that Covid is less likely to disappear compelling the world to co-exist with the virus much like the seasonal flu. This prediction is supported by the ease with which the virus spreads, by the new mutations that continuously generate new strains, and by the fact that large parts of the world may remain behind with little or no access to vaccines. Should these processes continue, their combined effects may turn Covid-19 into an endemic. Namely, the virus remains persistent and manageable but requires periodic vaccination. Such development may also preserve the newly adopted practices at work and at home; social distancing may continue along with remote working, remote learning, masking, and testing. We may gain back some measure of normality, but it is likely to be a new normal.