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Coronavirus tracking app
A valued CF'er has suggested we have a separate thread (thank you, you "Born again teenager" for a great suggestion), where we could focus/engage on a slightly more technical aspect of the pandemic, and hear different views on the various options available.
Some background -
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/0...rus_phone_app/
Quote:
In an effort to fend off the coronavirus while getting economies restarted, the world has hit on the same idea: a smartphone app that alerts people if they have been close to someone who has the virus.
It may be the only effective solution to mass lockdowns; the virus is spreading “too fast to be contained by manual contact tracing, but could be controlled if this process was faster, more efficient and happened at scale,” researchers from the University of Oxford have concluded in a new paper.
They argue that “a contact-tracing app which builds a memory of proximity contacts and immediately notifies contacts of positive cases can achieve epidemic control if used by enough people.”
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/52393115
Quote:
The NHS has been testing out a new app designed to help control the spread of the coronavirus.
It uses Bluetooth technology in phones to tell you if you have come into close contact with a person who has Covid-19 symptoms.
If a person thinks they have coronavirus symptoms, they will let the app know, and they will be sent a home-testing kit.
If the results of the test show that the person does have coronavirus it will send out a message to all the people that have been near to them, to let them know they should stay at home and self-isolate, in case they get symptoms too.
At the moment the app only sends out two messages: "You're okay" meaning you don't have to self-isolate, or "You need to isolate yourself and stay at home".
This type of technology is called contact tracing.
These message alerts will be sent anonymously, which means it won't tell you who has the symptoms, just that you have been near to a person who has.
The app is currently being tested to see if it works properly at an RAF base in Yorkshire.
If the app passes the testing process the NHS is hoping it can be released by mid-May, although a final decision will be taken by the government.
Similar apps have been used in countries like South Korea to help keep track of the spread of the virus.
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