The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic is changing the lives of most people on Earth, whether they want it or not. And not all of these changes will be for the worse. We present you the top 10 things related to the Wuhan coronavirus that can forever change our lives.
10. Remote work from home
Before the spread of the coronavirus infection COVID-19, only 7% of American workers were able to work from home. This does not mean that 7% worked from home - it simply means that 93% of Americans said they did not consider remote work as a suitable option.
Now, during quarantine in different countries, including Russia, work from home is a necessity. While there are no accurate statistics on how many people work remotely around the world, Cisco has said that in China its video conferencing software generates 22 times more traffic than before the epidemic.
It is likely that many people will continue to work from home after the pandemic is over. And this change associated with coronavirus can help increase life satisfaction. On average, a trip to work takes 20 minutes one way, and experts say that these 20 minutes affect job satisfaction as negatively as a 19% reduction in wages.
9. The development of telemedicine
For many years, telemedicine has stayed on the Internet sidelines, both in terms of its costs, and in terms of user confidence in online medical consultations. But the need for self-isolation of people in different countries of the world can raise the popularity of telemedicine to previously unattainable heights. And the profession of an online doctor can become one of the most sought-after professions of the future.
Staying at home and making a video call to the doctor, patients do not come into contact with people who are possibly infected with coronavirus in a queue. And, most importantly, doctors do not distract from patients in need of intensive care.
8. Accelerating enterprise automation
During the quarantine, due to COVID-19, companies whose enterprises are widely used in robotics were in a better position than companies that use mainly human labor.
For example, Caja Robotics, an industrial robot company, said it saw a 25% increase in requests over the past 30 days. It can be expected that many companies after the coronavirus epidemic will resort to large-scale automation.
China has already begun to replace couriers with unmanned aerial vehicles, and they are faster and safer than people. In China, they even experimented with robots in hospitals, where smart machines measure temperature, bring food to patients and disinfect the room.
7. The spread of online learning
At home during the raging SARS-CoV-2, not only adults are sitting, but also schoolchildren paired with students. However, the educational process should go on continuously, so some Internet services that have become free because of the coronavirus have opened up unlimited access to the entire school curriculum. And many educational institutions have switched to distance learning.
It is unlikely that we will see widespread online education in the near future. Feedback from teachers, so far, is almost universally negative. The main problem is that online education is not available to those who cannot afford to buy a computer or access the Internet.
However, teachers who have switched to remote work with students will receive an accelerated crash course of training of the 21st century. They are guaranteed to return to normal work with ideas that transform the educational process into something newer and possibly better.
6. Online Games - A New Learning Platform
This change is closely related to another thing that has become ubiquitous thanks to coronavirus - distance learning. Many creative teachers and even students use young people's passion for online games to combine business with pleasure.
For example, students in Rostov-on-Don held a programming lesson in Minecraft, creating a virtual audience, and the teacher used several markers and a sponge to explain the material.
And if distance learning takes on a ubiquitous nature, then online games will surely follow after it, in which it will be possible not only to entertain, but also to educate the younger generation.
5. The death of many small businesses
The sad proverb “While the fat dries, the thin dies” can now be fully applied to small businesses, and not only in Russia.
Owners of small shops, cafes, sewing workshops, children's clubs, hairdressers, etc. Now they suffer huge losses due to the outflow of customers and the need to quarantine their employees due to COVID-19. But nobody has canceled rental and other payments.
Ruined entrepreneurs and their employees cannot buy goods and services, pay loans, travel on vacation and educate children, and this entails the “collapse” of other businesses.
This sad picture becomes even darker with each passing day of quarantine, and will forever change the lives of many people, as well as the situation in the world as a whole.
4. The emphasis on privacy
Now we know that touching things, such as kisses and hugs with other people, and even being in the same room with them can be risky. And this knowledge will forever remain with those who survive the year 2020. Keeping a distance, refusing handshakes or friendly kisses, as well as frequent washing of hands gradually become a habit, which can become second nature.
The comfort of being in the presence of other people can be replaced by greater comfort in their absence, especially in the case of strangers. Instead of asking, "Is there a reason to do this on the Internet?" we will ask ourselves: "Is there a good reason to do this personally?"
3. Ending reliance on China
Until now, the world has relied on China as the largest manufacturing center. In China, 20% of all goods on Earth are produced. However, when China went to quarantine and most of its enterprises stopped working, it became clear how dangerous it was to rely on one country to supply the whole world.
Some countries are already starting to transfer production back to their own borders, while others say that it is necessary to organize the production of necessary goods in several different places.
2. The shift in geopolitics and the possible growth of nationalism
David S. Jones, a professor of medical culture at Harvard University, explained in an interview with Business Insider that the concept of “guilt” during pandemics is a common tactic for governments in different countries. They divide people according to characteristics such as religion, race, nationality, social class, or gender identity.
What we are seeing now: US President Donald Trump calls COVID-19 the “Chinese virus,” which could have long-term discriminatory consequences for Asian Americans.
“With each country that closes its borders, there is a risk that if any kind of unification occurs, it will be at the national level. At the end of this (union), the English will say “we rallied and we did it on our own”, and the French will say the same, and the Italians will say the same ... so I think that the result of (such a union) may be nationalism, ”said Jones.
1. Massive unemployment and rising protest sentiment
COVID-19 has an impact on people's health, but even more severely it affects the global economy. According to analysts at Bloomberg, in the worst case scenario, the global economy will not receive up to 2.7 trillion. dollars this year. At the same time, Russia is missing 4.35 trillion. rubles.
And according to JP Morgan Chase experts, 400,000 Americans will become unemployed in the next few weeks. They did not report about the Russians, but it is unlikely that the number of unemployed due to coronavirus in our country will be significantly less.
While office workers are able to work remotely from home, unemployment will hit mainly workers in the small and medium-sized businesses, and low-skilled workforce. Experts are already predicting a revolution; analyst Katie O’Neill describes her as “Capture Wall Street 2.0.” Recall that the “Take Wall Street” action is a civil protest action that began in New York on September 17, 2011. They were organized to draw public attention to the “crimes of the financial elite” and to call for radical changes in the economy.
