Thank you so much for following along with my life and adventures in Shanghai! As I’ve said in each of the last few posts, I’m incredibly thankful for all of the messages I’ve received asking how I’m holding up during the coronavirus epidemic. If you haven’t seen my prior four posts, which discuss the current situation in Shanghai and China, please take a look at them.
https://astronomerinshanghai.com/uncategorized/life-in-quarantine-week-1/
https://astronomerinshanghai.com/uncategorized/life-in-quarantine-week-2/
https://astronomerinshanghai.com/uncategorized/life-in-quarantine-week-3/
https://astronomerinshanghai.com/uncategorized/life-in-quarantine-week-4/
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Life in Shanghai
To start, I want to emphasize that I remain healthy, safe, and happy here in Shanghai! As I’ve done each of the past few posts, I want to take the time to thank all of you who have reached out to me or to my parents to check in and see how I’m doing. I really appreciate knowing that so many of you are concerned about me and are thinking of me during this difficult experience.
To begin this post, I want to update you all on the current situation in Shanghai. In the past week, there were just 2 new cases of the coronavirus here in Shanghai. The total for the city is 337, with 3 fatalities. Clearly, the policies put in place by the Shanghai municipal government are working and helping to slow (or halt) the spread of the virus. Moreover, of those 337 people, only 44 are still currently infected. Thus, in Shanghai, the recovery rate is currently sitting at about 87%, which is excellent. Each day more people are recovering, so hopefully that number will rise in the coming weeks.
Given these improved numbers, you’re likely wondering whether life is changing in Shanghai. For the most part, it hasn’t changed much. I’m still working from home (as are many others). The lane neighborhood where I live still locks the gate (although it is kept open and unlocked for a few hours each day). Schools remain closed. For elementary, middle, and high schools, this will remain the case until the virus is nearly defeated. However, for SJTU, where I work, the main concern is not the situation in Shanghai, but rather requiring students to travel from all over China to return to Shanghai. One change is that the number of businesses open is rapidly increasing. When I went to get fruit Sunday afternoon, I noticed that many of the smaller restaurants and shops on the street that I live on are now open (they were not earlier this week). So, life is returning to some semblance of normalcy, which is great!
While the situation has dramatically improved in Shanghai, what about the rest of China. In Beijing, there are 413 cases, with 274 recovered and 8 deaths. While I won’t list the numbers for every major city, in total, there are about 80,000 cases in mainland China, and of those ~ 42,000 have recovered. However, if you exclude Wuhan/Hubei province, the recovery rate is at ~ 71%, which is in much better agreement with the numbers seen in Shanghai.
Sadly, the coronavirus outbreak has continued to spread rapidly throughout the world. The most troubling cases appear to be in South Korea (where the number continues to rapidly increase daily), Italy (where the number is rising, but less rapidly), Japan (mostly a result of the Diamond Princess cruise, but interestingly, the number of cases reported each day is small), and Iran. So, while the situation is improving in China, it’s important to remember that this virus is impacting the globe. I also think that it’s important to recognize that the actions taken by the Chinese government, such as essentially quarantining Wuhan, shutting down work, keeping people at home, and putting restrictions of people gathering have worked very well. Sadly, many of these actions would be very difficult to enforce in non-authoritarian countries.
Since I’m sure many of my readers are beginning to be concerned about the coronavirus, here are some tips that I would recommend for the coronavirus. Please note, these are just tips that I follow myself, not a guaranteed way not to get sick.
- 1. Wash your hands after you’ve gone outside. Make sure to follow the CDC recommendations and wash them thoroughly for ~ 20 seconds.
- 2. Wear gloves when you are in public spaces. Also, try to avoid touching your face with those gloves when you are outside. This is difficult.
- 3. Have hand sanitizer and either use that or soap when cleaning your hands. Keep this in your home/office.
- 4. Consider getting masks. While masks are required/recommended in China. The masks themselves are only somewhat helpful. As I’ve discussed on this blog before, wearing a mask doesn’t guarantee not getting sick. If your able to get masks, I would recommend it. However, outside of possibly on airplanes, you currently do not need to wear masks in the USA. Moreover, it’s more important when outside to just avoid people then it is to wear masks
- 5. Don’t panic. It’s perfectly okay to be nervous or scared about the situation. I know I am. However, you also shouldn’t do the opposite. So, I strongly recommend not listening to the current President of the US and his rhetoric claiming that everything is fine and the US is doing a great job. While many researchers and scientists around the world (not just in the US) are working at breakneck speed to solve this crisis, a cure is still likely at least a year away. So, there’s no need for false machismo when it comes to your individual safety.
Now back to updating you about the rest of my life. I’ve continued to work from home for now a 5th week. I’m still grateful that I’m able to be productive, but there are times when it’d be more efficient to chat in person, instead of just over zoom. Sharing my screen works, but can sometimes be slow. In terms of research progress, I’ve finally gotten the first figure matched for my Luminosity Function analysis. It’s really nice to finally make a bit of progress on that project. In terms of my Stellar Mass – Halo Mass relation DES work, with the help of my Ph.D. advisor, Prof. Chris Miller, I’ve determined the best step forward based on a comparison between the SDSS and DES photometry. I’m currently in the process of rerunning much of that analysis. However, since I already have all the necessary infrastructure, those results should be done by the time I write my next post! 🙂
My life continues to be consumed by many zoom meetings. The SJTU postdocs chave a daily zoom meeting to chat and discuss recent figures. Additionally on Wednesday the Zu group had another group meeting. I also had an additional telecon with my boss/mentor on Thursday as well as a DESI telecon on Tuesday. So, even though I’m not able to see people, I am able to connect and keep collaborators updated about my progress.
One nice thing about this past week was that on Monday and Tuesday, it was incredibly warm. Almost 80 degrees! So, on both days, I went out (with my mask) for a nice hour long walk. Since it was so warm both days, I treated myself to raspberry sorbet and a tropical fruit smoothie!
Currently, I’m still able to easily get all of the food and groceries I need. It’s incredibly convenient that I’m able to order groceries online. This week I made Moroccan red lentil soup as well as farmesan (vegan parmesan cheese)! So, I have plenty of healthy and delicious food to eat. Additionally, I ordered a jump rope, so I have expanded my exercise routine beyond pushups, crunches and jumping jacks! 🙂
Like last week, I got Shabbat dinner on Friday with my same group of friends! It was really nice to see everyone in person! It’s comforting hearing everyone’s plans and what they are doing. Especially since many of my friends have lived in Shanghai/China far longer than I have. Overall, It’s been a great way to keep my spirits up.
I’m really happy that I have so many friends here who are willing and able to go out and get together! Also, as an additional sign that things are improving, a few more of my friends have either just returned or will be returning next week to Shanghai! So, maybe these weekly dinners will start to grow a bit over the next couple of weeks!
One additional highlight from my walks this week! This was too cute and funny for me not to take a picture of!
Food in Shanghai
For our now weekly dinner, we returned to the same Sichuan restaurant! The food, just like last week was very enjoyable. However, I do hope that as things return to normal, I’ll be able to venture out and explore new vegan/vegetarian restaurants as well, soon!
For this weeks meal, we had vegetarian ma po tofu, eggplant, sesame noodles, potato shreds, and tofu with celery and peppers! I again loved the sesame noodles, but I also really enjoyed the tofu with celery!
Thanks to my friend Heather, I know break the fourth wall. Here’s a photo of me taking the above picture!
Jewish Life in Shanghai
Like last week, this week, we had our now weekly Zoom Shabbat’s. It is really nice seeing and hearing from so many members of Kehilat Shanghai and Kehilat Beijing. Both within my friend group and within the larger Jewish community, it’s been wonderful to see everyone come together and be supportive of one another
Thanks to my friends Heather and Shimi, you can see what it looks like at dinner when everyone is plugged into there phones trying to follow along with the Zoom Shabbat while also being at a restaurant! It is really funny when someone at our table is talking on the Zoom telecon and you hear the words echoed by the telecon! 🙂
Additionally, this week, Moishe House hosted a Zoom Havdalah! So, I got to mark the beginning and end of Shabbat with fellow members of the Jewish community! While I’m grateful that all of these events happen, I’m looking forward to when we can all gather together in person to celebrate Shabbat!
Despite another week of semi-self-imposed quarantine, this was an enjoyable and productive week.
I hope that this update about the coronavirus situation in Shanghai and how I am coping reassures you about my health and safety. I also hope that my advice is helpful and doesn’t cause you any to become worried about your own health and safety. Staying calm and maintaining your own mental health is important as well. Hopefully the spread of the coronavirus will slow and a cure will soon be discovered soon. I plan to continue to work productively on my research this week. I look forward to updating you all about my life and adventures next week! If you have any questions/comments or concerns about Shanghai or my safety, let me know!
In peace,
Jesse
Hi Jesse, I’m glad to hear that all is well with you this week. It’s nice to hear that even as things seem to be getting with with the coronavirus in the rest of the world that the number of cases in Shanghai is getting close to plateauing. Thank you for all of the tips! I really like the picture of the cat in the mask! I’m glad you were able to match the luminosity function! It’s always great when a you solve a problem you’ve been working on for a long time. I can’t believe it was almost 80 last week! It’s going to be 60 degrees here on Tuesday and all I can think of is what happened to winter. This is so strange. I’m glad you were able to cool off with sorbet. I’m also really glad that you have the Jewish community to hang out with since you’re still working from home. It must be nice to get to see people in person after only Skyping with others throughout the week. As always , the food looks delicious! I hope the start of March is productive!
Love,
Emmet
Hi Emmet! Thanks. I’m glad that the situation is improving in Shanghai as well. Hopefully that trend continues in Shanghai and around the world. I definitely agree about the weather. It’s mostly in the 50s/low 60s this week, but it’s been really strange not having a cold winter. Seeing people in person is now always a highlight! It’s so much nicer than just seeing people over zoom.
I was so touched to read you blog this week and learn what a Survivor you are. I think someday day you should write a book with all your experiences.
Sol has just completed his 10th Chemo and we look forward to his last one March 23rd. It will take awhile to return to his old self. He needs PT to help him walk better and his voice and hair is starting to come back. Maybe when your back in the states we can have a nice visit. Shalom
Cousin Halli
Hi Halli! Once I’ve finished my whole experience in China, I’ll definitely have to consider writing a book or putting the blog entries together. I hope that Sol’s continuing treatment goes well and that his condition improves. At this point I do plan to visit the US this summer, but I haven’t finalized a plan or dates yet. Once I do, I’ll let you know if I’m able to visit Buffalo.
Hey Jesse, glad to hear you’re doing well and Shanghai is coming back to life! Even if it’s little by little and slowly.
I also really enjoy your astronomy updates 🙂
It sounds like your projects are going really well, which is great!
Do you feel like you’ve become closer to your dinner group of friends? It seems like you’re spending more time together since the quarantine (but that’s just from my outside perspective).
Have a great week!
Ryan
Hi Ryan! The research is definitely going well. I think I should be able to have two papers that are done (in the sense that they’re submitted to either a journal or DES by end of the spring semester), which is great!
You’re definitely right. I feel really close with the group of 4-5 of us who have been here the entire time in Shanghai and have been getting together. I guess the experience has really brought us closer together!
Great to hear that the virus is not keeping you from making the most of life in Shanghai in general and the Jewish communities in both Shanghai and Beijing. The availability of such a wide range of vegetarian and vegan foods sounds wonderful. My sense is (and that may be only because of my ignorance) that traditional Chinese dishes were served from large communal pots and bowls at the table from which each person dining helped themselves with their own eating utensils. I wonder if that may have contributed to the spread of the virus… The dishes you photographed don’t reflect this practice, so I may be very wrong.
I have to say that I listened to the President’s press conference on our preparedness for the virus and felt so much more anxiety after his remarks than I had before he opened his mouth. If this was meant to engender confidence in the public then I think it went terribly (but hardly unexpectedly) wrong. Your point about not listening to such remarks is well taken.
Good luck with your research and stay healthy.
Hi Bernard! In terms of food, at many restaurants, food is served family style. However, now they still serve food family style, but instead of sharing utensils, they provide additional utensils or chopsticks that can be used to serve the food. So, they are taking precautions as well. I wouldn’t be surprised if that practice did cause some of the spread, but I think for the most part, they’re trying to restrict that practice.
I definitely agree with you about the President’s press conferences. Whenever I see info from the US, I find that it makes me much more anxious. While listening to the CDC is important, I don’t think that the current administration knows how to do anything to keep the situation calm.
Hi, Jesse.
I enjoyed reading your post very much as usual. As I said last night over FaceTime, I am very proud of you for doing such a great job of remaining upbeat and productive during this extended period of self-imposed quarantine. I am delighted that you are nearly done with the project with your graduate school advisor, Chris, and that you were able to match the luminosity function for your new research project. I am sure that the research projects and zoom meetings help to pass the time, but again, like cousin Halli says, you are a real survivor! I think your weekly dinners are helping to keep you sane! And I agree with Emmet and Bernard that the food looks delicious. When I come to visit–once this coronavirus outbreak is over, and a cure is found–I will look forward to trying the sesame noodles and the tofu with celery and peppers.
I have been thinking about last week’s post when you mentioned that over the Zoom group meeting you could hear a rooster crowing in the background. Imagine how isolated those in rural China must feel, and how lucky that we have the Internet. Your advice on staying well is very helpful, and I have now on hand all the things you mention.
Sending much love to you for another week of good health and productive research. Love, Mom
Hi Mom! Thanks for the words of praise and encouragement! Working on research definitely helps the time pass and it is always a nice break when we have zoom meetings. Once you come visit, we can definitely try many of the different dishes and restaurants that I’ve visited! There’s so much good food here.
Your point about rural China is definitely true. However, at least that student is home with his family (and extended family), so it’s probably not as isolating as being by yourself. I do agree that the internet has been great at keeping me connected with my family and friends in Shanghai and abroad!
Jesse, you raise a good point about how isolating it must be to be by yourself so much. Please know you are always in our thoughts and prayers and that we are only an email or FaceTime call away. Love you, Mom.
Thanks so much Mom! I’ll definitely take advantage of the technology to keep in touch!