Mask Wars to Vaccine Wars: Predictions in Public Health and Science Comms

In this episode, Sweta and Taylor talk to Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing), a Harvard trained epidemiologist and former candidate for Congress! Eric has been an advocate for evidence-based public health policies since the outbreak of COVID-19 and continues to emphasize the need to come together as a community to squash disease outbreaks. He’s been retweeted by AOC, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), and the President of Mexico (who translated his tweet into Spanish!), and many other notables for his relentless efforts to fight science disinformation and better inform the public.

The trio discusses everything from our current Biden-Harris era of science communication and policy to COVID-19 myths to the mask wars, as well as the reluctance to get vaccinated and the role scientists need to play in better science communication. Spoiler alert: we def need to improve our emotional EQ and stop fighting with one another in public!

This is a serious topic, but there is always humor to be found, and this episode is full of both facts and fun! Sit back with a (yes…still) socially distanced drink. We’re getting there folks!

---- NOTE: This episode was recorded in Winter 2020. COVID-19 related news changes at a rapid pace, so please be sure to keep up to date with your trusted local, state, and national news sources.

---- Please note that due to quarantine, we're still recording remotely. You may hear some unexpected background noises. We hope that won't discourage you from getting into these really important issues.

--- "Have ideas for the show? Want to give some feedback?" Shoot us a voice message at [phone] and we’ll make sure to get our producer to listen to it - cause we don’t do voicemail. 

You can always feel free to tweet us @swetachak and @drtaylorwallace respectively or @riskybehaviordc. We love a good tweet.

-- Special shoutout to Dr. Eric Feigl-Ding for taking time out for our show! You can keep up with Eric on Twitter @DrEricDing

--- Credits: Executive Producers/Hosts: Sweta Chakraborty and Taylor Wallace Production/Editing: Brandon Jack Lee

Special thanks to Anchor.fm for smart sounds