Time USA - 06.04.2020

13

As millions of people go online to

stay productive and connected while try-

ing to “flatten the curve” of the COVID-

pandemic, they’re putting the Internet it-

self under enormous pressure. A home or

neighborhood Internet connection is like a

highway: the more traffic being sent back

and forth, the longer it takes for data to get

where it needs to go—and traffic world-

wide is up 35% in the past two weeks, says

networking firm CenturyLink. As the off-

line world seems to grind to a halt, is there

enough bandwidth to go around?

Demand is highest in the evening right

now, says CenturyLink CTO Andrew

Dugan. That suggests that while people may

be shifting their typical workplace Internet

use to the home, they’re also online more

than usual after hours , watching movies and

chatting. Some services, like Netflix and

YouTube, are already reducing the quality

of some content in Europe to manage de-

mand; similar steps could be taken in the

U.S. Meanwhile, Internet providers are aug-

menting their networks to handle the load.

At the same time, many are relaxing their

data limits, which is good news for monthly

bills but may encourage even more use.

People who need a faster connection may

consider paying for a higher-speed package,

but advertised speeds are rarely guaranteed.

And even if their access is uninterrupted,

the COVID-19 outbreak will still put a spot-

light on the broadband gap. A 2015 Pew sur-

vey found that 15% of rural U.S. households

lacked broadband access, making it harder

or impossible to work or learn remotely.

Advocates say it’s a problem that needs

addressing sooner rather than later. “We

should celebrate that so many people have

the ability to [work remotely], but we have

to recognize that there are disconnected

people among us who don’t,” says FCC com-

missioner Jessica Rosenworcel.

In the meantime, just as you shouldn’t

hoard toilet paper or soap, don’t be a band-

width hog—turning off devices when they

aren’t in use can help free up bandwidth for

your neighbors on the same local network.

—pAtrick lucAs Austin

GOOD QUESTION

We’re online more than ever right

now. Can the Internet keep up?

SPOTLIGHT

How COVID-

affects

pregnancy

Pregnancy c an b e a n

uncertain time even

without a p andemic. N ow

researchers are rapidly

try ing t o fi gure o ut t he r isks

of C OV ID-19 t o p regnant

women a nd n ew borns.

U.S. e xpert s s ay that

for n ow, pregnant w omen

should f ollow g eneral

guidelines, i ncluding h and-

washing, and continue

to a ttend t heir p renatal

checkups. T he Worl d H ealth

Organization a grees, s ay-

ing t here i s “ no ev idence”

that p regnant w omen a re

at h igher r isk f rom C OV ID-

1 9 b ut t hat b ecause o f

changes i n t heir b odies a nd

immune s ystems, t hey can

be b adly a ffected by r espira-

tory i nfections.

So f ar, t here i s n o d ata

suggesting a n i ncreased

risk o f m iscarriage or that

the v iru s c an p ass o n t o a

dev eloping f etus. A lthough

a n ew born baby in London

tested p ositive f or t he v iru s

in m id-March, i t’s u nclear

whether t he v iru s was

transmitted i n t he w omb o r

during l abor. S o f ar, c hildren

account f or a t iny share

of C OV ID-19 i nfections;

however, of c hildren w ho

do d ev elop s ev ere c ases,

infants u nder 1 2 months

are m ost a t r isk.

One e ncouraging f act i s

that t he v iru s t hat c auses

COV ID-19 h as n ot b een

found i n b reast m ilk. T he

CDC a dvises a m other w ho

is s ymptomatic t o t ake

precautions, i ncluding

wearing a f ace m ask w hile

breastfeeding, but experts

don’t r ecommend m others

with s ymptoms s top

breastfeeding—part icularl y

because a ntibodies i n t he

milk c an h elp fi ght t he v iru s.

—Madeline Roache

NOTE: YEAR-OVER-YEAR SALES ARE FOR THE WEEK ENDING MARCH 14, FROM NIELSEN RETAIL MEASUREMENT SERVICES

SOURCES: KROGER; AMAZON; ATA; ATRI; UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA; TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY; TYSON FOODS; US FOODS

GROCERS Major chains like

Kroger are hiring employ ees

and increasing pay. They are

limiting some purchases and

are reducing shopping hours to

stock and sanitize the stores.

PRODUCTION So far, COV ID-19 hasn’t

disru pted farm ing, but demand is

shifting. Sales of dried beans are up

231% year ov er year. Rice is up 166%.

Even some perishables are up 50%.

TRANSPORT

To meet that

need, highway-

safety regulators

relaxed limits on

driving hours for

tru cke rs carry ing

critical goods.

Trucks are

mov ing faster as

a result of less

car traffic.

FOOD SERVICE

Companies

that supply

restaurants, like

US Fo ods, are

contracting their

workers to grocery

suppliers and re-

routing inv entory

to superm arkets.

STORAGE To focus on

household staples,

including food

items, Amazon is

halting deliveries of

nonessential goods to

its wa rehouses.

PROCESSING Ty son

is d eploy ing more

worker s hifts a nd

adjusting p roduction

lines. Four m illion l b.

of c hicke n n uggets

and p atties f or

places l ike s chools

hav e b een repack-

aged f or s tores.

RACING TO

RESTOCK

The U .S. h as p lenty

of f ood, b ut s helves

are e mpty. H ere’s

how t he s upply

chain i s r eacting t o

a s urge i n d emand.

BRLEDE.indd 13 3/25/20 4:17 PM