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There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
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Many are wondering when the pandemic will end, despite more and more people getting infected, and re-infected, even with their vaccine and booster shots. Some countries in Europe, including Britain, France, and Spain are pushing for a new approach, which is to just accept the coronavirus as part of daily life. M.G. Finn, professor and chair of the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, says it's only a matter of time before the pandemic slows down. "Think of it as if you're vaccinated and boosted, you are at very low risk of severe disease — that is, being hospitalized or dying from COVID-19, but you can still be infected," Finn says. The World Health Organization and local health agencies will only declare the pandemic over after certain benchmarks. That could depend on factors such as the virus’s contagiousness, the mortality rate, and power to overwhelm hospitals.