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My Data Science Quarantine Journey
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a dramatic loss of human life worldwide and presents an unprecedented challenge to public health, food systems and the world of work. The economic and social disruption caused by the pandemic is devastating: tens of millions of people are at risk of falling into extreme poverty, while the number of undernourished people, currently estimated at nearly 690 million, could increase by up to 132 million by the end of the year.
My Story
It was nearly two weeks ago now when I started developing some minor flu-like symptoms. It started with heavy-watery eyes, noticeable fatigue, and excruciating muscle soreness. At first, I just chalked it up to sleeping on a new mattress in my old bedroom in my parents house after being home for the holidays. Combine that with the drastic weather shift Chicago had in a matter of days, and my bad habit of staying up to ungodly hours, the idea of me having COVID-19 didn’t even cross my mind. I rarely left the house, and if I did I was relatively good about masks, hand sanitizer, keeping my distance, all of it. However, fast-forward four days, my symptoms progressively worsened, and additionally had a nasty cough, and the kicker, I had complete lost of smell. Within a couple of hours, I drove to the nearest testing facility, checked-in, got tested, and just as I thought, POSITIVE.
I wasn’t surprised, but still in shock. This meant no family coming over to the house for Christmas Eve, no Christmas morning traditions with my parents. I felt like I ruined I Christmas. Regardless, my parents’ support and assurance that I didn’t ruin anything helped me during what felt like a never-ending quarantine process.
Just for background information, I’m a current undergrad senior who’s studying Mathematical Sciences with a concentration in Statistics and a minor in Data Science. Additionally, I’m enrolled in a combined Master’s Degree program for Applied Statistics with a focus in Data Science.
