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How does herd immunity work?

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Since the start of the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, the term “herd immunity” has been all over the news. But what does it really mean? It’s Okay To Be Smart uses mousetraps and ping-pong balls to show how it works.

Additional Resources for you to Explore

Dig into the basics of pandemic science with these videos: When is a pandemic over?How fast can a vaccine be made? How pandemics spreadHow well do masks work?What is a coronavirus?

How exactly do vaccines work? And how do we eradicate a disease? Explore the story of Smallpox— the first and only human disease to be permanently eliminated. 

Vaccines for diseases like mumps and rubella offer a lifetime of protection with two shots early in life, so why do we need a new flu shot every year? Dig into the virology of influenza.

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