200408 Collaboration & COVID-19

Researchers: show world leaders how to behave in a crisis

This is an editoral published in Nature this week. It showed how researchers get together to fight COVID-19. Much more informations should be shared. However, it pointes out that presidents and prime ministers are moving too slowly, in stark contrast to their response to the financial crisis of 2008. Meanwhile, when comparing with collaboration between different funding agencies, less consencus at the highest levels of government both in the domestic and worldwide.  What's important, the fact is that the virus could not be extinguished in one country when it is exploding elsewhere. Under this circumustances, world leaders should be united and follow the fine examples being set by researchers to fight COVID-19, a world-wide crisis.

sentences and vocabulary:

 in stark contrast to adj. 僵硬的, 光秃秃的, 荒凉的  完全的, 全然的  与···形成鲜明的对照

His actions were in stark contrast to his words.

Are you stark raving mad, jumping off a moving train?

I hope he will not go stark raving bonkers when knowing the truth.

Presidents and prime ministers are moving too slowly, in stark contrast to their response to the financial crisis of 2008, when heads of government, ministries of finance, central banks and other multilateral lending agencies got together and agreed what needed to be done.

Although different funding agencies are collaborating on coronavirus research, there is less consensus at the highest levels of government, and most countries seem to be making independent decisions about how to protect their citizens.

They have no choice, because there’s little point in extinguishing the virus in one country when it’s exploding elsewhere. A genuinely global response is needed — and world leaders must follow the fine example being set by researchers.