--- title: Early Detection Is Key to Combating Spread of Coronavirus description: The epidemic of a new coronavirus is a stark reminder of the threat infectious diseases pose, but there’s one encouraging development. canonical: https://time.com/5778997/early-detection-coronavirus/ author: Pardis Sabeti article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-02-06T11:21:06.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-24T08:11:59.116Z article:section: Ideas og:title: Early Detection Is Key to Combating the Spread of Coronavirus og:description: For Ebola and SARS too much time passed: the viruses mutated and became potentially more dangerous og:url: https://time.com/5778997/early-detection-coronavirus/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt40b24af2c2914e69/698a09dc86f68e165b6ee4e8/early-detection-coronavirus.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: early-detection-coronavirus og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Early Detection Is Key to Combating the Spread of Coronavirus twitter:description: For Ebola and SARS too much time passed: the viruses mutated and became potentially more dangerous twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt40b24af2c2914e69/698a09dc86f68e165b6ee4e8/early-detection-coronavirus.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Early Detection Is Key to Combating the Spread of Coronavirus > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs takes readers inside the newsroom, revealing the journalists, ideas and editorial choices behind the stories shaping the global conversation. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=dfb5dde2-92ea-4e9f-8607-87f2029ec023&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Sam Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Globally minded knowledge seekers. Readers who turn to journalism to understand the world, with meaningful concentrations among educators, students, media professionals, civic institutions and knowledge workers. ### TIME Inside TIME: key statements * Inside TIME is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Inside TIME is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=dfb5dde2-92ea-4e9f-8607-87f2029ec023&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/subscribe?i=dfb5dde2-92ea-4e9f-8607-87f2029ec023&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is Inside TIME? Inside TIME is a twice-weekly newsletter written by TIME Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs. It explains how TIME's journalism is made, from the first pitch through the editorial decisions behind a finished story or cover. #### How can I read about how TIME chooses its covers? Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. by [Pardis Sabeti](https://time.com/author/pardis-sabeti/) ## Pardis Sabeti Feb 6, 2020 11:21 AM UTC  A resident volunteers to take the temperature of a passenger following the outbreak of a new coronavirus at a bus stop at Tin Shui Wai, a border town in Hong Kong, China, Feb. 4, 2020. A resident volunteers to take the temperature of a passenger following the outbreak of a new coronavirus at a bus stop at Tin Shui Wai, a border town in Hong Kong, China, Feb. 4, 2020. Tyrone Siu—Reuters by [Pardis Sabeti](https://time.com/author/pardis-sabeti/) ## Pardis Sabeti Feb 6, 2020 11:21 AM UTC The epidemic of a new coronavirus is a stark reminder of the threat infectious diseases pose, but there’s one encouraging development. Within weeks of the virus’s being reported, scientists in China quickly isolated and sequenced the virus and shared the data with the international research community, accelerating global efforts to develop diagnostics, vaccines and therapies. The world got a head start because the Chinese scientific community had a robust disease-monitoring network in place to detect emerging flu strains, and had experienced SARS. This wasn’t the case with the [Ebola virus epidemic](https://time.com/time-person-of-the-year-ebola-scientists/) that ravaged West Africa from 2014 to 2016\. The world wasn’t looking. By the time the virus was detected, it had already been circulating for months. The same holds true for the Zika virus, which we now believe was circulating in South America for more than a year before being detected. Viruses have a molecular “clock” that allows us to estimate when they first jumped to humans or entered a particular human population–genomics’ version of carbon dating. Based on the limited initial genetic diversity seen in the 2019-nCoV genome, we believe that scientists in China detected this outbreak within weeks of its start. That speed of detection is unprecedented and crucial. Time is of the essence when it comes to responding to outbreaks. For Ebola and SARS, too much time had passed: the viruses mutated and became potentially more dangerous. All three recent outbreaks demonstrate the power of genomics in guiding our response to these emerging threats. Current genomics technologies can tell us about the virus’s origins, spread and underlying biology. They also make it possible to have working diagnostics shared around the world within days. But we need to leverage these genomic tools and dramatically increase our capabilities. China achieved near real-time response because it had the infrastructure in place; most countries in the Global South, which are disproportionately impacted by viral outbreaks, do not. Most countries and most U.S. states still do not have the capability to detect 2019-nCoV on-site. The 2019-nCoV epidemic not only underscores the need to increase our investment in genomics, diagnostics and information technology, but also the importance of incorporating them into our routine health practices. We’re still a long way from controlling 2019-nCoV, and a painful human toll may still lie ahead. And while the world pays close attention to 2019-nCoV, around 100 or more other outbreaks are reported every year, and Ebola is still devastating the Democratic Republic of Congo. Let’s hope that we all learn from this experience to build the worldwide systems we need to react quickly, no matter the threat. _Sabeti, a TIME 100 honoree, is a member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard_ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5778997/early-detection-coronavirus/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5778997/early-detection-coronavirus/"},"headline":"Early Detection Is Key to Combating the Spread of Coronavirus","datePublished":"2020-02-06T11:21:06.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T08:11:59.116Z","description":"The epidemic of a new coronavirus is a stark reminder of the threat infectious diseases pose, but there’s one encouraging development.","url":"https://time.com/5778997/early-detection-coronavirus/","keywords":["health"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt40b24af2c2914e69/698a09dc86f68e165b6ee4e8/early-detection-coronavirus.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Pardis Sabeti","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/pardis-sabeti/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt40b24af2c2914e69/698a09dc86f68e165b6ee4e8/early-detection-coronavirus.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"early-detection-coronavirus","caption":"A resident volunteers to take the temperature of a passenger following the outbreak of a new coronavirus at a bus stop at Tin Shui Wai, a border town in Hong Kong, China, Feb. 4, 2020.","creditText":"Tyrone Siu—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/health/","name":"health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5778997/early-detection-coronavirus/","name":"Early Detection Is Key to Combating the Spread of Coronavirus"}}]}] ```