As they say, it ain’t over till it’s over, and that may be the case of Covid-19; like the Brad Pitt-Angelina Jolie divorce case, it just goes on and on and just won’t go away. Of course that case hasn’t ended because Jolie reportedly suffers from bi-polar disorder which she more or less has been able to conceal behind her media-supported public façade—which was certainly evident in the way she fooled the reporters in a 2017 Vanity Fair cover story. No wonder Pitt took to drink during the legal marriage that was “persuaded” on him by the kids and lasted only two years.
But the coronavirus plays by its own tune, and any report of its “death” is, to quote Mark Twain, “an exaggeration.” The new variant of the Omicron variant, called BA2, is becoming the dominant strain and has the same characteristics as the original Omicron virus. However, it is not expected to be the cause of another “surge,” despite the fact that it is 50 percent more transmissible, when the first Omicron variant was already multiple times more transmissible than the Delta variant.
But having claimed that the worst of it was over, the CDC still seems poised to end all mask requirements—including on public transit—by mid-April. Whether or not new variants of the coronavirus will “cooperate” remains to be seen, but most people seem to think it will, if the lack of masking (save in public transportation and some retail stores) is any indication. Even the public libraries only “suggest” the wearing of masks in Seattle.
In the past two years many urban areas saw most of their office buildings partially or entirely shut down, with employees working remotely. With offices reopening fully, some tenants are taking to rather extreme measures to avoid such shut downs in the future—what some might say are almost Orwellian “Big Brother” measures. I couldn’t say how widespread such practices are, but I read about how one business is approaching the matter. For example
Upgraded security cameras to monitor ingress/egress points for each floor as well as the stairwells and bathroom floor, thereby enhancing the security and safety of our people. Each camera now includes facial recognition software. Thus we can identify the presence of anyone in the office. By immediately recognizing each person within the camera capture, we can continuously maintain the safety of our workplace.
Besides the question of privacy issues, does facial recognition software actually work? It depends on who is “selling” the product. If you are a “seller,” then the claim can be as high as 99.97 percent accuracy. But in an article written by Steve Symanovich for NortonLifeLock noted. “In the real world, though, accuracy rates are usually lower…Facial Recognition Vendor Test found that the error rate for one algorithm rose from 0.1% when faces were matched against high-quality mugshots to 9.3% when matched to pictures of individuals captured in public. Error rates rose especially when subjects were not looking directly at the camera or were partially hidden by shadows or objects.” He also noted that aging factors could cause error rates by a factor of 10.
A further feature of the security cameras is the inclusion of FLIR (Forward Looking InfraRed) technology which will register the temperature of each individual, thereby allowing us to identify anyone with an elevated temperature, which we can use to mitigate any future viral transmissions…If you see a red light flashing in the camera, pause for a second to allow the camera to take your temperature.
FLIR devices have come under scrutiny for violation of privacy, such when law enforcement uses it “sense” something is happening in a private residence without a warrant; naturally the U.S. Supreme Court saw no problem with this. The issue is, again, accuracy. The temperature gadget I had to look into every day only worked from six to 12 inches away (depending on how big your face is) and your face had to be perfectly aligned. More “sophisticated” office FLIR technology supposedly can measure temperature from 3 to 6 feet away, but again only by proper “alignment” and would require people actually allowing it to measure their temperature.
Upon your return, IT will be pushing an APP, Sound Collection Automation Model, to your phone which employs the microphone on your phone to increase your safety. Specifically, the APP will allow IT to continuously listen to your microphone and IT will be able to directly communicate with you, office staff, building security or 9-1-1 in case of an emergency.
One suspects that this is actually meant to monitor that someone is actually engaging in something to do with their job requirements. You often hear when calling various customer services that “your call may be recorded for quality assurance.” but I wonder just how many people in an office environment (rather than a call center) will “accidentally” disconnect the microphone to avoid being monitored.
It then goes on to note that The CDC has ranked hand transmission as a major “vector” in the spread of viruses. All employees will thus be provided a pair of nitrile gloves, to be worn at all times. I’m curious of how that is going to be enforced, since there was no mention of face masks being required, when air passed between two persons is the principle “vector” in spreading the coronavirus.
And there is this: a CDC-sanctioned pilot program for a wastewater surveillance system, in which “toilets will be programmed to suspend any flushing for three hour collection windows. A sample will be taken once every three hours just prior to the scheduled flush. Coupled with camera imaging, this will alert those people who use the bathroom in the last three hours with the Sound Collection Automation Model app that they may have contracted Covid-19.” The CDC website shows us how this works:
This isn’t exactly one of those “rapid” Covid swab tests, so just how useful in controlling the spread of the virus in the real world is debatable. I suspect most people will find this another “Big Brother” nuisance, and to quote Jeff Bridges’ Rooster Coburn in the remake of True Grit, “There is no clock on my business!”
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