At mutual of america, we believe taking care of tomorrow can help you make the most of today. Al muf america financial group, Retirement Services and investments. Additional support has been herovided by and byorporation for public broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the american people. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Sreenivasan od evening and thanks for joining us. We are continuing to bring you our reporting from mulatple remote lns this weekend. S it iill a time of social distancing and crisis here in new york city. And lives are beinst. Reading, even for those who are healthy, the coronavirus pandemic has stopped life as we knew it. Lets get started with tays top new the coronavirus pandemic has claimed more than 18,000 lives in the united states. There are now more than half a million confirmed cases in the u. S. , according to John Hopkins Universitys coronavirus resource tracker. City, where more than 5,800y people have died from covid19. Today, mayor bill de blasio announced that the citys schools will rmain closed for the rest of the academic year. Having to tell you that r cannot bring our schools back for tainder of the school year is painful. But i can also tell s ree right thing to do. Enivasan a few hours later, new York Governor Andrew Cuomo said he has the authority over schools statewide and that the mayors announcement was an opion. I understand the mayors position, which is, he wants to close until june. And we may dthat. But we are going to do it in a coordinated sense with the other localities. Sreenivasan cuomo also reported that hospitalizations in the state are deining, and may have hit their apex, but he said deaths from the virus continue at what he called a terrible news is the number of lives lost. 783 yestday. That is not an alltime hh, and you can see the nuer is somewhat stabilizing. But it istabilizing at a horrific rate. 783 people, 777, 799. These are just incredible numbers depicting incredible loss and pain. So sreenivasan the governor arned that until those numbers improve, speculation about reopening the economy is premature. You have to reopen, you have to decide how to reopen, you have to decide when to reopen. And that is going to be impactful. We dont know if theres going to be a second wave or not. The coronavirus has killed nearly 104,000 people around the world, and there are more than 1. 7 million confirmed infections. People in london stayed out ofa parks on sunny Holiday Weekend ath adhered to strict social distancing measures. Officials in the u. K. Announced that 917 people had died in hospitals from the coronavirus in the last 24 hours, bringing 0,the ath toll to nearly0. Across the u. K. , there are nearly0,000 people with confirmed infections, including the Prime Minister, boris johnson. He remains hospitalized with the virus, but officials y his condition continues to improve and he is no longer in intensive care. Imposed a twoday lockdown across much of the country to try and stop the spread of covid19. In is, tanbcity of 16 million, bridges and streets were almost completely deserted. Tuey haslso halted all international flights, restricted domestic travel, and banned largerayer gatherings. In india, Prime Minister nodarendra modi announced that the countrys lockdown would be extended, but didnt say for how lo. A 21day lockdown was due to end this coming tuesday, bumany regional officials urged for it to be extended, despite the hardship its imposed on tens of millions of poorer indians who are unable to work. And in brazil, officials announced that the death toll here had exceeded 1,000, making it the first country in the Southern Hemisphere to officially surpass that mark. While many regions of brazil are under quarantines, the countrys preso,ident, jair bolsonaras ignored warnings from Public Health officials and flaunted social distancing guidelines. 50 years ago today, the apollo 13 mission blasted off only to become famous for the astronauts message two days later houston, weve had a sreenivasan an oxygen tank in the capsule had exploded, keeping astronauts james lovell, fred hais and jack swigert from landing on the moons surface. The blast also knocked outwo electrical powgenerating fuel cells, and ruptured a third. Quick thinking by the crew and Mission Control brought the astronauts home safely days later. The rescue is considered to be one of greatest in american Paul Mccartneys handwritten lycs to the beatles iconic song hey jude sold at an Online Auction yesterday for 910,000. The scribbled notes fetched nine times the original estimate. The lyrics were one of more than 250 items of beatles memorabilia that went on auction to mark the 50th anniversary of the bands breakup. Other items included a drum head and drawings by john lennon. For more on the coronavirus outbreak and the latest national and international news, visit www. Pbs. Org newshour. Sreenivasan when it comes to covid19, there has been a great deal of discussion about whether or t people are asymptomatic, and what that could really mean when it comes to contracting and spreading the virus. Iecently spoke with propublica Health ReporterCaroline Chen,nt who delved ithe data to find out more. Car toline, lets staking about how do we figure out who especially if there is this possibility that we are now flatting the curve. How do i know if im somebody whos already had it, and if im asymptomatic . So, i think that there are twnco ts here. A true asymptomatic person is w somebo never had symptoms at all. Arend t another word that ill introduce, which is presymptomatic, which is se omebody who at the tey were tested and was positive, didnt yet have symptoms but then maybe later on had a cough or fever. So, we now know that there are bo types of people, more commonly maybe that there are presymptomatics. And is think ially important that we be testing pheople, you know, w diagnostic tests so we can find these people out there because people can start transmitting the disease before their symptoms turn up. To your other question, which is, can i find out if i had been that requires a different type of test. Thats an Antibody Test thats done with the blood. Sreenivasan if we dont know yet exactly when people start transmitting the disease, that makes it incredibly hard to try to say, kay, this group of people, you need to stay home. This group of people, you can walk about in society, right . We now know, in fact, that people probably have whats called a really high viral load, which means that they have a lot of infectious virus early on in the course of their disease, started to show ss. Eyve and so, thats helped make this disease and this virus particularlcontagious. Sreenivasan because most of us in the beginning, wn this started, we were told if youre showing any symptoms, stay hom and we did as best we could. Obviously, ii didnt have a cough, i didnt feel feverish, if i didnt have all those aches and pains, i said, all right, well, let me just go to work. And then, what happens if four days later i get this . So,wh those first three day i was going to the office, i might have been spreading it to everyone else . That, unfortunately, is now what we think. And this is why, you kno the w. H. O. And the c. D. C. Are all saying that social distancing really, really matters, and that sixfoot distance really can make a difference. So, i talked to a lot of scientists, and i said, well, you know, weve been told, you oug, coughing and sneezin knsmitted. And this image was given to me by a virologist, Angela Rasmussen at columbia. And she said, you know, on a really cold day, when you step outside and youre you see that fog in the air . Sreenivasan yeah. She said thats respiratory droplets. And thats why people keep saying sixfoot distance, sifixfoot distance, becaus im already infected and im not yet maybe actively coughing, im still oducing respiratory c droplets, andld infect someone without even realizing it. Sreenivasan ats one thing if youre outside. Arits another thing if yoin a space that has, why, the recycled air or not much airflow. Eah. And so, you know, a lot of the people that ive been talking to, the experts, sma that densiters, right . So, if youre in a packed subway car where everybodys kind of breathing on each oths, you know, uch more likely that disease will be transmitted there than if youre in the open air. Sreenivasan were any of the scientists surprised by anything that they learned . Iis mean, of maybe how irus is behaving differently than previs viruses that they know about . Yes. So, one of the things that i just mentioned earlier, this concept of viral load, which is when are you most infectious in the cofoursour disease . With this virus, youre probably the most infected, right, early on at th course. F your disease maybe even before you start being symptomatic was has been a surprise. Sreenivasan and its also aing to matter about how nd when we get back to life as normal. Because we know that asymptomatic transmission can happen, were going to need to tests the diagnostic tests tof find out if someone had active infection, and the Antibody Test to find out if someone had a previous infection to find out boterh the infection, where the viearus is sng, and which people have been previously infected. Thesg e tests are go be key to help Public Health officials figure out what to do. Sreenivasan o they have any ea on when my body would form antibodies or how long those antibies would last . Yeah. So, these are the questions that are being fured out right now by scientists. And so, at the point you have just be is that the Antibody Tests should not be used like a right then because your body is still forming those antibodie to fight off the infection. And so but they should lt at least for weeks and months. And so, you would be able to then look back months later and seeno whether oyou had those antibodies. The open questiwh right now is amount of antibodies you need in your blood to give you immunity. These tests are alady being developed, already being made. But i think theres a lot of work being done by scientists to hereally study, you know, amount in peoples blood and what kind of immunity that sreenivasan all right, Caroline Chen of propublica, thanks so much. Thank you for having me. Sreenivasan this holy week, celebrated by christians worldwide, coincides with the jewish holiday passover. Usually, that means ing with family for religious gatherings. But these are not normal times. Newshour weekends Melanie Saltzman rneecently met hbor who is finding ways to cope and observe the holidays while being away from her family. Some parsley to dip in saltwater. S reporter gloria strong neighbor in brooklyn, new york. We just met a cwhple weeks ago i saw her on the elevator. She lives alone. That means, th year, because of social distancing, shell be celebrating the passover holiday alone, too. I i think emilys teacher has it. Reporter her daughter, andresea strong, learby and visits when she can. But were going to get through it. We will. R orter andrea stands outside of the apartment. Gloria uses a measuring tape to reassu her daughter that shes far enough away. What has this time been like for you, with the social diancing and the isolation . Its kind of lonely. I find myself crying at the silliest things. You know, i just just start crying, and then ill be okay. But i miss being able to touch, to hug my kids. Thats the worst part, you know, with my daughter saying, youre not gdown for the mail. I dont want you leaviour apartment. I mean, its too much. Reporter thats how we met. I ended up seeing you gog down and saying, what you doing . Im going to go g the mail for you. Stay home. You know, going down, at least i could see the doorman, talk to someone. I i meanel like im losing my voice. I dont talk at all. Reporter strong, who nortsmally osher food, says its been haer to find it these days. All the supermarkets said they have no delivery. Theyre not taking orders online. Thes a lot of work prepari for passover, usually. But, this yearits become very difficult because of being unable to get o and get what i need. So, im just making do. W you know, when younger, i dont think i appreciated family as much as io now. I used to get annoyed with some of my cousins. But now, its diff i do miss seeing them all. Reporter strong says shell especially miss a sephardic tradition that commemorates the jewish captivity in egyprm what do you ly do for passover . How do you celebrate . Hene of our customs, which kids love we all love is that we take scallions, and we whip each other to remember what used to happen to these the jews when they were in egypt and e they waves. Reporter so, are you going toe doing that versus. Oh, i brought scallions. Ill just beat mysel laughs reporter on wednesday, the fighrst of passover, strongs seder plate had the traditional symbolic items, includin eg a boil and lettuce. She used substitutes for the thgs she couldnt find, like a chicken bone instead of a lamb shank bone. What will be different about this seder from all of the seders . Reporter and she still managed to be with her family season, online. Le this holiday why arent you eating each other . Weve got to sing that song. Well, then, start singing. singing together love you, mom i love you. Sreenivasan over the last three weeks, more than 16 million americans have benefits, as the covid19 pandemic has ground the economy to aear halt. Millions of americans are waiting for direct payments from the government as part of the recovery bill. Some in dire financial straits are turning to social media to ask for help. Newshour weekend producer sam weber reports. Reporter in late march, author and marketer Frederick Joseph sent a tweet to his more than 60,000 followers if rtyoure s few hundred bucks on a bill, reply and ill Zelle Cashapp you. Meaning, ill pay it for you. And he pointed his twitter follow where they could help him pay other peoples bills. D i think we expecybe for it to get to, like, 20,000, 30,000. And thheats kind of i put some of my maeting muscle in. Fice, porsche landon, who is helping with the campaign, d from their new york ci apartment as donations grew. What started as a 10,000 grant from crowdfunding platform gofundme hagrown to more than 240,000 as of this morning. The goal of this fund has been to help as many people as possible, a few hundred dollars here, a few hundred doars there. Reporter each day, joseph, landon and a small team working with them are sending that money, 200 at a time, to people who ask for help on twitter and instagram. Ey use the hashtag rentrelief, but they pay more than just rent theyre actually posting photos of their bills, right . You know, 200t is a lor people right now. Reporter each transacon is documented with a screenshot of the confirmation from cash app, a popular app for sending and receiving money. We try to find stories that resonate with us but also just to be fair and even and try to see everybody. Reporter joseph and landon say theyve been deliberate about giving to people in all kinds of situations. So, its not a matter of them having to beike, hey, i am rminally ill and have 25 children. Its like, im a College Student whos struggling. So, were showing a spectrum sparently so that people dont assume anything. Were trying to keep people guessing so that theres no formula for them to follow. Who saw jo original tweet people was walker gaultney, who goes by i was ke, yo, it cant hurt. laughs i mean, things have been really tightor quite a while. Reporter gaultney started replying to josephs tweets each day. He posted screenshots of wouldbe scammers trying to requneest using josephs likeness, a common trick online. And he posted about himself. The 33yearold who lives near macon, georgia, hasnt had a steady job since last november. He wrote that hes negative in the bank and 950 in the hole on rent. Theres been many times where ive prettyki muc of accepted in my head that i was going to end up homeless. That way t, if it cathat, im prepared. laughs reporter then, last week,ph josent him 200, no strings attached. It wasnt enough to get him out of debt, but he says its helped change his attitude. I feel like ive kind of sank to a point twhere i really dont see a lot of faith in humanity, if that makes sense. You know, so Something Like this happening, it it makes me feel a lot better, you know . And i wish i were in a position to do thsame thing he is. Repor Frederick Josephs rentrelief campaign is donating 10,000 a day, 200 at a time, as lonas the money lasts. And its not the only one trying to help people in this way. Philanthropist bill pulte has been giving away cash and publicizing it on social media since last summer. His posts offering help routinely generate tens of thsands of replies. And in midmarch, writer shea serrano kicked off tens of thousands of dollars in giving with this post bleep corowhnavirus. Has a bill coming up that theyre not sure theyre going to be ae to pay . Send me your bill and venmo. Despite all these efforts, of course, the need right now is enormous, and thouopsands of who ask for help dont get it. Theres so many people trying to get on there that, i mean, were sitting on there trying to nstantly comment. And its like its like, if you win, you win the lottery. Reprter c. J. Edwards is an Elementary School teacher, and victoria abnathy is a fulltimer sing student. They live in lakeland, florida. To make ends meet, they bth worked pime at local restaurant. Takeout only because ofbecame covid19, ty lost those jobs. We honestly have to prioritize. Okay, rent first. And then, how long can we push out the phone bill . Hoarlong can we push off the payment . Because i have a car payment, i i go to an accelerated school. Its very expensive. So, thats going to be another anhat im going to have to pay off when i gradte. So, it think i guess, because we live it but its crazy to think that some people think thatar teachersy is able to cover. That mu reporter everyday, j. Diligently posts on twitter asking for help, hoping that this will be the day he gets noticed by those giving out money. I believe that theyre doing somethingstncredible. I my biggest thing is that i get my hopes so high up, and then im like,h, its not r its not us. And i just i continue to try, and i continue to hope that maybe one day it will be. Win that lottery. Can, i g for those of you who havent been chosen yet, please dont be discouraged. Reporter frederick jeph acknowledges that philanthropic efforts like his are not enough. He believes the kind of support that can make a real difference right now needs to come from government. Rent eds to be suspended, right . The goal is that if it does continue, we dont want going to rent. We want it going to the people who need groceries, the people weeho need totheir light bill on. Because, frankly, if rent is due next month and people are dealing with this for the next few weeks, the countrys going to explode, frankly. Sreenivasan sheltering in place means diffdient things to erent people. For some, it is lonely, even dangerous. For he more fortunate, it can actually create new family opportunities. Newshour weekends christopheron bookerders himself one of the lucky ones. Repilorter our f saturdays have always seemed to contradict the purpose of saturdays o unwind from the week. The day always passed with a rentless tempo as we moved from one obligation to the next. Morning swimming lessons, llusually ed by a birthday party, baby shower, barbecue you name it. Arend somewnbetween, a budgetblowing run to target or costco. There would certainly be a yearold, both kids would usually crumble from their sugar highs in the early afternoon, neither parent s theending with weekend was halffinished or lfbegun. But this is our saturday now. We walk. Sometimes just down the street. Sometimes on the bike path behind our house. And, today, on a nearby trail. We have been socially distancing for four weeks. Each has been a little less confusing than the last. Our attempts at simtaneously running a Nursery School and a first grade classroom e showing signs of promise, though imd not entirely convinr kids teachers would agree. And as the weeks have passed, a routine has set i and its come with if im being honest a feeling of guilt. Whe there have been challenges and frustrations in our attempts to fill the hours for two very active kids, what our family has been asked to do pales in comparison to what Health Care Workers on the frontlines are doing just a few miledown the road from us. But, when were out walking, the day sloai. Anxiety r, but it loses ground against playing drums on a tree or listening to the fspring peepers, those tigs that sing of winters end small little catails that i t believe we had left out of our saturdays before. But now, part of something that helpsur family feel normal, at least for a little bit. drplayins sreenivasan pbs newshour weekend wants to know how you are filling your days. Wed love to hear about your new normal we might even put it on our eogram. Please us an email at nhweekend wnet. Org. Sreenivasan tomorrow on pbs newshour weekend, well have news from around the world as the coronavus pandemic continues to claim lives. And, well talk about Lessons Learned from the successful battle against the ebola epidemic in the democratic reponublic of. Thats all for this edition of pbs newshour weekend. For the latest news updates, visit www. Pbs. Org newshour. Im hari sreenivasan. Thanks for watching, stay well, anhave a good night. Captioning sponsored by wnet captioned by Media Access Group at wgbh access. Wgbh. Org ur pbs newshoeekend is made possible by sue and Edgar Wachenheim iii. The cheryl and philipmiilstein. Barbara hope zuckerberg. Charles rosenblum. We try to live in the moment, to not miss whats right in front of us. At mutual of america, we believe taking care of tomorrow can help you make the most of today. Mutual of america financial group, retiremenservices and investments. When it comes to wiless, c ionsumer cellular giv customers the choice. Our nocontract plans give you as much or as little talk, text and our u. S. Based Customer Service team is onhand to help. To learn more, go to www. Nsumercellular. Tv. Additional support has been provided by and by the corporation for public broadcasting, a private corporadeon fby the american people. And by contributions to your f pbs statiom viewers like you. Thank you. Youre watching pbs. This program was made posstrle in part by conutions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. You know, the fundamental of the idea that the adult brain is seton in stone is the coaying but, in fact, you can. The adult brain, again, at the re old age, in their 40s, 50s, 60s, even beyond, can change its structure and function in a significant way. Everyone i know whos getting older and rgets things makes jokes about having sior moments