Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters
Bill Gates has previously said the world needs to prepare for a pandemic the way it prepares for war.
- Bill Gates, flu and disease experts, and government officials have been warning of a pandemic for years.
- There's also speculation that pop culture, such as books and movies, predicted the novel coronavirus.
- While some of these predictions are conspiracy theories, others are more serious and adamant that the world isn't properly prepared for a pandemic.
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History has proven that worldwide diseases are inevitable.
There was the 1918 influenza pandemic, which killed at least 50 million people, or one-third of the world's population at the time. The 20th century also saw outbreaks of Ebola and Nipah virus. And in the 2000s, SARS and MERS hit nearly 30 countries each.
Now, COVID-19, the disease that can result from the coronavirus pandemic, is spreading across the globe. While it has a lower fatality rate than the last four aforementioned diseases above, it has spread to many more countries and has infected thousands more people.
But some people have seen such a pandemic coming. Bill Gates has been warning of a pandemic for years, as have notable disease and flu experts. Former White House officials have also previously warned of an upcoming pandemic threat.
Pop culture, too, has seemingly predicted the novel coronavirus. Online conspiracies are circulating over books and movies that have alluded to a worldwide pandemic.
Some of these predictions are pure speculation. But the ones by experts are more accurate and all say the same thing: That the world isn't prepared for it.