The historical context

- My name is Michael Shermer. … I'm the publisher of Skeptic Magazine, … and I'm a professor at Chapman University. … Yes, I think the angle on the coronavirus pandemic is … fear and anxiety about it is as much a threat … as the virus itself, at least, … for the moment here in America. … Shelves are being emptied, first of toilet paper … and essentials, now, food items, it's crazy. … Stock markets, you know, seemingly collapsing. … It feels like it's the worst thing … that's ever happened to humanity. … So to put a little historical context, … since I do the history of science and history in general, … this is not the first rodeo for our species … to go through something like this. … We have been through many pandemics, … international wars, conflicts of all kinds, … and we've come out of it fine. … If you're like most people, I know I have … some of these feelings of fear and anxiety, … how should we think about the coronavirus pandemic … in the context of human psychology? … Well, first of all, …