sars is back

China has reported new cases of SARS:

"Virologists at the World Health Organization say the SARS virus cannot be easily capable of airborne transmission, as virtually all cases during the epidemic could be traced to close physical contact with another known case.
But Yu and colleagues say their analysis of the Amoy Gardens cluster shows that under some circumstances of constrained airflow, and possibly heat and humidity, the virus can spread through the air. "Future efforts at prevention and control must take into consideration the potential for airborne spread of the virus", they conclude." (via dph)

In related news, I'm even less ecstatic to think about a pan-Pacific, 10+ hour flight to an international conference (E3) next moth.