All systems are go.
The experts are ready to deliver their presentations and answer questions.
The second COVID-19 Symposium, organized and moderated by UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal, will take place from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 14. Viewers can register for the free public awareness event and post advance questions on Zoom at https://bit.ly/2SUJ7t5. For YouTubeLive, the link is https://bit.ly/3b8TAau.
Leal promises that that the COVID-19 symposium will be educational, informative, and facts-based, but it also will include a "touch of humor"--as well as "some special guests that you won't want to miss."
"One presentation may bring you to tears," he said.
UC Systemwide President Janet Napolitano, a former secretary of Homeland Security, will deliver the welcoming address. She will be introduced by UC Davis Chancellor Gary May, who delivered the welcoming address at the first COVID-19 Symposium.
Panelists are Dr. Allison Brashear, dean of the UC Davis School of Medicine; Dr. Atul Malhotra, professor of medicine, pulmonology, critical care, UC San Diego Health; Dr. Emanuel Maverakis, professor of dermatology and immunology, UC Davis School of Medicine; and Dr. David Lubarsky, vice chancellor of Human Health Sciences and chief executive officer, UC Davis Health.
Among others participating will be Dr. Jane Sykes, professor of small animal internal medicine (infectious diseases emphasis) and chief veterinary medical officer, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine; and Dr. James M. Hotaling, associate professor, Department of Urology, School of Medicine, University of Utah; and several other guests.
Napolitano leads a university system of 10 campuses, five medical centers, three affiliated national laboratories, and a statewide agriculture and natural resources program. The UC system includes more than 285,000 students, 227,000 faculty and staff, an operating budget of $39.8 billion, and two million living alumni.
Napolitano served as the U.S. secretary of Homeland Security from 2009 to 2013, as governor of Arizona from 2003 to 2009, as attorney general of Arizona from 1998 to 2003, and as U.S. attorney for the District of Arizona from 1993 to 1997.
Former NASA astronaut Steve Robinson, now a UC Davis professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, will be among those asking questions. Professor Robinson, who graduated from UC Davis in 1978 with dual degrees in mechanical and aeronautical engineering, saw Earth from outer space four times during NASA shuttle missions, including the 2005 Space Shuttle Discovery.
Leal said some of the questions will include:
- Can our pets place us at risk for contracting the coronavirus?
- Can we get the virus through sexual transmission?
- Can COVID-19 survivors get secondary infections?
- What research is underway on COVID-19 therapies, management and testing?
Professor Leal, a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, a member of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology faculty and a former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, Leal co-chaired the 2016 International Congress of Entomology. He is donating his organizational skills and his cutting-edge technology and video-conferencing expertise to host the symposium. The first symposium drew some 4000 views from 10 countries.
“It is a pleasure to create these platforms to raise awareness and address COVID-19-related questions from the public,” Leal said.
The first symposium, with a welcoming address by Chancellor May, spotlighted the cutting-edge expertise of physicians, researchers, and a recovering COVID-19 patient. It is online at https://bit.ly/2VurK3Z.
One viewer wrote to Leal and the panel: “I just wanted to thank you! You are my heroes.”
“This give me a sense of hope and calmed my anxiety like nothing else,” letter writer Kim Allen continued. “To hear people, real doctors and scientists who are so knowledgeable talk about what is going on and why, is so appreciated. We need to know what we are contending with to fight it and be safe. You are all so much appreciated!”
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