When future historians dissect the social, political, cultural and economic impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic, they will likely have more primary sources in data, photos, oral histories, medical records, and mapping than on any other event in history.

The first pandemic of the digital age will be able to be open to analysis from all sides because of the sheer amount of information that will be available. But, one aspect of this fact is already playing out. How does our access to information in real time today help us to change the course of the effects of Covid-19? The answer to that is still in the future. But, I think it’s worth pointing out all the different ways that data is being used in the current crisis both to analyze the spread of the virus and to mitigate its effects on society.