Question: On 12 February, there were14,840 new cases of novel coronavirus epidemic reported in Hubei Province. The reason for the large increase is that 13,332 cases previously diagnosed as clinical cases were added. How should we look at this adjustment? There are also voices that the number of new deaths in Hubei Province is unusually high, so there is the need to check whether there is any corruption in it. What do you think?

Chan Kung: If the definition of a "clinical diagnosis case" is " suspected case where CT imaging indicates characteristics of pneumonia", then it is certainly unreliable. CT alone is not a sure way to determine novel coronavirus infection, since there are numerous types of pneumonia. Influenza too can produce CT image of pneumonia.

So, we can only depend on comprehensive analysis that combines CT and viral culture. Otherwise, all these, including the changing data are unreliable. In any case, now we can do nothing except to see Wuhan to suffer.

In the end, we have to realize this is an influenza. From a philosophical perspective, there are two types of corruptions. First, there is the rationalist type of corruption, which is quite a subtle type. While the people involved in this type of corruption do make some money, they would not commit major crimes, and they might even aid others to generate wealth. So, even if they are corrupted, they still help others to create their dreams. Another type of corruption belongs to that of the realist. This type of corruption is crude, and only aims at grabbing as much wealth as possible, at the expense of others. The situation of Wuhan belongs to the latter. A small group of people managed to get some wealth, yet the entire China now pays for the price.