[Missouri gal]

While this is very helpful, it doesn't answer some basic questions. One important for me is the question whether viruses are killed by saliva. This is an important issue for Catholics with regard to communion. Second, if the coronavirus doesn't survive very long, just how is it so contagious? Why is an extra decade of life roughly a ten-fold risk factor? Why are some places outside US spraying everywhere with disinfectant and we're not?

[nicollo]

While this is very helpful, it doesn't answer some basic questions.

The article is pre-ChinaFlu and so regards prevalent flus prior to this outbreak only.

That said, it answers my primary concern, how long does this thing last on surfaces? Covid 19 has the same structure as other coronaviruses, which means that its DNA is only "contagious" if intact with its lipid shell, which breaks down in hours, not days. So all these "IT LASTS 17 DAYS!!" news freakouts are simply false. The DNA remnants last, but the virus is inert.

As for communion, as a former Catholic high school teacher, which means I worked and worshipped in a petri dish, I'd just assume, for the time being, that God loves me just the same if I take communion or not.