Where did COVID-19 come from?
Some think it originated
in this Wuhan wet market.
While others think it comes from bats.
But could it be possible that
COVID-19 was made in a lab?
The lab that COVID-19
could have escaped from
is the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
This lab deals with some of the most
dangerous viruses in the world.
And if it did happen,
it wouldn't be the first time
for one of these labs.
The SARS virus
escaped from high-level containment labs
in Beijing multiple times.
But is this lab
really where COVID-19 came from?
Well, first let's talk about
Well, first let's talk about
why people think COVID-19 originated
at this lab.
The first COVID-19 case
was inititally found in this
Wuhan wet market.
And since this wet market
is just 12 km (7.4 mi) from the
Wuhan virology center,
this lab is really the only one in question.
Not to mention that it's the global epicenter of
coronavirus research in bats.
Since it's suspected COVID-19 came from bats,
there's been speculation
that the virus could have been engineered,
and then accidentally escaped from the building.
And if the world were able to confirm
that this actually happened,
the consequences would be pretty scary.
Relations between China and the rest of the world
could start to get incredibly hostile.
But hopefully, we don't need to worry about
COVID-19 starting any wars.
That's because, no,
COVID-19 was not made in a lab.
And it didn't find a way to mysteriously
sneak out of the virology center.
The Wuhan Institute of Virology
was looking for something similar to COVID-19.
A bat disease that was harmful to humans.
If researchers found anything like that,
they would have published
their scientific results immediately.
They wouldn't have waited for it
to escape from their labs.
And it was originally reported that the first cases
of COVID-19 happened in the Wuhan wet market,
but that might not be the case.
It was later determined that the first cases
had no connection to the animal market.
So, it is possible that someone
outside of Wuhan contracted the virus,
and brought it to the animal market,
where it would be easy for the virus to spread.
But that doesn't mean that any of this was intentional.
It's safe to say that
COVID-19 was not genetically engineered.
If it were,
there would be signs of
manipulation in the genome data.
And thousands of scientists
all around the world have looked
at the genome of the virus
and haven't found any evidence of engineering.
If there had been any tampering,
it would be pretty obvious.
Scientists would need to create
their own backbone for the DNA,
which can be detected pretty quickly.
Not only that, but
being able to create a virus that spreads disease,
is nearly impossible.
And that's because, scientists don't know enough
about what makes a virus pathogenic just yet.
And viruses are extremely complicated.
In order to be able to manufacture one,
scientists would need to perfectly construct
every single molecule in the virus.
Just one tiny aspect of the virus altered,
and it could end up wildly different. 
So it's safe to say that
COVID-19 was not made in a lab.
Since the Spanish Flu in the 1900s, 
scientists have predicted that
humanity will go through
another worldwide pandemic.
As humanity destroys natural habitats
and makes contact with wildlife,
it becomes more likely that
we'll contract diseases from them.
And instead of blaming China, or other countries,
maybe we can take this opportunity
to look at ourselves.
Maybe countries can use this as a reminder
to invest in things like public healthcare,
more hospitals, paid sick leave
and the protection of wildlife.
Because with the way the world operates,
pandemics are almost inevitable.
We just need to figure out
a better way of handling them.
One way would be for everyone in the world
to wear masks.
But we'll leave that story for another WHAT IF.
