Since "containing" the coronavirus is clearly no longer possible, the goal now is to avoid the kind of horrific scenario seen in Italy, where it has spread so fast that hospitals are not able to treat many incoming patients who need life-saving care. Like in most countries, Slovakia's efforts to reduce social contact between its residents is directed specifically to achieving that goal. In an effort to better understand the nature of the situation I speak with Boris Klempa, an award-winning expert in the study of virology at the Slovak Academy of Sciences. Brano Sitar is a nuclear scientist who has worked closely for the past 25 years with the international organisation CERN, where cutting-edge research on sub-atomic particles is giving scientists new insights into the very first moment of the existence of the Universe, less than a microsecond after the Big Bang.