Viruses are everywhere — in our bodies, in the news, and, thanks to Hollywood, in some of our worst-case apocalyptic scenarios. But how, exactly, do they get around? This short, dynamic motion graphics piece for Take Part’s pandemic and disease prevention campaign, a fine addition to other excellent educational animated visualizations, shows how a virus makes its way from person to person and into a pandemic, and what we can do as individuals to help prevent these massive outbreaks.

Researchers estimate that if everybody washed their hands regularly, a million deaths could be prevented every year.

For more on the fascinating and frightening world domination scheme of viruses, see A Planet of Viruses by Carl Zimmer, whose quirky Science Ink side project you may already know and love, and who happens to be one of the best science journalists around.

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