Perhaps the most compelling image of hope in the battle against future pandemics is something you used to see everywhere — copper fixtures in kitchens and bathrooms, copper water lines, copper in buildings, and copper power networks.

Copper can drastically decrease the spread of infections. When influenzas, bacteria such as E.coli, or even coronaviruses land on most hard surfaces, they can live for up to four or five days. But, when they land on copper and copper alloys such as brass or copper nickel, they begin to die within minutes and are undetectable within hours. Copper degrades viruses.