Samples of sewage water rest in a fridge inside a lab at Boise State University, where researchers process those samples to find traces of COVID-19. (Kyle Pfannenstiel/Idaho Capital Sun)
By studying poopy water, Boise State University scientists can predict COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths before they’re even reported.
They believe they’re the first people to publish research showing their artificial intelligence methods can predict deaths by looking at traces of the coronavirus in wastewater , they wrote in their recent research paper. University of Idaho researchers, meanwhile, are working toward publishing similar research.
That comes as COVID-19 has surged nationally, though hospitalizations have recently declined . Two weeks ago, Idaho’s COVID wastewater levels were the highest they’d been in two years , the Idaho Statesman reported.
But after Idaho lawmakers rejected about $16 million from a pool of federal grant funds that would’ve supported pandemic response efforts last year, Idaho’s wastewater tracking dashboard is likely to have less data.