How can I stay safe while grocery shopping? And answers to 24 other coronavirus questions

As the United States confronts the COVID-19 pandemic in communities around the country, people want clear and accurate answers to pressing questions about how to manage daily life in the face of this dangerous virus. Given what we know about the extremely contagious nature of the novel coronavirus, its high rate of serious health impacts and death, and now, the emerging science on how it can spread through people who do not know they are contagious, it helps to know how to keep yourself and others safe while doing what were once routine tasks.

Fear is a natural response to new information about threats and their risks. But with accurate information on how to take action to protect yourself and loved ones, fear naturally causes humans to become more efficient in responding to danger. This can lead to action, agency, courage, creativity, and much more. In fact, the upwelling we’ve seen around the world of compassionate, urgent, and brave responses to the pandemic is part of this process.

Almost all of us are experiencing changes to daily life we couldn't have imagined at the start of 2020. How to prepare, respond, and perform even basic functions like grocery shopping and doing laundry are now in question. The overall approach to all tasks and functions, whether you are sheltering at home or going outside for essential work, lies with keeping yourself and others safe from the dangers of COVID-19.

Stacker scoured other news outlets and public health resources—and surveyed our families and friends—to compile a list of 25 common questions about COVID-19 and provide answers for...