the communication side of the equation

[GoodTaste]

I understand "the equation" as "the equation of fighting the pandemic". Am I on the right track?


======================
It's Senegal, a west African country with a fragile health care system, a scarcity of hospital beds and about seven doctors for every 100,000 people. And yet Senegal, with a population of 16 million, has tackled COVID-19 aggressively and, so far, effectively. More than six months into the pandemic, the country has about 14,000 cases and 284 deaths.


"You see Senegal moving out on all fronts: following science, acting quickly, working the communication side of the equation, and then thinking about innovation," said Judd Devermont, director of the Africa program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a nonpartisan foreign policy think tank.


Source:USAToday
Senegal's quiet COVID success: Test results in 24 hours, temperature checks at every store, no fights over masks
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...ic/5659696002/

 

[GoesStation]

Yes.

 

[GoodTaste]

Is "equation" here defined as "a situation in which several factors (quick action, communication, innovation - all these are science-based) must be taken into account"?

 

[tedmc]

An equation basically has two sides which have to balance one another to stay in equilibrium. It is for you to identify what the parts/components/factors are on each side.

 

[GoodTaste]

This equation appears, reasonally, having multiple sides.

 

[tedmc]

This equation appears, reasonally, having multiple sides.

I don't suppose you are familiar with the mathematical term from which it is derived.

 

[emsr2d2]

This equation appears, reasonally, having multiple sides.

That isn't grammatical and there's a spelling error. I'm not really sure what you're trying to say.

 

[Rover_KE]

Whatever 'equation' means to the mathematician, it has come to mean a situation ...

That's right. Cricket commentators now say 'The equation is that England need 22 more runs to win off 12 balls'.

It used to annoy me until I realised that the often unspoken other side of the equation is that Australia need to take three wickets.

 

[tedmc]

Whatever 'equation' means to the mathematician, it has come to mean a situation, especially when it is considered to be complicated and made up of many different parts https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/equation?q=equation_1) in everyday language.

I think the rationale is the same. A problem (P) can be described as the sum of the constituent parts. The parts are to be identified and their weight attributed.
P = A + B + C + D +...

 

[GoodTaste]

That isn't grammatical and there's a spelling error. I'm not really sure what you're trying to say.

OK. Put it this way: This equation appears, reasonably, to have multiple sides/parts.

First we confirm that the equation is the equation of fighting the pandemic. Then it is clear that communication is simply a factor of the equation (or a tool to fight the pandemic), and other factors (quick action, innovation ect.) are involved in the equation and should be actively used to solve the health crisis.

Of course, Piscean has pointed out the correct definition of the word equation.

 

[GoodTaste]

I pointed out one definition. There are others.

Which one do you use for the context of the OP?