Millions of people around the world are bracing themselves for their annual battle with flu. Could new crowdsourcing software be the answer to their prayers?
There doesn't seem to be any way out of it.
As the person next to you on the bus sneezes and you visualise tiny droplets of the virus spiralling towards you, you just know that, sooner or later, it will get you.
It seems unlikely that a smartphone application, as opposed to more tried-and-tested methods like vaccination or a face mask, could help you avoid going down with a dose of the flu this winter.
But that is what the creators of the website Sickweather, which launched this week in the US, claim.
