Question Author
Thanks to all for posts so far.
Peter P, I will scrutinise your answers relating to probability. Thanks.
Mozz71, don't worry -- a lot of this is academic, in any sense.
Two points about the real infections/deaths stats, although I'm not trying to second-guess the experts, just to pass on some tips I have read. First, you can't divide the current aggregate infections by the total deaths, because the latter run maybe a week behind. You need to see what the infections figure was (say) seven days previously because that's when the people who have died were infected. Sadly, that gives you a higher fatality rate in a scenario where infections continue to rise -- except perhaps in the case of South Korea, where figures have stabilised and the deaths remain around 2% by any calculation.
Secondly, graphs and newly introduced measures: You can see how various models work by plotting your own graph. If you project the current rising graph of infections into the future, say three weeks ahead, the dotted line of theoretical figures arrives at a certain point. If you flatten out the graph from today so that it is a straight horizontal line (as if the restrictions -- somehow -- had an immediate effect), you form a triangle with your artificial line as the base.
Without getting into calculations (height x width divided by two because it's a triangle and not a rectangle), the shaded area would represent the infections avoided (and consequently a saving in lives) which the restrictions are hoped to achieve.
Whether you're maths-minded or not, and agree with me or not, we all want to see those infection rates falling as soon as possible.