The specially created page on the TU/e website was thoroughly analyzed, and feverish discussions also began in the various WhatsApp groups. It was speculation galore: did this threat come from the Far East? Or was something completely different going on? Examinations, deadlines, and the duration of the shutdown were completely unclear. Where had I seen this kind of frenzy before?

Moments later, phase 1 began: the dilemma. Should we study hard at the risk that everything might be postponed or was it better to err on the side of caution and put our feet up? No sooner had we made up our minds than phase 2 came bearing down on us: hoarding. At breakneck speed, everything that could be downloaded from Canvas was collected. Summaries, practice exams, lecture slides, worked-out assignments, and even semi-illegible handwritten notes flew through the countless study group apps.

Once news of the postponed exams had reached students the next day, phase 3 began: ski vacation stress. Traditionally, in the first week of the third quarter, many of Eindhoven's students leave for the Alps for a week of sliding and socializing around the slopes. Could that still go on now that there was an important exam on the day of departure? The restlessness was palpable: no one wanted to miss out on the fun in the snow but skipping exams was not an option either.

Phase 4: lockdown. Suddenly everything went on lockdown. We were no longer allowed to touch anything: no Canvas, no mail, no files. It felt like the entire campus – both the physical and digital one – was quarantined, cut off from the outside world. Every click was suspicious, as if you could accidentally unlock something dangerous. But where there’s a lockdown, a solution is being worked on. Phase 5, the final one: recovery. First we were allowed to carefully open our email again, then Canvas and other systems followed. It felt like little by little we were regaining access to a locked-down world.

A week later, and it’s just like nothing happened. Lectures are being taught again, the coffee machines are percolating as usual, and everyone has returned to study mode for the exams (which were postponed in the end). The vast majority of students won’t complain. There appear to have been zero consequences and TU/e's approach looks to have been adequate. Now let's just hope that the calm lasts for a while and that a new digital anomaly doesn’t suddenly appear and set this whole circus in motion again.