Elon Musk in Berlin on September 3rd, 2020. | Photo by Patrick Pleul/picture alliance via Getty Images
Elon Musk took to Twitter Thursday night to say that he has received mixed results after being tested for COVID-19 and is currently experiencing symptoms of a common cold. Musk says he was tested four times using a rapid antigen test: two tests came back positive and two came back negative. He’s also awaiting the results from two PCR tests but the results won’t be known for 24 hours.
Antigen tests work by detecting a small protein on the surface of the coronavirus, whereas PCR tests look for the virus itself. Antigen tests can be conducted quickly as they don’t require a lab, and are often administered in hotspots like college campuses or elderly care facilities. Some states don’t even bother reporting the results of antigen tests in…