Good to know....I guess I think more of lesser words like hibernation or dormancy ,(there's probably a better word that doesn't come to me right now) during a slower period, whereas a wave suggests worsening or critical conditions to me, ready to crash. Probably just me.Actually, if you look at the projections the panel actually released, the possibility of it worsening, even in the new future, is still there. It is just that the current trend is away from the worst case. Assuming we continue to see a decline in the test positivity rate and new cases in the fourth wave, a winter surge would likely be labelled the "fifth wave".
But more accurate language could be used IMO.