Tornado Alley (PROG)

[fuagf]

LOLOL ....Aaron Rupar
@atrupar
The Fargo City Commission discussion about a possible mask mandate was bonkers
VIDEO

The Fargo City Commission discussion about a possible mask mandate was bonkers pic.twitter.com/5CljDuyGDA

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 18, 2020

Oh dear... Droplets, Mr. Commissioner. Droplets!
.. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-depth/coronavirus-mask/art-20485449 ?

Respiratory droplets Mr. Commissioner.

Cloth masks are effective at reducing virus transmission because it spreads in respiratory droplets, which are larger than smoke particles and the pores in fabric

[...]

"Memes appeared on Facebook in late August 2020 claiming that cloth masks are ineffective at reducing virus transmission because smoke particles are larger than virus particles and cannot be filtered by cloth masks (see examples here and here). These memes were published following a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advisory warning people not to rely on cloth masks for protection against wildfire smoke. The advisory was published on Facebook on 31 August 2020 in response to the wildfires in California.

These memes echo many Facebook posts which appeared several months ago (see example) stating that the virus is smaller than pores in the fabric of cloth masks, likening it to “a mosquito flying through a chain link fence”. And based on the size difference, these posts claim that cloth masks do not work to reduce virus transmission. As we demonstrate below, these claims are misleading as they fail to take into account the differences between how viruses and smoke particles travel in the air.

While both smoke particles and the virus that causes COVID-19 (the size of the virus is between 60 to 140 nanometers)[1] are much smaller than the pores in fabric, a key difference between viruses and smoke particles is that viruses cannot travel in the air on their own and are instead carried by respiratory droplets. In a fact-check by USA Today, Linsey Marr, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech who specializes in airborne transmission of viruses, stated, “There is never a naked virus floating in the air or released by people.”

In its advisory, the CDC also emphasizes the importance of respiratory droplets in virus transmission when explaining why cloth masks can reduce virus transmission, but not the inhalation of small smoke particles:

“Cloth masks that are used to slow the spread of COVID-19 by blocking respiratory droplets offer little protection against wildfire smoke. They do not catch small, harmful particles in smoke that can harm your health.”"

With links - https://sciencefeedback.co/claimreview/cloth-masks-are-effective-at-reducing-virus-transmission-because-it-spreads-in-respiratory-droplets-which-are-larger-than-smoke-particles-and-the-pores-in-fabric/