3 ms·
My layman's understanding is that any barrier will stop some percent of most things. In the case of small, airborne particles, this stopped percentage of alread
by jrandm 7y ago
My layman's understanding is that any barrier will stop some percent of most things. In the case of small, airborne particles, this stopped percentage of already-dry, floating material is very small. That means inhaling through them is relatively ineffective at stopping you from inhaling the particles.
When you exhale it is more wet and the moisture causes the barrier to catch more of the airborne particles. The barrier also catches any more-solid material that would otherwise land elsewhere, providing a mechanism for the particle to spread.
This means the net gain for wearing them to keep from catching the disease is relatively small compared to the gain by wearing them to prevent the spread if you may have been exposed.
- pbhjpbhj 7y agoWould you agree a fair corollary of that is: if everyone wears masks then spreading of the contagion would be reduced considerably. It may primarily be about preventing spread from those infected, but that's still super helpful.
- jrandm 7y agoI would agree if everyone exposed wore masks the spread of this contagion would be reduced considerably. Logically, I might extend it to everyone wearing masks would considerably reduce the spread of exhaled contagions. This might first be encouraged in high population density areas, like parts of Asia, and first need to be integrated with fashion[0] to have any chance of broad success. I suspect it will never be a preference everywhere barring some sort of serious consequence (like death) for not wearing the mask. In this situation, I think the most important thing is to know that normally available or homemade masks are helpful for presenting the spread of the disease. The more expensive masks are better but in this instance, not better in a meaningful way for the average person. The current supplies should be saved for those at-higher-risk populations like medical staff. [0]: https://www.pinterest.ca/charmed4evr/fashionable-surgical-face-masks/ https://www.pinterest.ca/charmed4evr/fashionable-surgical-fa...