5 ms·

This is the Ben Franklin / John Adams debate when they shared a small room together overnight with one window. “When Adams explained that he didn’t want to cat

This is the Ben Franklin / John Adams debate when they shared a small room together overnight with one window. “When Adams explained that he didn’t want to catch an illness from the cold night air, Franklin countered that the air in their room was even worse.” https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/54169/time-ben-franklin-and-john-adams-shared-bed https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/54169/time-ben-franklin-...

yosito 5y ago
This reminds me of an argument I had with a friend in October. When the weather got cold, I only wanted to socialize with our small group of friends outside because the open air was safer, but she only wanted to socialize inside because she thought being outside in the cold would make her catch COVID.
Joker_vD 5y ago
Miasma theory rears its ugly head once again: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miasma_theory#Contagionism_versus_miasmatism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miasma_theory#Contagionism_ver... The night air is dangerous, close those windows before you go to sleep!
- goldenkey 5y ago
  Miasma was a perfectly good theory and if anything, is obviously true innately. Bad smelling air from urine, shit, festering corpses and the like, was often laden with viruses, bacteria, and noxious chemical fumes. Sure, plenty of diseases are not airborne but air that smells like shit isn't exactly a boon to be inhaling. There is a non zero chance of getting sick from noxious air.
  - Joker_vD 5y ago
    Yes, it's "obviously true" because of the confounding factors: bad air tends to go hand in hand with dirty water, contaminated food, and infection-carrying insects. Neither cholera, malaria, typhoid nor plague are airborne, and yet their causes were ascribed to miasmata.
    - goldenkey 5y ago
      Right but the metabolites produced by the bacteria are harmful in their own right. And let's be clear, there are many airborne contagions like the common cold that haven't been indexed through the centuries. It isn't a good idea to inhale shit air for days on end, just like it isn't a good idea to inhale car fumes for days on end. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound
  - nradov 5y ago
    Nonsense. The pathogens in urine, shit, and corpses are almost never airborne. And the fumes are only toxic in extremely high concentrations. The chance of getting sick is effectively zero.
    - goldenkey 5y ago
      Nonsense. The risk is nonzero. Turbid air takes a toll both physically and mentally, and can lead to inflammation and weakening of the body's defenses. Your definition of sick is quite narrow. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound
      - nradov 5y ago
        No you're just making things up. The link you posted doesn't support your statement.
        goldenkey 5y ago
        > Biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) encompass VOCs emitted by plants, animals, or microorganisms, > VOCs are produced by animals and microbes Try to have substantiative things to say instead of spouting off false declarations and inflammatory insults.

yosito 5y ago

This reminds me of an argument I had with a friend in October. When the weather got cold, I only wanted to socialize with our small group of friends outside because the open air was safer, but she only wanted to socialize inside because she thought being outside in the cold would make her catch COVID.

Joker_vD 5y ago

Miasma theory rears its ugly head once again: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miasma_theory#Contagionism_versus_miasmatism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miasma_theory#Contagionism_ver... The night air is dangerous, close those windows before you go to sleep!

goldenkey 5y ago
Miasma was a perfectly good theory and if anything, is obviously true innately. Bad smelling air from urine, shit, festering corpses and the like, was often laden with viruses, bacteria, and noxious chemical fumes. Sure, plenty of diseases are not airborne but air that smells like shit isn't exactly a boon to be inhaling. There is a non zero chance of getting sick from noxious air.
- Joker_vD 5y ago
  Yes, it's "obviously true" because of the confounding factors: bad air tends to go hand in hand with dirty water, contaminated food, and infection-carrying insects. Neither cholera, malaria, typhoid nor plague are airborne, and yet their causes were ascribed to miasmata.
  - goldenkey 5y ago
    Right but the metabolites produced by the bacteria are harmful in their own right. And let's be clear, there are many airborne contagions like the common cold that haven't been indexed through the centuries. It isn't a good idea to inhale shit air for days on end, just like it isn't a good idea to inhale car fumes for days on end. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound
- nradov 5y ago
  Nonsense. The pathogens in urine, shit, and corpses are almost never airborne. And the fumes are only toxic in extremely high concentrations. The chance of getting sick is effectively zero.
  - goldenkey 5y ago
    Nonsense. The risk is nonzero. Turbid air takes a toll both physically and mentally, and can lead to inflammation and weakening of the body's defenses. Your definition of sick is quite narrow. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound
    - nradov 5y ago
      No you're just making things up. The link you posted doesn't support your statement.
      - goldenkey 5y ago
        > Biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) encompass VOCs emitted by plants, animals, or microorganisms, > VOCs are produced by animals and microbes Try to have substantiative things to say instead of spouting off false declarations and inflammatory insults.