I also thought masks was about exhalation, but the general public seems to have misunderstood this from the onset. Politicians probably helped that along, since

I also thought masks was about exhalation, but the general public seems to have misunderstood this from the onset. Politicians probably helped that along, since it's easier to promote selfish mask-wearing than altruism. However, I didn't see that in HN discussions. Now it seems goal posts have shifted, and HNers also expect inhalation protection. I'm assuming N95 masks have proven effective, so the bar was suddenly raised. Or something to that effect.