3 ms·

Well, no. It makes a big difference: 1) If the exponent is >1, it doesn't make much difference. Everyone will catch "it," for whatever disease. 2) It makes se

Well, no. It makes a big difference: 1) If the exponent is >1, it doesn't make much difference. Everyone will catch "it," for whatever disease. 2) It makes sense to have interventions prioritized by ROI 3) Many interventions are individual, and there is no exponent. Should I, as a [doctor / immuno-compromised-individual / patient / etc.] wear a mask?

marcosdumay 2y ago
> It makes sense to have interventions prioritized by ROI The thing about masks is that the investment is minimal. Those 5% are still an incredibly large number that makes it a non-brainier. If it decreases another order of magnitude, it may need some analysis. The OP has a point, but it's way beyond the plausibility window.
- zeroonetwothree 2y ago
  As an individual I would not wear a mask to reduce infection risk by 5%. If it’s more like 90% then that’s something.
  - threeseed 2y ago
    But those who are the most likely to be affected i.e. older and vulnerable people would. So in fact whether you wear one or not is far less relevant.
    - deleted 2y ago
      [deleted]
    - triplesec 2y ago
      You misunderstand the utility of masks, where it is significantly more an infected wearer of the mask who protects others by their wearing. So, being infections before you have symptoms is the problem, which is why people should - as is standard in Japan, for example - wear masks in public whenever they feel unwell or feel a 'cold' coming on.
  - TheOtherHobbes 2y ago
    Masking during a pandemic is never just about individual risk. Collective action has an exponential effect on prevalence, so the real risk goes down by far more than 5%. Not taking action to reduce risk of illness or death is irrational.
    - dilap 2y ago
      There's a trade-off between doing things you enjoy (or don't enjoy) and the risk of death, and it's a personal trade-off, not something that can be assessed rationally.
- frognumber 2y ago
  First-world thinking. A quality mask costs around $1. Per-capita GDP is about $33 per day worldwide. Or put another way, with 8 billion people in the world, a mask a day runs around $3 trillion annually. The world is interconnected. I like masks since, aside from viruses, they filter pollution and allergens. I feel a lot better post-2020. However, universal HEPA filters and covid masks are very much for the rich.
  - PeterStuer 2y ago
    Don't masks have to be swapped way more than once per day to reach the perscribed efficiency? More like once every 30 minutes?
    - hollerith 2y ago
      No. I've been using N95s since the start of the pandemic and have spent a fair amount of time learning about them, e.g., reading the written material that comes with the box of masks, and I've never seen that kind of recommendation. The written materials say things like, "throw the mask away as soon as it becomes stained or discolored." I use each of my masks for probably at least 10 hours before throwing it away, and I've never gotten covid except once (in Jan or Feb 2020) before I started wearing masks (in fact, before anyone in my country -- the US -- knew about covid). (I have to write "probably" because I don't actually keep written records of how long I have each mask on. I rarely have one on for more than an hour at a time.) I've used mainly 3M 8511 masks. The most important distinction between mask models is that some models have valves / vents and some do not. Hospitals use ones without valves. The lack of a valve means that the part of the mask that filters the air gets a lot more damp than it would if a value were present (because exhaled air is damp) which might drastically reduce how long the mask will last, so that might be why some hospitals instruct their employees to use a new mask for each new patient contact.
      - frognumber 2y ago
        > The most important distinction between mask models is that some models have valves / vents and some do not. The most important distinctions also include: 1) Fit. This matters a lot. 2) Nano versus electrostatic technology. 3) Filtration level. "N95" advertised isn't always 95% in reality, and some are 99+%. 4) Impedance to airflow #4 is more than just comfort it determines how much air goes around the mask.

marcosdumay 2y ago

> It makes sense to have interventions prioritized by ROI The thing about masks is that the investment is minimal. Those 5% are still an incredibly large number that makes it a non-brainier. If it decreases another order of magnitude, it may need some analysis. The OP has a point, but it's way beyond the plausibility window.

zeroonetwothree 2y ago
As an individual I would not wear a mask to reduce infection risk by 5%. If it’s more like 90% then that’s something.
- threeseed 2y ago
  But those who are the most likely to be affected i.e. older and vulnerable people would. So in fact whether you wear one or not is far less relevant.
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
  - triplesec 2y ago
    You misunderstand the utility of masks, where it is significantly more an infected wearer of the mask who protects others by their wearing. So, being infections before you have symptoms is the problem, which is why people should - as is standard in Japan, for example - wear masks in public whenever they feel unwell or feel a 'cold' coming on.
- TheOtherHobbes 2y ago
  Masking during a pandemic is never just about individual risk. Collective action has an exponential effect on prevalence, so the real risk goes down by far more than 5%. Not taking action to reduce risk of illness or death is irrational.
  - dilap 2y ago
    There's a trade-off between doing things you enjoy (or don't enjoy) and the risk of death, and it's a personal trade-off, not something that can be assessed rationally.
frognumber 2y ago
First-world thinking. A quality mask costs around $1. Per-capita GDP is about $33 per day worldwide. Or put another way, with 8 billion people in the world, a mask a day runs around $3 trillion annually. The world is interconnected. I like masks since, aside from viruses, they filter pollution and allergens. I feel a lot better post-2020. However, universal HEPA filters and covid masks are very much for the rich.
- PeterStuer 2y ago
  Don't masks have to be swapped way more than once per day to reach the perscribed efficiency? More like once every 30 minutes?
  - hollerith 2y ago
    No. I've been using N95s since the start of the pandemic and have spent a fair amount of time learning about them, e.g., reading the written material that comes with the box of masks, and I've never seen that kind of recommendation. The written materials say things like, "throw the mask away as soon as it becomes stained or discolored." I use each of my masks for probably at least 10 hours before throwing it away, and I've never gotten covid except once (in Jan or Feb 2020) before I started wearing masks (in fact, before anyone in my country -- the US -- knew about covid). (I have to write "probably" because I don't actually keep written records of how long I have each mask on. I rarely have one on for more than an hour at a time.) I've used mainly 3M 8511 masks. The most important distinction between mask models is that some models have valves / vents and some do not. Hospitals use ones without valves. The lack of a valve means that the part of the mask that filters the air gets a lot more damp than it would if a value were present (because exhaled air is damp) which might drastically reduce how long the mask will last, so that might be why some hospitals instruct their employees to use a new mask for each new patient contact.
    - frognumber 2y ago
      > The most important distinction between mask models is that some models have valves / vents and some do not. The most important distinctions also include: 1) Fit. This matters a lot. 2) Nano versus electrostatic technology. 3) Filtration level. "N95" advertised isn't always 95% in reality, and some are 99+%. 4) Impedance to airflow #4 is more than just comfort it determines how much air goes around the mask.