1/n Folks: there's a huge difference between "airborne" and "aerosol" in medicoese (yes, & I had to learn the difference too, it's important). Y'all should listen to @DrMoragKerr & @PathogenScribe on why this report is misleading.
#COVID19 in the air: not as bad as it could be
#COVID19 in the air: not as bad as it could be
2/n Let's first focus on this bit of that report. Again, with a misleading confusion between airborne and aerosol. And yes, WHO have not been helpful, but then too neither are others on the other side.
nytimes.com/2020/07/04/hea…
nytimes.com/2020/07/04/hea…
3/n There are complex fights going on. Let's not worry too much about the fights. Let's concentrate on what's *important* to you and me, re #COVID19.
4/n There are tough viruses (let alone other pathogens) out there who *can* blow with the wind, who can survive your hair-dryer on maximum heat.
@PathogenScribe, @DrMoragKerr, @scopedbylarry, can tell you all about those.
#SARSCoV2 (#COVID19) is NOT one of them. It's a wimp.
@PathogenScribe, @DrMoragKerr, @scopedbylarry, can tell you all about those.
#SARSCoV2 (#COVID19) is NOT one of them. It's a wimp.
5/n Breeding (like brain-eating amoebae, or like Legionnaires' disease in your air-conditioner) is NOT a factor with #COVID19. Unless you have a few special bats (#NotAllBats!!) or pangolins living WITH you, the only place COVID_19 can breed is in other people, or you.
6/n So basically the only thing you're really going to be worried about is *persistence* of #COVID19 in the air (say inside a building; unless in a crowd outdoors). That bug is going to need at least a tiny bit of moisture to survive, and it doesn't like drying out at all.
7/n If you're in a building, on normal temperatures, then allow roughly 2 hours of actual drying-out of the air before declaring that volume of air safe. In other words, your main danger is of breathing in tiny, tiny droplets less than 2 hours old, expelled by an infected person
8/ Anyone who tells you that a mask is too porous to stop all microscopic viruses: tell 'em to bugger off. Main job is stopping tiny moisture droplets containing the #COVID19 virus, *not an actual virus by itself*, because the virus quickly DIES by itself
9/ In certain rooms, where temperature is low, and there's a fair bit of moisture, and a large number of people (think meat-processing plant!), yes, you could well use some UV lights up on the ceiling (directed sideways so you don't blind everyone), good air-filter HVAC and so on
10/ But most of the time, you won't need to worry too much. Yes, if mixing w/ tons of people you don't live w/, inside a room (or outside in crowd), yes, get a brain & wear a goddam face-mask or face-shield. Otherwise, if no sick person coughed in the last 2 hours, don't panic.
11/ And now some helpful words from an actual expert, and one who is a lot less blithely sanguine than me:
12/
13/ Back to #COVID19 viruses being wussies. This isn't anthrax, folks, and we don't all live on Gruinard Island. It's not measles, or foot-and-mouth.
14/ In other words, folks, we are lucky. As the Germans say, Glück in Unglück, or good luck in the middle of, despite, bad luck. This all could have been sooooo much worse.
15/ Or, put in other words:
16/ And, remember, folks, just be practical.
17/ And as every good defender under siege knows:
it's all about layered defence.
it's all about layered defence.
