In this episode, Alan is recording from home during the coronavirus shutdown and talks about how we can practice “doing unto others as you would have them do unto you” by wearing masks to help prevent the spread of the virus.

Below, are a few resources / articles that give really good information along with a few quotes below the links if you want a few highlights without reading each article in full.

This first article is from Atul Gawande:
https://www.newyorker.com/science/medical-dispatch/amid-the-coronavirus-crisis-a-regimen-for-reentry

“…environmental transmission [infection from touching surfaces] may account for as little as six per cent of covid-19 infections. sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes covid-19, spreads primarily through respiratory droplets emitted by infected people when they cough, sneeze, talk, or simply exhale; the droplets are then breathed in by others. (Loud talking has even been shown to generate measurably more droplets than quieter talking.)”

“A recent, extensive review of the research from an international consortium of scientists suggests that if at least sixty per cent of the population wore masks that were just sixty-per-cent effective in blocking viral transmission—which a well-fitting, two-layer cotton mask is—the epidemic could be stopped. The more effective the mask, the bigger the impact.”

“Cloth and surgical masks do not fit tightly. You can breathe air coming in around the sides. They are designed to safeguard others, not the wearer. The basic logic is: I protect you; you protect me.”


https://www.erinbromage.com/post/the-risks-know-them-avoid-them

I can’t summarize it well, so I’m copying and pasting more of this article than I’d like. But this was the most helpful for me to understand the way that the virus spreads. I’m trying to attach just the bare essentials to give you the idea here, but the whole article is my favorite that I’ve found and I’d recommend you read it if you have a chance:

“In order to get infected you need to get exposed to an infectious dose of the virus…Some experts estimate that as few as 1000 SARS-CoV2 infectious viral particles are all that will be needed (ref 1, ref 2)…Infection could occur, through 1000 infectious viral particles you receive in one breath or from one eye-rub, or 100 viral particles inhaled with each breath over 10 breaths, or 10 viral particles with 100 breaths. Each of these situations can lead to an infection.

How much Virus is released into the environment?
A Cough: A single cough releases about 3,000 droplets and droplets travels at 50 miles per hour. Most droplets are large, and fall quickly (gravity), but many do stay in the air and can travel across a room in a few seconds.
A Sneeze: A single sneeze releases about 30,000 droplets, with droplets traveling at up to 200 miles per hour. Most droplets are small and travel great distances (easily across a room).
If a person is infected, the droplets in a single cough or sneeze may contain as many as 200,000,000 (two hundred million) virus particles which can all be dispersed into the environment around them.

This is a podcast called “Public Health on Call” from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health that looks at things from a very factual and even-handed perspective. It’s a good place to get trustworthy information as we move forward.