Masks slow the spread of the virus in populations, Einstein. If enough people wear masks, that will turn a rising exponential into a decaying exponential***.
***Good luck to anyone trying to explain exponentials to Trumpers.
Basically, cloth masks used by the public only help a little in preventing an uninfected person wearing them from getting the virus. They help significantly more in preventing someone infected who wears them in spreading the virus to others, because their exhalations and coughs have a blocking layer, limiting the trajectory and quantity of ejected aerosols.
One might think, well, just keep a sick person home. But 1) this particular virus spreads a lot from asymptomatic carriers, 2) the virus can also be spread pre-symptomatically, and 3) there isn’t 100% compliance with self-quarantining for various reasons.
So, a mask mandate protects the public by asking everyone in the population to wear them. If that happened, there are multiple studies that show transmission would decrease.
“Where is the proof… ?” Ah, the ever-elusive ‘proof’. Where have I heard that one before… There is no proof in Science. Proofs are reserved for Math and Logic. But you knew that.
“That is what we really want to know.” It’s been ‘front and center’ in the news for most of the last half-year. So, at this point, I find it hard to believe you ‘really’ want to know it. Surgical masks captured 80% of particles up to 10 times smaller than the coronavirus, in one study, and 95% of virus particles a bit smaller than the coronavirus, in another study, as reported here: https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/can-masks-capture-coronavirus/
Transmission reduction is about reducing risk factors: [staying home] X [physical spacing] X [masking virus-spreaders] X [masking uninfected] X [washing hands frequently] X [washing hands longer] X [sanitizer when handwashing unavailabe] X [not touching face]
Unfortunately, some people have all-or-nothing thinking that prevents them from understanding that.
If 95% of Americans wore face masks in public, it could prevent 33,000 deaths by October 1, according to the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.
——————————————————————————–
“New IHME COVID-19 Model Projects Nearly 180,000 US Deaths
However, high levels of mask wearing could reduce forecasted deaths by nearly 33,060…..People need to know that wearing masks can reduce transmission of the virus by as much as 50 percent, and those who refuse are putting their lives, their families, their friends, and their communities at risk.”
I will put a word in for all of those medical professionals who have spent years and years fighting quacks, “alternative” medicine (now “integrative” medicine), homeopathy, antivaxxers, ayurveda, supplement scams, anti-chemo, acupuncture, bogus diseases, naturopaths, “energy” work, magical magnets, “toxin” cleanses, weight-loss “secrets” and expensive techy-looking treatments.
Where is the proof that they stop infection from viruses? That is what we really want to know.
Masks slow the spread of the virus in populations, Einstein. If enough people wear masks, that will turn a rising exponential into a decaying exponential***.
***Good luck to anyone trying to explain exponentials to Trumpers.
Basically, cloth masks used by the public only help a little in preventing an uninfected person wearing them from getting the virus. They help significantly more in preventing someone infected who wears them in spreading the virus to others, because their exhalations and coughs have a blocking layer, limiting the trajectory and quantity of ejected aerosols.
One might think, well, just keep a sick person home. But 1) this particular virus spreads a lot from asymptomatic carriers, 2) the virus can also be spread pre-symptomatically, and 3) there isn’t 100% compliance with self-quarantining for various reasons.
So, a mask mandate protects the public by asking everyone in the population to wear them. If that happened, there are multiple studies that show transmission would decrease.
Here is an article with several studies:
https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2020/06/417906/still-confused-about-masks-heres-science-behind-how-face-masks-prevent
Here is a study that also links to eight previous studies:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7191274/
“Where is the proof… ?” Ah, the ever-elusive ‘proof’. Where have I heard that one before… There is no proof in Science. Proofs are reserved for Math and Logic. But you knew that.
“That is what we really want to know.” It’s been ‘front and center’ in the news for most of the last half-year. So, at this point, I find it hard to believe you ‘really’ want to know it. Surgical masks captured 80% of particles up to 10 times smaller than the coronavirus, in one study, and 95% of virus particles a bit smaller than the coronavirus, in another study, as reported here: https://smartairfilters.com/en/blog/can-masks-capture-coronavirus/
Well, this particular video was addressing the widespread and stupid notion that these masks block oxygen molecules.
There is visible proof that they reduce passage of droplets. The larger the droplet (with more virus particles), the greater the reduction.
Here are more nuanced discussions of mask wearing from Science Based Medicine:
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/misinformation-and-disinformation-about-facemasks-and-covid-19/
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/is-covid-19-transmitted-by-airborne-aerosols/
Transmission reduction is about reducing risk factors:
[staying home] X [physical spacing] X [masking virus-spreaders] X [masking uninfected] X [washing hands frequently] X [washing hands longer] X [sanitizer when handwashing unavailabe] X [not touching face]
Unfortunately, some people have all-or-nothing thinking that prevents them from understanding that.
Oh, good grief… why do you think your surgical team ALL wear masks? To protect them from you? Seriously?
Here’s an anecdotal study.
https://crankyuncle.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/smoking_1920-1536×864.jpg
https://crankyuncle.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/drunk_driver_parallel-1-1536×864.jpg
Déjà vu – except this time it’s medical science.
If 95% of Americans wore face masks in public, it could prevent 33,000 deaths by October 1, according to the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.
——————————————————————————–
“New IHME COVID-19 Model Projects Nearly 180,000 US Deaths
However, high levels of mask wearing could reduce forecasted deaths by nearly 33,060…..People need to know that wearing masks can reduce transmission of the virus by as much as 50 percent, and those who refuse are putting their lives, their families, their friends, and their communities at risk.”
http://www.healthdata.org/news-release/new-ihme-covid-19-model-projects-nearly-180000-us-deaths
I will put a word in for all of those medical professionals who have spent years and years fighting quacks, “alternative” medicine (now “integrative” medicine), homeopathy, antivaxxers, ayurveda, supplement scams, anti-chemo, acupuncture, bogus diseases, naturopaths, “energy” work, magical magnets, “toxin” cleanses, weight-loss “secrets” and expensive techy-looking treatments.