FACT: Coronavirus is AIRBORNE and washing your hands will not protect you

originally posted by: Hefficide
a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

You are misunderstanding vectors of transmission. Some of what you've said is somewhat true insomuch that if a carrier is standing next to you and coughs or sneezes in your general area then you very likely would become infected via airborne transmission via your respiratory system. In this specific case, infection via inhalation / exposure to the respiratory system, washing your hands after the fact would not make a difference.

However... If the person sneezed without any of their expelled particulates reaching your respiratory system - but landing on surfaces you subsequently touched - or your skin? Then hand washing would prevent infection. The virus, AFAIK, does not infect via absorption through the skin.

More to the point - let's assume it's not a person standing next to you but an infected person who came into contact with a surface directly before you - shortly after coughing or sneezing into their hand or wiping their face... A public restroom faucet, store shelf or item on that shelf, doorknob, railing, bus or train seat etc... This is where sanitary discipline / hand sanitizer / hand washing will make a profound difference.

My point is this, the mainstream media only focusing on their mantra "wash your hands" makes the impression that the disease is harmless - while it mainly (see my article with the CDC quote) spreads through the air. There are people going to parties here that think that as long as they wash their hands and don't give hugs they'll be fine - which is absolutely false.

-MM

I don't think you understand the article, it says it's aerosolised in droplets (i.e coughing sneezing) in a tiny radius and washing hands has a a 60 - 95% chance of killing off the virus. Unless you're kissing someone with it or snorting their sputum nearly all of the spread will be from droplets landing on the hands/touching surfaces with hands and touching the face, nose or mouth.

Properly airborne illnesses can infect people simply breathing in the same air ad over much wider distances. Washing hands is the most effective way of avoiding getting it, hence the advice and self isolation if you have it as prolonged close contact with others raises their chances of contracting it.

a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

Honestly, I never ever believed that this virus (or any virus) could be contained or prevented from spreading. Nor should we ever presume such a thing. It was always a false sense of security and protection.

But it sure adds to the panic factor. Make people believe their only hope and salvation is preventing its spread and preventing themselves from getting it... because OMG (!!!) you'll surely DIE (!!!) if you do catch it...

Then when the virus inevitably spreads and more people are diagnosed and more people die, the panic factor rises exponentially, because people have already been convinced that prevention is their only hope and salvation.

If it did not have such serious consequences for everyone, I would find it a little amusing that it's the old people -- those most susceptible to the worst outcomes -- that seem to be taking it all in stride, and the younger folks who are panicking. At least in my experience. I of course cannot speak for everyone though...

originally posted by: bastion
I don't think you understand the article, it says it's aerosolised in droplets (i.e coughing sneezing) in a tiny radius and washing hands has a a 60 - 95% chance of killing off the virus. Unless you're kissing someone with it or snorting their sputum nearly all of the spread will be from droplets landing on the hands/touching surfaces with hands and touching the face, nose or mouth.

Properly airborne illnesses can infect people simply breathing in the same air ad over much wider distances. Washing hands is the most effective way of avoiding getting it, hence the advice and self isolation if you have it as prolonged close contact with others raises their chances of contracting it.

That is not what the article says, there is no mention of washing your hands helping, it says that it mostly spreads by droplets with the virus landing around your mouth. Also, the second article says that the virus can survive at oom temperature for up to 9 days. Viruses are so small and light that the slightest motion will whisk them up into the air again and into the mouth of the victim.

The new coronavirus spreads mostly mostly person-to-person contact within about a 6-foot (1.8 meters) radius, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). People with COVID-19, which is the disease caused by the coronavirus, spread viral particles through coughing and sneezing. The particles can land in the mouths or noses of those nearby.

Source: www.livescience.com...

In fact, not a lot is known about the COVID-19 virus at all, so researchers are turning to similar coronaviruses, like SARS and MERS, for answers. Reviewing the literature on all available human and veterinary viruses within this family, encompassing 22 studies, researchers have found that the human pathogens can persist on surfaces and remain infectious at room temperature for up to nine days.

Source: www.sciencealert.com...

-MM

originally posted by: ignorant_ape
a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

sigh - you fail to comprehent what " airborne "means - in context of an infectious pathogen

Then please educate us...

-MM

Misread 65% to 90% proof alcohol sanitiser as how effective hand sanitiser is but people tend to touch surfaces with their hands instead of licking them - the 9 day rate is the upper limit for other forms of coronavirus, not this one (pretty sure it''s only a couple of hours atm). Regardless washing hands is easy and effective way of minimising your chances of getting it.

a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

Fair enough it probably is a form of propaganda tool to mitigate panic and foreboding . The CDC man seen recently seemed pretty set on doing that , they probably realise things could easily slip out of control that way . The internet tends to twist things up for them .

The reason the Spanish flu got called that was because the allied and Central powers propaganda tools were still in place from ww1 , whereas Spain had none of that and hence their unrestricted media reported the true number of cases in Spain.
The global public not knowing that , assumed that Spain was worst hit , but that was not true , everywhere was hit just as bad , it gained that name Spanish flu because Spain didn't artificially lower their figures .
That was going on then imagine it now , they're not going to tell you hard facts , just the soft and digestible ones that it behoves them to say. We can assume with this one that trump has learned to follow suit . No one in their right mind wants chaos developing either . Especially in America with all that many guns and ammo on hand .

This thread is failing to monger the fear it was seemingly intended to rouse.

It's NOT an "airborne" disease in the context of infectious diseases, and washing your hands WILL protect you from the most common vectors of transmission.

That you keep railing against these facts is entertaining.

originally posted by: tjack
This thread is failing to monger the fear it was seemingly intended to rouse.

It's NOT an "airborne" disease in the context of infectious diseases, and washing your hands WILL protect you from the most common vectors.

That you keep railing against these facts is entertaining.

The fact that you did not bother to read how the virus mostly spreads is entertaining for me, no mention of handshakes here but rather virus particles landing near the mouth and nose:

The new coronavirus spreads mostly mostly person-to-person contact within about a 6-foot (1.8 meters) radius, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). People with COVID-19, which is the disease caused by the coronavirus, spread viral particles through coughing and sneezing. The particles can land in the mouths or noses of those nearby.

Sometimes fear is justified in the face of the alternatives.

-MM

a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

I think I know what everybody here really wants to know and is afraid to ask.

Does this mean in spite of the lying media you've resumed licking windows?

originally posted by: Ksihkehe
a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

I think I know what everybody here really wants to know and is afraid to ask.

Does this mean in spite of the lying media you've resumed licking windows?

Virus particles are so small and light that the slightest motion will whisk them into the air.

To ilustrate this, imagine if you can, just how easy it is to whirl up some dust particles. A virus is 500x lighter than a dust particle.

A typical virus weight is:

1×10^−18 kg or 10^−18 femtogram (fg)

, a dust particle weight is:

5*10^-16 kg or or 0.5 picograms.

So to answer your question, there is no need to lick surfaces to get infected, the virus will get airborne once you come near the surface and then enter your lungs directly through your mouth or nose.

-MM

a reply to: eletheia

Airborne means dry particles that actually are small enough to be carried in the air.
Measles for instance. You can breath it in if you're in a room with someone. No need for them to sneeze or cough on you or for you to touch anything.

The OP says airborne but describes droplet contamination which is what your poem refers to.
Yes those droplets fly on a sneeze or cough but that is still considered direct contact.

We are all learning on the fly here lol.

It's going to spread in food

People are forced to work when sick 1 sick cook could infect 100 people a hr 8 hrs a day every day they are sick

a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

As someone else said "The advice about washing your hand to keep yourself safe is not the real reason, it is to give the general public some idea, some semblance of control over something that they and most cannot hope to control. Allow them to think they have a way of defending themselves to avoid them going losing control and panicking."

a reply to: Sillyolme

Exactly, a virus particle that can survive on surfaces at room temperature for up to 9 days and is 500x lighter than a dust particle, that is so light that it can easily whirled into the air just be coming close to the surface - no need to touch the surface to get infected in other words.

-MM

a reply to: MerkabaMeditation
The particles are only airborne in the kinetic action of the sneeze or cough.
Like a gun that shoots a bullet. Left on its own the bullet does not fly.

The virus is still considered direct contact. Touch it or have it deposited in you.

You are not getting it just breathing.

originally posted by: MerkabaMeditation

originally posted by: tjack
This thread is failing to monger the fear it was seemingly intended to rouse.

It's NOT an "airborne" disease in the context of infectious diseases, and washing your hands WILL protect you from the most common vectors.

That you keep railing against these facts is entertaining.

The fact that you did not bother to read how the virus mostly spreads is entertaining for me, no mention of handshakes here but rather virus particles landing near the mouth and nose:

The new coronavirus spreads mostly mostly person-to-person contact within about a 6-foot (1.8 meters) radius, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). People with COVID-19, which is the disease caused by the coronavirus, spread viral particles through coughing and sneezing. The particles can land in the mouths or noses of those nearby.

Sometimes fear is justified in the face of the alternatives.

-MM

Hmmm... maybe my reading skill isn't what it once was, let me see...hmmm....

It says mostly spread by person to person contact. Hmmm...these words...mostly and contact...I shall ponder them awhile.

And what's this? It can spread by particles landing in the nose or mouth. I think I get that straight away.

Ok enough snark, I'm all out. What it means is an infectious person is emitting a small radius cloud of contaminated material. While some of it can land directly on entry points, nose, eyes, mouth, most of the cloud ends up coating nearby objects, which are then touched by your hands, which is why we need to do what more often? Anybody? Bueller?

originally posted by: MerkabaMeditation

originally posted by: Ksihkehe
a reply to: MerkabaMeditation

I think I know what everybody here really wants to know and is afraid to ask.

Does this mean in spite of the lying media you've resumed licking windows?

So to answer your question, there is no need to lick surfaces to get infected,

-MM

Yeah sure. You don't need to, but if everybody else on the bus is doing it?

Why not?

originally posted by: Sillyolme
a reply to: MerkabaMeditation
The particles are only airborne in the kinetic action of the sneeze or cough.
Like a gun that shoots a bulket. Left on its own the bullet does not fly.

The virus is still considered direct contact. Touch it or have it deposited in you.

You are not getting it just breathing.

You are mistaken. The article from the CDC talks about particles that can enter your lungs, and particles of the virus itself weigh less than dust and can survive for up to 9 days.

-MM