Re:U.S. will suspend all travel from Europe for 30 days
by Scoundreller on Wednesday March 11, 2020 @11:50PM
(#22553550)
It's the "up to" bit that I take issue with.
It's a half-life thing. The larger your initial sample, the longer the sample can go and still have enough infectious ability left.
Scenario: Infected person sneezes over a large area and deposits over a wide area. Then you come by 6 hours later and touch a deposited surface and then 10 minutes later touch your eyes.
Each transition only picked up a fraction of what was left.
And each time period left only a fraction of what was there.
More important to limit travel, limit direct/close contact and clean commonly used surfaces frequently.
And better to avoid replicating the environmental conditions that created the "up to 9 day" figure: low temperatures and low humidity.
It's a half-life thing. The larger your initial sample, the longer the sample can go and still have enough infectious ability left.
Scenario: Infected person sneezes over a large area and deposits over a wide area. Then you come by 6 hours later and touch a deposited surface and then 10 minutes later touch your eyes.
Each transition only picked up a fraction of what was left.
And each time period left only a fraction of what was there.
More important to limit travel, limit direct/close contact and clean commonly used surfaces frequently.
And better to avoid replicating the environmental conditions that created the "up to 9 day" figure: low temperatures and low humidity.