Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
New Video Shows COVID-19 Droplets Greatly Contained by Masks
TLBBHMAP3-U010ALB5ANM-348f959abae2-512-300x300-1
By Jim Jakobs, Digital Producer
Published 5 years ago on
April 16, 2020

Share

Talking emits droplets from your mouth. Loud talking generates even more droplets. These droplets can harbor infectious virus particles.
The National Institutes of Health published a letter with video and visual accompaniment Wednesday to prove a noticeable point.
The scientists write, “The act of speaking generates oral fluid droplets that vary widely in size, and these droplets can harbor infectious virus particles.”
In other words, when you talk, you can infect others around you.

Laser Light-Scattering Experiment

In the NIH experiment, droplets produced flashes as they passed through a light sheet.
An iPhone 11 Pro video camera aimed at the light sheet through a hole (7 cm in diameter) on the opposite side of a box recorded sound and video of the light-scattering events at a rate of 60 frames per second.
The size of the droplets was estimated from ultrahigh-resolution recordings. Video clips of the events while the person was speaking, with and without a face mask, show a stark difference.
Scientists had a person say  “stay healthy” at different levels. The lower level produced fewer droplets as opposed to when the person spoke the words much louder.

(NIH)

Watch the Video

You can watch a video of the experiment at this link.

Slightly Damp Washcloth Placed Over Mouth

When the same phrase was uttered three times through a slightly damp washcloth over the speaker’s mouth, the flash count remained close to the background level showing a significant decrease in droplets.
“Some studies have shown that the number of droplets produced by speaking is similar to the number produced by coughing,” said the letter writers.  “Our aim was to provide visual evidence of speech-generated droplets and to qualitatively describe the effect of a damp cloth cover over the mouth to curb the emission of droplets.”
In other words, covering up your mouth, even with just a damp washcloth, cuts down on the possibility you could infect a person next to you.
The authors of the letter were Philip Anfinrud, Ph.D., Valentyn Stadnytskyi, Ph.D., and Adriaan Bax, Ph.D., with the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland; and Christina E. Bax, B.A., Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.

 
 

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Given Its Failures, Can California Manage a Transition to a Carbon-Free Future?

DON'T MISS

Fresno Trustees Choose District Insider Misty Her for New Superintendent

DON'T MISS

Fresno Students Celebrate Earth Day by Planting 5 Valley Oaks

DON'T MISS

Five Arrested in Fresno County Robbery Spree. Some Linked to Venezuelan Gang

DON'T MISS

US Brings First Terrorism Charges Against Alleged Venezuelan Gang Member

DON'T MISS

Trump Says Immigrants Shouldn’t Get Trials Before Deportation

DON'T MISS

Artfully Staged for Takeoff: Fresno Airport Expansion Nears Finish

DON'T MISS

Chipotle Tempers Annual Sales Forecast as Dining-out Takes a Hit

DON'T MISS

Orders to Leave the Country — Some for US Citizens — Sow Confusion Among Immigrants

DON'T MISS

Newsom Seeks Help for Struggling Oil Refiners

UP NEXT

US Justice Department Directs Investigations Over Gender-Affirming Care

UP NEXT

Kennedy Declares ‘Sugar Is Poison’ While Announcing Ban on Food Dyes

UP NEXT

US Justice Department Cancels Hundreds of Grants for Police, Crime Victims

UP NEXT

How Do High Schoolers Really Fare After Graduation? A New California Tool Lets You Know

UP NEXT

Yelich’s 5th Career Slam and Bauers’ 2-Run Homer Power the Brewers to Win Over the Giants

UP NEXT

Happ Hits Game-Ending Single in the 10th as the Cubs Rally Past Dodgers

UP NEXT

US House to Vote on Republican Bid to Repeal California EV Rules

UP NEXT

Outrage Grows to Assembly Bill That Would Slash Solar Contract Benefits

UP NEXT

Trump: No Plans to Fire Fed Chair Powell, but Wants Lower Rates

UP NEXT

RFK Jr Plans to Phase Out Artificial Dyes From the US Food Supply

Five Arrested in Fresno County Robbery Spree. Some Linked to Venezuelan Gang

16 hours ago

US Brings First Terrorism Charges Against Alleged Venezuelan Gang Member

17 hours ago

Trump Says Immigrants Shouldn’t Get Trials Before Deportation

17 hours ago

Artfully Staged for Takeoff: Fresno Airport Expansion Nears Finish

17 hours ago

Chipotle Tempers Annual Sales Forecast as Dining-out Takes a Hit

17 hours ago

Orders to Leave the Country — Some for US Citizens — Sow Confusion Among Immigrants

17 hours ago

Newsom Seeks Help for Struggling Oil Refiners

17 hours ago

General Motors to Increase Production at Ohio Transmission Facility

17 hours ago

US Justice Department Directs Investigations Over Gender-Affirming Care

17 hours ago

Exclusive: Trump Expected to Sign Order Pushing Training for Skilled Trades

17 hours ago

Given Its Failures, Can California Manage a Transition to a Carbon-Free Future?

This commentary was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. It’s become painfully obvious in recent years that Ca...

37 minutes ago

37 minutes ago

Given Its Failures, Can California Manage a Transition to a Carbon-Free Future?

13 hours ago

Fresno Trustees Choose District Insider Misty Her for New Superintendent

15 hours ago

Fresno Students Celebrate Earth Day by Planting 5 Valley Oaks

From left to right: Anderson Vega Laya, 31; Helan Lopez Sanchez, 29; Aaron Sojo Moreno, 25; Yan Garcia-Heredia, 22; and Albert Hinegues, 19, some linked to a violent Venezuelan gang, have been arrested in connection with a series of armed robberies across Fresno County during the summer of 2024. (Fresno County SO)
16 hours ago

Five Arrested in Fresno County Robbery Spree. Some Linked to Venezuelan Gang

U.S. flag and Judge gavel are seen in this illustration taken, August 6, 2024. (REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo)
17 hours ago

US Brings First Terrorism Charges Against Alleged Venezuelan Gang Member

17 hours ago

Trump Says Immigrants Shouldn’t Get Trials Before Deportation

17 hours ago

Artfully Staged for Takeoff: Fresno Airport Expansion Nears Finish

17 hours ago

Chipotle Tempers Annual Sales Forecast as Dining-out Takes a Hit

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend