Is six feet enough? A recent paper looks at the science of social distancing. It is key to stop COVID-19. More, they ask what is a safe distance?
The World Health Organization (WHO) issued guidelines. But they are not written in stone. They recommend maintaining a distance of six feet (~two meters) between people.
But now science wants answers. In a paper published in Science Magazine, three researchers weighed in. And they caution that six feet may not be enough.
The lead author is Kimberly A. Prather, Ph.D. Her research studies how a virus travels in the air.
The dynamics and associated risk of airborne transmission are unknown. But public health experts caution of the risk.
More, they note a large proportion of the spread of the virus appears to be occurring through the air. This is serious.
Also alarming is that it can accumulate indoors. There, it remains infectious. Thus, infection can occur without close contact.
Furthermore, they underscore preventative steps as key. And this includes testing.
And they point out that 79% of all cases in Wuhan, China, are believed to have been transmitted by individuals exhibiting no symptoms. This makes it difficult to stop.
The paper is on Sciencemag.org. It asks an important question: Is 6 feet enough?
Illustration by Natasha Remarchuk