Despite the murky cover artwork, this latest full-blown Murderbot novel by Martha Wells expands the character of the rogue SecUnit when it’s kidnapped by a familiar space transport. The transport goes through a wormhole in record time (later revealed as assisted by an alien remanent) to an abandoned colony on a forgotten planet.

Murderbot juggles several conflicting missions: protect the team he’s associated with including a difficult adolescent girl, defend the transport from the raiders, restore its pilot, and discover why it was kidnapped in the first place.

As in the previous four Murderbot novels (you can read my reviews here, here, here, and here) there’s plenty of action. But the attraction of these books–for me at least–is the attempt of an Artificial Intelligence to adapt to a human environment. Martha Wells does a masterful job capturing the strangeness and the frustration of a robot trying to protect its clients while trying to solve the mysteries of the situation.

My only quibble with Network Effect is that Martha Wells assumes you’ve read the previous four books and remember the characters and details she’s provided in those novels. Starting with Network Effect might cause confusion for some readers. I can’t wait for the next book in this series! GRADE: A–

I’m a fan of these DC Animated movies. In this latest feature, Justice League Dark: Apokolips War the Justice League is tricked by Darkseid and the results are disastrous. Darkseid turns Batman into a minion. The Earth is being mined by Darkseid’s machinery into ruin. And Superman’s powers are suppressed by liquid Kryptonite. Things look grim.

Surprisingly, magic comes to the fore in this movie. John Constantine joints Raven (from Teen Titans) to use their combined powers to change the trajectory of doom.

If you’re a fan of the Justice League and the magic elements of the DC Universe, you’ll enjoy Justice League Dark: Apokolips War. GRADE: B

SPECIAL FEATURES:

DC Showcase: Adam Strange (Animated Short) – On an asteroid mining colony, mysterious drifter Adam Strange is dismissed as an interplanetary derelict. But when the miners open a fissure into the home of a horde of deadly alien insects, his true identity is exposed. He is space adventurer Adam Strange, whose heroic back-story is played out in flashbacks as he struggles to save the very people who have scorned him for so long.

Darkseid: New God/Evil Classic (New Featurette) – This documentary explores the machinations of one of fiction¹s greatest Super Villains as we learn more about what fuels Darkseid’s drive

Filmmaker Audio Commentary – Observations and behind-the-scenes insight from Executive Producer James Tucker, Directors Matt Peters and Christina Sotta, and Screenwriter Ernie Altbacker.

Look Back: Justice League Dark (Featurette) – John Constantine leads a group of misfit characters that use magic to vanquish their opponents. This is the dark version of the Justice League taking on the malevolent forces that go beyond our plane of existence.

Look Back: Batman and Harley Quinn

From the DC Vault: Justice League Action, “Zombie King”

From the DC Vault: Justice League Action, “Abate and Switch”

From the DC Comics Vault: Teen Titans, “Nevermore”

A Sneak Peek at the next DC Universe Movie, Superman: Man of Tomorrow

Guillermo del Toro’s eloquent Foreward to Ray Russell’s Haunted Castles: The Complete Gothic Stories praises this winner of both the World Fantasy Award and the Bram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement. And, so does Stephen King, who called “Sardonicus” as “perhaps the finest example of the modern gothic ever written.”

The stories included in this collection represent the skillful application of fear and dread to modern life. In his Gothic “S” trilogy–“”Sardonicus” (1961), “Sagittarius” (1962), and “Sanguinarius” (1967)–capture the extreme emotions generated when dealing with the bizarre. This volume brings together some of Ray Russell’s best work. And, who can resist the marvelous cover artwork by Lola Dupre? GRADE: A

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Foreward:
Haunted Castles, Dark Mirrors: On the Penguin Horror Series by Guillermo Del Toro xi

“Sardonicus” (1961) 1
“Sagittarius” (1962) 55
“Sanguinarius” (1967) 109
“Comet Wine” (1967) 163
“The Runaway Lovers” (1967) 191
“The Vendetta” (1969) 207

“The Cage” (1959) 225

I’ve been listening to a lot of music lately and stumbled across this 2-CD set from the 1970s. One-Hit Wonders make a quick splash and then are rarely heard of again. Sometimes they are “gimmick” songs like Carl Douglas’ “Kung Fu Fighting” and “In the Summertime” by British group Mungo Jerry. Others are rough drafts of songs that become much bigger hits when done by other groups and artists. A good example of this is “Turn the Beat Around” by Vicki Sue Robinson which was redone and released by Gloria Estefan. It became a big hit.

So, it’s hit or miss with this collection of songs. Do you see any favorites here? GRADE: B

DISC 1:

	SONG TITLEARTIST	TIME
	Turn The Beat AroundVicki Sue Robinson	3:24
	Ring My BellAnita Ward	3:31
	Sometimes When We TouchDan Hill	2:22
	Rose GardenLynn Anderson	2:49
	In The SummertimeMungo Jerry	3:37
	Seasons in the SunTerry Jacks	3:30
	The Night Chicago DiedPaper Lace	3:32
	Rock The BoatHues Corporation	3:09
	Don’t Give Up on UsDavid Soul	3:39
	Kung Fu FightingCarl Douglas	3:17
	Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)Edison Lighthouse	2:51
	Sweet MaryWadsworth Mansion	2:42
	The Night the Lights Went Out in GeorgiaVicki Lawrence	3:36
	TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia)MFSB featuring the Three Degrees

DISC 2:

	SONG TITLEARTIST	TIME
	Play That Funky MusicWild Cherry	3:16
	One Toke Over the LineBrewer & Shipley	3:21
	Afternoon DelightStarland Vocal Band	3:14
	Life is a RockReunion	3:31
	I Can HelpBilly Swan	2:57
	My MariaB.W. Stevenson	2:31
	Magnet and SteelWalter Egan	3:25
	Beach BabyFirst Class	2:42
	The RapperThe Jaggerz	2:45
	Brother LouieStories	3:57
	Precious and FewClimax	2:46
	O-o-h ChildThe 5 Stairsteps	3:15
	Playground in My MindClint Holmes	2:57
	Put Your Hand In The HandOcean	2:53
	Please Come to BostonDavid Loggins	4:09

PRESERVING PULP 

Alumnus Entrusts his Pulp Fiction Collection to SUNY at Buffalo

It happened to four-time UB alumnus George Kelley long ago when he went away to summer camp. George’s mother took his absence as the perfect opportunity to tackle the clutter that predominated his adolescent bedroom. When George got home, he was devastated to find that, in her zeal, his mom had tossed his entire comic book collection. “I was crushed. And then I just couldn’t go back to comic books. I had to move on to paperbacks…and I became much neater, so my mom wouldn’t throw them away.” A lesson for us all. 

That incident, though painful for George, became a boon for UB when George made the decision in 1994 to donate his extensive pulp fiction collection to the UB Libraries. “I earned three master’s degrees and a PhD from UB, so I feel like I should pay back all the amazing things UB gave me. I’ve had a great life.” 

Now more than 30,000 editions strong, the priceless collection is a resource for enthusiasts as well as academics studying the emerging field of fandom. “As an academic research library, we’re fortunate to be the stewards of these amazing materials,” says Evviva Weinraub Lajoie, Vice Provost for University Libraries. “Its study can inform us about American attitudes and concerns of the mid-20th century, the evolution of publishing, the sociology of fan subculture, and other insights.” 

To some, pulp fiction cover art is as sought after as the stories inside. In fact, Kelley says, sometimes the compelling—and usually provocative—scenes on the cover had nothing to do with the story line. “It didn’t matter. The art sold the book.” Kelley’s favorite pulp fiction artist, Robert McGinnis, is responsible for illustrating more than 1,200 covers and 40 movie posters, including a number in the Kelley collection. “I consider [books with McGinnis art] to be sculptures. Today people collect them, but they might not even read the book, they just want it for the cover.” 

Wood pulp, the cheap and accessible paper the books were printed on, is notoriously fragile. To ensure the collection’s long-term survival, George has also made a commitment to UB for the materials to undergo a deacidification process. “A collection like this needs meticulous attention,” says Ron Gaczewski, preservation officer and head of the Libraries Services Center “Thankfully, George stored each book in a Ziploc bag, which was fortuitous. It’s not a solution in and of itself, but it helped,” Gaczewski said. “We’re so are grateful that he is also supporting the additional preservation work as well.” 

We asked George about the collection and his commitment to UB during a recent visit to campus. 

You’re a passionate collector. How did that happen? 

GK: My love of reading came from my parents and our weekly trips to the library to borrow books. As an adult, when I was traveling as a consultant, I would visit used bookstores and read them while I waited for my flight. Instead of getting rid of them, I saved them, and it grew from there. 

I also think some people have the collecting gene. It seems like it’s mostly men, and it includes me. You can’t imagine the happiness you feel when you find a really good rare book. You just feel exhilarated. It’s fabulous. 

Is pulp fiction a thing of the past? 

GK: Absolutely not. Modern day science fiction, detective stories and romance novels are extensions of pulp fiction from decades ago. A good modern example is 50 Shades of Gray (by E.L. James). 

As an expert, do you get asked to speak about pulp fiction or your collection? 

GK: Yes, particularly at science fiction conventions and mystery conventions. In fact, I just moderated a panel at Bouchercon 50 (the World Mystery Convention), about paperbacks and paperback collecting. The audience was thrilled to hear about UB preserving this stuff, because the books were meant to be disposable, like newspapers. 

Pulp fiction and fandom are emerging areas of academic study. What do you think it says about our society or our culture? What do these books reveal? 

GK: I think for a lot of people today there’s too much reality. So people want a fantasy. It’s escapism. I like to escape into humor, but humor’s hard because not everybody thinks the same thing is funny. But a vampire’s a vampire’s a vampire, so that makes it pretty simple. 

Why did you decide to donate your collection, and why SUNY at Buffalo? 

GK: Well, I stored the books in my basement because the weight of it would have collapsed the floors upstairs. And finally, one day when my wife couldn’t get to the washer and dryer, she said, ‘You have to choose between clean clothes and the books.’ So, I contacted UB, and fortunately you were interested. 

This collection brings me joy, and it brings me more joy to know that UB has it, and that you’re taking care of it for the next generation. Because people are going to look at this and marvel, because there won’t be anything else like it. Everything’s changed in publishing, art, illustration. Now, everything’s digital. Everything’s video. So, I think it’s important to understand what came before. 

What are your hopes for this collection? 

GK: Ideally, since you’ve got all the source material, I want to see it maintained and accessible for future generations. 

When George isn’t at home reading, you may find him hunting for books to add to his collection. Most often he frequents The Book Corner, in Niagara Falls, and Old Editions, in North Tonawanda…which, he admits, is “dangerously close” to his house.

Diane and I are big fans of Jane Austen. We’ve read her novels and seen many movie versions of those books. And, we’ve enjoyed over the years the PBS Masterpiece Theatre TV mini-series. We DVRed Sanditon in January and February and now we finally watched it.

Sanditon, Austen’s unfinished novel, offers a different experience from her previous novels. When Jane Austen died at the age of 41 in 1817, she had written 11 chapters of what was to be her final book. Andrew Davies  takes the characters and the setting and spins a gripping 8 episode mini-series. Set during the Regency period between 1790 and 1820, the action revolves around architect Tom Parker’s dream of building a seaside resort at Sanditon. But, of course, the project encounters plenty of problems.

Many of the events of Sanditon involve country girl Charlotte Heywood (Rose Williams) who stays with the Parkers and initiates many of the plot lines. Tom Parker’s major financial backer, the wealthy Lady Denham (Anne Reid), presents difficulties. The rest of Lady Denham’s family consists of her rascal nephew Sir Edward Denham (Jack Fox) and his bitchy stepsister Esther (Charlotte Spencer), and Clara (Lily Sacofsky), a cunning niece and Lady Denhum’s live-in companion. They all vie for Lady Denham’s fortune.

No Jane Austen story would be complete without a darkly brooding love interest for Charlotte. In this case, it’s Sidney Parker (Theo James), Tom’s mysterious brother. Sidney is the guardian of a wealthy West Indian heiress, Miss Georgiana Lambe (Crystal Clarke).

If you’re a fan of Jane Austen, you’ll enjoy this mini-series. Great cast, and great stories! GRADE: A

No, this 1984 Greg Bear Star Trek novel doesn’t involve the coronavirus. The Corona in this novel is an ancient alien intelligence that has “possessed” the team of Vulcans at a distant outpost. The Enterprise is sent to rescue the Vulcans, but Captain Kirk and his crew have to contend with a new Federation technology that “monitors” the decisions made by the Captain and Dr. McCoy.

In addition, Kirk has to deal with a young woman reporter who could damage his reputation and affect changes on the Enterprise in the middle of a crisis.

Corona follows the template of most of the Star Trek episodes: put the Enterprise and its crew in danger. Greg Bear presents an action-packed adventure with plenty of suspense. Are you a fan of Star Trek? Do you have a favorite character? GRADE: B

• 
  BY Erin Bromage

The Risks – Know Them – Avoid Them

Updated: 2 days ago

Please read this link to learn about the author and background to these posts.

It seems many people are breathing some relief, and I’m not sure why. An epidemic curve has a relatively predictable upslope and once the peak is reached, the back slope can also be predicted. We have robust data from the outbreaks in China and Italy, that shows the backside of the mortality curve declines slowly, with deaths persisting for months. Assuming we have just crested in deaths at 70k, it is possible that we lose another 70,000 people over the next 6 weeks as we come off that peak. That’s what’s going to happen with a lockdown.

As states reopen, and we give the virus more fuel, all bets are off. I understand the reasons for reopening the economy, but I’ve said before, if you don’t solve the biology, the economy won’t recover.

There are very few states that have demonstrated a sustained decline in numbers of new infections. Indeed, as of May 3rd the majority are still increasing and reopening. As a simple example of the USA trend, when you take out the data from New York and just look at the rest of the USA, daily case numbers are increasing. Bottom line: the only reason the total USA new case numbers look flat right now is because the New York City epidemic was so large and now it is being contained.

So throughout most of the country we are going to add fuel to the viral fire by reopening. It’s going to happen if I like it or not, so my goal here is to try to guide you away from situations of high risk.

Where are people getting sick?

We know most people get infected in their own home. A household member contracts the virus in the community and brings it into the house where sustained contact between household members leads to infection.

But where are people contracting the infection in the community? I regularly hear people worrying about grocery stores, bike rides, inconsiderate runners who are not wearing masks…. are these places of concern? Well, not really. Let me explain.

In order to get infected you need to get exposed to an infectious dose of the virus; based on infectious dose studies with other coronaviruses, it appears that only small doses may be needed for infection to take hold. Some experts estimate that as few as 1000 SARS-CoV2 infectious viral particles are all that will be needed (ref 1, ref 2). Please note, this still needs to be determined experimentally, but we can use that number to demonstrate how infection can occur. Infection could occur, through 1000 infectious viral particles you receive in one breath or from one eye-rub, or 100 viral particles inhaled with each breath over 10 breaths, or 10 viral particles with 100 breaths. Each of these situations can lead to an infection.

How much Virus is released into the environment?

A Bathroom: Bathrooms have a lot of high touch surfaces, door handles, faucets, stall doors. So fomite transfer risk in this environment can be high. We still do not know whether a person releases infectious material in feces or just fragmented virus, but we do know that toilet flushing does aerosolize many droplets. Treat public bathrooms with extra caution (surface and air), until we know more about the risk.

A Cough: A single cough releases about 3,000 droplets and droplets travels at 50 miles per hour. Most droplets are large, and fall quickly (gravity), but many do stay in the air and can travel across a room in a few seconds.

A Sneeze: A single sneeze releases about 30,000 droplets, with droplets traveling at up to 200 miles per hour. Most droplets are small and travel great distances (easily across a room).

If a person is infected, the droplets in a single cough or sneeze may contain as many as 200,000,000 (two hundred million) virus particles which can all be dispersed into the environment around them.

A breath: A single breath releases 50 – 5000 droplets. Most of these droplets are low velocity and fall to the ground quickly. There are even fewer droplets released through nose-breathing. Importantly, due to the lack of exhalation force with a breath, viral particles from the lower respiratory areas are not expelled.

Unlike sneezing and coughing which release huge amounts of viral material, the respiratory droplets released from breathing only contain low levels of virus. We don’t have a number for SARS-CoV2 yet, but we can use influenza as a guide. Studies have shown that a person infected with influenza can releases up to 33 infectious viral particles per minute. But I’m going to use 20 to keep the math simple.

Remember the formula: Successful Infection = Exposure to Virus x Time

If a person coughs or sneezes, those 200,000,000 viral particles go everywhere. Some virus hangs in the air, some falls into surfaces, most falls to the ground. So if you are face-to-face with a person, having a conversation, and that person sneezes or coughs straight at you, it’s pretty easy to see how it is possible to inhale 1,000 virus particles and become infected.

But even if that cough or sneeze was not directed at you, some infected droplets–the smallest of small–can hang in the air for a few minutes, filling every corner of a modest sized room with infectious viral particles. All you have to do is enter that room within a few minutes of the cough/sneeze and take a few breaths and you have potentially received enough virus to establish an infection.

But with general breathing, 20 viral particles minute into the environment, even if every virus ended up in your lungs (which is very unlikely), you would need 1000 viral particles divided by 20 per minute = 50 minutes.

Speaking increases the release of respiratory droplets about 10 fold; ~200 virus particles per minute. Again, assuming every virus is inhaled, it would take ~5 minutes of speaking face-to-face to receive the required dose.

The exposure to virus x time formula is the basis of contact tracing. Anyone you spend greater than 10 minutes with in a face-to-face situation is potentially infected. Anyone who shares a space with you (say an office) for an extended period is potentially infected. This is also why it is critical for people who are symptomatic to stay home. Your sneezes and your coughs expel so much virus that you can infect a whole room of people.

What is the role of asymptomatic people in spreading the virus?

Symptomatic people are not the only way the virus is shed. We know that at least 44% of all infections–and the majority of community-acquired transmissions–occur from people without any symptoms (asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic people). You can be shedding the virus into the environment for up to 5 days before symptoms begin.

Infectious people come in all ages, and they all shed different amounts of virus. The figure below shows that no matter your age (x-axis), you can have a little bit of virus or a lot of virus (y-axis). (ref)

The amount of virus released from an infected person changes over the course of infection and it is also different from person-to-person. Viral load generally builds up to the point where the person becomes symptomatic. So just prior to symptoms showing, you are releasing the most virus into the environment. Interestingly, the data shows that just 20% of infected people are responsible for 99% of viral load that could potentially be released into the environment (ref)

So now let’s get to the crux of it. Where are the personal dangers from reopening?

When you think of outbreak clusters, what are the big ones that come to mind? Most people would say cruise ships. But you would be wrong. Ship outbreaks, while concerning, don’t land in the top 50 outbreaks to date.

Ignoring the terrible outbreaks in nursing homes, we find that the biggest outbreaks are in prisons, religious ceremonies, and workplaces, such as meat packing facilities and call centers. Any environment that is enclosed, with poor air circulation and high density of people, spells trouble.

Some of the biggest super-spreading events are:

• Meat packing: In meat processing plants, densely packed workers must communicate to one another amidst the deafening drum of industrial machinery and a cold-room virus-preserving environment. There are now outbreaks in 115 facilities across 23 states, 5000+ workers infected, with 20 dead. (ref)
• Weddings, funerals, birthdays: 10% of early spreading events
• Business networking: Face-to-face business networking like the Biogen Conference in Boston in late February.

As we move back to work, or go to a restaurant, let’s look at what can happen in those environments.

Restaurants: Some really great shoe-leather epidemiology demonstrated clearly the effect of a single asymptomatic carrier in a restaurant environment (see below). The infected person (A1) sat at a table and had dinner with 9 friends. Dinner took about 1 to 1.5 hours. During this meal, the asymptomatic carrier released low-levels of virus into the air from their breathing. Airflow (from the restaurant’s various airflow vents) was from right to left. Approximately 50% of the people at the infected person’s table became sick over the next 7 days. 75% of the people on the adjacent downwind table became infected. And even 2 of the 7 people on the upwind table were infected (believed to happen by turbulent airflow). No one at tables E or F became infected, they were out of the main airflow from the air conditioner on the right to the exhaust fan on the left of the room. (Ref)

Workplaces: Another great example is the outbreak in a call center (see below). A single infected employee came to work on the 11th floor of a building. That floor had 216 employees. Over the period of a week, 94 of those people became infected (43.5%: the blue chairs). 92 of those 94 people became sick (only 2 remained asymptomatic). Notice how one side of the office is primarily infected, while there are very few people infected on the other side. While exact number of people infected by respiratory droplets / respiratory exposure versus fomite transmission (door handles, shared water coolers, elevator buttons etc.) is unknown. It serves to highlight that being in an enclosed space, sharing the same air for a prolonged period increases your chances of exposure and infection. Another 3 people on other floors of the building were infected, but the authors were not able to trace the infection to the primary cluster on the 11th floor. Interestingly, even though there were considerable interaction between workers on different floors of the building in elevators and the lobby, the outbreak was mostly limited to a single floor (ref). This highlights the importance of exposure and time in the spreading of SARS-CoV2.

Choir: The community choir in Washington State. Even though people were aware of the virus and took steps to minimize transfer; e.g. they avoided the usual handshakes and hugs hello, people also brought their own music to avoid sharing, and socially distanced themselves during practice. They even went to the lengths to tell choir members prior to practice that anyone experiencing symptoms should stay home. A single asymptomatic carrier infected most of the people in attendance. The choir sang for 2 1/2 hours, inside an enclosed rehearsal hall which was roughly the size of a volleyball court.

Singing, to a greater degree than talking, aerosolizes respiratory droplets extraordinarily well. Deep-breathing while singing facilitated those respiratory droplets getting deep into the lungs. Two and half hours of exposure ensured that people were exposed to enough virus over a long enough period of time for infection to take place. Over a period of 4 days, 45 of the 60 choir members developed symptoms, 2 died. The youngest infected was 31, but they averaged 67 years old. (corrected link)

Indoor sports: While this may be uniquely Canadian, a super spreading event occurred during a curling event in Canada. A curling event with 72 attendees became another hotspot for transmission. Curling brings contestants and teammates in close contact in a cool indoor environment, with heavy breathing for an extended period. This tournament resulted in 24 of the 72 people becoming infected. (ref)

Birthday parties / funerals: Just to see how simple infection-chains can be, this is a real story from Chicago. The name is fake. Bob was infected but didn’t know. Bob shared a takeout meal, served from common serving dishes, with 2 family members. The dinner lasted 3 hours. The next day, Bob attended a funeral, hugging family members and others in attendance to express condolences. Within 4 days, both family members who shared the meal are sick. A third family member, who hugged Bob at the funeral became sick. But Bob wasn’t done. Bob attended a birthday party with 9 other people. They hugged and shared food at the 3 hour party. Seven of those people became ill. Over the next few days Bob became sick, he was hospitalized, ventilated, and died.

But Bob’s legacy lived on. Three of the people Bob infected at the birthday went to church, where they sang, passed the tithing dish etc. Members of that church became sick. In all, Bob was directly responsible for infecting 16 people between the ages of 5 and 86. Three of those 16 died.

The spread of the virus within the household and back out into the community through funerals, birthdays, and church gatherings is believed to be responsible for the broader transmission of COVID-19 in Chicago. (ref)

Sobering right?

Commonality of outbreaks

The reason to highlight these different outbreaks is to show you the commonality of outbreaks of COVID-19. All these infection events were indoors, with people closely-spaced, with lots of talking, singing, or yelling. The main sources for infection are home, workplace, public transport, social gatherings, and restaurants. This accounts for 90% of all transmission events. In contrast, outbreaks spread from shopping appear to be responsible for a small percentage of traced infections. (Ref)

Importantly, of the countries performing contact tracing properly, only a single outbreak has been reported from an outdoor environment (less than 0.3% of traced infections). (ref)

So back to the original thought of my post.

Indoor spaces, with limited air exchange or recycled air and lots of people, are concerning from a transmission standpoint. We know that 60 people in a volleyball court-sized room (choir) results in massive infections. Same situation with the restaurant and the call center. Social distancing guidelines don’t hold in indoor spaces where you spend a lot of time, as people on the opposite side of the room were infected.

The principle is viral exposure over an extended period of time. In all these cases, people were exposed to the virus in the air for a prolonged period (hours). Even if they were 50 feet away (choir or call center), even a low dose of the virus in the air reaching them, over a sustained period, was enough to cause infection and in some cases, death.

Social distancing rules are really to protect you with brief exposures or outdoor exposures. In these situations there is not enough time to achieve the infectious viral load when you are standing 6 feet apart or where wind and the infinite outdoor space for viral dilution reduces viral load. The effects of sunlight, heat, and humidity on viral survival, all serve to minimize the risk to everyone when outside.

When assessing the risk of infection (via respiration) at the grocery store or mall, you need to consider the volume of the air space (very large), the number of people (restricted), how long people are spending in the store (workers – all day; customers – an hour). Taken together, for a person shopping: the low density, high air volume of the store, along with the restricted time you spend in the store, means that the opportunity to receive an infectious dose is low. But, for the store worker, the extended time they spend in the store provides a greater opportunity to receive the infectious dose and therefore the job becomes more risky.

Basically, as the work closures are loosened, and we start to venture out more, possibly even resuming in-office activities, you need to look at your environment and make judgments. How many people are here, how much airflow is there around me, and how long will I be in this environment. If you are in an open floorplan office, you really need to critically assess the risk (volume, people, and airflow). If you are in a job that requires face-to-face talking or even worse, yelling, you need to assess the risk.

If you are sitting in a well ventilated space, with few people, the risk is low.

If I am outside, and I walk past someone, remember it is “dose and time” needed for infection. You would have to be in their airstream for 5+ minutes for a chance of infection. While joggers may be releasing more virus due to deep breathing, remember the exposure time is also less due to their speed. Please do maintain physical distance, but the risk of infection in these scenarios are low. Here is a great article in Vox that discusses the low risk of running and cycling in detail.

While I have focused on respiratory exposure here, please don’t forget surfaces. Those infected respiratory droplets land somewhere. Wash your hands often and stop touching your face!

As we are allowed to move around our communities more freely and be in contact with more people in more places more regularly, the risks to ourselves and our family are significant. Even if you are gung-ho for reopening and resuming business as usual, do your part and wear a mask to reduce what you release into the environment. It will help everyone, including your own business. This article was inspired by a piece written by Jonathan Kay in Quillete

About the author

Erin S. Bromage, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Biology at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.

Remember when World War II movies were popular? Here are two of my favorites: The Dirty Dozen from 1967 and Kelly’s Heroes from 1970. WWII movies began to vanish in the 1970s and were pretty much extinct by the 1980s.

Kelly’s Heroes features Clint Eastwood and a band of misfits who go behind enemy lines to steal Nazi gold. The Dirty Dozen has Lee Marvin in charge of criminals who “volunteer” for a suicide mission. Watching Marvin whip a group of losers into a fighting unit lights up the screen!

Are you a fan of World War II movies? What’s your favorite? GRADE: A (for both)