The Conversation - CDC: Wear two masks

+ building a vaccine corps of medical and nursing students ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

With new variants of coronavirus spreading, taking simple steps to slow its spread is crucial. That makes the new Centers of Disease Control guidelines for wearing masks important.

Of course, your mask must be made of the right material, writes Scott Schiffres, a professor of mechanical engineering at Binghamton University. But he and the CDC agree that how well a mask fits matters just as much. Here’s how to make sure your mask isn’t leaking air in or out.

Also today:

Daniel Merino

Assistant Editor: Science, Health, Environment

Masks work only if they fit well, and wearing two can ensure a tight fit. Eduardo Maquilón/Getty Images/Stringer via Getty Images News

CDC says masks must fit tightly – and two are better than one

Scott N. Schiffres, Binghamton University, State University of New York

How well your mask works depends on how well it fits. Wearing two snug masks made of different materials offers 95% protection from exposure to aerosols that could contain the coronavirus.

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Bipartisanship in Congress isn’t about being nice – it’s about cold, hard numbers Daniel Palazzolo, University of Richmond Politicians say they want it, but how often, and under what circumstances, does bipartisanship really happen?

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Why you shouldn’t eat out for Valentine’s Day: An epidemiologist explains a few facts of life

Ryan Malosh, University of Michigan

What is Valentine's Day without a romantic dinner out? It could be a COVID-19 catastrophe. Better to stay home and order in, writes an epidemiologist.
We’re building a vaccine corps of medical and nursing students – they could transform how we reach underserved areas

Michael F. Collins, University of Massachusetts Medical School

One university is showing how the vaccine corps concept can speed up vaccination rates, including launching a large-scale vaccination site staffed by hundreds of students and volunteers.
Public option in Biden plan could change the face of US health care

Michael Williams, University of Virginia

The president is calling for sweeping changes in health care policy. Tens of millions of Americans could be affected.

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Xuejian Wu, Rutgers University - Newark

Chinese American physicist Wu worked on the Manhattan Project and performed groundbreaking experiments throughout her long career.

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Katherine A. Foss, Middle Tennessee State University

This isn't the first time America's schoolchildren have studied remotely – and Chicago's 1937 'radio school' experiment shows how technology can fill the gap during a crisis.
Evidence of an impending breakup may exist in everyday conversation – months before either partner realizes their relationship is tanking

Sarah Seraj, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts; James W. Pennebaker, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts; Kate G. Blackburn, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts

Psycholinguistic researchers analyzed more than 1 million Reddit posts a year before and a year after users posted about their breakup.
Mothers who earned straight A’s in high school manage the same number of employees as fathers who got failing grades

Jill Yavorsky, University of North Carolina – Charlotte; Yue Qian, University of British Columbia

A new study found that while becoming a father gave men more leadership opportunities, becoming a mother diminished them for women.

The Conversation - CDC: Wear two masks

CDC says masks must fit tightly – and two are better than one

Politics + Society

Bipartisanship in Congress isn’t about being nice – it’s about cold, hard numbers

Health

Why you shouldn’t eat out for Valentine’s Day: An epidemiologist explains a few facts of life

We’re building a vaccine corps of medical and nursing students – they could transform how we reach underserved areas

Public option in Biden plan could change the face of US health care

Arts + Culture

Polyamorous relationships under severe strain during the pandemic

Science + Technology

The search for dark matter gets a speed boost from quantum technology

New postage stamp honors Chien-Shiung Wu, trailblazing nuclear physicist

Trending on Site

Remote learning isn’t new: Radio instruction in the 1937 polio epidemic

Evidence of an impending breakup may exist in everyday conversation – months before either partner realizes their relationship is tanking

Mothers who earned straight A’s in high school manage the same number of employees as fathers who got failing grades

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