
Mail Handlers Used to Poke Holes in Envelopes to Battle Germs and Viruses - diodorus
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/mail-handlers-used-poke-holes-envelopes-battle-germs-and-viruses-180975020/
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cantrevealname
> _And then there were the anthrax attacks in 2001. The Postal Service soon
> began irradiating mail sent to zip codes in Washington D.C. associated with
> federal government agencies, AND STILL DOES._

A one time event, but we are saddled for life with security procedures and
their associated costs that can never be ended. Just like 9/11 and the TSA's
security procedures.

~~~
sjf
The relics of this pandemic like huge sneeze guards in businesses are probably
going to be around for the next 30 years.

~~~
cantrevealname
The one I'm most worried about is the acceptance of cash.

~~~
_0ffh
After giving in for a few weeks during the local height of the pandemic, I've
come back to pay cash only. I hope everyone who cares does.

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diffuse_l
"Major Walter Reed, an Army surgeon, proved that mosquitos transmitted the
virus that caused yellow fever"

If anyone else also asked himself how do you actually prove that - not
surprisingly, you infect volunteers with a mosquito that has bitten an
infected person. Multiple tests were needed to establish the exact timeframe
when the person is contagious.

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cantrevealname
> _The (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recognizes that while it
> may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or
> object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or
> possibly their eyes, this is not thought to be the main way the virus
> spreads_

There was a rash of headlines back around May 20 in which news outlets
proclaimed that the CDC had changed its guidance from saying that fomite
transmission was a concern to wasn't a concern. It turns out that those
headlines were based on nothing and those stories were debunked by the New
York Times[1]. The CDC had been consistently saying that fomites were an
unlikely route of transmission but had tweaked the wording on their website
and news outlets jumped all over it as if it were based on new research.

[1] [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/22/health/cdc-coronavirus-
to...](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/22/health/cdc-coronavirus-touching-
surfaces.html)

