Asia

Japan supercomputer suggests changes to travel, work amid airborne COVID-19 threat

TOKYO: Supercomputer-driven models simulated in Japan suggested that operating commuter trains with windows open and limiting the number of passengers may help reduce the risk of coronavirus infections, as scientists warn of airborne spread of the virus.

In an open letter published on Monday (Jul 6), 239 scientists in 32 countries outlined evidence that they say shows floating virus particles can infect people who breathe them in.

Advertisement

Advertisement

The World Health Organization (WHO) acknowledged 'evidence emerging' of airborne transmission, but said it was not definitive.

Even if the coronavirus is airborne, questions remain about how many infections occur through that route. How concentrated the virus is in the air may also decide contagion risks, said Kyoto University professor Yuki Furuse.

In the open letter, scientists urged improvements to ventilation and the avoidance of crowded, enclosed environments, recommendations that Shinichi Tanabe, one of the co-authors of the letter, says Japan broadly adopted months ago.

"In Japan, the committee for COVID-19 countermeasures insisted on the '3Cs' at an early stage," said Tanabe, a professor at Waseda University in Tokyo, referring to Japan's public campaign to avoid "closed spaces, crowded places and close-contact settings".

Advertisement

Advertisement

"This is ahead of the world."

As Japan tamed the pandemic, with more than 19,000 confirmed cases and 977 deaths so far, Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura credited its success to the "3Cs" and its cluster-tracing strategy.

READ: Need for speed: Japan supercomputer is world's fastest

The recent study by Japanese research giant Riken using the world's fastest supercomputer, the Fugaku, to simulate how the virus travels in the air in various environments advised several ways to lower infection risks in public settings.

Its lead researcher, Makoto Tsubokura, said that opening windows on commuter trains Read More – Source

[contf]
[contfnew]

channel news asia

[contfnewc]
[contfnewc]

Related Articles

Asia

Joshua Wong and fellow activists plead guilty in Hong Kong protests trial

bbc– Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong and two fellow campaigners are...

Asia

Works worth Rs 1,559 cr completed in Bihar out of PM s package of Rs 1.25 lakh cr: Congress

PATNA: Congress general secretary Randeep Surjewala on Tuesday claimed that works worth...

Asia

Ex-Trump fundraiser pleads guilty to illicit lobbying on 1MDB, China

WASHINGTON: A former top fundraiser for President Donald Trump pleaded guilty Tuesday...

Asia

Covid: Delhi more “open” than Mumbai

NEW DELHI: With Unlock 5.0 underway from October 15, more businesses and...