泡泡内用餐更安全?
Oh, to dine in a giant plastic bubble ...
噢,在大塑料泡泡里用餐...
It's certainly not the most romantic culinary experience.
这肯定不会是很浪漫的用餐体验。
But post-pandemic?
但在后疫情时期呢?
It's kind of the new rave.
它成了一种新的流行。
It's popping up in New York and other cities, too, like San Francisco.
在纽约和其他一些像旧金山这样的城市也出现了。
It's easy to understand the quirky appeal of bubbles, igloos, tents or plastic domes – whichever term you prefer.
其实还是很好理解这些奇怪的泡泡,圆顶小屋,帐篷或者塑料圆罩的用途——不管你怎么叫它。
Who wouldn't want to say they dined in a giant hamster ball!
谁会不愿意说自己在一个巨大的仓鼠球里用餐了呢?
Yet experts are worried about the safety implications of using bubbles as an outdoor dining strategy.
然而,专家们仍然担心使用气泡作为户外用餐策略的安全隐患。
It may actually be counterproductive.
它甚至会起反作用。
The reasoning behind the bubble strategy is that shrouded in plastic, diners can withstand the cold air of winter while enjoying the benefits of outdoor dining in a pandemic — namely, air flow reduces the risk of transmission of COVID-19.
泡沫战略背后的理由是,裹上塑料,用餐者可以抵御冬天的冷空气,同时享受在大流行期间户外用餐的好处——也就是说,空气不怎么流动降低了新冠病毒传播的风险。
But a closer look reveals some pitfalls of the strategy, says Dennis Clements, director of the Duke Global Health Institute
但杜克大学全球卫生研究所主任丹尼斯·克莱门茨表示,仔细观察就会揭示了该战略的一些缺陷。
"First of all, being outdoors [with no bubble] is a big help," Clements explains.
“首先,身处户外(不要泡泡)就可以帮助防疫,”克莱门茨解释道。
"When you enclose yourself in a bubble, it stops airflow."
“当你把自己关在泡泡里时,气流就被阻断了。”
Tiffany Harris, associate professor of epidemiology at the Columbia University Medical Center, agrees that cutting off airflow is a big concern for two reasons:
哥伦比亚大学医学中心的流行病学副教授蒂芙尼·哈里斯也认为,切断气流是一个大问题,原因有两个:
First, she explains, many people are dining with friends who aren't a part of their immediate household.
首先,她解释道,很多人都是和不是他们直系亲属的朋友一起吃饭。
While outdoors, there's wind to act as a buffer and disperse any infectious viral particles, lowering the risk of transmission.
在户外,风可以起到缓冲作用,驱散任何传染性病毒颗粒,降低传播风险。
But sitting in a bubble effectively erects "artificial walls," doing the opposite — i.e. allowing viral particles to linger in the air.
但是,坐在一个气泡里就能有效地竖起“人造墙”,起到相反的作用——即让病毒颗粒停留在空气中。
That's not all.
这还不算完。
Even though restaurants say they're taking care to sanitize the bubbles after every use, Harris still has worries: "I have concerns about everything being cleaned properly and how often cleaning is happening — especially given that we don't understand everything about COVID sterilization."
尽管餐馆表示他们在每次使用后都会对泡沫进行消毒,但哈里斯仍有顾虑:“我担心所有的东西都清洗得很干净,也担心清洁的频率——尤其是考虑到我们并不完全了解新冠病毒的灭菌方法。”
And some questions remain unanswered ... like, how long must one air out a bubble to get a good clean after a party leaves?
有些问题仍然没有答案……比如,在派对结束后,一个人要用多长时间才能让一个泡泡里的空气完全换新?
And, Clements explains, you're not totally isolated in a dining igloo anyways.
另外,克莱门茨解释道,你在圆屋里面也并不算是完全隔离。
Presumably, you would be interacting often with waiters and other restaurant staff, bringing your food and drink.
据推测,你会经常与服务员和其他餐厅员工互动,为你端上食物和饮料。
"If whoever enters the bubble is diseased, their viral particles are contained in the bubble," Clements says.
克莱门茨说:“如果进入气泡的人有病,气泡中就会含有他们的病毒颗粒。”
"That ruins the reason for eating outdoors to begin with — dispersal of aerosols by breeze."
“这就破坏了人们在户外进食的初衷——空气中悬浮颗粒的扩散。”
Our sources agree: As it stands, dining outside a bubble is probably a safer bet than eating inside a bubble.
据可靠消息:就目前而言,在泡泡外面吃饭可能比在泡泡里面吃饭更安全。
After all, what's the point of sitting outside if the bubble in effect means you're ... inside?
毕竟,在泡泡里吃饭就意味着在里面,那还专门跑出门干什么呢?
If the concern is cold weather, Harris says eating outdoors with a nearby heat lamp is a safer alternative than bubble warmth.
哈里斯说,如果担心的是寒冷的天气,在户外吃饭,附近放一个取暖灯是一个比泡沫取暖更安全的选择。
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