Call for a Foldscope community – Global Action Mask Taskforce!

Mar 21, 2020 • 2:44 PM UTC

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Manu Prakash

I am a faculty at Stanford and run the Prakash Lab at Department of Bioengineering at Stanford University. Foldscope community is at the heart of our Frugal Science movement - and I can not tell you how proud I am of this community and grassroots movement. Find our work here: http://prakashlab.stanford.edu

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Dear Foldscope community,
Here is a request for all foldscope users – as the markets are flooded with different masks and citizens across the world are struggling to figure out what is good and bad; let’s self organize to share and teach – find as many different kind of masks and document the pore size of “filter layer” – local masks, international masks – anything that is available for common people.
It’s important to note that as citizens – we should leave N95 masks for health care workers who are at harms way since they directly handle infected patients every moment.
Here is a proposal – can we make a comprehensive table collectively in order of size – from smallest to largest – of pore size in various locally found mask. This will be the largest mask deconstruction campaign to gather information on common raw materials used to make masks!
It will also allow people a sense of protection grade they get with a certain mask. Just putting a piece of cloth on your face is not good enough! And since the markets will be flooded with masks (of varying quality); now would be a great time to teach and share with your local community around you about how masks work, how to wear them properly.
Use the Microcosmos community site here to collect all your data – and a few of you can be in charge of actually putting it all together in one place – kind of what @⁨Laks Iyer ⁩did for pollen roster project – but now for masks!! Let’s go!

Keep exploring
Manu