 |
| The author on a Roman Road |
Krys Johnson, an epidemiologist at Temple University explains the origins of the six foot space for social distancing commonly referenced during the pandemic, "Six feet is the average distance that respiratory droplets from a sneeze or cough travel before they settle and are no longer likely to be inhaled by other people.” Space offers protection and the more space, the more protection.
In Roman times, soldiers were expected to be able to march at the pace of 20 miles per day on carefully constructed roman roads. Roman Generals would use the rule of 20 miles/day to plan military campaign time schedules and resupply points. Opposing armies knew the 20-mile rule and recognized space equaled time. One hundred and twenty miles of space between armies equated to six days of time with which they could use to either retreat, or to prepare an attack. Space offered protection and the more space, the more protection.
I recently came across the news headlines, “Air-conditioning spreads the coronavirus to 9 people sitting near an infected person in a restaurant.” In a restaurant in Guangzhou, China nine people became sick as a result of an added “speed” element from an air-conditioner. The air-conditioner’s fans carried the viral droplets farther and faster across the restaurant, thus the six-foot social distancing rule was “eaten by speed” and lost its value.
Kevin Benedict
Partner | Futurist | Leadership Strategies at TCS
View my profile on LinkedIn
Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict
Join the Linkedin Group Digital Intelligence
***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.
