Topic description and stories

Woman wearing a mask on public transport

No ‘safest spot’ to minimise risk of COVID-19 transmission on trains

22 Jun 2022

Researchers have demonstrated how airborne diseases such as COVID-19 spread along the length of a train carriage and found that there is no ‘safest...

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CO2 monitor

Curbing COVID-19 in schools: Cambridge scientists support CO2 monitor rollout

17 Jan 2022

UK schools have received more than 300,000 CO2 monitors as part of a government initiative to reduce COVID-19 spread in classrooms.

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Screenshot from Covid-19 risk calculator

Interactive tool helps you decide how to protect yourself and others from COVID-19

02 Dec 2021

Is it risky to sing in a choir? What are the risks of eating in a small restaurant? How much difference does it make to open windows or clean...

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Visualisation of droplets from a cough

Two-metre COVID-19 rule is ‘arbitrary measurement’ of safety

23 Nov 2021

A new study has shown that the airborne transmission of COVID-19 is highly random and suggests that the two-metre rule was a number chosen from a...

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People in office sitting in front of computers

Scientists develop model to assess COVID-19 infection risk in offices and schools

06 Oct 2021

As more UK workers and students return to offices and schools, a new model has been developed to predict the risk of airborne COVID-19 infection in...

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People sitting inside a restaurant wearing face masks

Free online tool calculates risk of COVID-19 transmission in poorly-ventilated spaces

20 Jan 2021

The vital role of ventilation in the spread of COVID-19 has been quantified by researchers, who have found that in poorly-ventilated spaces, the...

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Many ventilation systems may increase risk of COVID-19 exposure, study suggests

29 Sep 2020

Ventilation systems in many modern office buildings, which are designed to keep temperatures comfortable and increase energy efficiency, may increase...

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Coronavirus pandemic: making safer emergency hospitals

28 Apr 2020

Simple, low-cost ventilation designs and configuration of wards can reduce the dispersal of airborne virus in emergency COVID-19 hospitals, say...

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