Cloth masks have been found to be ineffective protection against air pollution. Full-face underwater mask: review The story of a mask that is 95% safer

“IT IS NOT PROHIBITED BY LAW, I VARY WHERE I WANT”

This phrase has long become the slogan of all vapers, lovers of electronic nicotine vaporizers. Initially, the device was invented to replace regular cigarettes, and then it turned into a whole subculture. After three years of the wild popularity of vapes, they were finally banned by law. For now, however, at the local level.

Deputies of the Leningrad region adopted a bill that prohibits the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors. The article also includes liquids for refilling vapes, even nicotine-free ones.

This has become some kind of crazy culture among young people, which is harmful to health. Now we have taken the first step with a ban on sales. The next step is to equate tobacco products completely and introduce restrictions on vaping in certain places, commented one of the authors of the project, Deputy Vladimir Petrov.

The sale of vapes will be punished at the same price as for tobacco. Individual entrepreneurs will pay from 5 to 10 thousand rubles, legal entities from 10 to 30. Similar prices in this case are not very justified. The average price for a pack of cigarettes is 120 rubles; a bottle of e-cigarette liquid costs about the same price. But prices for the electronic cigarette itself start from 900 rubles and end at 10 thousand.

Deputies from the Leningrad region were not the first to come up with this law. At the beginning of May, a similar project was adopted in the Vologda region. And the State Duma has been developing a federal law since February of this year.

If the ban is imposed across the country, the e-cigarette market will suffer greatly. Schoolchildren make up the majority of all consumers. For example, in the most popular VKontakte group “VAPE” for those who like to vape, there are 304 thousand subscribers, 110 thousand of them are minors.

"95 PERCENT SAFER"

This is another slogan of soarers, and they usually refer to the opinions of doctors. Only doctors are against vaping. In 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) prepared a report in which it proposed to equate vapes with tobacco products and ban flavored liquids, because, in addition to nicotine, they contain other toxic substances. However, the WHO agreed that vapers are slightly safer than regular cigarettes because they do not contain the very tar that causes the greatest harm.

Vapes are based on steam, and it is much easier than smoke, it passes through all the internal barriers of our body, so the damage from toxins causes significant damage,” says narcologist Viktor Grigoriev, - moreover, the production of vaping liquids is not regulated in our country. It is not clear what is inside, in what quantity and what harm it can cause. Therefore, Roszdravnadzor should study this issue and determine standards.

The WHO has stated that there is no evidence that e-cigarettes help people quit smoking tobacco. But British scientists were able to prove the opposite. According to their research, if a person quits smoking and switches to vaping, then after a few years he begins, in principle, to consume less substances that are associated with tobacco carcinogens and toxins.

Skip to content MaskaArt Papier-mâché masks. Home Technologies Mask, Blank production. Mask, Making a blank - part 2. Our works O. History of the Columbina mask Columbina is a traditional character in the Italian folk comedy of masks, a servant who participates in the development of intrigue, in different scenarios also called Fantesca, Servette, Franceschina, Smeraldina, Mirandolina, etc.

According to legend, a very beautiful commedia dell'arte actress refused to cover her face with a mask, and especially for her, in order not to deviate from tradition, they came up with a mask that covered only. Columbine's dress usually consisted of patches and patches, and was similar to her partner's Harlequin costume. Columbina also wore heavy makeup around her eyes and wore a tambourine, with which she brushed off Pantalone’s persistent advances.

The Columbine mask gained great popularity in the French theater. A peasant girl who feels insecure and unusual in the city, a servant, a village fool, and similar in character to Harlequin.

In the French theater, Columbine's peasant features were erased, and the mask began to change in decoration, but did not change its shape. A masquerade in sunny Italy is not complete without carnival costumes, a prominent element of which are Venetian masks. Accessories that completely hide the face can add mystery to images, while at the same time preserving the characteristic features of different personalities that distinguish them from each other. Half masks that slightly reveal the lower part of the face allow you to bewitch your interlocutor with a charming smile.

Replies@website: A fox task appeared on VKontakte today, to make the mask story 95% safer than the others. What kind of mask is this?

They can be worn without a suit. A little history Did you know that masks were previously used by the Venetians in everyday life? The small Italian city located in the north of the country has always been a little isolated, so most people in Venice knew each other very well.

When the need arose to hide one’s personality and social status from prying eyes, sometimes even half-Venetian masks helped well. Over time, a period came when it became impossible to wear masks on a daily basis in Venice. But they still remain the most popular accessories during celebrations and carnivals.

Ceramics and porcelain can be used for souvenir samples. And they are usually decorated with gilding, silver, lace, silk, feathers and other types of decor. By their design, Venetian masks can cover the entire head, face, crown and back of the head, or cover only the face.

This accessory is held in place using ribbons that are tied at the back of the head or elastic bands in a modern version. If the mask is too heavy, a string is attached and the person holds it with his teeth. The accessory can be held using a comfortable handle. At their core, carnival masks are variations of the masks of the Italian street comedy theater. The most famous of them are Harlequin and Columbine. All the characters have distinct personalities and a way of dressing that is unique to them. Popular carnival masks not related to the temple of Melpomene: The first of them is an example of exquisite elegance and sophistication.

There are many types of ladies' masks. The best way to experience the romance of the Venetian carnivals is to wear a mask. Theme parties, New Year's holidays are a great occasion. Masks were used for ceremonial, aesthetic, and practical purposes.

In ancient times, masks were used as protection and defense against evil spirits. Throughout all centuries, people have tended to change their appearance under the influence of certain traditions and social historical factors. This year, the church issued an official ban on wearing masks in order to stop all unrighteous acts of parishioners. Since ancient times, applying a war color to the face using clay, charcoal, white or red paint has been a practical necessity: Later, due to the need to recognize members of society, tattoos began to be used, which, unlike a paint design, remained on the skin posthumously .

Modern man, without forgetting the customs and traditions of ancient peoples, changes the contours of his appearance with the help of cosmetics or even plastic surgery, which suggests that the tradition of wearing masks continues.

There are different masks, each with its own distinct character. Carnival mask- this is an amazing thing that hides your face and at the same time attracts attention.

The emergence of tradition cat mask and its transformation into one of the most typical carnival attributes is associated with the exceptional rarity of cats in Venice in the Middle Ages. Gatto Cat Mask Venice Carnival I owe it to a funny old legend. It tells how a certain poor Chinese man came to Venice with his old cat. There were no cats in the city, but mice were abundant.

The hungry animal pounced on its prey and in a few days managed to free the island republic from rodents. The Doge was so happy that he presented the Chinese with countless treasures and sent him home with great honor. The Chinese fell into debt, bought goods and went to Venice... The Doge was speechless at the sight of new goods from China, and when he found them, he promised to give his greatest treasure for them.

As you understand, it was a miracle - the cat went home and ended his days in China... Evidence of the Venetians’ attitude towards cats was left by the English sailor John Locke, who sailed on a Venetian ship to the Holy Land that year.

He witnessed the fall of a ship's cat overboard and in this regard wrote down the following: In Venice there is a cafe Caffe del Frari, located next to St. Mark's Square, where guests could once admire the main mouser Nini Nini every evening.

The story of the mask | Country of Masters

Nini was a huge white mongrel cat who lived in the 1920s. To reflect the admiration, a book of records of cafe visitors was opened, in which, according to legend, there were autographs of Giuseppe Verdi and several lines from the opera La Traviata by Pope Leo XIII, Emperor Menelik III of Ethiopia and Russian Tsar Alexander III. The records were left by the ruling couple, King Umberto I and his wife Margaret. Nini also visited the nearby Venetian State Archives, where he dozed and caught mice with great pleasure.

In addition, he often went to the church of Santa Maria Gloriosa del Frari, located across the street, where he was also everyone’s favorite. When Nini died this year, a service was held in his honor in the church.

Over time, the visitors' book was lost, but everyone remembers Nini. The oldest “spirit” mask in the world dates back to the Neolithic era. It is made of limestone and was found in the Judean Desert. The golden funeral mask of Tutankhamun can rightfully be considered one of the most outstanding monuments of Egyptian art of the 18th dynasty, the greatest creation of Egyptian jewelry artists.

The mask is forged from pure gold and weighs more than 9 kilograms. This mask is known, perhaps, to almost everyone who is at least a little interested in history. This attribute is not only one of the largest works of art Ancient Egypt that have survived to this day.

This is one of the most valuable ritual jewelry, which was intended not for a living, but for a deceased person, as well as a very significant historical artifact that helped to reveal the secret of one of the most important periods in the history of Ancient Egyptian civilization. Similar masks were made for many rulers. But not a single mask has survived to this day. None other than Tutankhamun's mask. The history of the tomb is generally quite mystical. Unlike other tombs, of which there are a great many in the Valley of the Kings, the tomb of Tutankhamun has never been plundered throughout its centuries-old history.

It was discovered in the year by two Englishmen - Egyptologist Howard Carter and amateur archaeologist Lord Carnarvon. The count's conclusion was categorical: If this warning is ignored, he will fall ill. He will not recover from the disease. Death will come in Egypt." For five seasons, the Lord and his American partner Howard Carter were fatally unlucky.

Lord Carnarvon and Carter argued for a long time whether to continue the excavations for a sixth season. And they decided to make one more, last attempt. The only site in the Valley of the Kings where Carnarvon and Carter had not yet excavated was so dug up by previous expeditions that everyone believed: But they nevertheless managed to discover the tomb of an unknown young pharaoh. It had been untouched since the day his body was buried by the slaves of Ancient Egypt.

The atmosphere of awe and superstitious fear around the discovery disturbed the researchers. As they approached their cherished goal, they experienced more and more difficulties in organizing excavations, as local workers left in droves for their villages. The situation became even more tense when the ominous inscription above the entrance to the crypt was translated. The culmination came on February 17 of the year. It was on this day that archaeologists entered the crypt of the young pharaoh.

In the front room there were golden chests and caskets, golden chairs, a throne, benches, statues, animal heads, a golden snake and alabaster bases. When it was illuminated with a torch, the archaeologists faced a wall of gold. Behind one of the doors, the archaeologists still waited for the main miracle of antiquity - a coffin made of pure gold with the mummy of the young king Tutankhamun.

When the tomb was opened, priceless ancient treasures were found. But it seems that at the same time a mysterious dark force that had been dormant there for three thousand years was disturbed. Carnarvon died two months later. The life of the famous archaeologist, as doctors believed, was taken by a fever from the bite of a poisonous mosquito. During his death hour, the lights in Cairo mysteriously went out and came back on several times. And in the country estate of a lord in England, a dog whined and howled pitifully in the middle of the night. When her howl brought the whole family and servants to their feet, the dog fell silent and gave up the ghost.

Carter was able to resume work only in the winter of the year.

The catchphrase of vapers. A vaper is a person who is interested in using special electronic cigarettes. Their distinctive feature is the thick vapor that is formed during the smoking process.
By the way, not everyone approves of this process, even if the vapor is relatively safe and even has a pleasant aroma, it all looks unethical, and therefore vapers are actively frowned upon.

“It’s steam, it’s 95% safe from smoke. I steam wherever I want, it’s not prohibited by law.”

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95% safer: vapers are among us

Photo: Liya Garayeva / Kemerovo Newspaper; flickr

Today it is impossible not to notice on the streets of Kemerovo the appearance of a cloud-man with an alien stick in his hands - the so-called vaper. The excitement around vaping is growing before our eyes: every day they post on the Internet great amount memes with “floating” people, specialized stores are opening in cities and places have already appeared where such guys can easily “bring heaven to earth” in the company of like-minded people.

The Kemerovo Newspaper correspondent decided to find out what the unfamiliar word “vaping” hides, how legal it is and how safe it is for health.

Evolution of the smoker

Today, a vaper is any person who consumes nicotine using a special type of electronic cigarette that produces steam instead of smoke.

The first “smokeless cigarette” was invented by Herbert Gilbert in 1963. This device made it possible to do without burning tobacco and paper, but it was not particularly popular for one simple reason - smoking tobacco was allowed everywhere.

Active sales of electronic cigarettes began in China in the 1990s. At that time, the Celestial Empire represented the main sales market. And it was Hon Lik, a Chinese inventor and physician, who carried out a revolution of sorts. Despite the fact that he himself was a heavy smoker, the scientist hated his habit because his father died of lung cancer due to this addiction. So Hong Lik decided to invent more safe way smoking. His electronic cigarette, consisting of a battery, a plastic cartridge, an ultrasonic atomizer and a mixture of nicotine and propylene glycol, was introduced to the public in 2003. Afterwards, “soaring” found its fans both in the Middle Kingdom and throughout the world.

The principle of an electronic cigarette is quite simple. The atomizer (evaporator) contains a coil through which a wick is passed. Liquid is supplied to it. The spiral heats up when exposed to current, and the liquid evaporates. The resulting vapor is inhaled by vapers. The “liquid” (liquid) contains glycerin, propylene glycol, nicotine and flavoring. There are also refills without nicotine.

I don't smoke, I vape

Gradually, the fashion for vaping reached Russia, and then spread throughout the regions. Nowadays, compared to ordinary smokers, there are not so many vapers, but they do exist. For example, a 20-year-old Kemerovo resident Nikita Radchenko has been “soaring” for a year now.

“It all started when I tried an electronic cigarette on vacation two years ago. I wasn’t particularly interested because the vapor was the same as the smoke from a regular cigarette. Then, gradually, the history of vaping began to develop, various photographs appeared on the Internet or some information about new products in this area. Electronic cigarettes are now being issued large quantity pair and have different tastes. So I switched from regular smoking to vaping. I no longer feel that disgusting taste of cigarettes, my clothes don’t smell, and I don’t cause inconvenience to others. Only small clouds that people usually look around at. Psychologists believe that those who soar are addicted to them. No one will get high on the taste without exhaling a lot of steam. I myself work in a vape shop and I can say that it is quite an expensive pleasure. But if you make the liquid yourself, it will be cheaper than cigarettes. Everything you need for it can be easily purchased in the store. However, there is one drawback: there are no long-term technologies yet. The devices are not suitable for repair in the event of a breakdown.", says the vaper.

According to Nikita, vaping is much safer than regular cigarettes. During his five years of smoking, he often woke up with headaches and suffered from shortness of breath, but now, he says, all this is gone. This is why many people switch from smoking to vaping.

In addition, there are already several places in Kemerovo where the clouds never seem to dissipate. Usually, lovers of vaping gather in vape shops: there they can exchange liquids, no matter how strange it may sound, and also buy something new.

When 5% turned out to be dangerous

So far, vapers are floating in rainbow clouds, and there is a completely logical explanation for this. A Public Health England report from August 2015 stated that e-cigarettes are 95% less harmful than cigarettes. But is everything really so rosy? We decided to find out this from the chief narcologist of the Siberian Federal District Andrey Lopatin.

“This process of nicotine use has practically not been studied. I don't think there's anything here that radically changes the concept of smoking addiction. It's just technologically more modern. And it’s probably not vitamins that are formed during the use of an e-cigarette. And these substances are likely to have a negative effect on a person’s lungs. Therefore, talk about how it is harmless is for the naive. Previously, cigarettes with filters and light cigarettes appeared, which promised to make smoking light and easy. Now even a child probably knows that there is no lightness or lightness. The negative consequences of tobacco are always the same. Of course, it is harmful to be around a vaper. The liquid contains substances that, when vaped, turn into far from useful substances. A certain period of time will pass, which will provide an opportunity to study Negative consequences on human health and psyche from the point of view of addiction. Here we see precisely the negative aspect of a gentle initiation into smoking and the subsequent formation of a regular smoker. They start with pampering, light cigarettes, such vaping, then they move on to something more conservative, and then the traditional scenario. With regular use of nicotine, a person essentially becomes a drug addict.”, says Lopatin.

Of course, sometimes vaping helps you quit smoking. But the opinion of narcologists confirms that this is simply a psychological substitution, and the harm that nicotine causes to health is not reduced by the vapor. Meanwhile, manufacturers, sellers and consumers are trying in every possible way to position their hobby as something harmless, easy, good and even useful. However, this is nothing more than another marketing ploy, and if you call a spade a spade, then vaping is still the same old and not very good addiction to nicotine, wrapped in innovative packaging.

Not prohibited by law

If vapers themselves adore their aromatic vapor, then people who are not associated with such breathing exercises have ambivalent attitudes towards it. Passers-by may mistake the thick clouds for tobacco smoke, and the volume of smoke increases the level of aggression.

Electronic cigarettes are indeed not prohibited by law in Russia due to the fact that their effects on the human body have been practically unstudied. However, in some countries the anti-tobacco law still affected vaping. For example, in Italy, Canada, Denmark and Norway, not a single upstart will snort: “It is not prohibited by law!” And in the United States, you can no longer soar on board commercial flights.

“This is a definitive solution as it protects air travelers from unwanted exposure to aerosol vapors that are released when using an e-cigarette.”, - US Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx snapped.

Whether vaping will be included in the Russian anti-tobacco law - time will tell. In the meantime, people who can do without a dose of nicotine will have to soar in the clouds along with vapers. But, at least, not tobacco ones, but with the smell of strawberry or mint.

The Russian Ministry of Health and Social Development warns: smoking is harmful to your health

American scientists were the first to study the filtering capabilities of cheap cloth masks, which city residents use when the air is heavily polluted or smoky. The effectiveness of this protection turned out to be almost zero. The authors write about this in the article, published V Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.

Cheap and convenient fabric masks- A common means of protection against smoke, smog and other air pollutants. They have spread widely throughout the world from countries in Southeast Asia that are particularly affected by this problem. They are not uncommon in Russian megacities, which are sometimes covered in smog from forest and peat fires. Meanwhile, there is very little reliable data on the effectiveness of this protection.

University of Massachusetts Amherst professor Richard Peltier and his co-authors note that standard industrial, rescue or medical respirator masks can be considered sufficiently studied. By American standards, they must meet Level 95 of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Filtration Capacity Scale and must filter at least 95 percent of particles 0.3 microns (300 nm) or larger. However, such respirators are not always at hand, and when there is serious air pollution, people more often use the first protective masks they come across, which can be bought on the street.

Based on this, Richard Peltier and his colleagues conducted experiments and assessed the filtering capabilities of cloth masks of four different designs. All of them were purchased from street vendors in Kathmandu, where residents use such masks quite often. It was folded like an accordion medical mask; two simple rag ones and one more complex one - conical in shape, with an air release valve at the end. For comparison, Moldex 2701 and 3M 8200 respirator masks certified according to No. 95 were selected. The authors tested their ability to retain monodisperse aerosol particles with sizes of 30, 100 and 500 nm, 1 and 2.5 microns, as well as diesel fuel exhaust suspended in the air.

Scientists note that the effectiveness of cloth masks has proven to be extremely limited, especially when it comes to trapping particles 2.5 microns in size and smaller. Particles of this size are considered especially dangerous because they can penetrate deeper into the lungs. The simplest cloth masks retained 39 to 65 percent of particles and did little to prevent diesel exhaust particles, retaining only 13 to 40 percent (by weight). The most complex and expensive mask tested, with a plastic exhaust valve, performed better than the others, retaining 57 percent of exhaust and 80-90 percent of monodisperse particles - that is, at the level of certified respirators.

“Unfortunately, the most ineffective masks are the cheapest, most accessible and the most widely used in developing countries", the authors note.

Vaping is becoming increasingly popular and is taking away the audience from those who distribute regular cigarettes. The harm of the latter has long been proven, but the situation with vaping turned out to be much more complicated. Is it 95 percent safer or still dangerous, Lenta.ru found out.

Smoking kills. According to WHO, almost half of smokers die from cardiovascular diseases and cancer, the development of which is provoked by this addiction. To understand the scale: 30 percent of all cancer deaths in the United States are caused by tobacco addiction.

Electronic cigarettes, which appeared in the early 2000s as a safe alternative to regular ones, by 2016 not only found their audience, but were already ready to supplant their older brother. According to experts, in the next 10-15 years they will overtake regular cigarettes in sales.

Despite the optimistic start, people quickly began to doubt the safety of vapes. And in May 2016, the United States completely banned the sale of electronic cigarettes to persons under 18 years of age. In addition, manufacturers were required to register their products and liquids (including their components), simultaneously checking and proving their safety. In New Zealand, vaping liquids containing nicotine are completely banned.

All this happens because the effect of electronic cigarettes on human health has not been fully studied. You shouldn’t completely trust “experts” who claim that “vaping is 95 percent safer than smoking.” Liquids for electronic cigarettes really do not contain carcinogens and tars, which mainly provoke the development of cancer. Nevertheless, vaping may well cause harm to the body for other reasons and in a longer term: scientists simply have not yet had time to establish this. In addition, many people combine vaping and smoking regular cigarettes, which complicates research.

Photo: Anatoly Zhdanov / Kommersant

Lenta.ru is already talking about how a group of scientists substantiated the dangers of vaping. In particular, they recalled that the thermal decomposition of propylene glycol and glycerin contained in the liquid for refilling a cigarette leads to the release of toxic substances - acrolein and formaldehyde. Acrolein irritates the mucous membranes of the eyes and respiratory tract, causes lacrimation, and has mutagenic properties. Formaldehyde, in addition to the above, also has an effect on the central nervous system.

The researchers studied three types of liquid in two different atomizers (vaporizing devices). One of the vaporizers was a component of a cheap electronic cigarette with a single heating coil, and the other had two coils. Scientists used gas-liquid chromatography to determine chemical composition vapors released during puffs lasting five seconds with an interval of 30 seconds between them.

It turned out that during the first puff and ten minutes after turning on the cigarette, the concentrations of by-products changed. Their number in a pair gradually increased several times, and the growth rate depended on the battery voltage and the released connection. For example, at 3.8 volts, the first five puffs released 0.46 micrograms of acrolein, but after the device warmed up, this increased to 8.7 micrograms. In double helix devices, the amount of acrolein released was significantly reduced.

Battery voltage and operating time of e-cigarettes also increased the amount of toxic substances. In addition, researchers found that the vapor contained 31 harmful chemical compounds, including probable carcinogens propylene oxide and glycidol. However, this study, published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, cannot be called large-scale.

Other experts believe that the real danger is not the e-cigarettes themselves, but the components of the liquids used to refill them - including flavorings. Many of them are completely safe for consumption with food, but the processes that occur with them during heating and evaporation are not fully understood. And it will take a lot of time to study each of the constituent elements.

Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Recently, the international non-profit organization Cochrane Collaboration published a report on the dangers of e-cigarettes, based on all available scientific research. Previously, experts from this organization have repeatedly published materials about the dangers of regular smoking.

The researchers cited three important facts: the use of liquids containing nicotine helps “traditional” smokers get rid of their addiction; in the short term (2-3 years), vaping does not cause significant harm to the body. The most important thing is that some (but not all) vapers experience the same changes in their blood and breathing as those who quit smoking.

Despite this, the results of the original studies vary. Thus, an article published in the journal PLOS ONE states that vaping helps quit smoking, and a review from the authoritative journal Lancet Respiratory Medicine contains the opposite information. In many ways, such contradictions call into question not only the scientists’ conclusions, but also their methods, in particular the randomized controlled trial.

We can definitely talk about the safety of electronic cigarettes in the short term. However, there are circumstances that raise certain concerns: for example, it has recently been proven that vaping has the same effect on blood vessels and the heart as smoking cigarettes. But in order to accurately interpret all the available data, we will have to wait for the results of long-term studies.