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Why opening windows is key to reopening schools

The New York Times – Step inside a classroom with augmented reality to see where contaminants spread. “New York City mandated every classroom have at least one operable window to help with ventilation, even in the winter. So let’s see what happens when we open a window. You can see a marked improvement: The fresh air dilutes the contaminants as they move around the room. “Simple and inexpensive measures can make schools much safer,” said Scott E. Frank, whose engineering firm JB&B assisted with these simulations. We managed to achieve four total air exchanges by opening just one window in this simulation, which was dependent on specific weather conditions. To get to six air exchanges, we will have to do more…These simulations offer examples based on specific inputs, but they show how ventilation and filtration can work alongside other precautions like masking and social distancing. “Improving ventilation is only one part,” said Mark Thaler, who is an expert in school spaces with the design firm Gensler. “It has to stand with all the other C.D.C. guidelines in order to really safely reopen.”

This simulation was created using a three-dimensional model of a New York City public school classroom … Nearly 800,000 points of data were sampled from a simulation of airflow.”

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