[Goose]

If I'm reading the linked NIH paper correctly, a multi-layer cloth mask even with a gap still filters around 37% of droplets/aerosols <300nm. To me that seems significantly better than nothing, again at basically no cost to me. Also protects against me sneezing or coughing and getting it on someone 20ft+ away.

It is better than nothing even if it's ability to filter aerosols is 5%. There are many unknowns right now about the role of aerosols in spreading COVID-19. There are even more unknowns about the actual effect of masks on attenuating the unknown effect of aerosol spread. Unfortunately that is going to be the way it is for quite a while. For example, we could discover that 90% of the aerosol transfer occurs with particles of 100 nm or less. That might make the cloth masks look lots less useful. Or, it could be visa versa. Or, it may be the effect is negligible, which was pretty much the majority opinion only a month ago, as I understand it. We do the best we can.

[Goose]

If I'm reading the linked NIH paper correctly, a multi-layer cloth mask even with a gap still filters around 37% of droplets/aerosols <300nm. To me that seems significantly better than nothing, again at basically no cost to me. Also protects against me sneezing or coughing and getting it on someone 20ft+ away.

It is better than nothing even if it's ability to filter aerosols is 5%. There are many unknowns right now about the role of aerosols in spreading COVID-19. There are even more unknowns about the actual effect of masks on attenuating the unknown effect of aerosol spread. Unfortunately that is going to be the way it is for quite a while. For example, we could discover that 90% of the aerosol transfer occurs with particles of 100 nm or less. That might make the cloth masks look lots less useful. Or, it could be visa versa. Or, it may be the effect is negligible, which was pretty much the majority opinion only a month ago, as I understand it. We do the best we can.