siliconindia | | March 20208THE FUTURE TREND IN BUILDING DESIGN TOWARDS MINIMIZING TRANSMISSION OF AIRBORNE INFECTIOUS DISEASESBy Prof. Chun Chen, Department of Mechanical & Automation Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Konghe transmission of airborne infectious diseases, such as avian flu, influenza, tuberculosis and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), has become a global public health issue. For example, the Spanish flu between 1918 & 1919 infected about one-quarter of the global population and killed more than 40 million people. Every year, influenza epidemics cause about 47,200 deaths in the U.S. In an estimation by The World Bank, a pandemic of avian flu among humans could cost the global economy $800 billion a year. The tuberculosis infections found in 22 countries have caused 1.87 million deaths. During the SARS outbreak, there were more than 8,000 people infected globally. These airborne infectious diseases clearly have caused endless social and economic disruptions. Thus, it is crucial to understand and control the transmission of airborne infectious diseases in order to reduce their influence on human health.In recent decades, many outbreaks of airborne infectious diseases have occurred in buildings where people spend most of their time. An infected person can exhale droplets containing infectious viruses through breathing, coughing or sneezing. These airborne droplets can be transported to the breathing zones of other persons via the air in the buildings. If the susceptible individuals inhale these droplets, cross infection of the disease may occur. These transmission Holding a Ph.D. degree from the School of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University, Prof. Chun has profound knowledge of the engineering industry, with deep interests in the areas of indoor air quality, energy-efficient buildings, aerosol dynamics, and airborne infectious disease transmission.Tin my OpinionProf. Chun Chen, Assistant Professor - Department of Mechanical & Automation Engineering
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