Page 12 - aruba-today-20200910

A12 technology
Thursday 10 sepTember 2020
Walmart testing drones for deliveries in North Carolina city

By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO AP Retail Writer but we're at a point where we're learn-
NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart launched a ing more and more about the technology
pilot program Wednesday using drones to that is available and how we can use it to
deliver groceries and household essentials make our customers' lives easier," Ward
in a North Carolina city. wrote in a corporate blog.
The retail giant is using drones from Flytrex Last week, Amazon won regulatory ap-
in Fayetteville, where it says it hopes to proval to deliver packages by drone, but
gain insight into customers' and its workers' the company said it was still testing the
experience with the technology. self-piloting aircraft and didn't say when
Tom Ward, senior vice president of cus- they could be used to deliver goods to
tomer products at Bentonville, Arkansas- shoppers on a large scale.
based Walmart, acknowledged that it will Delivery company UPS and a company
This June 25, 2019, file photo shows the entrance to a Walmart be a while before drones are widely used owned by search giant Google have also
in Pittsburgh. for package deliveries. won regulatory approval to deliver by
Associated Press. "That still feels like a bit of science fiction, drones.q

Ultraviolet light can make indoor spaces safer during the

pandemic – if it’s used the right way

Karl Linden University of to disinfect people as they nanometers are also well faces that the light can pears to be safe for skin ex-
Colorado Boulder enter indoor spaces are absorbed by proteins. reach. Businesses are also posure at doses below the
(THE CONVERSATION) Ultra- likely ineffective and po- These essential biomol- considering the technology exposure levels defined by
violet light has a long histo- tentially hazardous. ecules are damaged by for disinfecting warehouses the International Commit-
ry as a disinfectant and the What is ultraviolet light? the absorbed energy, ren- and retail spaces. tee on non-Ionizing Radia-
SARS-CoV-2 virus, which Electromagnetic radia- dering the genetic mate- It's also possible to use tion Protection.
causes COVID-19, is read- tion, which includes radio rial inside a virus particle UV to disinfect air. Indoor Research is confirm-
ily rendered harmless by UV waves, visible light and X- or microorganism unable spaces like schools, restau- ing these numbers using
light. The question is how rays, is measured in nano- to replicate or cause an rants and shops that have mouse models. However,
best to harness UV light to meters, or millionths of a infection, inactivating the some air flow can install less is known about expo-
fight the spread of the virus millimeter. UV irradiation pathogen. UV-C lamps overhead and sure to eyes and injured skin
and protect human health consists of wavelengths be- It typically takes a very low aimed at the ceiling to dis- at these Far UV-C wave-
as people work, study, and tween 100 and 400 nano- dose of UV light in this ger- infect the air as it circulates. lengths and people should
shop indoors. meters, which lies just be- micidal range to inactivate Similarly, HVAC systems can avoid direct exposure
The virus spreads in several yond the violet portion of a pathogen. The UV dose contain UV light sources above safe limits.
ways. the visible light spectrum is determined by the inten- to disinfect air as it travels The promise of Far UV-C for
The main route of transmis- and are invisible to the hu- sity of the light source and through duct work. Airlines safely disinfecting patho-
sion is through person-to- man eye. UV is divided into duration of exposure. For a could also use UV technol- gens opens up many pos-
person contact via aero- the UV-A, UV-B and UV-C given required dose, higher ogy for disinfecting air in sibilities for UV applications.
sols and droplets emitted regions, which are 315-400 intensity sources require planes, or use UV lights in It's also led to some prema-
when an infected person nanometers, 280-315 nano- shorter exposure times, bathrooms between uses. ture and potentially risky
breathes, talks, sings or meters and 200-280 nano- while lower intensity sourc- Far UV-C – safe for humans? uses.
coughs. The virus can also meters, respectively. es require longer exposure Imagine if everyone could Some businesses are install-
be transmitted when peo- The ozone layer in the at- times. walk around continuously ing UV portals that irradi-
ple touch their faces shortly mosphere filters out UV Putting UV to work surrounded by UV-C light. ate people as they walk
after touching surfaces that wavelengths below 300 There is an established It would kill any aerosol- through.
have been contaminated nanometers, which blocks market for UV disinfection ized virus that entered the While this device may not
by infected individuals. This UV-C from the sun before devices. Hospitals have UV zone around you or that cause much harm or skin
is of particular concern in it reaches Earth's surface. I been using robots that emit exited your nose or mouth damage in the few seconds
health-care settings, re- think of UV-A as the suntan- UV-C light for years to dis- if you were infected and walking through the portal,
tail spaces where people ning range and UV-B as the infect patient rooms, op- shedding the virus. the low dose delivered and
frequently touch counters sun-burning range. High erating rooms and other The light would also disin- potential to disinfect cloth-
and merchandise, and in enough doses of UV-B can areas where bacterial in- fect your skin before your ing would also likely not be
buses, trains and planes. cause skin lesions and skin fection can spread. These hand touched your face. effective for stemming any
As an environmental engi- cancer. robots, which include Tru- This scenario might be pos- virus transmission.
neer who studies UV light, UV-C contains the most ef- D and Xenex, enter empty sible technologically some [Deep knowledge, daily.
I've observed that UV can fective wavelengths for kill- rooms between patients day soon, but the health Sign up for The Conversa-
be used to reduce the risk ing pathogens. UV-C is also and roam around remotely risks are a significant con- tion's newsletter.]
of transmission through hazardous to the eyes and emitting high-power UV ir- cern. Most importantly, eye safe-
both routes. UV lights can skin. Artificial UV light sourc- radiation to disinfect sur- As UV wavelength de- ty and long-term exposure
be components of mobile es designed for disinfection faces. UV light is also used creases, the ability of the have not been well studied,
machines, whether robotic emit light within the UV-C to disinfect medical instru- photons to penetrate into and these types of devices
or human-controlled, that range or a broad spectrum ments in special UV expo- the skin decreases. These need to be regulated and
disinfect surfaces. that includes UV-C. sure boxes. shorter-wavelength pho- validated for effectiveness
They can also be incorpo- How UV kills pathogens UV is being used or tested tons get absorbed in the before being used in pub-
rated in heating, ventilat- UV photons between 200 for disinfecting buses, trains top skin layer, which mini- lic settings. The impact of
ing, and air-conditioning and 300 nanometers are and planes. After use, UV mizes DNA damage to the continuous germicidal ir-
systems or otherwise posi- absorbed fairly efficiently robots or human-controlled actively dividing skin cells radiation exposure on the
tioned within airflows to dis- by the nucleic acids that machines designed to fit below. At wavelengths be- overall environmental mi-
infect indoor air. However, make up DNA and RNA, in vehicles or planes move low 225 nanometers – the crobiome also needs to be
UV portals that are meant and photons below 240 through and disinfect sur- Far UV-C region – UV ap- understood.q