--- title: "The 14 Least and Most Effective Kinds of Masks: Ranked! By Scientists!" description: "A team of Duke University researchers have figured out a simple and cheap way to test the effectiveness of masks in curbing the spread of the coronavirus." date: "2020-08-11" modified: "2020-08-11" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/least-most-effective-masks-ranked-scientists" categories: - "Developments" - "Health & Medicine" tags: - "coronavirus" - "covid19" - "masks" --- # The 14 Least and Most Effective Kinds of Masks: Ranked! By Scientists! ![]() *Image via Shawn Rocco/Duke Health* A team of Duke University researchers figured out a simple, cheap way to test the effectiveness of masks in curbing the spread of the coronavirus. And they ranked the best (and worst) of them. Spoiler alert: You may wanna ditch that neck gaiter. Also, your bandanna. The researchers found that wearing a neck gaiter or bandanna might actually end up being worse than wearing no mask at all, as the [*Washington Post* reports](). They also found that commonly available cotton masks were as effective as surgical masks. N95 filter masks with a valve also turned out to be relatively safe for the wearer — but of barely any protection at all for the people around them, as detailed in [the paper]() published in the journal *Science Advances* last Friday. “You can really see the mask is doing something,” co-author Warren Warren, professor at Duke, told the *Post*. “There’s a lot of controversy and people say, ‘Well, masks don’t do anything.’ Well, the answer is some don’t, but most do.” ![]() To test the masks, the team "MacGyvered a relatively inexpensive apparatus from common lab materials that can easily be purchased online," according to an [official press release](), made up of "a box, a laser, a lens, and a cell phone camera." During the trial, speakers said the same phrase into a box without a mask and then with a variety of different masks. The cell phone camera measured how much light of a laser was obscured as particles were spread inside the box. ![]() “If everyone wore a mask, we could stop up to 99% of these droplets before they reach someone else,” Duke physician Eric Westman, co-author, said in the statement. “In the absence of a vaccine or antiviral medicine, it’s the one proven way to protect others as well as yourself.” The researchers also noted that it was "just a demonstration," according to chemist and co-author Martin Fischer, and that "more work is required to investigate variations in masks, speakers, and how people wear them." “We’re very careful not to over-claim here,” Warren told the *Post*. “We are not going to try to say our evidence is that this is the thread count you should use on the sheet for the two-ply cotton mask that you’re making." ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()