This thread is for people with questions and info about how you get infected

[AnxiousNoMore]

I've been under the impression that coughing spreads the virus to others through breathing it in. Lately I've been confused by certain health authorities statements since they conflict with that idea.
Today I read this statement from the head of a Health Authority governing 930,000 people in North America. "Carr reiterated that the good news about COVID-19 is that it's not airborne and is transmitted by personal contact. But that's why he said being strict about social distancing and self-isolation is so important."

I presume what he means is if someone coughs the droplets can only infect a surface that is 6 feet away (including your face and air passageway) that you might touch later and end up infected. So inhaling them within 6 feet of the cougher can infect you, otherwise you are safe if farther away. Or does someone else know the answer? If so a direct quote and a link would be appreciated.

[AnxiousNoMore]

And in terms of playground surfaces and sitting on park benches, it sounds extreme, but we do know that it lives on surfaces for a long time—some studies have found nine days, some studies have found three days—and we don’t clean those surfaces regularly. You will want to not touch those surfaces.

[AnxiousNoMore]

This is the livescience article I referred to above.   https://www.livescience.com/how-long-coronavirus-last-surfaces.html

[AnxiousNoMore]

Results from new studies reported in livescience.com say they can't determine if breathing is a transmission possibility so I will leave it for a week to see if something new comes out.

[AnxiousNoMore]

I did some Googling and found that just breathing on someone doesn't transmit it. It has to be a cough, with the droplets landing in the eyes, mouth or lips.
Any surface that the cough lands on will be infected for hours.
But the above does not explain why asymptomatic people could spread it, unless they touch their  eyes, mouth or lips then touch yours or a surface. No one has figured out yet if asymptomatic people can spread but their touching of eye, mouth or lips must be the method that researchers are studying.

[AnxiousNoMore]

Social distancing seems to mean 6 feet from most of what I have been reading.