After best January on record, China’s air pollution worsens An analysis by Smart Air of data from pollution stations found that, after Beijing’s best year on record, PM2.5 levels are now worse than 2017. Data from 11 other major cities showed similar trends. Beijing Compared to the first half of 2017, this […]
Category: Air Pollution
Does AC Bring in PM2.5?
It’s that time of year when Beijing is starting to sizzle, if this person roasting fish on her car is any indication. But air pollution isn’t taking a summer break here. It’s not airpocalypse levels, but the buildings nearby are starting to look fuzzy. That made me wonder. If […]
71% of People Don’t Know PM2.5 Lowest at This Time…
My intuition has always been that air pollution is lowest at night because there are fewer cars on the road and fewer factories humming. Apparently I’m not alone: 139 voted for their guess about what time of day has the lowest PM2.5, and night time came in first: I also know people who […]
Ozone Levels Rising Across China
As summer nears, levels of the invisible pollutant ozone are on the rise, becoming more serious than PM2.5 at times. Based on data analyzed by Smart Air, Beijing’s ozone levels are near peak in June–and nearly double the World Health Organization limit. Data analyzed by Smart Air shows Beijing’s ozone is near peak in […]
Are Cheap Particle Counters Accurate?
When I first started making DIY purifiers, the particle counters I could buy were a US$260 Dylos or crazily expensive particle counters that costed thousands of dollars. Since then, the market has exploded with new particle counters as cheap as 99 RMB. But are they any good? Putting Particle Counters to the Test To […]
Plants Have No Detectable Air Purification Effect
Despite the popular conception that plants are purifiers, plants have detectable effect on particle or gas pollutants, according to the latest test data from real-world homes. Belief that plants are effective air purifiers is widespread. Arguably the most frequently cited evidence is the NASA study on plants. It feels scientific, authoritative. This page cites it, this page, this page. […]
Is Air Pollution Affecting Your Productivity in the Office?
We know that air pollution is bad for our health, but if you’re not outdoors picking apples or running marathons in China, is pollution still making you unproductive at your indoor office job? Recent studies suggest the answer is yes. The studies on the effects of outdoor air pollution are no surprise to […]
What Would China’s Air Be Like If Everyone Stopped Driving?
The prestigious science publication Nature published a study that tested the air of Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai, and Guangzhou to find out exactly what PM2.5 is made out of. They found that about 20% were chemicals like ammonium and chloride. Coal made up about 4% of PM2.5 in the different cities. From that composition, the researchers could estimate […]
New Data Shows Beijing’s Air Pollution Progress Reverses in March
After several months of progress cutting PM2.5, Beijing saw a sharp reversal this March, according to the latest data. In years past, Beijing’s particulate pollution normally peaks in January and decreases each month closer to summer. However, this year has seen the exact opposite trend, with PM2.5 increasing 265% from January to March. […]
Truth or Bullshit: Eating Broccoli Protects Against Pollution
Although many natural remedies are based more on intuition than science, a surprisingly rigorous set of studies from different research labs is finding that eating broccoli helps our bodies fight the effects of air pollution. Scientists have isolated the compound thought to help the body remove pollutants like benzene and fight inflammation. The compound, sulforaphane, […]