How do you even do a test and find that you killed all the germs but .111% of them? The near mathematical impossibility of this makes my head hurt. Over 99.999%?
How do you even do a test and find that you killed all the germs but .111% of them? The near mathematical impossibility of this makes my head hurt. Over 99.999%?
While I don't know exactly how they arrive at the number I would imagine it is really, really simple.
Like looking under a microscope and counting the # of living microbes in the field of vision, then extrapolating that to the entire colony.
Mudman24, on Mar 22 2017 - 18:41, said:
How do you even do a test and find that you killed all the germs but .111% of them? The near mathematical impossibility of this makes my head hurt. Over 99.999%?
If it kills 99.999% of germs, and you're worried about the other .111%... I'm worried about the 100.11% of germs
Mal_Burro, on Mar 22 2017 - 21:46, said:
pretty much this. They could claim 99%, but it doesn't sound as good as 99.99%.
The only reason why they don't say 100%.
First of all, you didn't add correctly.
Secondly, what we scientists do is conduct experiments under controlled conditions. Make a procedure to test what you want.
To start:
1. Make a t0, this will be your control vial with all of the bacteria living.
2. Put your sanitizer into the vial with the bacteria.
3. Let the reaction of killing the bacteria run for a certain amount of time.
4. Run your sample in a machine. Something like an HPLC will do fine for organic material. Measure the amount of difference between the protein produced by the bacteria in your t0 and your new vial with the sanitizer.
5. Divide the concentration of protein in your test vial over the concentration of protein in your t0 (control vial).
That is how you find if it's 99.999% effective.
Companies like to exaggerate their figures, however, and back it up with only 1 or 2 trials out of maybe 50 (made up that number).
Hope that helps.
Edited by Da_Vinci, Mar 23 2017 - 04:15.
They hire unskilled illegal aliens that are in the country without a visa to count the dead and live remaining ones.
Because the under the table labor is so cheap and the germs are infinite,these huge companies wouldn't be able to do it any other way.
Expect that to change in the near future though as the germ counters may be sent back to their place of origin.
They wont be able to sub contract these services out over-seas either, so anti-bacterial soap prices are expected to soar as the labor will be significantly higher for legalized germ counters.
This is why they suggest that antibacterial soaps are not recommended anymore!
Joking aside..its actually proven they are no more effective at sanitizing than any other soap.
The gimmick is that people are actually made more aware and are washing their hands more often when the stereo-typical corporate fear mongering looms overhead.
1) Liability issues
2) Scientists still debate whether or not a Virus is technically alive*, so how would one kill something that isn't technically alive?... you technically can't... so there's that 0.001%
* This was when I was in middle school like 8 years ago... haven't checked since so don't quote me on that...
Edited by Loli_Lives_Matter, Mar 23 2017 - 05:41.
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