Science News Roundup: Pandemic exposes scientific rift over proving when germs are airborne

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Pandemic exposes scientific rift over proving when germs are airborne

The coronavirus pandemic has exposed a clash among medical experts over disease transmission that stretches back nearly a century - to the very origins of germ theory. The Geneva-based World Health Organization acknowledged this week that the novel coronavirus can spread through tiny droplets floating in the air, a nod to more than 200 experts in aerosol science who publicly complained that the U.N. agency had failed to warn the public about this risk.