Editing 2286: 6-Foot Zone

{{comic
| number    = 2286
| date      = March 27, 2020
| title     = 6-Foot Zone
| image     = 6_foot_zone.png
| titletext = Technically now it's a 34-foot zone.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is the 12th comic in a row in a [[:Category:COVID-19|series of comics]] about the {{w|COVID-19 pandemic}}.

This comic is about {{w|social distancing}}, a common practice to prevent the spread of the COVID-19. It has been suggested to maintain 6&nbsp;feet (i.e. 1.8288&nbsp;m - in e.g. France and Britain the suggested distance is 2&nbsp;m) of distance between yourself and other people, to prevent the transmission of respiratory droplets from you to others (or vice versa).

[[Randall]] takes this 6 feet of distance, and does calculations of the "area" of distancing, "border", population density, and "real estate value". He finally culminates in determining the number of horses that could also fit in the space.

Randall's border length and approximate area calculations are based on a zone with an outside radius of approximately 6.8 feet or 82 inches (2.07 m), meaning that the person has a radius of approximately 0.8 feet (9.6 in, 0.24 m). That is, 2π(6.8ft) = 42.7 ft and π(6.8ft)<sup>2</sup> = 145.3 ft<sup>2</sup>.

There are two different population densities that can be calculated. The one used by Randall in the comic is the population density of the exclusion zone itself, i.e. just the reciprocal of its area. This is π<sup>-1</sup>(6.8&nbsp;ft)<sup>-2</sup> = 190,000 mi<sup>-2</sup>. A different density is the density of a crowd in which everyone obeys the distancing rules. That would result in 0.9069(π<sup>-1</sup>)(3.8ft)<sup>-2</sup> = 560,000 mi<sup>-2</sup> population density. When people stand 6ft apart from each other, their exclusion zones are overlapping; instead we can use smaller circles  with 3.8 ft radius that are not overlapping. 0.9069 is the packing density of circles in the plane.
For comparison, only 21 countries have a population density >1000&nbsp;mi<sup>-2</sup>, but there are {{w|List_of_cities_proper_by_population_density|a few cities}} with a population density on the same order of magnitude (~100,000&nbsp;mi<sup>-2</sup>).

The ''[https://www.fs.usda.gov/t-d/pubs/htmlpubs/htm07232816/toc.htm USFS Equestrian Design Guidebook]'' is (of course) a real thing, and it discusses the [https://www.fs.usda.gov/t-d/pubs/htmlpubs/htm07232816/page03.htm#phys dimensions of the design horse]

The title text is a pun using the alternate definition of foot by switching the naming from 6-foot zone, where foot is used as a unit of distance, to 34-foot zone, where the number represents the total number of feet inside the circle, including the horses’ feet.

==Transcript==
:[Caption:]
:Guide to the 6' Social Distancing Zone

:[Profile image of Megan with 6 foot distance measurements on both sides. Also indicated is the width of the full "6' zone", which consists of 6' to her right, her width, and 6' to her left. Her width is not explicitly indicated.]

:[Overhead image of a person within a slightly elliptical outline at a distance of 6 feet in all directions. The "width" of the person pushes the ellipse longer in one dimension. The ellipse is again labeled "6' zone".]

:[Statistics:]
:Approx. area: 145 ft<sup>2</sup>
:Border length: 43 ft
:Population density: 190,000 people/mile<sup>2</sup>
:Value at NYC real estate price/ft<sup>2</sup>: $195,000
:Maximum number of horses that could fit inside it with you, estimated using the dimensions in the ''US Forest Service Equestrian Design Handbook'': 8

:[This last statistic is illustrated with a second overhead image, showing 8 horses, mosaicked together a little like an {{w|M.C. Escher}} tesselation, filling the entire 6' zone along with the person.]

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:COVID-19]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]