27 August 2008 may prove to be a pivotal point in mankind’s war against the much-feared bird flu pandemic. On that day, Sharp Corporation unveiled its latest technological weapon against the unseen enemy! Incorporated in its ionic air purifier, the Plasmacluster Ion Technology (more on this in a later post) has just been scientifically proven to be 99.9% effective in destroying the bird flu virus known as H5N1.
As we have been constantly reminded by the press, bird flu is the prime suspect to cause mankind’s next pandemic. Pandemic sounds terrifying. It is. That’s when a highly contagious virus goes global, in a very negative sense. It boggles my mind that the 1918 Spanish Flu may have killed 50 million people on earth! World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed on 5 October 2005 that the 1918 Spanish flu was caused by H1N1, a bird flu virus.
Is your heart pounding away? Is it time to PANIC?
Not now. Updated on 10 Sep 2008, WHO statistics shows the death toll at 245 from 1996 when the H5N1 virus was first identified in China. So what’s the fuss? A bird flu virus that attains human-to-human transmission capability is the ultimate horror of the scientific community. There has been only one probable case of human-to-human transmission recorded in Thailand in September 2004. But if the dreaded virus mutation takes place, you can expect pandemonium on a global scale.
As the threat grows day by day, countries around the globe are conscientiously preparing for the worse (more on this in a later post). As protectors of our families and loved ones, we should start doing some homework too.
Ok, so what’s all this got to do with Sharp’s ionic air purifier. Is it not just another ordinary ionic air purifier? Yes, it’s ordinary in that it takes care of the usual stuff that we look for in an air purifier – dust, dirt, smoke, dander, pollen, cuisine and pet odours, pollutants, allergens etc. If there is really a tested defence shield against a deadly virus, why not? And that is precisely what Sharp is telling us; get the whole package with their Plasmacluster Ion Technology.
Obviously, for the value-conscious, the next logical question would be “yes, that makes a whole lot of sense but at what cost”? No extra cost, Sharp claims! Sharp contends that it is cheaper than any other ordinary ionic air purifier when measured over 5 years. Great value for our hard-earned money! How is it possible in this nothing-is-for-free world?
It is entirely possible, says Sharp. For example, there is much better value for money in its Plasmacluster Ionic Air Purifier Model FP-N40CX as there is no filter replacement costs for the first 5 years. At US$399, the Sharp model compares favourably against a typical competitor’s ionic air purifier that may cost US$160 upfront but over 5 years cost a total of US$560 due to annual filter replacement costs of US$100 each.
Feedback on relevant data on Sharp or its competitors will be very much appreciated. Do let me know if you have recent actual data.
In the meantime, I will study the Sharp Plasmacluster Ion Technology more closely. The time to research is now, while bird flu is still not quite at pandemic proportions.
It’ll be way too late when that hits. Personal panic does not fade. Like a horror movie, pandemic fears spread across Asia for months. People shunned crowded places like shopping centres, some stayed away from work, others became unofficial health “authorities” passing decrees on hygiene standards. Anyone who sneezed in public without a N95 face mask found himself standing alone in a split second. For the uninitiated, it was the year 2003. The SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) virus originated in Asia, infected 8,096 people around the world before finally resulting in 774 fatalities. We all know that being well prepared is half the battle won.
Watch this space as we track exciting developments in our pursuit of safe, pure and clean air with nothing more than an ionic air purifier.
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