???”?? (???€?µ???µ?»?????? ???????????‚?????°?? ???????†?µ???‚?€?°?†????): maximum acceptable concentration (of terrifyingly dangerous toxins in the air)
We are now in Week 5 of the Heat Wave Horror, and my sartorial standards haven’t just slipped — they’ve fallen through the floor. My hair is sticking out like Raggedy Ann’s, my skin is breaking out like a teenager’s, and I now wear get-ups when I go to the store that I would not, when sane, wear outside my bedroom. And you know what? I don’t care. Besides, everyone else looks just like me.
Just when we think it can’t get any worse — it does. In addition to temperatures that are still rising, Moscow has been blanketed by smog so thick you can’t see across the street. If you want to read up on what you’re breathing, here’s a little primer to help you navigate the news reports on air quality.
The thick cloud hanging over the city may be called ???????? (smog) or ???‹?? (smoke). People also refer to ???°?€?? (cinders, ashes), most commonly heard in: ???°?…???µ?‚ ???°?€???? (it smells like something’s burning). This is what you shout when the reptilian part of your brain wakes you up at 3 a.m. and you run outside to see if your house is on fire. ???? ?…?€?µ???° ???µ ?????¶??! (I can’t see a damn thing!) is what you shout when you can’t see the roof of your house through the smog.
News reports describe the situation with more propriety and in greater technical detail. ?’?????????????‚?? ???° ?????€?????°?… ???‚???»???†?‹ ???° ???°?????‹?? ???????µ???‚ ???µ ???€?µ???‹???°?µ?‚ 100 ???µ?‚?€???? (At present, visibility on the capital’s roads is less than 100 meters). Sometimes journalists dumb down the statistics into terms anyone can understand: ?”?‹?? ???‚ ?‚???€?„???????????? ?€?°???µ?? ???????? ???°?‡???°?? ???????°?€?µ?‚ ?? ???µ???? (Smoke from the peat bog fires is the equivalent of smoking two packs of cigarettes a day). In other reports, they provide a more scientific description: ???????†?µ???‚?€?°?†???? ???€?µ?????‹?… ???µ?‰?µ???‚?? ?? ???????????????????? ?????·?????…?µ ?????»?????? ???€?µ???‹???°?µ?‚ ?????€???? (The concentration of toxins in Moscow’s air significantly exceeds the norm). If you want to scare yourself silly, look for specific toxins, like ?????°?€???‹?? ???°?· (carbon monoxide), ?????»?µ?????????€?????‹ (hydrocarbons), ?????????????? ?°?·???‚?° (nitrogen dioxide), ?„???€???°?»?????µ?????? (formaldehyde), ?„?µ?????» (phenol), ?°???????°?? (ammonia) and ???µ?€???????????€???? (hydrogen sulphide). There’s also something called ???·???µ???µ?????‹?µ ?‡?°???‚???†?‹ (airborne particles) that I personally don’t even want to know about.
The amount of this junk in the air is described in Russian by a number of complicated acronyms. ???”?? stands for ???€?µ???µ?»?????? ???????????‚?????°?? ???????†?µ???‚?€?°?†???? (maximum acceptable concentration). According to an official environmental monitoring site, if you breathe in less than this norm, you will feel fine, there won’t be any long-term health damage, and you can go on to lead a long life with lots of healthy children and grandchildren. Then there’s ???”????? , which stands for ???€?µ???µ?»?????? ???????????‚?????°?? ???°?????????°?»?????°?? ?€?°?·?????°?? ???????†?µ???‚?€?°?†???? (maximum acceptable short-term concentration). This is the maximum amount you can breathe in over 20 to 30 minutes without damaging your health.
And then there’s ???”??????, which stands for ???€?µ???µ?»?????? ???????????‚?????°?? ???€?µ?????µ?????‚???‡???°?? ???????†?µ???‚?€?°?†???? (maximum acceptable average daily concentration). This is the amount you can breathe in over the course of a day without long-term damage to your health. When that last norm is exceeded almost 200-fold, it’s time to max out your credit card and buy a package tour to the Alps.
So what are you supposed to do? I have to say I feel sorry for health inspectors. Short of ordering the evacuation of the city, they don’t have much to offer. ???µ??, ???‚?? ???‹?????¶???µ?? ?? ???‚?€?µ???????µ ?‡?°???‹ ???°?…???????‚?????? ???° ???»???†?µ, ?€?µ???????µ???????µ?‚???? ?????»??-?·??-???°?‚?????? ?€?µ???????€?°?‚???€?°???? ?? ???°?€?»?µ-???‹???? ?????????·???°????. (People who must be on the street in the morning hours should wear respirators or gauze masks.)
Other recommendations include: ?????±???»?????µ ?????‚??, ?????»???·?????°?‚?????? ??????????-?†???????µ?€?°???? ?? ???‚?»???¶???‚?? ?‚?€???????‹?µ ???µ?»?° (Drink more fluids, use an air conditioner and put off difficult tasks). ???€?????????°?‚?? ?????‚?°???????‹, ???????±?µ?????? ?????‚?°-?????? ?• (Take vitamins, especially Vitamin E). The chief health inspector is more adamant: ?????????????? ?„???·???‡?µ???????? ?°???‚???????????‚??! (Minimal physical effort!)
I’m going to apply minimal physical effort to type in my search engine: cheap air tickets Moscow mountain resort.
Michele A. Berdy is a Moscow-based translator and interpreter.