Duke University professor Eileen Chengyin Chow posted these pictures to Twitter on April 27. They show first graders at Yangzheng Elementary School wearing ‘protective headgear’. These hats have a 3-foot-long horizontal rod, made of up soft and light materials such as cardboard or foam, attached to either side. Chow pointed out how these social-distancing friendly caps highly resemble headgear worm by Song Dynasty toppers. She took to Twitter to shed some light on the historical context of the design when writing, “The long horizontal plumes on Song Dynasty toppers were supposed to prevent officials from conspiring sotto voce with one another while at court—so social distancing was in fact their original function”.