I can definitely understand that. I'm sorry that took the wind out of your sails, but I'm glad it didn't kill your career plan and that you still have aspirations to return. we need more passionate researchers in the medical field.
viruses are cool stuff! i have a few friends in your field and microbiology that can go on for ages. people like you are gonna change the world and i hope you get to make the kinds of breakthroughs and learn new things that change our lives.
Honestly? Yes. Not in a traditional sense, but in a basic sense.
Living things seek to survive long enough to reproduce, which is exactly what viruses do- with rather terrifying success.
They don't react like say, fungi or bacterium do- which form protective cysts around themselves to avoid the immune system of hosts, or to weather out inhospitable environments,- but they DO mutate in order to survive, to continue on replicating.
Oh I am SO excited about the prospect of extra-terrestrial microbes it's UNREAL.
We already know that extremophiles/polyextremophiles prove that they can exist in the vacuum of space (looking at you specifically, tardigrades and Deinococcus radiodurans!!) so the possibility of microbes on other planets is so exciting and a bit scary!
YOOOOOO DEINOOCOCCUS RADIODURANS IS MY FAVORITE!!! HOW IT MANAGES TO SURVIVE RADIATION IS SO CLEVER AND COOL!!!! oh shit dude one of my quadrants of DNA copies is damaged by radiation that would normally fuck up any other living thing? No worries bro I got THREE MORE QUADRANTS OF BACK UP DNA FOR THE OCCASSION SO I CAN CONTINUE ON LIKE USUAL. NO SWEAT. And by the time those 3 back ups get damaged or whatever, the 1st one is already healed up and ready to go and the cycle renews. LET'S GOOOOOOOO!!!!!
(if I got anything wrong, my bad. Its all from memory from when I took microbiology)
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Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-22 01:30 pm (UTC)(link)Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-22 01:53 pm (UTC)(link)Thanks! I'm still VERY much obsessed with viruses, still have all my Springer Indexes, as well as my textbooks and notes ♥
My focus was going to be epidemiology, so there's definitely going to be an ongoing need for those!
Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-22 08:31 pm (UTC)(link)Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-23 01:02 am (UTC)(link)Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-23 08:56 am (UTC)(link)Honestly? Yes. Not in a traditional sense, but in a basic sense.
Living things seek to survive long enough to reproduce, which is exactly what viruses do- with rather terrifying success.
They don't react like say, fungi or bacterium do- which form protective cysts around themselves to avoid the immune system of hosts, or to weather out inhospitable environments,- but they DO mutate in order to survive, to continue on replicating.
Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-23 09:29 am (UTC)(link)life has many doors ed boy
i look forward to seeing how weird it gets as we improve at space exploration
Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-23 01:19 pm (UTC)(link)Oh I am SO excited about the prospect of extra-terrestrial microbes it's UNREAL.
We already know that extremophiles/polyextremophiles prove that they can exist in the vacuum of space (looking at you specifically, tardigrades and Deinococcus radiodurans!!) so the possibility of microbes on other planets is so exciting and a bit scary!
Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-24 12:16 am (UTC)(link)(if I got anything wrong, my bad. Its all from memory from when I took microbiology)
Re: OT Thread
(Anonymous) 2023-07-23 12:55 pm (UTC)(link)haha neat