Desperate to know what microbes are on your money? This project is for you (with some cool side science benefits)

I am fascinated by citizen science projects like this: The Bioweathermap Sees The Germs Around Us – Bruce Upbin – Tradigital – Forbes.  Years ago it was all the rage to track where your money had been using systems like “Where’s George“.  Well, movement is not all that happens to money.  Money picks up all sorts …

From the ASM mBio blog mBiosphere: Strep pneumoniae survival on surfaces

The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) is really doing a great job of moving into new forms of science communication.  For example, ASM has a relatively new journal mBIO that is sort of akin to PLoS One – it is an open access and relatively rapid publication journal.  And mBIO is starting to take off. …

Fascinating use of miniature “built environments” to study bacterial quorum sensing

There is a fascinating article by Richard Grant at F1000: Lobster-Pot Science – The Scientist – Magazine of the Life Sciences.  It is about how two researchers at U. T Austin came together to study bacterial communication in miniature built structures.   I am a bit overwhelmed with prepping for a meeting I have tomorrow so …

Wanted: Sample collections for the Earth Microbiome Project EMP; help make an open Field Guide to the Microbes

A cross – posting here.  On my “Tree of Life” blog I have just written about the “Earth Microbiome Project” and its call for samples.  This may be of interest to those working on the Microbiology of the Built Environment.  For more information see: The Tree of Life: Wanted: Sample collections for the Earth Microbiome Project …

Interesting blog post/paper from Tara Smith at Aetiology #microBEnet

Interesting blog post and paper from Tara Smith.  Her lab did some characterization of samples from kids and workers in childcare settings.  As part of their work they found some interesting varieties of Staphylococcus aureus.  For more detail see her post here: New paper: Staphylococcus aureus ST398 in a childcare worker : Aetiology.  If you have …