h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

you obviously do, sef

Actually its true i have been being sarcastic, because my irony was earlier misunderstood. I'm not the world's most patient micobe fan!

Hello

Can I join please?

I am a microbiologist and if it wasn't for the little beggars I wouldn't have a job! I even provide a home for many needy micro-organisms.

Thank you

And should we not all raise a glass or two of beer to the wonderous microbes, the fungi that enable us to get rediculusly drunk on fermented vegetable products over the festive, and most other, months? to Sacramicies Saravisi Hmm, I think my spelling has deteriourated since finishing my masters

to sacromicies and sarvicies,

To Sacred Mices and other holy rodents!

Terry

hello everyone! i'm back after a hectic week of conferences and band practice...

first of all, hello lemony, and welcome to the campaign! here's your.... gaargh! last time i checked there was yoghurt in the fridge! ... oh, here it is - your complimentary cup of yoghurt . your shiny badge awaits at the main page (A1001854), hang on a sec while i heat up the inoculation loop.



2legs - i believe we're talking about our dear friend, the baker's yeast? it's saccharomyces cerevisiae. the only reason i remember the spelling is because our microbial biochemistry lecturer was thoroughly obsessed with them, and it kept on showing up in our exam papers

rho - yeah, i thought the banner looked good too! now all campaign threads will have it sitting on top. i thought it would give the threads identity.

cheers,
far.

Yes! I would like to join the Campaign!

you must be mad.

I've got a dead rodent underneath my floorboards at present. it smells to high heaven, thanks to our tiny friends. Are you sure you can take stuff like that....?

i can take it.. im into microbes in a big way .... just look the collection i have in my bathroom ..!!!

sounds promising - but honestly until you can really relish the smell of the decomposing corpse of largish creature as far as I'm concerned you only on parole.

You're the first one in a long time and to be honest there's not a lot going on in this organisation at present. Get your badge - if you can work out how to get it, and that's it, apart from sitting back and imaginning the blighters.

We're a hard lot in this club.

thankyou sir .. i remain your humble servant ...i will inform you the moment any large rodent bequeaths its mortal toil and sets itself up as a home for wayward microbes ... thankyou for or the badge ..

oy, go easy on him, red! isn't it a wonder how such itsy bitsy creatures can reduce large beasts and humans alike to the elements, and return them to the dust from which they came? then again, unlike you, red, i am blessed with no sense of smell!

hello jim, and welcome to the campaign! i'm sorry i took so long to reply, but here's your complimentary cup of yoghurt -



your badge is on the main page itself (A1001854). claim it and wear it with pride. a toast to microbes!

as red has said, it *is* a little quiet here at the moment; hopefully this will change as people *gradually* emerge from their new year party-induced drunken stupor

Yeah I was a little brusque with jumbojim. Sorry mate; but you see the smell is getting to me. A couple of bluebottle flies emerged yesterday into my kitchen so I presume the maggots are now assisting their smaller bretheren. The smell seemed better, but then today it was worse again. Could be cos I've turned the heating up cos its so bloody cold, or maybe I have more than one dead rodent.

I've been down to my cellar and nervously shone the torch into the spaces under the floorboards, but i could see nothing, but boy could I smell it.

BTW jumbojim I'm a 'she' not a 'he'. I told you we were a hard lot in this club!

hey red, if you'd like to learn more about the decomposition process (a day-by-day account of how nice perfect meat gets transformed into ucky maggot-fare) without risking the foul stench of rotten meat, go to:

http://www.thespark.com/science/stinkymeat/

it's really quite cool, and has good photos. and maybe you'd like to check out christian rudder's account of how he tried to get athlete's foot as well (http://www.thespark.com/science/stinkyfeet/)... what people will sacrifice for the sake of science

cheers for links farlander. toilet.

I saw Damien Hirst's piece of the rotting cow's head in Sensation exhibition a few years ago as well. The whole cycle sealed away in a plastic container. No smell of course. Its interesting to contrast the decomposition process as a scientific phenomenon or even as a gardening aid in my black plastic bin far away at the bottom of the garden, with the smelly reality of it impinging on ones domestic environment. I can vouch for the fact that when the latter occurs emotion runs riot....

But yes it is a wonderful thing and without it no life would exist. ' Microbes deserve recognition!'

i can honestly say that nothing's ever died and rotted in our household before! the closest we've ever come to studying a decomposing creature was coming across a dry, very long dead, toasted lizard in our.... toaster

have you taken photographs of the dead rat? if you can upload them, maybe we could place links to the photos from the campaign page (it would also make a great alternative guide article: "my personal experience of hosting creature decomposition under the kitchen floorboards"... heh heh)

thanx guys the feedback is well apreciated i wonder if the smell of the dead rodent under reds floorboards does compare to my bathroom in some way ... having been an avid amateur scientist for many years i wonder ... can we upload the smell for comparison .. or has man not been able to harness the power of microbes to meet such a command within computer technology my shoulder appears very sore and swollen from the branding iron ..

Damn, this thread seems to have gotten away from me recently...

Yesterday in 2X Biology class, we did an experimant to immobilise yeast cells in sodium alginate using calcium chloride as a catalyst, cue lots of rather nasty smells, but the yeast + Na alginate solution actually smelled rather nice, kinda like read dough. Anyway, because of the way we added the solution to the CaCl (ie with a syringe in order that it would form beads), quite a lot of the beads ended up sperm-shaped, and we only had about five immature jokes, which for an all-boys school is rather disturbing. Next week we're going to use them to make ethanol, aka drinkable alcohol.

At one point, one guy used a syringe to squirt another in the crotch with plain water. the rest of us charged the squirter, and with some help from the teacher (!), pinned him against the wall. The squirtee then got disproportionate revenge, and then we all went back to harnessing the power of yeast.

I would also like to extend a welcome to all the new members who arrived since the last time I posted.

No photos I'm afraid Farlander. Like I said I've been down the cellar and shone the torch, but couldn't see it. I'm not going to rip up the floorboards so imagination is all I've got, which the best horror film directors know is far more powerful.

Smell is now mostly gone; and I'm thankful for that. Its been quite an experience.