Everyday Junglist
Bio
About me. You know how everyone says to be a successful writer you should focus in one or two areas. I continue to prove them correct.
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The Three Laws of Food Pathogen Diagnostics
The 1st law There is always a tradeoff between speed and sensitivity. The probability of false negatives from any given rapid method increases proportionally with overall assay speed (i.e. reductions in assay enrichments, sample prep, and/or detection times).
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Poets
Test to Use
"I'm gonna need to see your drug qualification card if you are gonna buy those kid." said the heavyset, very tired looking clerk behind the counter as Sam approached the checkout. "Of course my man." Sam replied, grinning ear to ear, as he quickly reached into his back pocket and pulled out his overstuffed brown wallet. He slid the card out from its slot in the wallet and handed it over proudly to the clerk. "A1 rating brother. They don't get any higher than that." The clerk looked at the card skeptically, then raised both eyebrows and whistled out loud as he said, "Damn kid. You aren't lying. What'd you do, cheat or something? Highest score I ever saw in here was a B0 and I only saw that one time. Most people comin in here are lucky to see a C2 max or have flat out failed. I'd say at least half have failed three times and are now banned for life from ever using drugs again. Well, the good kind of drugs anyways." Sam wasn't surprised. The store wasn't in the greatest neighborhood and the clientele were not exactly the most mentally stable around. He was however more than a little offended at the accusation of cheating and looked at the clerk incredulously as he answered. "Hell no, I didn't cheat. You know as well as anyone the modern computers running the testing program can't be fooled. At least no one yet has figured out how to, so they say. And the accuracy of their psychological classifications has been proven in experiment after experiment. If they say I am an A1, then I am an A1. No doubt at all about that." The clerk was a bit confused "Modern computers? You mean them AI?" "Yeah, man. Most people call 'em AI but I never will. Not until one of them proves to me personally that it is actually intelligent. And so far, none I have challenged have been able to beat my test and prove they are to my satisfaction. So I call 'em modern computers."
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Fiction
I May Have Invented a New Art Form
You, the reader needs to know first that I am writing this against my better judgement. That half of my brain is screaming at me that this is a really stupid idea. Mostly, it is because the general arc of it, the kernel of the idea if you will, has already been done a million times over. And when I say it has been done a million times over I am not exaggerating. It goes back in time almost as far as storytelling itself, certainly at least as far as storytelling in the form of writing goes. The basic idea is that a thing (be it alien or spirit or terrestrial microorganism) somehow makes its way into a human host and changes it in some way, makes it do something or things it would not normally do. Often times the unfortunate human is turned into a zombie like being in the process. Slowly, or quickly, depending on the particulars of the story being told, that human changes. First it becomes a slave, then it loses its humanity, and then it becomes whatever that thing is that comes after humanity is lost. Basically just a body, a body still capable of doing all the terrible things a human can do, but bereft of any of the controls that normally prevent it from doing them. It is a terrifying idea to be sure, and thus the reason it has been fodder for so many horrifying tales over the millennia. In modern times the enslaving force has often been described as a fungus, typically a mold. Which brings me to the other major reason I hesitate to tell this story. I am a microbiologist in my non-writing "real" life. I have a bachelor's degree in microbiology and a PhD in microbiology and molecular biology. Currently there is nothing more played out then the zombie virus/mold story as told by a microbiologist. For whatever reason these days among the Creepypastas of the world it's a heavily overused story trope.
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Horror
Management by Fear is Not a Successful Strategy in Business
Business managers and other leaders of people hold great power over many individuals and some are in a positions where they have near absolute authority. Some of these people, way too many, believe fear is a useful tool when it comes to business management, and some even believe fear is a necessary component of business success. The temptation to use fear as a motivator is high. First, it is relatively easy. When you have power over other people, especially when that power directly impacts their ability to provide food for their families, pay their bills, etc., the easiest thing you can do is scare them. Simply imply their jobs are on the line either implicitly or explicitly and watch profits soar as formerly slacker employees suddenly become energized go getters putting in 12h days and crushing all their performance objectives. Or, so the thinking goes among the fear management true believers. This thinking is wildly incorrect, and management by fear never leads to successful outcomes in the long term. It is guaranteed to fail, and to fail every single time. It may appear effective in the short or even medium term, but the appearance of effectiveness is not the same thing as effectiveness. Unfortunately, despite endless lip service to the virtues of long term business strategy the vast majority of senior business leadership are short to medium term thinkers, thus they are easily tempted by fear.
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Journal
Bacterial Bias
Many microbiologists suffer from a bit of a bacterial bias. It is not by choice that bacteria have become the dominant microorganism studied in our field, but rather because of an ancient ritual all young microbiologists must endure prior to joining the graduate school house where they will learn our ancient craft. The ritual is known as the sorting and only the most talented and dedicated among the many graduates of four year microbiology degree programs, and biology majors who did not have a high enough GPA to get into medical school, and assorted philosophy and other social science majors who realized there is no money to be made in their chosen field so took a few science classes their junior and senior year and really liked them, that are invited to sit and be chosen.
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Earth
Hey You
Hey You. Yes, you, the one reading these very words right this moment. Can I ask you a question? I will take the fact that you are still reading these words as a yes. Why did you select this particular story to read? You may have already answered the question with the first thing that popped into your head. Maybe it was something like, I don't know, or, who cares, or why is this stupid story asking me to think? Or, more likely you have already simply clicked away to something else more interesting. Then again if you are still reading these very words I know that is not the case. So, my next question becomes, why have you not clicked away already? Basically you are faced with two questions, why did you select this particular story to read and why are you still reading it? As to the first question I urge you to take a moment to stop and take a deep breath and think a bit more deeply about it. Consider, of all the things you could be doing at this very moment; potentially productive, useful, helpful, or in some way beneficial to yourself or the universe as a whole things, you have chosen to do this one thing. Read this random story written by a random stranger on a random website. In terms of time management it seems like a pretty poor choice. And yet, here you are still. If you are still here reading these words. What is it that has made you stick with it all the way to the end of this first paragraph. A paragraph, that I will remind you right now basically said nothing and did nothing. It told no story, it provided no philosophically interesting insights, it gave no tips for how to live a better life or to be a better person. It did none of those things. It did absolutely nothing. But yet, if you are still reading these words, it has done something. It has kept your interest and focus for at least the minute or so that it has taken you to make it this far. All the way to the end of paragraph number one.
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Writers
Sleepsitting
Overview Sleepsitting, also known as somnamsedens, is when people sit (or attempt to lie) down while asleep. It's more common in children than adults. Children usually outgrow sleepsitting by the teen years. Sleepsitting that happens once in a while often isn't a serious problem and doesn't need treatment. But sleepsitting that happens a lot may suggest an underlying sleep disorder.
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Psyche
Trying to be a Good Person Does Pay Off
Being Good Vs. Trying to be Good I do not claim to be a great person, or even a particularly good person. However, I have no hesitation in saying for the record that at least I try to be a good person. What exactly constitutes a "good person" is of course a matter that has been debated by philosophers, religious/spiritual, and the everyday man and woman on the street for time immemorial. While there are many, many points of disagreement there does seem to be at least some overlap. Moreover, there also seems to be an innate understanding within (most of) us of the difference between good and bad, right and wrong. For myself being a good person means being kind to others, helping those in need when I can, working to leave the world a better place than I found it, striving for fairness in all my dealings with others, being honest and trustworthy, and respecting differences of opinion, to name just a few. Now matter how you specifically define it, if you have a set of core values, and they align reasonably well with the core values of most other good people, and you make an honest effort to remain true to those values I believe you can make a valid claim to (at least trying) to be a good person. Of course that does not necessarily mean that you are a good person. First, "honest effort" and "trying" are very much open to interpretation and debate, and second, you might be wrong in your beliefs about what is good. In fact, although I believe it unlikely, it is possible that we are all wrong about what is good and what is bad. If by some cosmic happenstance you or all of us are indeed wrong, and your values are actually at odds with the good of the universe, you can still hold your head high. In that case, you cannot blame yourself, and should feel no shame. You made an honest effort and were proven wrong. That does not make you a bad person, only a misinformed one.
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Humans
The C.H.U.D. Challenge
When it comes to movie titles there are few as memorable as C.H.U.D. For those who are not aware C.H.U.D. (Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers) was a sci-fi horror movie released August 31st 1984 to zero critical acclaim. Surprisingly it grossed $4.7 million dollars at the box office (14.3 million inflation adjusted for 2024). That may not sound like a lot but consider in 1984 Star Wars Episode VI Return of the Jedi was also released and it grossed only 3.9 million that year. In case you were curious the box office king of 1984 was Ghostbusters which raked in an incredible 220 million. C.H.U.D. was straight up awful, but the unforgettable title, plus 4.7 million dollars pretty much guaranteed there would be a sequel. It was released five years later and while it was exactly as awful as the original it had a much less, though still sort of memorable name, C.H.U.D. II: Bud the C.H.U.D.
By Everyday Junglistabout a year ago in Writers
