Stacey Smith
I'm a graduate student studying the molecular and biochemical evolution of HIV within patients and within populations. I also study epigenetic control of ERVs.
sa smith
Posts by this author
February 27, 2011
Oklahomans, Mid-westerners/Southerners, we get made fun of a lot in pop-culture. Thats fine. It can be funny. Sokay.
I saw Fred Amerson on Conan the other day, and I just caught up with his new show, 'Portlandia'. OMFG-- ROFL!
February 25, 2011
Breast Cancer Show EverTags: SOUTHPARKmore...
After all the XMRV on ERV, as Wendy would say, "Im finished!"
Its over.
At this point, there are innumerable lines of evidence suggesting that XMRV is not a real human pathogen-- from its magical ability to be spread despite no virus in any body…
February 24, 2011
Here at ERV, Ive talked about all kinds of pathogens and all kinds of vaccination strategies against those pathogens and cancers how our immune systems respond to these pathogens and vaccines and cancers and blah blah blah.
When you think 'immunology' you think 'your body protecting itself', or if…
February 23, 2011
"If we're supposed to go out and eat nothing, if we're supposed to eat roots and berries and tree bark, show us how...
... The problem is, and dare I say this, it doesn't look like Michelle Obama follows her own nutritionary, dietary advice. And then we hear that she's out eating ribs at 1,500…
February 22, 2011
Spend your lunch break with a founder of Science Based Medicine and Neurologica Blog!
Journalist/Ninja Trine Tsouderos is going to be hosting a live chat with Dr. Steve Novella TODAY, NOON CENTRAL time!
February 21, 2011
Though I am definitely (and I hope clearly) a supporter of animal research in science (plug for Speaking of Research), it is also definitely something I do not like to do. Contrary to how animal lib freaks frame us, while I fully and absolutely support and appreciate my fellow scientists who are…
February 18, 2011
HAHAHAHAHAHA!
For the lulz:
60 Lab Studies Now Confirm Cancer Link to a Vaccine You Probably Had as a Child
Posted By Dr. Mercola | February 18 2011 | 104,627 views
SV40, a cancer-causing monkey virus. The puzzle began in 1994, when Dr. Michele Carbone, a Loyola University researcher, found the…
February 16, 2011
Via Dianna Narciso, one of the funniest/most pathetic excuse for a child-star-gone-wild: Atheist community service.
"Somewhere along this journey," he says, "both mine and Miley's faith has been shaken. That saddens me the most." When they first came to Hollywood for Hannah Montana, the two of them…
February 16, 2011
There are lots of controversies in viral research.
Not just woo ones, like whether HIV-1 exists and causes AIDS, but real controversies that have been going on for some time, like whether HIV-1 infects dendritic cells or DCs just carry-->pass on virions.
The public hears about the stupid stuff,…
February 14, 2011
While practicality is one of the tools in my arsenal against anti-science advocates, its not my favorite. Maybe its because I am a delicate female with doe-eyes and sweet sensitivities, but my favorite weapon is emotion.
I tell you what, its damn hard to talk to the general public (much less…
February 11, 2011
A neat paper was just published in Nature, where they did complete genome sequencing of the prostate cancer tumors from seven advanced/aggressive prostate cancer patients.
The genomic complexity of primary human prostate cancer
Why did they want to do this? They hoped to identify some new…
February 10, 2011
So I was just alerted by a reader that the Montreal Gazette just published a rebuttal to the HIV Denial POS they published a few days ago.
Dr. Norbert Gilmore takes an angle I like: Practicality.
We deal with it all the time with wooers-- its easy for HIV Deniers or Creationists or anti-vaxers to…
February 9, 2011
I get a ton of spam in the comments of ERV.
Happily, we have a really good spam filter (too good sometimes, as most of us, even me, have gotten comments sent straight to spam for no discernible reason), but still, a bit of Turkish spam or STD dating site spam or steroid spam gets through now and…
February 7, 2011
HIV(+) status and sports is a big deal.
Any time there is a non-negligible risk of a bloody nose (golf or swimming vs soccer or basketball), there is a risk someone is going to get a blood droplet in the eye. Another player, a ref, a coach, a spectator, a beer vendor-- yes, the odds might be…
February 2, 2011
Anti-food-technology movement is just like the anti-evolution movement.
Its got jack to do with the science.
Its got everything to do with politics and personal ignorance.
So lets all pretend to act shocked and surprised that an anti-GMO group has taken a page from anti-evolutionists on how to…
January 31, 2011
There are lots of ways a scientific paper can make me laugh.
Sometimes I lol because the research is just so goddamn stupid.
Sometimes I lol in derision.
And rarely, I lol when someone does something conceptually simple, but incredibly clever, and it makes me happy. I read an abstract, laugh, read…
January 28, 2011
An interesting paper on HIV-1 prevention came out while I was on my Grand Adventure:
Preexposure Chemoprophylaxis for HIV Prevention in Men Who Have Sex with Men
Quick summary: They used an antiretroviral, Truvada, as a prophylactic drug. That is, you take this antiretroviral every day in the…
January 27, 2011
Penguins share parenting responsibilities 50-50-- one parent watches the nest, one parent gets to go feed, and then they switch. Over and over and over.
Well some of these damn rookeries were WAY far away from the water! HUGE journeys for little foot-tall penguins, especially when they can only…
January 26, 2011
Darwin vs. Design
Why It Matters, And What We Can Do About It
⢠A TWO-DAY CONFERENCE â¢
Crossings Community Church Sanctuary & Atrium
Friday, March 25 (7:00 - 9:00 pm)
Saturday, March 26 (8:30 am - 12:30 pm)
Hear LIVE from leading national experts from
the Discovery Institute's Center for…
January 25, 2011
Just watch the video.
My friend recording this for me was too far away to catch what I was saying. Apparently, I was cussing like a sailor and cracking everyone up (you can hear them roaring with laughter in the background). I think I said something along the lines of "WHY DID YOU ALL TELL ME '…
January 24, 2011
Friday, I was walking down the hallway when a professor friend waved me down--
PF-- Hey! Are you still involved with that pitbull rescue?
Me-- LOL! That wasnt a 'rescue'... I just sorta find pitbulls and find them homes... LOL!
PF-- I know a family that wants to adopt.
Me-- O.o (I figured she…
January 20, 2011
Okay, once again, I dont like birds.
I was no way at risk of developing Penguin Madness.
Seal Madness, though... that was a different matter all together.
Unfortunately, I have this habit... when Arnie is taking an afternoon nap, fat black puppy butt lying in the sun, I physically cannot resist…
January 20, 2011
I have no idea what the deal is, but for the past few days, my Google News Alert for 'HIV' has been full of stories of people not disclosing their HIV-1(+) status to their sexual partners.
You cant do that.
FORSYTH, Mo. --
A Branson man pleaded guilty to infecting his girlfriend with HIV, without…
January 19, 2011
HA!
You remember a while ago, I wrote about how GMO papaya creates a population of 'papaya' that has herd immunity against papaya ringspot virus, thus is able to protect non-GMO papaya from the virus?
Theyre trying to do a similar thing with chickens (any commercial bird, really-- ducks, geese,…
January 18, 2011
Just to reenforce this aspect of my personality: I dont like birds.
Yes, they are pretty, as long as they are 'over there' and arent all up in my face about being birds. I mean, Im not all up in their face screaming "IM A HUMAN", rite?
Anyway, I think birds instinctively know that I dont like them…
January 13, 2011
NOW.
Do not read this post.
Hook your computers up to your external hard-drives, back up your data, then come back to read this post.
... Okay, Im assuming the only people reading right now are people with Apple-->Leopard-->Time Machine, and already have things constantly backed up, or non-…
January 13, 2011
Yes, you read that right.
Penguin sex.
You know youve always wondered.
Now you can see it for yourself.
Yes, for the rest of the trip, we made 'penguin sex' jokes at any/all given opportunities. This often involved flapping our arms for a visual demonstration. The 'penguin punch'.
I didnt notice…
January 12, 2011
I was reading the next segment of Brian Deers expose on Andrew Wakefield this morning, and I couldnt help but notice some similarities between Andrew Wakefield and Judy Mikovits.
Mikovits was plucked from obscurity by people with an agenda. The only thing the people with the agenda didnt have was…
January 11, 2011
Before were allowed to do ANYTHING on Antarctica, we had a lecture on what we could and could not do while we were visiting. Even though everyone was ecologically conscientious, there were tons of things we had to do that none of us would have thought of on our own. We had to vacuum our jackets/…