Tara C. Smith
Associate Professor, lab rat (microbiologist/infectious disease epidemiologist) and occasional blogger, full-time nerd.
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The November edition of Animalcules will be up tomorrow--so get your links in ASAP to abaeumer at gmx dot de.
The latest edition of Grand Rounds is up, Monty Python-style, over at The Rumors were True.
It's that time again. The November edition of Animalcules will go live this coming Thursday, and is being hosted by Andreas. Send your links to him (abaeumer at gmx dot de) by Wednesday, and go ahead and include more than one if you like since we missed the October round.
Second, I'll be…
Scienceblogs' coturnix is hosting this month's edition of Carnival of Pozitivities, collecting posts on HIV/AIDS from around the blogosphere. Check it out for a number of excellent posts, including this post on HIV, senior citizens, and how politics affects HIV education.
Sometimes, I'm really, really glad that I didn't go into medicine. Via Pediatric Grand Rounds and Flea comes this story of a baby's death from herpes encephalitis. I mentioned previously that, while I work with pathogens that have been isolated from someone who had a serious infection, or even…
Check out the best science blogging of the past two weeks over at Eastern blot.
And while we're on the subject of carnivals, Animalcules will return next week after a month's hiatus. Send any entries you've written recently about all things microbiological my way for now (aetiology at gmail dot…
This week's Grand Rounds are up over at MSSPNexus Blog --which just happens to be celebrating its second anniversary. Congrats!
Male circumcision is a difficult topic to discuss rationally. At the core, it's a medical procedure, but it's one tinged with centuries of cultural influences, and emotions tend to run high on both the pro- or anti-circumcision side of the discussion. One of the reasons that's been given in favor…
There are scholarships out there for just about everything nowadays--including blogging. Scienceblogs' own Shelley of Retrospectacle is one of this year's finalists; head over to check out the other finalists and vote for your favorite! (And be quick about it; voting ends today!)
Apparently, it's just not enough for this administration to push ineffective and inaccurate abstinence-only education programs for our schoolchildren. Nope--they're also being emphasized for adults up to the age of 29, as well:
If you're single and in your 20s, the federal government wants you…
Today's Halloween edition of Grand Rounds is up over at Doctor Hébert's Medical Gumbo. Poe fans, rejoice! (Or, wince, I suppose, if you don't like people ripping off Poe...)
Busy again today, and we're hosting a talk by Darrell Trampel, an expert on poultry diseases. (He'll be talking about avian influenza). Still have a few stories to get to in the queue but may be short on time for the rest of the week once again. In the meantime, bask in the cuteness of new puppy…
Yesterday's Ames Tribune, the paper that originally carried Republican lieutenant governor candidate Bob Vander Plaats' comments supporting the teaching of intelligent design in schools contained an article noting Republican governor candidate Jim Nussle's dismissal of Vander Plaats' position:…
I mentioned the situation with Lieutenant Governor candidate Bob Vander Plaats and his support of intelligent design last week (posts here and here). A group of us have put together an editorial discussing Vander Plaats' position and why it matters to Iowa voters (letter and signatories can be…
At least, that's the setting for the latest Skeptics' Circle hosted by Left Brain/Right Brain.
I previously blogged an editorial by NBC medical correspondent Robert Bazell, where he told scientists to "quit whining" about intelligent design and instead work on teaching "values." While I agreed with him there on the science (he made it clear he gave no respect to "intelligent design" and…
Orac has an excellent post discussing the rise in pertussis ("whooping cough") in many areas, and its correlation with easier exemption from mandatory vaccination (using a "personal belief" exemption in addition to a religious exemption, for example). I've written about pertussis previously, and a…
Regular readers know an interest of mine are infections that cause more than just the typical acute spectrum of disease. For example, I've written on the role microbes might play in obesity, or the role of viruses in chronic disease such as cancer and, of course, AIDS. Still, typically,…
Apologies for the radio silence, so to speak. October has been a killer month for me and November won't be that much better, but I'll work on getting back to posting on a regular basis, including a new post for tomorrow. In the meantime, a few things to check out:
Mike on treating strep throat (…
As one commenter at Aetiology pointed out, support for Intelligent design/creationism is included in the Republican Party of Iowa State Platform:
3.4 We support the teaching of alternative theories on the origins of life including Darwinian Evolution, Creation Science or Intelligent Design, and…
Vander Plaats supports teaching intelligent design
"If we are going to teach evolution, there is another viewpoint and one that holds pretty good too (evolution) in regards to creation," Vander Plaats said. "I think that is something that I would want to visit further along with Jim Nussle in…
My poor, neglected blog. These last few weeks have been killer workwise; I still have another post in the wings in pandemic influenza that might have to wait until next week (unofficially extending pandemic flu awareness week), and I have another one I'm working on regarding some recent Iowa events…
Flu shots are rolling out, and there should be no shortage this year. A few new articles remind the public of the importance of these vaccinations, especially in high-risk groups (something that I touched on here regarding data showing that vaccination during pregnancy can help protect the newborn…
As Revere notes, this week is Pandemic Influenza Awareness Week. I'll have some posts on this after today (still swamped, with no end in sight, unfortunately); in the meantime, check out all the info already available at the Flu Wiki.
Toddler's death blamed on E. coli, officials say
Heartbreaking.
As federal agents launched a criminal investigation into two produce companies involved in the contaminated spinach outbreak, Idaho health officials confirmed the death of a 2-year-old boy Sept. 20 was caused by tainted spinach.
Kyle…
I've mentioned frequently how my kids are fascinated with bugs and things creepy-crawly, whether it's spiders, giant moths, or butterflies. On that topic, via Bitch PhD comes this article from yesterday's New York Times on monarchs, their endangered habitat, and what just about anyone can do to…
Regular readers out there will already be familiar with the groups of people who deny evolutionary theory, who deny that HIV causes AIDS, even those who deny that germs cause disease, period. Wilhelm Godshalk is even on the record for denying gravity. I don't know what it is about this site, and…
I write on a somewhat regular basis on here about vaccines: new research, new shots, addressing skepticism about how well they work or if they're related to autism, etc. Recently, several vaccine stories have been in the news that I've not gotten to yet, so consider this a vaccine meta-post.…