Monday, June 22, 2015

Mysterious DNA In The Subway...!

This report from the folks over at Listverse was so unusual, I figured it belonged on Monday Mysteries.

Just how spooky this could turn out to be depends on who you want to believe, I reckon. Is it really a mystery involving an unknown DNA sample? Could it all be just an innocent mistake or something so simple? Chances are we will never know the whole story. Somehow things like this end up getting lost or misfiled, ya know? Happens a lot with some government reports, from what I understand.

New York Subway’s Mysterious DNA

In 2014, a team of scientists from Weill Cornell Medical College sequenced genetic material found in the turnstiles, seats, and ticket booths of all 468 New York City subway stations. They discovered bacteria known to thrive on human skin, as well as those associated with gastrointestinal and urogenital systems and human feces. They discovered remnants of neighborhood-specific cuisine like pizza and falafels, though considering the fecal bacteria situation, eating on the subway might be ill-advised. One station that had been flooded during Hurricane Sandy still contained DNA associated with a marine environment. They even found traces of anthrax and the bubonic plague, although they were also quick to downplay any risks to the public. All in all, the team found DNA from 15,152 distinct species.

The weird part? Over half of the DNA sequences matched no known organism. The likely explanation is that the subways simply contain mundane microorganisms that we haven’t got around to matching the genetic sequences for yet. Then again, New York’s health department condemned the paper, saying, “This report is deeply flawed, and the interpretation of the results is misleading. The researchers failed to offer alternative, much more plausible explanations for their findings, which is a common best practice for scientific papers.” That sounds like they might be hiding aliens.

All I can say about this is that I'm glad that I don't live in New York and that I'm equally as glad that I don't have to ride the subway everyday. I don't want to know what is living down in those tunnels, if you know what I mean?

Coffee out on the patio this morning. Sweet potato pie, anyone?

9 comments:

deb harvey said...

whoa!!
over 8000 unknown species.
and the gov't. downplaying the results is a dead giveaway that something is up. possibly something scary. also explains a lot of infections of 'unknown origins'.

Chickenmom said...

Don't blame you for not wanting to live in NY, Mr. Hermit. Who really knows who and what is lurking down in those subway tunnels. Sweet potato pie?? I'm on my way!

linda m said...

I've had to travel in the NYC subways and believe me, you don't want to go there unless absolutely necessary. As for unknown species lurking down there, you can bet your last dollar they're down there. Would love a slice of sweet potato pie.

Anonymous said...

You know me, I always vote for the aliens :-) and it's always something wrong when they condemn something as hard as they did about this.

Have a great day!
Christer.

Hermit's Baby Sis said...

Scary and creepy! The DNA, I mean, but maybe also the subways ~

JO said...

I'm glad I don't have to use mass transportation anywhere. Some people are just plain filthy about there health habits. Never washing their hands after using a restroom or anything else. With all that mixing of contagents its no wonder they find alien dna.
Oh and about the comment I left yesterday guess I missed a day or skipped one along the way. hahah

HermitJim said...

Hey Deborah...
I have to agree. The more they claim nothing was there, it makes you wonder!

Thanks for stopping by today!



Hey Phyllis...
probably a secret that I don't want to learn about!

Hey, thanks for dropping by today!



Hey Linda...
Don't reckon I'll ever need to ride the subway. Not on my "to do" list!

Thanks for stopping in today!



Hey Christer...
In this case, you might just be right! Very strange indeed!

Thanks for the visit this morning!



Hey Sis...
I know I don't want to go there! A lot safer here in Texas, most of the time.

Many thanks for the visit today!



Hey Jo...
Mass transportation is necessary, but just not for me. I'll pass.

Thanks, sweetie, for coming over today!

Sixbears said...

There's an awful lot of "dark" DNA that scientists have no idea where it's from or what it does -even DNA from microbes living in our own bodies. The field of Biology is getting pretty exciting right now.

Unknown said...

Well I think we already have the answer to where it comes from. Just watch any one of "Men in Black" movies.

That'll give you the answer.

Wade in NW Florida