Difficult as it may be to predict which agent will cause the next pandemic, which *single* measure would you recommend should be taken now to mitigate its future effects?
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Talmudic Question #182
Talmudic Question #181
Some authors have written describing single cells as "cognitive" or "agents with agendas." Cognition may not be far from consciousness… . In whatever sense you choose, could you argue that bacteria have consciousness? Read more →
Talmudic Question #180
Why didn’t mitochondria keep a DnaA-dependent origin of replication?
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Talmudic Question #179
There is talk that Vibrio natrigens may supplant Escherichia coli as the model system for many bacterial studies. Do you think that the day of such model systems may have passed and, if so why? Read more →
Talmudic Question #178
Many environmental bacteria appear to be obligate oligotrophs, that is they can only be cultivated on media containing very low nutrient concentrations. There are probably many reasons for this. Which one do you favor and why?
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Talmudic Question #177
A twist on Schrödinger’s Cat… Instead of radioisotope, a Geiger counter, a poison and a cat, inside a sealed box with a light and kept at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure, you place a Winogradsky column and a sealed vial... Read more →
Talmudic Question #176
Currently, when a bacterial or archaeal genus or species has been well characterized but is yet-uncultured, it is given 'Candidatus' status. Should this practice be continued or is time to abolish it? Why?
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Talmudic Question #175
by Morgan Feeney
Are there any bacterial species that simply never form biofilms/are genetically incapable of doing so?
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Talmudic Question #174
Imagine that the great majority of the microbes on Earth could be cultivated on laboratory media. How do you suggest that, in practice, we handle their humongous number?
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Talmudic Question #173
Can you envisage a Winogradsky column consisting of only Gram-negative bacteria (or just Gram-positives, for that matter)?
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