The next great frontier of undiscovered species: your house!
Much fanfare is placed on the discovery of new flora and fauna -
exotic birds, funky reptiles, bizarre insects - but very little
energy is invested in discovering new bacterial life. In fact,
the average household probably contains more unknown species
than any nature preserve. That’s exactly what Rob Dunn and his
team of ecologists at NCSU are attempting to show in their
innovative new study, announced in late August. In places like
urban apartments, Dunn is hoping to discover “a who’s who of
evolutionary miracle stories.” He’s soliciting ten households
from each state - 5 rural, 5 urban - to sample their houses and
send the kits back for analysis. The team will then let you know
what you’ve been living with, as well as post the results online
(anonymously, don’t worry). Want to get involved? Check out the
project website. Hurry - first come, first served! tl;dr -
you’re gross and science can prove it