These days when people hear the word virus, the first thing they think of is computer viruses. Biological viruses that cause diseases are as rampant and dangerous as ever. Chemical engineers as well as biologists are researching medicines to treat people with viruses.
Ever wonder why when one person at your school gets sick, everyone else gets sick soon afterwards. Well, viruses are often the ones to blame. Here is a game that although not quite realistic does show how contact with viruses allows them to spread quickly. http://www.addictinggames.com/madvirus.html
Not only do viruses spread quickly through the air, but they also spread quickly throughout the body. After looking at the following animated video, can you tell why viruses spread so quickly and why treating them can be difficult? http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/animations/infection/inf_middle_frames.htm
So now you guys should have a better understanding of how viruses spread and work. Fortunately, for the most common viruses you are already protected by vaccines which help build up your immune system enough to protect against them. If you have any questions or want to know more about viruses or another topic, feel free to ask me.
This video celebrates the national launch of MIT Insite. Join middle school students from Boston and Cambridge, MA who participate in the MIT STEM Program, Erin Salius (Program Coordinator), Dr. Dedric Carter (Asst. Dean for the MIT School of Engineering), and Dr. Subra Suresh (Dean for the MIT School of Engineering) as they celebrate the start of this blog.
New visitors to this site: please register using the “Register” tab on the left of the page. Once you complete this step, you’ll be able to comment on the posts and ask questions of the MIT student bloggers. Have fun exploring!
Watch middle school students from Boston and Cambridge, MA compete in a “tightrope challenge” at MIT. These students are part of the STEM Program, a free academic enrichment and mentoring opportunity offered to public school students. For more information about the STEM Program, please visit http://mit.edu/stem.
NOTE: in the video, the tightrope challenge is described by Mike and Parhys, two of your MIT Insite bloggers. Aren’t they the best??!!
This video was edited by Kris Brewer from MIT; Kris has been a huge supporter of the STEM Program and MIT Insite. We owe him big time!
