The Mary Sue

Beautiful Photos of the Bacteria Found on Toilet Seats, iPhones, and Inside a Butthole

Sorry, space porn, you've been replaced.

by Carolyn Cox Feb 2nd

Although Marcus DeSieno told Wired that growing up he "was absolutely terrified of germs," you wouldn't know it from the photographer's most recent series, Cosmos.

AsapSCIENCE Video Answers The Burning Question: Should You Hover Or Cover The Toilet Seat?

Everyone clean their cutting boards RIGHT NOW.

by Carolyn Cox Jun 17th

The AsapSCIENCE team consistently answers weird science queries with charming videos. Or, in this instance, I guess it would be "Charmin'," since today the team is evaluating the real risk behind resting your rear in public poo parlors. Make sure to watch it before sacrificing your thighs/lots of paper in the name of sanitation.

The CEO of Levi Wants You to Freeze Your Jeans, but Does Science?

Denim popsicles for all!

by Carolyn Cox May 22nd

Tuesday marked the 141st birthday of Levi, and in celebration of the company's old age CEO Chip Bergh announced that as part of their sustainability initiative, everyone should stop washing jeans so damn much and pop 'em in the freezer instead. However, people who actually know a thing or two about microbes might not be ready to take his advice.

Study Finds Only 5% of People Wash Their Hands Properly in Public Restrooms

Seriously, people -- how do we even have to have this conversation? I am disappoint.

by Ian Chant Jun 11th

Here's a story I need your help on, folks, because I can't tell if it's depressing and gross or gross and depressing. According to a recent study by Michigan State University, only 5% of people wash their hands properly after using the bathroom. That's right, folks -- 1 in 20 of you are doing that right, and the other 19 are, statistically speaking, disgusting.

Your Consumer Electronics Are Filthy [Infographic]

by Max Eddy Nov 12th

Sure to terrify you into a downward spiral of constant cleaning and sanitizing is this infographic from the folks over at Keeping It Kleen. Their goal, it seems, is to so disgust you with information about the terrible, microscopic things lurking all over your consumer electronics is that you'll start cleaning up the place a bit. However, if you're simply interested in some surprising statistics, this infographic has that as well.

Hands-Free Faucets May Have More Germs Than Traditional Ones

by Robert Quigley Apr 2nd

One of the main justifications for hands-free faucets may have just been taken through the wringer by a recent Johns Hopkins School of Medicine report. While one might reasonably expect manual faucets to be germier than those of the hands-free variety on account of all sorts of grubby hands coming into contact with the handle, the team in fact concluded that the opposite may be the case. WebMD:

For the study, which was presented today in Dallas at the annual meeting of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, Sydnor and her team examined 20 newly installed electronic faucets and 20 manual faucets spread out over three hospital wards. They took water samples from each faucet over a six-week period beginning in December 2008. They also dismantled and cultured four of the electronic faucets. Of the 108 water cultures taken from the electronic faucets, half were found to have grown the bacterium Legionella spp., which causes Legionnaire’s disease. Only 15% of the manual faucets were contaminated.

The Hopkins study's conclusions were stark enough for Johns Hopkins Hospital to remove all hands-free faucets from clinical areas. The apparent culprit: The internal structures of the faucets. Electronic faucets are more complex than traditional faucets, and have five additional parts within: All five of these parts were found to have a higher-than-average bacteria count. (via Gizmag, WebMD)