Where's George? And what's he carrying? Flu virus can stick to money for 17 days.

[bushmeister0]

This news ought to really make the economy hum.

Switzerland's Central Laboratory of Virology at the University Hospitals of Geneva, conducted a study of how long a virus could survive on money.

"Successful control of a viral disease requires knowledge of the different vectors that could promote its transmission among hosts. We assessed the survival of human influenza viruses on banknotes given that billions of these notes are exchanged daily worldwide. Banknotes were experimentally contaminated with representative influenza virus subtypes at various concentrations, and survival was tested after different time periods. Influenza A viruses tested by cell culture survived up to 3 days when they were inoculated at high concentrations. The same inoculum in the presence of respiratory mucus showed a striking increase in survival time (up to 17 days)."

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=18359825

If someone with a virus happens to have any mucus on their hands before touching money, the virus can survive for long periods. Apparently, the mucus protects the virus.

Smart Money did a piece on whether one could catch the flu from money. The answer is yes and the flu isn't the only thing you can catch . . .

"It doesn't get talked about much, but the fact is paper currency—the dollars, fives, tens and twenties most people routinely touch every day—can spread a virus from one person to another. So if you have contact with money that an infected individual has also handled, there's a possibility of catching the flu . . .

Even after the spread of swine flu subsides, consumers may want to continue being cautious when handling their cash. Some infectious bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae, can stick to currency for a longer period than viruses, according to a 2002 study that was published by the Southern Medical Journal, titled 'Bacterial Contamination of Paper Currency.' Dr. Peter Ender, an infectious diseases physician at St. Luke’s Hospital & Health Network in Bethlehem, Pa., who co-authored the study said that while the average health risks are low, bacteria on U.S. dollars could cause mild or serious illness.

http://www.smartmoney.com/Spending/Travel/Can-You-Catch-Swine-Flu-from-Money/

Interestingly, Smart Money says newer bills are safer because the ink has a fungicidal agent in it that helps destroy fungi and can also destroy viruses.

Along these lines, the NYT reports the web site Where's George? is being used by two universities to track the spread of the Swine Flu.

"The routes taken by millions of them are at the core of a computer model at Northwestern University that is predicting the epidemic’s future. Reassuringly, it foresees only about 2,000 cases by the end of this month, mostly in New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Houston . . .

At the heart of his simulation are two immense sets of data: air traffic and commuter traffic patterns for the entire country, and the yield of a whimsical Web site, Where’s George?

Where’s George? was started more than 10 years ago by Hank Eskin, a programmer who marked each dollar bill he received with a note asking its next owner to enter its serial number and a ZIP code into the Web site, just for the fun of seeing how far and fast bills traveled. By 2006, the site had the histories of 100 million bills."

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/health/04model.html?hp

Can we go back to the barter system? I'm feeling a little queasy. This is like some episode of 24 or something, where terrorists destroy the economy by infecting the currency.

See more here: NYT's "Well" section.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/catching-flu-from-money/?em

[Oregone]

1. So I guess I should stop sniffing the cocaine my bills.

Bummer

[bushmeister0]

2. Use sterilized straws from now on. It's not as cool, but you'll live to snort another day.

[Oregone]

5. Huh, I didn't mean to snort cocaine...who buys that shit anyway?

I meant snort it off the bills (as the urban legend goes, all bills have traces of coke on em).

Sorta goes hand in hand now with flu virus. :)

[Hekate]

3. Note to self: Launder money. Use credit cards.

And wash hands -- naturally.

Hekate

[bushmeister0]

4. Good plan. But is this a plot by the banks to bilk us?

Next thing you know they'll be telling us microchips injected into our foreheads is the way to go. For a small fee, naturally.

[dipsydoodle]

6. Frank Herbert's The White Plague

used that specific method to distrubute the plague.

Worthwhile read that book.:thumbsup:

[Berry Cool]

7. The only good news poor people have had in a long time.

No money? That's one potential source of infection down!

[bushmeister0]

10. Right, only the people who got us into this economic mess

and also profited from it will get it, since they are now buried in mountains money. Poetic justice. And the meek, democrats and people who don't make their reputations on running businesses in to the ground shall inherit the Earth.

[RC]

8. Iron your paper money.

The heat kills the virus and makes your money look better too.

[Vinca]

9. Maybe this is how the poor people take over the universe.