Tuesday, July 21, 2009

You're infected with a parasite that has a decent chance of killing you via a road traffic accident


… possibly. 20-60% of "most populations" are infected; more prevalent in Europe than elsewhere. Toxoplasma gondii is a parasite that came from rats, whose behavior it alters by making them more reckless and more likely to be eaten by cats, which it wants for some reason. Now it's with us, possibly festering in your very brain, and it makes us reckless too. Those infected are 600% more likely to be involved in car accidents.