/oss/taxonomy/term/4013/all en /oss/article/covid-19/ruminations-rapid-tests <p>To test or not to test, that is the question, to steal a line from Shakespeare. Actually, when to test is a more important query because there is no doubt that appropriate testing of the population can cut down infections by identifying people who may be a threat to others and advising them to self-isolate. The gold standard for detecting the presence of the virus in secretions is the so-called polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test which identifies genetic material from the virus. It does this very well, capable of picking up infection just a couple of days after exposure to the virus.</p> Thu, 23 Dec 2021 23:53:20 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8962 at /oss /oss/article/technology-history/man-who-photocopied-dna-and-also-saw-talking-fluorescent-raccoon <p>It may be surprising to learn that the credited inventor of the most important workhorse in molecular biology—the polymerase chain reaction or PCR—once claimed he had seen<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1998/11/03/nobel-chemist-kary-mullis-making-waves-as-a-mind-surfer/31e7e720-44e4-49ff-8458-a9822cdcb47e/"> a talking fluorescent raccoon</a> near his cabin, which may or may not have been an alien.</p> Thu, 15 Aug 2019 17:30:49 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 7873 at /oss