Post #1971928

2026-05-03 16:07 UTC

@wesdym cc: @sellathechemist It's important to think precisely about important ideas. In a general way, yes, parasites(p's) must keep their host alive. But we must interpret with care. If one individual(ind) of a p species(sp) kills its host, that p ind will die (unless it can move to another host ind). If p sp kills hosts, p sp disappears, UNLESS both host and p ind's produce offspring before the host ind dies. Parasite sp can live millions of years despite killing host ind's. No?

Replies (2)

@sellathechemist@mastodon.social 2026-05-03 20:20

@oldclumsy_nowmad @wesdym You're not doing that p-hacking thing that some are so up in arms about are you? 😂

Open ##1971929
@wesdym@mastodon.social 2026-05-03 21:11

@oldclumsy_nowmad What I realized over the years is that while all pathogens and parasites are inextricably bound by this hard and fast mathematical principle, there are some (very few) apparent exceptions, wherein a very narrow balance exists, more or less as you describe here. Rabies is the most obvious example, and I had to look this up: Though it's almost invariably fatal, it has a long incubation period, allowing ample time for retransmission. /2

Open ##1971932