Libertarian Rocker launches campaign for California Senate

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From Eric Dondero:

Adrian Galysh won the Libertarian Primary for State Senate on June 8th. He has since launched an agressive campaign district-wide.

From a Galysh release:

Galysh's strong campaign brought the musician's message of government spending cuts, lower taxes, and school choice to groups including the Los Angeles Urban League of Students Candidate Forum at USC, San Fernando Valley Tea Party Patriots "Candidate Sampler", Thousand Oaks Glenn Beck 9-12 book club, LA JEMM Medical Marijuana Awareness Festival, and UCLA's Young Americans For Liberty.

An active and enterprising musician, Galysh has been hitting the pavement and reaching out to the San Fernando Valley neighborhoods through events like the perennially popular St. Nicholas Greek Festival in Northridge, San Fernando Valley Pet Care day at Woodley Park, and the San Fernando Valley Fair.

Galysh is challenging incumbent State Sen. Alex Padilla, a liberal Democrat, and former staffer to US Senator Dianne Feinstein.

Galysh's is a Prog Rocker. His specific musical style has been called "Art Guitar." (See a video of one of his live performances here.)

Libertarian Republican contributor and a former southern California lead singer for a '90's punk band Michael W. Dean commented on Galysh's candidacy:

Winning a libertarian primary is easy. Tell that boy to run as a Republican!

electAdrianGalysh.com

Geert Wilders: Jordan is the home for Palestinians, they already have their own Country

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From Ynet (Israel News), June 22:

Geert Wilders, who leads the right-wing Party for Freedom (PVV) in Holland, said last week he believes Jordan should be renamed Palestine. The Jordanian government responded by saying Wilders' speech was reminiscent of the Israeli right wing.

"Jordan is Palestine," said Wilders, who heads the third-largest party in Holland. "Changing its name to Palestine will end the conflict in the Middle East and provide the Palestinians with an alternate homeland."

Wilders friend and ally in the U.S. Ayn Randist Pamela Geller of Atlas Shrugs adds:

88% of Palestine that the Palestinian Muslims crow over -- is in Jordan... of course Wilders is historically correct. Yaser Arafat and his Jew-hating armies created this Muslim narrative of deception of "Palestine," and their lies became the accepted, twisted narrative of modern history, thanks to a corrupt and incompetent media.

Andre Traversa Presents "Libertarian Politics Live": Special Guests Carlos Miller and Michael Pancier

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Tuesday night's topic involves both the right to privacy and free speech, both at odds. Police have been arresting people that video tape them, citing right to privacy issues. The problem is that police have video cameras in cars and these same police have allowed themselves to be videotaped when there is a positive spin to it, but suddenly it's wrong when they are caught doing something that could get them in trouble. Read the article at my blog here.

Hosts Jim Lagnese and Andre Traversa

Guests; Carlos Miller is a Florida Attorney, specializing in civil liberties issues. Carlos Miller has an award-winning blog "Photography is not a Crime" (CarlosMiller.com).

The show date: Tuesday June 22 (also you can listen after show on podcast)

The show time: 8-9pm CST Live stream at Libertarian Politics Live

Call in at 646-915-9887

Thank you for reading this blog.

47,000 Pounds of Beer lost… And where was Obama?

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From Cliff Thies:

In Chester County, South Carolina, a beer truck overturned and eight hundred thousand ounces of beer in bottles was lost. In spite of the efforts of state road crews, state and local police, and the local fire and rescue squad, not one bottle of the precious fluid was recovered. Only later did it occur to anybody, where was the President during this tragedy???

From the Herald-Tribune June 19:

RICHBURG -- The beer truck driver escaped unscathed.

The beer wasn't so lucky. The beer died. In a trickle, into red-clay dirt.

American Ale and Bud Light, thousands of dark brown bottles. Destroyed late Thursday when a 53-foot tractor-trailer fell on its side on Interstate 77 southbound in rural Chester County, in the construction zone where bridge repairs are being done.

Yes, some people will blame this beer spill on corporate greed or on the deregulation of the trucking industry. Others will point to crony capitalism and an all too unseemly relationship between the giant multinational beer corporations and the administration. But, the one thing that's for sure is blaming it on Bush is no longer resonating with the public.

Somewhere, someone is probably right now slurping down a tall one, taking it for granted, not knowing what's really at stake in the upcoming election. Come on, America, it's time to wake up! Do you want to see your Constitutional rights disappear like so many ounces of beer into the red clay along I-77? Or, are you going to protect your Constitutional rights they way you protect your very own supply of beer on the way to a tailgate party?

Photo not of actual truck.

Next step for Idaho Republican Reps Legalize Medical Marijuana bill

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LR FOLLOW-UP

From Eric Dondero:

We reported weeks ago, on Republican State Representative Tom Trail who was pushing legislation in the Idaho House to legalize medicinal marijuana. Now Trail is brining the issue up to Idaho Republican Convention delegates.

From The Times-News MagicValley.com, June 19:

Rep. Tom Trail, R-Moscow, has been working on the issue for about two years and plans to introduce legislation in the 2011 session. Before that happens, he’ll be able to gauge what other Idaho Republicans think of the idea at the party’s convention next week in Idaho Falls, when he floats a proposed resolution to delegates.

Fifteen states, including Montana, Washington, Oregon and Nevada, have laws allowing medical marijuana, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Meanwhile, one Idaho town is taking a "Sarah Palin-type" approach to the issue. (Last week Palin commented on Fox Business News that busting private Marijuana smokers should be local law enforcements "lowest priority.")

In Blaine County, there’s an openness toward medical marijuana. Hailey Mayor Rick Davis has said efforts to curb marijuana use on private property will be the local police force’s lowest priority.

Davis’ announcement came after residents passed pro-marijuana initiatives: One to allow medical marijuana, another to legalize industrial hemp and a third to make enforcement of anti-pot laws the lowest priority for Hailey police.

Davis told the Hailey City Council the decision to make pot smoking on private property the lowest police priority wasn’t easy, but it represents something that “works for those on both sides of this issue.”

Note to our Readers - if you live in Idaho and you are up on ID politics, we need to talk to you. Please contact us (contact page).

Liberal media frets Rand Paul is actually against Seat Belt laws

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From Eric Dondero:

The liberal media is aghast. Republican candidate for US Senate Rand Paul is actually opposed to mandatory seat belt laws. And he's against smoking bans too!

From the Louisville Courier-Journal, Sunday (via The Hill), "Report: Rand Paul supported healthcare bartering"):

Paul has condemned Medicare as ‘socialism;’ denounced seat-belt and anti-smoking laws as ‘Nanny-state’ paternalism; called for voluntary, rather than mandatory, accommodation of people with disabilities; and suggested using satellites to monitor America's borders for illegal immigrants.

Kentuckians may like their fast cars and smokes more than the liberal Nanny-Staters realize. The elites in D.C. (and Louisville!) could very well get a rude awakening come November.

Cato’s Dave Boaz hearts Republican Chris Christie for 2012

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Indiana's Mitch Daniels also in mind

From Eric Dondero:

Interesting article from the Daily Caller, "Ron Paul says GOP will be more open to libertarian-minded nominee in 2012." Paul demures when asked if he'd run. But makes some news with a plug for Gary Johnson.

Asked to name other potential presidential candidates he could support, Paul replied, “I guess the best one would be Johnson from New Mexico — Gary Johnson.”

Johnson, an ultra-marathon runner who was governor from 1995 to 2003 and endorsed Paul in 2008, is beloved by libertarians for his many vetoes and privatizations while in office, and for championing school choice and drug decriminalization.

The article also cites "Paul’s son Rand Paul in Kentucky and Sharron Angle in Nevada" as the top "libertarian-Republican" candidates for 2010.

But it's in the following paragraphs, quoting of Cato Institute Vice-President David Boaz, that might be the most newsworthy. Boaz, normally a cynic of libertarian efforts in the GOP, goes out of his way to highlight New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels.

The Big Man most able to attract "libertarian" support

From the Daily Caller, June 22:

David Boaz, the executive vice president of the libertarian Cato Institute, said that while he thinks the 2010 elections will sweep in some more libertarian-minded Republicans in Congress and the governor’s mansions, he’s less optimistic about such a candidate being nominated by Republicans in 2012.

“You can’t nominate just anybody, you have to nominate somebody,” Boaz said. “And plausible libertarian-minded candidates are hard to find. Ron Paul may make some noise, and may run, but House members don’t get nominated for president. Gary Johnson has a great libertarian record, but he doesn’t yet have much national recognition.”

Boaz did say that “a governor with a good record, like Mitch Daniels or Chris Christie, might be a candidate who could attract support from conservatives, libertarians, and independents,” if they could get around Romney.

A sign perhaps, that "culturally liberal" and stridently leftwing/non-interventionist on foreign policy Cato, is tiring of Obama-ism, and might be opening up to a more right-leaning libertarian approach?

Establishment GOPers, Big Money PACs out of D.C. don’t like "libertarian" Nikki Haley

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In the South Carolina Republican run-off for Governor Nikki Haley has raised virtually all of her money from small individual contributors. Opponent Gresham Barrett has raised almost all of his contributions from Business PACs, many based on 'K' Street in D.C.

From the Sacramento Bee, "Barrett winning money race in S.C. gubernatorial runoff" June 20:

The fact that Barrett's long-shot campaign can raise more money than Haley, who almost won the GOP nomination outright getting 49 percent of the vote in the June 8 primary, is evidence traditional Republican donors have concerns about the Lexington Republican, said Greenville, S.C.-based consultant Chip Felkel.

In particular, those Republicans fear Haley, a protege of libertarian Republican Gov. Mark Sanford, will repeat the two-term governor's pattern of standoffs with the Legislature, which is controlled by more traditional Republicans.

"The business community doesn't want her," Felkel said. "They want to head off four more years of Mark Sanford."

Wayne Root: Candidates who support Privatizing Social Security, Eliminating Edu Dept., Abolishing Income Tax, no longer "Extremist"

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Sharron Angle, and Tea Party now represent Mainstream Values

From Eric Dondero:

Wayne Root, Libertarian National Committee member, contributor to Libertarian Republican, and self-described "Reagan Libertarian," had an editorial published in the Las Vegas Sun-Review on Sunday: "Is [Sharron] Angle's 'radical' streak the new mainstream?" Root runs down a laundry list of incumbents losing across the U.S. losing to Tea Party-backed opponents. He offers praise to Republican candidate for South Carolina Governor and radical reformer libertarian Nikki Haley, who he notes was a "politically unknown female candidate endorsed by Sarah Palin."

He then offers praise for fellow Nevadan and GOP nominee for US Senate Sharron Angle:

In Angle’s case, the Tea Party movement gets 100 percent of the credit. Angle was languishing in single digits, in third place, until she received the endorsement of the Tea Party Express and The Club for Growth...

Sharron Angle is a true fiscal conservative, limited government, anti-tax, Tea Party candidate.

The Wall Street Journal just days ago described her views as “outside the mainstream.” Well I have news for The Wall Street Journal — radical is the new mainstream. The Journal described her radical positions in the past as “abolishing the federal tax code, privatizing Social Security for younger Americans, and eliminating the Education Department.” I have a funny feeling the mainstream media just doesn’t get it — yes, those views used to be out of the mainstream. But not this year, not when you’re running against the U.S. Senate majority leader who carries the water for the most socialist president in American political history.

Root goes on to declare:

Conservative and libertarian philosophy is back in vogue; “traditional,” “establishment” and “mainstream” are dirty words; and radical is the new mainstream.

Sarah Palin endorses Tim Scott for Congress – South Carolina

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From Eric Dondero:

Yesterday, we ran a series of articles on Tim Scott, Republican for Congress, in SC's Tuesday run-off election. Scott is a solid Reagan Conservative. Katherine Jenerette, Scott's primary opponent and a libertarian Republican, said this offering her endorsement:

I know that Tim will cut wasteful government spending, watching every precious taxpayer dollar.

I know that Tim will fight to win the war on terror, and support our military so that America can continue to lead the free world.

Now Scott's got a second powerful Female libertarian-leaning Republican in his camp.

From Sarah Palin's Facebook, earlier today:

I’m very proud to add my support to Tim Scott’s campaign to represent South Carolina’s 1st congressional district. Tim has a remarkable success story. He grew up in poverty and was raised by a single-mom who struggled to provide. With help from a mentor and his brave mom, Tim learned to appreciate the value of hard work and American opportunity. He went on to become a business owner and has served in public office with integrity on the county and state level.

Tim is a pro-life, pro-2nd Amendment, pro-development, Commonsense Conservative who’s been endorsed by the Club for Growth because of his solid commitment to the principles of limited government and fiscal responsibility.

He will represent the Palmetto State with distinction in DC, so I encourage you to vote for Tim in his run-off election next Tuesday, June 22nd. Please visit Tim’s website at http://www.votetimscott.com and follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

- Sarah Palin

If Scott wins the run-off on Tuesday, his election will be virtually assured. He has only nominal Democrat opposition in the Fall, in an overwhelmingly Republican district. This will make him the first Black American elected to Congress as a Republican since 2002.

Note - Stephen Maloney, a contributor to Libertarian Republican, and a Co-Founder of Draft Sarah Palin for VP in 2008, served as Campaign Coordinator and Media Director for Jenerette for Congress.

Delaware Republican for US Senate Christine O’Donnell speaks to Libertarian Party meeting

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From Eric Dondero:

Delaware has a nomination process similar to Utah. Candidates are nominated at convention, but there is also a primary in September. Michael Castle easily won the Republican nomination in convention, and is the likely GOP nominee for US Senate. However, Christine O'Donnell is still running an active campaign for the primary. It is still possible that she could beat Castle in September.

O'Donnell is considered the hard-right candidate; Castle, more moderate. But interestingly, he happens to be the great, great, grandson of Benjamin Franklin (direct descendent).

This item from Will McVay, Libertarian for State Rep. DE 32nd District campaign blog:

Continuing the recent trend, the turnout at the Kent County [Central Delaware] Libertarian Party meeting for June grew from our May total of around 20 people to more than 30...

Christine O'Donnell, a candidate for the Republican nomination to the US Senate was also present and offered her views on the current state of our country and the steps she believes are necessary to remedy them. While she was eager to appeal to those in attendance currently registered in the Republican Party, she was also respectful of the Libertarian Party's candidate for US Senate, Jim Rash.

Indiana Debate Commission to Sponsor Three U.S. Senate Debates

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(A Press Release from the Indiana Debate Commission)
For Immediate Release
INDIANAPOLIS—U.S. Rep. Brad Ellsworth, Democrat; former U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, Republican; and Rebecca Sink-Burris, Libertarian; have agreed in principle to participate in three televised debates sponsored by the Indiana Debate Commission.

The commission is now soliciting venue applications as it did for the gubernatorial race in 2008. Three debates [...]

Correlated optical and X-ray variability in CTTS

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Authors: E. Flaccomio, G. Micela, F. Favata and S. P. H. Alencar.<br />Astronomy and Astrophysics Vol. 516 , page L8<br />Published online: 23/06/2010<br />
Keywords:
stars: variable: T Tauri, Herbig Ae/Be ; stars: activity ; stars: coronae ; stars: formation ; accretion, accretion disks ; X-rays: stars .

CoRoT opens a new era in hot B subdwarf asteroseismology ***

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Authors: S. Charpinet, E. M. Green, A. Baglin, V. van Grootel, G. Fontaine, G. Vauclair, S. Chaintreuil, W. W. Weiss, E. Michel, M. Auvergne, C. Catala, R. Samadi and F. Baudin.<br />Astronomy and Astrophysics Vol. 516 , page L6<br />Published online: 22/06/2010<br />
Keywords:
stars: oscillations ; subdwarfs ; stars: individual: KPD 0629–0016.

The H? line forming region of AB Aurigae spatially resolved at sub-AU with the VEGA/CHARA spectro-interferometer

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Authors: K. Rousselet-Perraut, M. Benisty, D. Mourard, S. Rajabi, F. Bacciotti, Ph. Bério, D. Bonneau, O. Chesneau, J. M. Clausse, O. Delaa, A. Marcotto, A. Roussel, A. Spang, Ph. Stee, I. Tallon-Bosc, H. McAlister, T. ten Brummelaar, J. Sturmann, L. Sturmann, N. Turner, C. Farrington and P. J. Goldfinger.<br />Astronomy and Astrophysics Vol. 516 , page L1<br />Published online: 18/06/2010<br />
Keywords:
methods: observational ; techniques: high angular resolution ; techniques: interferometric ; circumstellar matter ; stars: individual: AB Aur ; stars: emission-line, Be .

Superluminals?

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Any time you start talking about moving matter or information faster than the speed of light (superluminal), the discussion can get quickly heated.  Science fiction is full of examples of superluminals, mostly to get around the time/distance factor in space travel.  The best (and most discussed) example of superluminal travel is the warp drive engine used to power the star ships in the Star Trek franchise.  There is even a “transwarp” drive for when multiples of light speed isn’t fast enough, and so a worm hole conduit is opened in which to accelerate beyond superluminal speeds.

Visualization of a Warp Field, USS Enterprise image owned by Paramount/CBS

As interesting as it is to think about superluminals in science fiction, where do they fit into science fact?  Nowhere, right?

Right?

I’m not so sure I’d bet on that.  True, under the special theory of relativity, a subluminal (slower than light speed) particle with non-zero rest mass needs infinite energy to accelerate to the speed of light.  What about a superluminal particle?  That would be a particle that never goes below the speed of light.  It couldn’t.  This particle is called a tachyon, and you just landed in the murky waters of theoretical particle physics.

Tachyon visualization, image by Wiki user TxAlien, all rights reserved

A tachyon is constantly moving.  Remember; if it slows to below the speed of light it ceases to exist.  Since it’s traveling at superluminal speed, you cannot see it approaching.  What you would see is it appearing and departing in two different directions.  In the animation, the black line is a shock wave of Cherenkov radiation (occurring in one specific moment in time).

At this time, there is no direct evidence to prove or disprove the existence of tachyons.  They are purely theoretical, spinless particles which must be created and annihilated in pairs.  They don’t just show up in theoretical particle physics, either.  They make an appearance in quantum field theory, string theory, and non-theoretical particle physics.

Some phenomena appear to be superluminal, but are not.  They do not move energy or information superluminally,  so they do not hit the windshield of special relativity.  Some of these phenomena are (note:  c indicates speed of light):

Closing speed:  Two objects approaching the other at near c will appear to an observer to be moving faster than c.  They are not.  If I’m in a car traveling at 55mph, and you’re in a car traveling at 55mph approaching me, our closing speed is 110mph… although we are actually only traveling at 55mph.

Phase velocity above c:  When traveling through a medium, the phase velocity of an electromagnetic wave routinely exceeds c.  X-rays through glass, for example.  However, the phase velocity of an electromagnetic wave is monochromatic, so it doesn’t impart any information above c.

Universal expansion:  Distant galaxies appear to be moving away from us at speeds greater than c.  This is the same effect as you see in closing speed, except we’re in a car traveling away from another car, both cars moving 55mph.  The expansion speed is 110mph, although neither is actually traveling that speed.

There are more examples of the same phenomena, but it all boils down to one thing:  Although mass/information is appearing to move at superluminal speed, it actually is not.

We could spend days discussing superluminal/subluminal, and whether it may be possible to some day “break the barrier” of the speed of light.  That is the direction research is taking.  We never know when some previously unknown “exception” will show up to prove the rule.  Who knows what will come in under special relativity in the future?

NCBI ROFL: Double feature: Personalities of punks and perils of their pointy parkas. | Discoblog

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341529621_2f0c63640cSelf-image of punk rock and nonpunk rock juvenile delinquents.

“The purpose of this study was to provide some understanding of punk rockers. Although they have received media attention in the depiction of their unusual hair and clothing styles, there is limited information about their personalities. In this study a delinquent group of punk rockers was compared with a delinquent group of nonpunk rockers on self-image, a personality factor related to teenagers’ mental health and adjustment. Each group consisted of 20 subjects, 15 males and 5 females, aged 14 to 17. Subjects were administered a Screening Questionnaire, the Offer Self-Image Questionnaire (OSIQ), and the California Psychological Inventory (CPI) while detained at a Southern California juvenile hall… No significant differences were found between the groups. The importance of these findings is that even though punk rockers may look and act unusual, they may actually be similar to other groups.”

punks_not_different

“Punk” rock can be bad for you: a case of surgical emphysema from a “punk” rocker’s leather jacket.

“Stab wounds to the thorax are seen in the emergency department (ED) and can be caused by a variety of mechanisms. This case highlights an unusual cause of injury: a leather jacket with spikes on the back of it. This type of jacket is often worn by “punks” as a fashion statement. We report that falling onto such a jacket may result in accidental thoracic injury leading to subcutaneous emphysema. A thorough clinical assessment is mandatory to exclude underlying lung injury or pneumothorax.”

stab_punk_jacket

Image: flickr/mando2003us

Related content:
Discoblog: NCBI ROFL: Sword swallowing and its side effects.
Discoblog: NCBI ROFL: Friday the 13th special: Blood and tissue spatter associated with chainsaw dismemberment.
Discoblog: NCBI ROFL: The ideal elf: identity exploration in World of Warcraft.

WTF is NCBI ROFL? Read our FAQ!


Making Super-Powered Solar Panels Via Quantum Dots | 80beats

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qd-solar-text.thumbnailA new type of solar cell using “quantum dots” may double the theoretical efficiency of current solar cells–allowing a panel to convert around 60 percent of the sun’s energy that it laps up into electricity. The research on these new cells appeared Friday in Science.

Current silicon-based solar cells lose about 80 percent of the sun’s energy they take in. It’s an inherent flaw: even working at their theoretical ideal, these cells would still lose 70 percent.

We can blame the sun’s diversely energized photons for this inefficiency. Silicon cells can only purposefully harvest photons with just the right amount energy. When they strike the cell, photons with just enough juice will prod an electron into motion (and create an electric current). An overly energized photon will excite the electrons to no purpose; the electrons will just quickly give off that photon’s energy as heat.

In two steps, this project, funded in part by the Department of Energy, salvages these “hot electrons.”

“There are a few steps needed to create what I call this ‘ultimate solar cell,’” says [Xiaoyang] Zhu, professor of chemistry and director of the Center for Materials Chemistry. “First, the cooling rate of hot electrons needs to be slowed down. Second, we need to be able to grab those hot electrons and use them quickly before they lose all of their energy.” [University of Texas at Austin]

Step 1 — Keep Hot Electrons Hot

The researchers from the University of Texas at Austin kept the hot electrons from shedding their energy–by hindering them with quantum dots, nanoscale structures with quantum behaviors:

The group used nanoscale (less than 100 nanometers, or 10-9 meters) crystals of a compound called lead selenide. Like silicon, lead selenide is a semiconductor, meaning it absorbs light energy within a certain bandgap, or range of energies. But semiconducting nanocrystals, also known as quantum dots, exhibit very different properties than their larger counterparts. For one thing, they can hold on to a hot electron for a longer period of time, stretching out the amount of time it takes for the electron to cool. In fact, previous research has shown that quantum dots can increase the lifetime of hot electrons by as much as 1000 times. [Popular Mechanics]

Step 2 — Forcing the Flow

The team next spurred these energetic electrons by pushing them into a conducting material where they could more easily move.

Zhu’s team has now figured out the next critical step: how to take those electrons out. They discovered that hot electrons can be transferred from photo-excited lead selenide nanocrystals to an electron conductor made of widely used titanium dioxide. “If we take the hot electrons out, we can do work with them,” says Zhu. “The demonstration of this hot electron transfer establishes that a highly efficient hot carrier solar cell is not just a theoretical concept, but an experimental possibility.” [Science Daily]

There’s just one problem keeping these more efficient cells from competing with their silicon predecessors–hooking them up to a wire to use all that electric current. The hot electrons, it seems, are too hot to handle:

“If we take out electrons from the solar cell that are this fast, or hot, we also lose energy in the wire as heat,” says Zhu. “Our next goal is to adjust the chemistry at the interface to the conducting wire so that we can minimize this additional energy loss.” [University of Texas at Austin]

But quantum dots are not the only solar cell solution. DISCOVER reporter Andrew Moseman describes other front runners on page 14 of our July/August magazine issue, which is on newsstands now.

Related content:
80beats: Tech Prize Goes to Inventor Who Wants to Turn Skyscrapers Into Generators
80beats: The Dream: Print-Out Solar Panels That Can Be Stapled to Your Roof
80beats: Glitter-Sized Solar Cells Could Be Woven into Your Power Tie
 80beats: Self-Assembling Solar Panels Use the Vinaigrette Principle
DISCOVER: Sun Catcher Promises Cheaper Solar Power

Image: The University of Texas at Austin


Will Unlocking the Genome of Body Lice Help Us Destroy Them? | 80beats

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Body_louseIt doesn’t take much to be a vile, bloodsucking pest. You, human, have three billion base pairs in your genome, but the body louse—which has been a typhus-spreading scourge of humanity for millennia—carries just 108 million. That’s what scientists say today in a study in the Proceedings of the National Sciences that describes how they sequenced the body louse genome.

Because the body louse (a separate creature from the head or pubic louse) lives entirely on humans, hatching in our clothes and eating our blood, its genome can get away with being so streamlined, study author Barry Pittendrigh says:

“Most of the genes that are responsible for sensing or responding to the environment are very much reduced,” Pittendrigh said. The body louse was found to have “significantly fewer genes” for smell and taste, as well as minimal genes responsible for a “simple visual system,” the study authors wrote. They found just 10 genes to code for odor receptors [Scientific American].

Human blood isn’t exactly a fully balanced meal, and the stripped-down louse genome doesn’t allow for making some of the missing ingredients itself. So, the scientists found, lice thrive by living symbiotically.

The new genomic analysis has revealed a source of at least one of those missing nutrients: the sequence of a bacterium living in the body louse, Candidatus Riesia pediculicola, turned up several genes involved in the synthesis of vitamin B5. Without that bacterium, the body louse is doomed [Nature].

The louse genome makes a nice addition to the library of genomes now on file, including the fruit fly, honeybee, and multiple mosquitoes. Lice could prove particularly interesting because they’re so simple. In addition to having a small genome, they also don’t go through complete metamorphosis. Instead, adults develop gradually from the young.

And there’s the practical: If we know our enemy, then maybe we can kill them. The researchers found that body lice carry few genes that would help them detoxify harmful compounds, perhaps because their diet is so homogeneous they don’t need to worry about it. That might provide a way to target them. Or, now that we have the genome of the helper bacterium, we could target it instead and doom the lice that way.

Related Content:
DISCOVER: Lice Meet the Hair Dryer of Death
DISCOVER: Whale Lice Offer Links To Past
DISCOVER: Your Body is a Planet
Discoblog: What Head (and Other) Lice Tell Us About Evolution

Image: CDC