The Ebola Usenet Traffic

[K. Painter]

	As a writer, irony is always a drawing card for me.  So here we 
are in the bionet.virology newsgroup, where some rather embittered 
discussion has cropped up over the increase in traffic and what this has 
done to the mailboxes of some very dedicated individuals who study 
viruses.  
	I, for one, want the virologists and epidemiologist -- and any 
other ologists who may reside here--to be able to continue and perfect 
their work with minimal impediment.  I believe I have a stake in that.
	Pop culture is fun--way fun.  I have read the books of the 
moment, too.  It is very energizing to have a bank of knowledge from 
which to draw when something new and scary begins to take hold of the 
imagination of one's peers.  It's a bit like being able to talk about 
castle "hauntings" when the kids down the block have to resort to the 
worn oral traditions of the old "Golden Arm" ghost story.  Your stock 
rises as the possessor of knowledge not taken up by the others, who are 
too busy having a life to read about castle hauntings as you might have 
so painstakingly done. 
	Two things I would say to other lay persons.  First, own up to 
the fact that part of what you do in reading and posting here is an 
attempt to drive your stock upward as the possessor of knowledge your 
peers lack.  You have every hope of going into the office or warehouse 
tomorrow and saying, "Well, on the virology newsgroup, I read that..."  
and watching your colleagues' faces fall.  That doesn't make you awful, 
but if you won't admit that much, how do you expect others to admit that 
yes, in fact, your posts are a pain in the butt to them and clog their 
e:mail with items they would prefer not to wade through?
	Neither of the above reactions denotes a perfect human being, but
then we are hardly perfect.  We are all just folks, however many letters
fall after our given names.  I have yet to meet the truly sterling
scientist of any stripe who is not fully aware of this fact.  Many, in
fact, are true characters in any sense you can imagine (and some you would
rather not).  Full human beings, like anyone else. 
	Ebola is not the revenge of the nerds.  Both your keen interest, 
and the occasional irritation of being overwhelmed manifested by the 
scientists posting here, are to be expected.  The question is, how will 
we deal with the situation?
	I simply look here for information.  It is one of many sources.  
I'm glad to see people posting URLs for Web sites concering the situation 
in Zaire to this group.  I've checked most of them out, and there is a 
lot of information there that would go a long way towards allaying 
fears and feeding the frenzy for information so many feel.  
	Finally, with no desire to sound like a "suckup," I want to say 
"Thank you" to those of you who have chosen to make your lives' work 
the study of viruses.  I was most amazed by something quiet in the 
Preston book and others.  Something it is too easy to overlook amidst 
the projectile vomiting of blood and whatnot.  The quiet labor of 
dedicated people who have to face the hysteria of the public *each 
time* a pandemic erupts or now, in the 90's, each time a virus emerges 
and grasps our attention.
	Drs. and scientists are even now making their way throughout
Kikwit and surrounding areas to actually hunt down possible cases of Ebola
to track the progress of this outbreak.  They will scour city streets on
foot or on bicycles seeking information and asking questions, and the
inherent risk of their mission will go unnoticed by many millions of us
clamoring for the juicier details.  In Preston's book, the first people to
arrive on the scene for Zaire's '76 Ebola outbreak (sorry if that date's
incorrect--my copy of the book is on loan) were clearly concerned to
learn, but also to heal.  What a testament to their original motivations
for entering the profession.  I am a cynic by profession, nature and 
experience, but the picture of humans placing themselves at risk to 
help--at its heart, surely, this along with acquiring knowledge comprise 
the motivation of the virologist--made a permanent impression on me.	
	So, to all of you with clogged mailboxes who are tearing at your 
hair right about now, "Thank you for doing the work you do."

	Kim