
Cockroaches: The insect we're programmed to fear - Libertatea
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20140918-the-reality-about-roaches?ocid=global_future_rss
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darklajid
Most of the article doesn't really connect with the title/subject.

The most promising statement is 'A lot of people see parents/friends react
badly and therefor consider roaches = bad', but .. that's it. The rest is a
not all to bad story about a person trying to control her irrational fear of
these insects by confronting it. Nothing general. No science.

(Me? I've never even SEEN cockroaches before I moved to Tel Aviv for a year
and there I was greeted by dead ones on the day I moved in, live ones the day
after and from then on.. I admit that it DID take some time to not jump around
in circles, mostly due to the size and the 'fearlessness' and swiftness of
these things. In the end they became nothing but a nuisance. Ugly, unwanted,
but no big deal really)

~~~
aaron695
Yes, I was disappointed. The title implies genetics rather than environment.

Which is an interesting question. The fact people can learn fear is not very
interesting.

I feel snakes for instance are a genetic fear. Large animals fear them, which
makes no sense unless they are personally bitten and learn.

Although perhaps enough in a herd get bitten to teach the others.

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kijin
> _they show that for all of our fortifications against dirt and disease,
> those efforts are ultimately futile._

In most parts of the United States, those "fortifications" consist of houses
built with delicious organic materials in various stages of decomposition,
sewage systems that are too rudimentary to prevent anything (not even raw
sewage itself) from traveling in the wrong direction, and entrances with a
"pet door" that allows free passage to anything smaller than a bear cub. It
really is quite primitive, if you think about it.

A modern tower built with steel and concrete, with a proper sewage system and
a strict no-pet policy, filled with minimalistic furniture, would probably go
a long way toward eliminating roaches. Unfortunately, we humans still seem to
be naturally attracted to warm, moist, organic stuff -- the same that is
beloved of all other lifeforms, both pet and pest.

~~~
Houshalter
I think letting your house freeze over might help. I live in a colder
environment and have never seen a roach or had any kind of insect problem.

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possibilistic
I had no idea people could become allergic to cockroach antigens. That
surprised me. It makes sense that they would act as an immunological adjuvant
in the presence of the bacteria the cockroaches carry. If you activate the
immune system defenses in the presence of a non-self epitope (or sometimes
even self in autoimmune diseases), you're going to pick up antigen
recognition.

Immunology is a subject all on its own right. Rife with complexities to
unravel for centuries to come.

It really sucks that this would take lobster off the menu. I don't have the
money or palate to eat them, and I haven't thought much about the ethical
questions of boiling them, but what an interesting and long-winded
evolutionary anecdote. It's so absurd it feels like a joke. Biology never
ceases to be fascinating...

~~~
sanoli
> Immunology is a subject all on its own right.

I find it fascinating too. Too bad I don't have a good amount of knowledge in
the area to delve into it. Do you have any suggestions of books for someone
who wants to learn?

~~~
possibilistic
I used Janeway's Immunobiology in undergrad. It's not bad and has great
figures, but the text is a little dry. This is purely anecdotal; sample size
of one.

For what it's worth we relied solely upon the primary literature as the basis
for a second semester course, so I'd say it prepared us for at least that
much. (Granted you'll also need to study the techniques and assays. Some
biochem, molecular, and cell phys also helps.)

Once you delve into the literature the organized rules you spend time
memorizing begin to look silly. There is so much behaviour outside the lines
that we are only beginning to characterize.

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kolev
Hmmm... I don't fear them. Do I have a "bug"? :)

~~~
martiuk
Life 2.0.1.5 Release: Fixed an issue where some humans were not afraid of
cockroaches.

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beggi
"To their victims, cockroaches commit a personal violation. In the words of
George A. Romero, they creep up on you. And there’s nothing you can do to stop
them" \- My exact reaction to the U2/Apple fiasco. Thanks for the free album
but please don't force it on me - that's a personal violation.

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recalibrator
People tend to be irrational towards ants too. They see one march across their
kitchen floor and lose it. So to clear up common misperceptions, I wrote "Take
a humane stance with ants". [http://allsprawldown.com/animal-ethics/taking-an-
ethical-sta...](http://allsprawldown.com/animal-ethics/taking-an-ethical-
stance-with-carpenter-ants/)

