Spiders (was: Stacking computers)(long)

If you want to know more about spiders, I actually took several entomology classes at the University of Kansas. I know some weird information about fleas, chiggers, spiders, pore mites, and other small insects. We used to hunt spiders, not to kill them but to observe them, at night, our professor would buy the first pitcher of beer after we were all done. You could buy 3.2 beer at age 18 in Kansas in 1971. The brown recluse spider injects a cytotoxic saliva when it bites. The saliva actually breaks down the cell wall, i.e. cytotoxic, liquefies the cell contents and then the spider is able to "slurp" up the contents. Some people are highly allergic, then can end up with scars the size of 50 cent pieces when the site heals. Bites on faces and exposed body parts are a problem. They like to feed on dust mites under furniture. I heard a story/rumor that one of the football coaches at KU had a large scar on his butt from a brown recluse bite. Reference on spiders http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~ohioline/hyg-fact/2000/2060.html Off topic, The chigger injects an anticoagulant when it bites, which has the same effect, and also itches. Otherwise their proboscis, "stinger" would clog up with clotted blood. University of North Carolina reference to residental pests http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/Urban/house.htm Reference of pesticides and pest control http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/Urban/pests.htm Pore mites are the tiny bugs that live on the sebacous secretions and skin flakes on your skin. Mostly they live in skin pores. Our professor used to take a scraping from the skin on a student and show them what was living on them. He theorized that people with clear skin actually had more pore mites that kept the skin's pores unclogged. I doubt if anybody wants a skin cream with live pore mites. Mite reference http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/Urban/mites/mites.htm I actually learned something in college. Mike mmcfadden(a)cmh.edu