Bacteria And Scams

How To Survive Boiling Water

Jane A. Cook | Taxa | 19th July 2026

Scientist and self-described procrastinating PhD student goes on a journey of discovery to investigate whether the claims of a "probiotic" tea bag can possibly be true. Surely any "good bacteria" will have been destroyed by steeping it in boiling water before drinking? "Learning how bacteria grow and adapt does not diminish the sense of wonder I feel when I observe them – it only enhances it" (4,200 words)

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A History Of The Internet’s Favorite Scam

Finn Brunton | MIT Press Reader | 20th July 2026

The advance-fee fraud, also known as the 419 scam, is familiar to the point of cliché: "It always starts with the same canonical line, trotted out in conversation over the phone, or perhaps over email: 'Hello! I am a Nigerian prince.'." It has a richer history than we might assume, dating back to at least the 19C. Then, as Nigeria's oil bubble collapsed in the 1980s, it took off on paper, and then via the web (2,500 words)