
Tom opens this week’s livestream with several announcements: -Tom will be attending the Homesteading Life Conference in Missouri and invites attendees to say hello. Homesteading Life Conference with Doug and Stacy link here. -Cowan’s Community Corner has launched, offering a place for community events, communication, and connection. Sign up for C3 here. -Early bird pricing is still available for the New Biology Experience at Polyface Farm in June. New Biology Experience link here. Highlights from this session include: -Tom begins with “science news,” questioning claims about LUCA, ancient life on Mars, and mitochondrial ATP production. -A critique of NASA’s Curiosity rover story, including the claim that it found signs of ancient life on Mars. -A discussion of Joe Mercola’s comments on mitochondrial dysfunction, where Tom challenges the idea that ATP production can be meaningfully compared to levels from 100 years ago. -A deep dive into the “Hanta” virus narrative, including Tom’s comments on the meaning of the word “Hanta,” and fear-based imagery. -Tom examines the claimed isolation methods for hantavirus, arguing they rely on the same cell-culture methods he has criticized in other virology discussions. -A breakdown of the reported Andes virus genome sequence, emphasizing that reconstructed genomes from mixed clinical samples do not prove the existence of a virus. Tom closes by reiterating that one does not need to know what caused an illness to know what did not cause it, and suggests the hantavirus story is another fear-based viral narrative.