I find it pretty cool that snippets of information passed down from my ancestors encoded in my DNA can be synthesised into physical objects, find their way into

I find it pretty cool that snippets of information passed down from my ancestors encoded in my DNA can be synthesised into physical objects, find their way into somebody else's body and permanently write themselves into their DNA. We're all infectious! Some of those bits of information might even turn out to be useful, millions of years down the line. In fact, they probably are, which is why this mechanism has stayed in our genome despite all the unpleasant side-effects. We share genetic information outside of reproduction, just like bacteria do!