3 ms·

That's really interesting, thanks.

• echelon 5y ago
  The problem is that the immune system is an incredibly complex and dynamical system that almost nobody with only a general biology understanding is equipped to understand. It's even worse if you have no familiarity with biology. Your general bio classes in college gloss over immunology to a point that it's practically a misshapen lie. (Not unlike undergraduate general chemistry.) You have to read and study a lot more to understand and describe the behavior of the system such as the parent poster did. And that's just one small detail in an elaborate series of interacting mechanisms. It's so weird to see the world impacted by something people are ill equipped to understand. And it makes you wonder about all the other crises we deal with where you have absolutely zero bearing for understanding.
  • spuz 5y ago
    In this case, I don't think it's necessary to go into too much detail about how the immune system works. The issue is that if you are going to _some_ level of detail, then you need to include all the relevant context. In this case, the number of antibodies that the immune system can produce goes along way to explain the points made in the rest of the article. PS I am aware how damn complex the immune system is and how complicated it can be to explain to people at the right level of detail. I once attempted to watch a lecture on how the spike protein and antibodies work which went into detail on all the chemical reactions that occur at each step and it is just insane how much complexity there is to it. And that was presumably a simplification of what actually happens.