“A bug is making you miserable - is it alive?”

How do viruses make copies of themselves?

• Viruses need to have pressure and heat to make copies

• Viruses take in nutrients, reproduce and die

• Viruses can make copies of themselves only by hijacking the cells of the creatures they infect

• Viruses make proteins by themselves

What are Scientists concerned about if the virus or the flu would disappear?

• Wildlife will suffer.

• It's hard to know what would happen if the flu disappeared,

• Eliminating a virus will leave another one in its place.

• Fewer lions mean more food for hungry hyenas.

Most viruses have molecules but what do they need to be alive?

• Genes

• Air

• Water

• A host to feed it

Each year a handful of strains circulate and what happens?

• Grow and reproduce protein

• Replaced with different strains

• Become heat resistant

• Become water resistant

What would happen if viruses didn't exist?

• Everyone would be healthy

• Scientist are not sure

• All animals will perish

• Only the healthy would not get sick

Where do viruses exist?

• Dirty environments

• Only on your hands

• Everywhere

• In plants

Some illnesses are caused by?

• Cold weather

• Infected animals

• Food

• Bacteria

When are viruses alive?

• When they have a nucleus

• Gene are mutated

• When they have a host to feed them

• They are never alive

What does Gustavo Caetano-Anollés say about viruses?

• Viruses can be regarded similar to 'seeds' of plants

• Are from plants

• Can be planted and watered

• Is an organism

Viruses are unable to?

• Divide

• Make their own food

• Be transmitted

• Infect people