Bad News: Bed Bugs like the Smell of Your Dirty Laundry.

Mia Gradelski

AP Biology

Mr. Ippolito

November 20, 2017

Chodosh, Sara. “Bad News: Bed Bugs like the Smell of Your Dirty Laundry.” Popular Science,

28 Sept. 2017, <www.popsci.com/bed-bugs-smell-dirty-laundry.>

At the start of this article, readers are immediately introduced to the disturbing notion of having bed bugs near them while they are sleeping. The article explains the consequences and uncomfortable feelings of knowing about these bugs. The bugs are described as “tiny, flightless creatures that live only in crevices and holes, but that have somehow manages to spread across almost the entire planet.” Furthermore, the article informs readers about the history and curiosity of where they came from which started with the ancient disease, the Black Death. Yet, before this discovery and still till this day, we don’t exactly know where they come from and where they stay. The writer constantly refers to this notion of “questionable creepiness” that lures readers into wondering why they are interested in finding our beds. Multiple tests have been done to track these creepy critters and an interesting finding from the intrepid entomologists at the University of Sheffield have found that the smell of humans is the main attraction. The article frequently discusses what the impact of why this is happening is believed to be based on “detecting the carbon dioxide they exhale, along with mosquitos.” We are later introduced to the infectious critter, C. lectularius, which not only colonizes beds but eats it as well. This evidence is supported by a similar hypothesize that “the carbon dioxide carried out with every snore sends them into a feeding frenzy, but it seems they’ve learned to follow other humans smells as well.” As the article continues to go in depth with the Sheffield scientist’s experiment, readers learn that “bed bugs were twice as likely to make their home in dirty laundry as they were clean laundry, which is the main factor.” The article explains that the main purpose they lie in our beds is due to the laundry that they initially get attracted to, which leads to the dilemma of them multiplying quickly and vastly.

Throughout the article, there are many references that can be useful to me and to anyone who is especially afraid of these pesky little creatures. Although I’ve never experienced seeing one or having one in my bed, I think this information provided is helpful in preventing them from arriving. At the end of the article, the writer include a flashback of how we can insure they cannot happen to ourselves. Society can certainly be affected by the certified hypothesis and results done by this article due to the truthfulness of the contestants during this fascinating lab. Readers are definitely more informed not only about the real reason they approach our bedrooms but why on a science level. For future reference, society knows that washing your clothing is vital to having a hygienic lifestyle and be “criterless.”

Although this article was well written, I didn’t encounter much statistical evidence that was supported by the theory of “carbon dioxide being the main source of how critters land in the laundry.” In addition, it would’ve been more truthful to conduct more experiments done with possibly messy and clean people to compare the rodent and bug population inside their bedrooms. Yet, the author displayed a good sense of bias toward both sides which lead the readers to be more convinced that this can turn into a serious problem if they are not hygienic. In addition, while reading I enjoyed the humour instead of the seriousness that science articles tend to use. In order to improve upon these errors encountered above, I would conduct more experiments with certain types of people to see if the results of having dirty and stinky laundry is a true representation of how many bed bugs you encounter and it would be interesting to hear the author’s viewpoints on these “vampiric critters.”