Eli Mirek

I have been pretty into the idea of apocalypses lately, especially after watching the new Resident Evil (Zach Cregger, 2026) and learning about pathogens in my pathogen genomics class. It seems like fall bring this excitement along every year... (check out my blog on a hypothetical Midwestern apocalypse). When you hear "cordyceps" you probably think of the video game and show, The Last of Us. If you aren't familiar, imagine a zombie-like creature overcome with a brain-altering fungus. Pretty...

Hello! This blog will be a little bit less Midwest based because I really want to talk about my trips over the summer! Granted, most of the trips were in the Midwest, but my trip to New York was in the Northeast. These trips mean a lot to me because, for the first time in my life, I was able to road trip without family. I also got to travel across the country with my girlfriend, which makes these trips all the more special and memorable. Tulsa, OK In May, Mick and I road tripped across the...

Hello Midwest Muse fans! I am finally back from my hiatus, and I feel much more motivated to write. I am also unemployed at the moment, so I have a lot more time to dedicate to producing interesting blogs for you all. Over the summer, I worked for the Desplaines Valley Mosquito Abatement District (DVMAD) in their laboratory division. It gave me so much experience with lab work, and I got to witness the intersection of ecology, genomics, and public health firsthand. During the season, I...