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Good juju

According to Rachel Cooper from Scienceline, wisdom teeth, which come in in the late teens when we are ‘wiser,’ were “the evolutionary answer to our ancestor’s early diet . . . As a result, evolutionary biologists now classify wisdom teeth as vestigial organs, or body parts that have become functionless due to evolution.” But, is there something more to be said for these teeth? When you have your wisdom teeth extracted are you removing something, like oh say insight or good juju? I had mine taken out this week and things are a little off. My electrode decided its time was up, someone ‘borrowed’ my helium, and although they replaced it they hooked it up incorrectly, and my GC has a mind of its own. Did I give my dentist my good juju?

Many people don’t think of scientists, particularly those who work in a lab, as being superstitious. What really comes to mind are athletes and the crazy lady that lives across the street. Oddly enough though, scientists can be added to the list. At my university all the computer screens in lab have cartoon faces and names. You refer to each by name and when they don’t want to work properly you talk to them like you would a small child in the middle of a temper tantrum. Now, like athletes, not all scientists are superstitious, just a remarkable amount. In a lab here at OHSU each instrument has a figurine that resides there. They bring luck and shouldn’t be tampered with.

My wisdom teeth may be gone, but not my sense of optimism or confidence. I will go give my GC a name, read through a Valco Instrument Instruction Manual, and hope for the best.