Why Learning with The Internet Is Awesome - Episode I, Cutting Boards

So I checked out Reddit this morning, and the top story was a Today I Learned (TIL) from frogontrombone:

TIL that contrary to popular belief, plastic cutting boards are more likely to harbor bacteria than wood ones. New plastic boards are easier to clean, but ones with cuts are nearly impossible to completely disinfect, whereas wood ones absorb and kill bacteria, regardless of age or use.

That was interesting to me, because like so many people, I was under the impression the opposite was true.

So, I looked to see where this information was coming from. You can only trust Reddit so much.

Turns out that the original poster (OP) on Reddit learned this from what must be a relatively old summary of research done by a Professor Dean O. Cliver here at UC Davis, and the research looks solid.

Hooray for my school! Right?
Cool useful research and the top spot on Reddit? Not bad.

So, I searched for the professor only to learn he passed away in 2011. This was reported in a faculty document from the University of Wisconsin.

Wait a second!
The University of Wisconsin? That's where I went as an undergrad.

Turns out that Professor Cliver did the research that landed him on Reddit's front page at UW-Madison and soon afterwards took a job here at UC Davis.

The man had a fascinating career, one that involved study of the cryptosporidium outbreak in Milwaukee. Something I remember all too well from when I was a junior in high school (I didn't get it, but know people who did, and I had friends who had to boil their drinking water).

And now I am never going to forget why/how wooden cutting boards are more sanitary than plastic. My behavior is going to change, and I will always be able to explain why.

The associations I was able to make and the speed at which I made them, that's a kind of learning that the internet is very good at facilitating. It's awesome.

So, I hope to write about these kinds of learning experiences more often and create a series of Why Learning with The Internet Is Awesome (WLwTIIA) posts here. I hope they are informative.