To celebrate Halloween, I came up with a last minute (literally took me one minute) costume this morning, in hopes of amusing some peers or bringing up devastating memories of our last unit in school. Okay fine, the primary reason I had to think of something quick was for the $4 Chipotle, if we’re being completely honest here (PSA: Chipotle offers $4 entree to anyone who shows up in a Halloween costume!) I thought the halo sign on India Ink would be obvious (the cap – “encapsulated” may have been a stretch), but less students than I expected knew what I was! I guess my favorite fungi, Cryptococcus neoformans, just doesn’t receive the attention it deserves, but this was still shocking to me given that our Infectious Disease/Microbiology unit was less than four weeks ago. For anyone who doesn’t know, Cryptococcus neoformans is a heavily encapsulated yeast found commonly in soil or pigeon droppings (thank you, Sketchy Micro), transmitted through inhalation and presenting clinically with fever, pneumonia, and meningitis. It is diagnosed by the “halo sign” on India Ink stain, as well as soap bubble lesions via MRI. In light of this fun science/medical school-themed costume, I am currently perusing the Internet to see what other ideas people out there have. If you are in search of a science-themed costume for next year, look no further; here are some of the ideas I found:
I imagine for the homunculus, you could buy a large pair of rubber foam fingers or gloves. And can’t forget the dermatome man – I’ve seen people buy dermatome “suits” off amazon, or if you’re feeling bold, you could body paint yourself accordingly. If you have any other ideas/suggestions, I’d love to hear them in the comments below!
