There’s Nothing Better Than The Right Bad News!

There are many quotes by famous people about problems being opportunities.

“The block of granite which was an obstacle in the pathway of the weak, became a stepping-stone in the pathway of the strong.” Thomas Carlyle.

“Every problem is an opportunity in disguise.” John Adams.

“Never let a good crisis go to waste.” Attributed to many.

All sensible and inspirational twists on setback.

We are going to apply a similar twist to rather gross facts. And in so doing highlight how mathematics can be used to frighten the unsuspecting.

Did you know that one in six mobile phones are contaminated with faecal matter? And cell phones carry ten times as many bacteria as toilet seats? Forty percent of office coffee mugs contain coliform bacteria, found in faeces. Forty percent! It gets worse. It is estimated that there is faecal matter on 72% of shopping carts. And shoes? Don’t go there.

Boy, how those numbers frighten us!

And those numbers also sell cleaning products. (Oh, sponges are about the most contaminated things there are.) And newspapers and magazines.

But we are looking at those numbers the wrong way. It’s the old problem/opportunity thing in disguise.

Have you used your cell phone today? Yes. Had a coffee in an office mug? Indeed. Worn shoes perhaps? Check. And are you currently ill? Me neither.

What’s the correct conclusion from the data then?

In the famous words of Corporal Jones, “Don’t panic!” As long as people’s health doesn’t get any worse then generally speaking the more germs there are the better. It simply mean that those germs aren’t as bad as their PR makes out.