Thursday, October 29, 2009
Computing HIV
I thought this was interesting in light of how most of the readings describe how the computer facilitates that spread of HIV-in this case a supercomputer is being used to map HIV DNA in an attempt to understand how the virus mutates genetically. I wonder if similar technology could be used to track who infected whom, although I believe the virus begins to mutate even within one host. It poses questions of the ambivalent relationship between technology and public health, as in one instance computers can help spread the virus, and in another may work towards finding a vaccine, or additional forms of treatment.
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The business of documentation is important here as well, as you mentioned before. This "new" rhetoric of "we can forego condoms if you bring a week-old test". Maybe people will start/have started doing quick HIV tests on the spot right before hooking up? Or maybe this is precisely what they WON'T do, if we follow Dean's arguments of risk-taking, barebacking in order to encounter disease/a tangible death promise on their own terms? If there is no virus, or no possibility for a virus, there is no sense of kinship to be established?
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