Mike wrote: >Is this paper supposed to be a conclusive statement? No, it wasn't. However, the way in which it was released lent itself to being misrepresented by the press, and many beekeepers (I'm hearing the chatter starting already among beeks who have heard about it, but haven't read it). I spoke for some time today with lead author, Dr. Cox-Foster, and plied her with questions. You are absolutely right, this paper raises more questions than it answers. The complexity of the bee/multiple virus/double nosema/mite/nutrition/immune response interactions is staggering! There's a ton of research yet to be done, data to be confirmed, and contrary data to be reconciled. I applaud the herculean efforts of those many researchers who are putting in long hours on minimal budgets! Randy Oliver ****************************************************** * Full guidelines for BEE-L posting are at: * * http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm * ******************************************************