Scientists can't explain almost 50 percent of the DNA found on NYC subways

A new study from Weill Cornell Medical College has revealed that New York's subway system is teeming with bacteria, many of which are unidentifiable.

Dr. Christopher Mason, lead author of the study, told The New York Times that subway riders should be impressed with the transit system's variety of life. "I want them to think of it the same way you'd look at a rain forest, and be almost in awe and wonder, effectively, that there are all these species present — and that you’ve been healthy all along," Mason told the Times.

Mason and his colleagues created a project called PathoMap, where researchers collected DNA swabs from wooden benches, subway poles, turnstiles, handrails, and doors. They found that nearly half of the DNA samples didn't match any organisms known to science, and only 0.2 percent matched the human genome.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Sign up

The researchers also found three samples that were linked to bubonic plague and two samples that had fragments of anthrax DNA, though none of those samples were alive. As for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's response to the study, a spokesperson told the Times that the study was "deeply flawed."