> I think the best approach to understanding viruses is to investigate recent research on microvesicles, “retrotransposons,” and incorporation of foreign (food) DNA into our cells, and to look at Bonghan Kim’s ideas. C.C. Lindegren’s book, Cold War in Biology, discusses some of the older ideas about horizontal transmission of DNA between very different types of organism. Bacteria can “engineer” their own [[genes]] (James A. Shapiro), and useful packets of new genetic material can be shared by unrelated types of bacteria. She’s right about viruses being produced as a result of stresses, including toxic chemicals. [Forum Discussion](https://archive.ph/o/OJZkW/https://raypeatforum.com/community/threads/rays-response-about-viruses.9731/)