This is the most common way to get head lice - Nazzy Pakpour
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For as long as humans have had lice, we’ve fought hard to get rid of them. Nit combs, the fine-tooth brushes used to remove lice and their sticky eggs, have been found among the ancient remains of cultures across the globe. Today it’s estimated we spend billions of dollars each year treating infestations. So why are lice so difficult to get rid of? Nazzy Pakpour digs into these stubborn insects.
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Additional Resources for you to Explore
Lice have been with humans for thousands of years and can therefore be used to study and understand human evolution. You can find out more by watching the PBS Nova special "Lice and Human Evolution."
Scientists have also used lice to better understand human behavior. This article from the Smithsonian shares how scientists used lice to estimate when humans began wearing clothes and this article from Science magazine shares how lice DNA was used to trace the European colonization of the Americas.
For the impact of lice in present day, visit the Center for Disease Control "About Head Lice" page. Finally, if all this talk of lice has made you worried you might be infested, check out this video from the American Academy of Dermatology on how to do a proper lice check.
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Meet The Creators
- Educator
- Nazzy Pakpour
- Director
- Oksana Kurmaz
- Narrator
- Alexandra Panzer
- Music
- Cem Misirlioglu, Work Play Work
- Sound Designer
- Stas Kolesnikov
