Fashionable Science

West Nile Virus tie

Purdue's top-ranked group in Structural Biology has determined the structure of the West Nile virus, a development that could greatly increase our understanding of the virus' life cycle and add new knowledge to the effort to contain the disease. (For the complete story, go to http://news.uns.purdue.edu/UNS/html4ever/031009.Kuhn.westnile.html )

The Structural Biology group has recently received $18 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health for basic research on alphaviruses and flaviviruses, which are particularly susceptible to use by terrorists. The group plans to use their findings to help investigate ways to combat terrorist use.

West Nile Necktie (brown) West Nile Necktie (black) Not only does this research have a major impact on public health and homeland security, but it is also having an impact on the world of fashion! The colorful depiction of the West Nile virus has served as a design for a new line of neckties and scarves being manufactured by Infectious Awareables (www.iawareables.com). A portion of the profits from the sale of these ties goes directly to the Purdue Structural Biology group.

The West Nile Virus scarf is the perfect complement to the West Nile Virus tie. Be creative in your own fight against disease and take pride in knowing that a portion of all sale proceeds goes to research and education at Purdue.

Infectious Awareables has been creating unique awareness and health promotion products since 1997, with the goals of producing awareness, encouraging education, and supporting organizations that work on behalf of the public health.

My Doom CyberVirus tie

Infectious Awareables, the company that brought us the West Nile Virus tie, has developed a new tie depicting the world’s first “My Doom CyberVirus” design. Similarly to human viruses, internet viruses and worms invade, spread, and occasionally overwhelm their hosts, causing anything from a headache to the dreaded Fatal Error. The world's first "My Doom CyberVirus" design could become your favorite anti-viral "solution," especially when matched with black or blue. The tie was designed in cooperation with Professor Eugene Spafford and Mary Jo Maslin in Purdue's top-ranked Center for Education and Research in Information Assurance and Security (CERIAS).