Learn with me in the Netherlands!!
Bless me, blog readers, for I have neglected you for far too long. It has been over 3 years since my last blog post.
So much has happened since then! My site got hacked, but some of you still hang out here so thank you for that. Also, I quit my job. That’s right. I’m currently unemployed. Doing some “Eat, Pray, Love”….but with fungus!!
So part of trying to ‘find myself’ has involved a lot hiding out in Alpine Lakes Wilderness and a lot of reading. Mostly Davise Larone’s Medically Important Fungi which frequently references de Hoog et al., Atlas of Clinical Fungi. When you spend lots of time pouring over these reference materials and looking at every little detail, sometimes you find interesting things…like an error on page 101 of the 6th edition of the Larone*…or a broken link in a digital dichotomous key in the online Atlas. When I found a broken link in the online atlas, I sent an email to the address listed on their website to let them know. Little did I know they would then forward my email to Sybren de Hoog (aka GS de Hoog, aka ‘de Hoog et al.’) himself, who would then respond directly to me.
I die.
The very same “For further information, see de Hoog et al., Atlas of Clinical Fungi, Version 4.1.4” de Hoog. He sent me an email. Thanking me for bringing that to his attention. So I email him back with some fun fungus questions, he cracks a joke about my “Chaetomium Queen” handle, and the emails keep going. He mentioned some possible upcoming courses he may be teaching, including one in China which I previously shared on my Instagram but I could not attend, and perhaps a January course in the Netherlands. Well, guess what? I recently got this email (please note that he calls me ‘Queen’):
So, I’m going to the Netherlands to learn about fungus!! And you might want to consider coming with me. You can find the general info here but there’s a brief summary below.
Here are some of the details:
The course will be taught at Radboud University Medical Center in Nijmegen, Netherlands by; Professor Paul Verweij (chairman of Medical Microbiology at Radboud University and chairman of the Nijmegen University Centre for Infectious Diseases), Hein van der Lee (mycology technician at Radboud University Medical Center), and SYBREN DE HOOG the King of Clinical Mycology.
The cost is 1000€ or approximately $1,112 US dollars. Similar courses in the US go for just as much or more. And they’re not taught by Sybren de Hoog. Sooooo…..worth it!
The course runs from Monday, January 13- Friday, January 17, 2020
Bring your laptop, Larone, and a lab coat with you.
Can I get CEUs for this in the US? Doubtful. But I’m looking into it.
Other details are in the works. I’m just starting to put together my travel/lodging things…Sybren recommended staying at Guesthouse Vertoef in Nijmegen. It looks like arriving from the US, landing in Amsterdam and going to Nijmegen by train is the best option. I’m clueless. Do you have any recommendations? Have you been to the Netherlands? Do you live there? Shoot me an email or leave a comment below!
Coming soon: a return to the sad, neglected Aspergillus series. Reference reviews. An update on the Netherlands.
*on page 101 of the 6th Ed. of Larone’s Medically Important Fungi the drawing shown for Trichothecium roseum is actually the drawing for Cryptococcus neoformans. Refer to page 325 for the correct illustration. I actually recommend making a photocopy of the correct illustration and taping it over the error if you’re using this as a reference in the lab for noobs who don’t know better yet. I did email the printers about this error.