In reference to Tom's exhibit of the world's most disgusting keyboard, here's an excerpt from the i Wall Street Journal:
Bacteria at Your Fingertips
The gunk in your keyboard could kill you. Really.
An exhaustive poll of my friends reveals that all sorts of stuff is being spilled over the average keyboard: biscuit crumbs, mango, fizzy beverage, the odd stray cornflake, nail varnish, rice, soy sauce, coffee, wine (red and white), hand cream. Under your keys lie a faithful record of every snack, lunch and beverage break you've had at your desk since you joined the company. It's like typing on a pile of week-old dirty dishes.
This isn't only somewhat gross (and likely to lead to the keyboard's demise at some point) but it also makes your main data input device a Petri dish of bacteria and other microorganisms that could kill you before the job does. A study conducted by Charles Gerba, a professor of environmental microbiology at the University of Arizona, concluded that the computer keyboard was the fifth most germ-contaminated spot in an office. (Topped only by your phone, your desktop -- home to an impressive 10 million bacteria -- and the handles on the office water fountain and microwave door.) Out of 12 surfaces studied the toilet seat came in cleanest, in case you're wondering where to have your next lunch break.
On top of that, a study by Chicago's Northwestern Memorial Hospital earlier this year found that hospital keyboards harbored bacteria for more than 24 hours, during which time it easily spreads to bare, and sometimes gloved, hands. These are bacteria that could cause pneumonia and infections of the abdomen, skin, urinary tract and blood stream. Not the kind of thing you want nearby. The study's advice to users: Wash your hands every time you use a computer. I assume that's now a sign on every hospital PC....
![[link]](http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg/PIA07740.jpg){kind=link}