Belly button bacteria, in full bloom

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These petri dishes are growing bacteria harvested from the belly buttons of scientists, journalists, and bloggers at the 2011 ScienceOnline Conference. It's all part of Belly Button Biodiversity, a project of researchers from North Carolina State University and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. Their goal: Introduce humans to the wildlife that's growing on us and in us. Their next sampling event—aka, your chance to see what's growing in your belly button—is February 12, at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences.