America: A Prodigy of Stereotypes

"7.9 dollars, is that alright?" Li Qun asked.

"Keep the change, consider it a service fee for you and Peter." Gwen took out a $10 bill from her pocket and placed it in front of Li Qun.

"Peter, you've made money!"

Li Qun unfolded the crumpled $10 bill and flicked it at Peter.

“Liqun, you’re like a villain,” Peter said.

Chapter 143 is about spiders, and also about humans.

Spider silk is essentially a protein fiber, and its type and mechanical properties are entirely determined by the corresponding spider silk protein gene family, with the core genes being MaSp1 and MaSp2. The MaSp1 gene gives spider silk its high strength; the MaSp2 gene determines its high elasticity…

The Nargacuga spider possesses multiple MaSp1 gene variants, further modifying silk properties...

At a museum in New York City, Peter was carefully reading a research paper about genetically modified spiders published in a scientific journal.

Columbia University's Genetics Institute published a paper on the genetically modified spiders they created; there are hundreds of papers on more than forty types of genetically modified spiders.

These hundreds of papers both delighted and tormented Peter.

Peter was forced to expand his knowledge from the level of undergraduate students to the level of graduate and doctoral students, and not just knowledge of a single discipline.

Unlike encyclopedias with vivid and interesting illustrations, these papers are filled with technical terms that are difficult to pronounce and cold experimental data.

The thought of giving up only lingered in Peter's mind for three seconds before disappearing. He needed to figure out the details of these human genetic engineering products in order to further understand his own situation as a mutated human.

Only a few landmark papers on genetically engineered spiders were published in scientific journals; Peter had to pay to download and print the other papers himself.

Of course, printing papers isn't the time now; Li Qun and Gwen are still with him in the library.

Peter planned to find some time to secretly print out the hundreds of papers and take them home, without his two good friends knowing.

Gwen randomly picked up a novel and started reading it in the library's reading area, while Liqun borrowed a book related to art and design and began to study it.

"The spider's astonishing abilities are the result of hundreds of millions of years of evolutionary refinement of its unique gene pool. Whether it's the silk stronger than steel or the complex composition of its venom, they are all products of the tightly expressed specific genes..."

Humans and spiders share 63% of their genes. Hundreds of millions of years ago, our common ancestor took completely different evolutionary paths. The 37% difference between humans and spiders determines that we are humans, while they are spiders…

“I am human…” Peter murmured to himself.

After putting down the papers on genetically modified spiders, Peter started looking at papers on human genetic research.

Humans share 98%-99% genetic similarity with chimpanzees, about 50% with bananas, and even cats share about 90% genetic similarity with humans.

Human research on its own genes also began from the basics and gradually deepened. For Peter, the early human gene research papers were more like popular science papers, which broadened his horizons.

Peter thought that he was still human, and he was certain that he was 99% human genetically, except that the venom of the genetically modified spider had activated the expression of the spider-like genes in his body.

That should be it!

Peter comforted himself with this thought.

If one's human genes drop to 98%, their body will immediately become different.

He can still distinguish between the physical differences between humans and chimpanzees.

Peter's emotions have been on a rollercoaster ride, from the anxiety he felt when he first started reading the paper to the self-comfort and emotional stability he has now achieved.

Li Qun walked to the computer query area, gently patted Peter on the shoulder, but before his hand could touch Peter, Peter turned around.

"You scared me!" Li Qun whispered to Peter.

"Sorry, is it almost time? Should we go home?" Peter glanced back at the computer screen and quickly exited the paper browsing interface.

“Yes, if we don’t leave soon we’ll be caught in New York’s rush hour, although even before rush hour the traffic is terrible,” Li Qun said, glancing at his watch.

"Wait for me for two minutes..."

Peter quickly navigated the computer in the library, exiting one interface after another, organizing his printed papers, and putting them into his bag.

"Alright, let's go!"

Peter slung his backpack over his chest and went with Li Qun to find Gwen.

“Gwen, would you like to come to my house for dinner tonight?” Peter asked.

"I'll have to ask my dad."

The three of them stood outside the library, and Gwen took out her phone to text George Stacy.

"Be careful, Gwen." Li Qun stood in front of Gwen and blocked her phone.

"I almost forgot." Gwen sent the message and immediately put her phone away.

"What's wrong?" Peter asked, a beat behind.

"Peter, haven't you seen news reports about cell phone snatching on TV?"

“Especially students like us, carrying Stark's cell phones, are the easiest targets,” Li Qun explained to Peter.

The three of them walked towards the parking lot. After walking a distance from the library entrance, Li Qun finished the rest of what he hadn't said earlier.

“See that guy? I can sense he’s going to make a move on Gwen. He’s been watching people coming out of the library,” Li Qun said to Peter across the street.

“I didn’t feel anything.” Peter looked at Li Qun in surprise.

“Not everyone can sense it,” Gwen said.

“My dad replied to my message, Peter, I can come to your house for dinner.”

"Great."

Li Qun drove, but they still got stuck in New York traffic. When they got back to Peter's house in Queens, Aunt May had already finished get off work and was in the kitchen preparing dinner.

"Welcome, Gwen!!"

"Come here, Liqun, let me hug you too!"

Aunt Mei gave all three children a warm hug when they returned home.

"How was your day? Did anything happen to Peter?" Aunt May asked with concern.

“He doesn’t have a fever, but he seems a little mentally sluggish,” Gwen said.

"Am I slow?" Peter wondered, though he felt his brain had never worked so efficiently.

“Don’t worry, Peter, you’ll recover soon,” Aunt May said to Peter.

Aunt May also felt that Peter was a bit slow on the uptake.

"Aunt May, what are we having for dinner?" Gwen asked.

"Here."

Aunt Mei gestured to the oven, where a large baking tray was baking. Li Qun and Peter could smell the aroma through the oven.

"Is it a lasagna with cheese and meat sauce?" Peter asked.

“Yes, Peter, it was your favorite food when you were a child,” Aunt May said.

“I feel like I liked this when I was a kid,” Gwen said.

“I first saw lasagna in a Garfield cartoon,” Li Qun said.

Aunt Mei's Italian meat sauce lasagna is loaded with ingredients, making it an absolute calorie bomb.

The rich and flavorful Italian lasagna is served alongside a bowl of vegetable salad and a pot of light vegetable soup.

Chapter 144 Filling Your Head with "Kung Fu"

Peter Parker, Shuangxi, and Liqun stood in a row on the rooftop of Old Man's Pawnshop, having changed into their training clothes. Old Man walked past them and took a long, red-lacquered stick from the rack.

"Liqun, here you go."

Liqun caught the stick his father threw at him from the front of the line.

"Peter!"

Peter caught his father's stick.

"Double happiness".

The long stick that his father threw hit Shuangxi in the face.

"Oh..." The old man was somewhat disappointed in Shuangxi, how come he performed even worse than Peter.

Shuangxi looked very embarrassed.

“Practice with me,” Dad said.

Dad agreed to teach Shuangxi and Peter kung fu, but he wouldn't spend as much energy teaching them as he did teaching Liqun. Dad wanted Liqun to handle most of the kung fu instruction.

"Alright, remember this staff technique. It can be used to create many kung fu moves. Anything that can be held in both hands can be used in this staff technique."

"Just like this!"

The old man put the long stick aside, picked up the chair he was sitting on, and began to demonstrate.

Block, dismantle, smash... Now is the time to test Peter and Shuangxi's kung fu comprehension.

"Do you understand?"

The old man put down the chair and sat down.

Peter and Shuangxi nodded to their father.

"very good."

"Now you will practice this stick technique with Li Qun."

The old man walked downstairs with his hands behind his back, leaving the rooftop to Liqun, Peter, and Shuangxi.

"Dad's gone." Shuangxi looked at Liqun.

"Follow me and practice this staff technique until you are proficient."

"Don't have too many ideas in your head before you've even mastered the basics of kung fu," Li Qun said.

"Okay, cousin."

Li Qun led Shuangxi and Peter in practicing stick fighting on the rooftop for an hour. Li Qun and Peter didn't sweat much, but Shuangxi, being a normal person, had his training clothes soaked with sweat.

"Cousin, am I feeling a little weak?"