It would be nice to just be automatically vaccinated for everything just by hanging out.
Yes. There are virus vector vaccines already in existence: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viral_vector_vaccine
For example, adenovirus vector vaccines were created for COVID-19: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_vaccine#Adenovirus_vector_vaccines
Those are non-replicating though.
Live attenuated vaccines also exist – which can replicate – but those work by using a weakened/modified version of the original harmful live virus the vaccine is intended to protect against: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attenuated_vaccine
Oral polio vaccine is a well-known example.
Even if you were to create a novel virus to achieve that goal something nasty would eventually evolve to mimic it and we’d have no defense.
That’s how “I am legend” started.
So you want to engineer a living, evolving, highly contagious virus that contains enough of a dangerous virus to train your immune system to be resistant to that dangerous disease?
Do you not see how bad an idea that is?
Except viruses aren’t living, and we already use them for vaccines.
No, that’s why I asked. Hopefully someone can enlighten us.
I’ll enlighten you, It’s a bad idea. Engineering intentionally contagious things is far too likely to go wrong.
Laughter is contagious. Surely other good things can be contagious, too.
