Notes from my "light" year...

My life is too crazy right now -- hence the lack of posts. I've started taking Tuesdays off to get school work done and today I spent all day preparing to lead discussion of an "article pack" with Glen, and of course class went too long and we don't get to go until next week. This class is constantly like this... we spend all weekend preparing 4 projects and the professor decides that's too many to go over so he makes one due the following week -- after we already prepared it to hand in!

My silver lining all day was that at least Tuesdays are our early day and I would get to come home and have some time to do the laundry and work on this project for work that was technically due today (even though I DON'T WORK TUESDAYS). But I had forgotten that this week our Thursday night class got moved to Tuesday night, so we had class from 3:30 to 9:10pm! BOTH classes handed out take-home tests.

To make up for my lack of blogging, I'm sharing some things I've been reading online.

I actually think crows are pretty cool... here's the latest evidence:
Discover Channel
Crows Bend Twigs Into Tools
Randolph E. Schmid, Associated Press
Oct. 5, 2007 — Mounting tiny video cameras to the tail feathers of crows, researchers discovered that the birds use a variety of tools to seek food, and even make their own tools, plucking, smoothing and bending twigs and grass stems.

Squirrels are, of course awesome. I'm a little torn about the content of this article:

New York Times - Magazine

The Squirrel Wars

By D.T. MAX

Published: October 7, 2007

The red one is cute. The gray one is taking over. England is going nuts.

Regarding the following, we suck.

Op-Ed Contributor

Save the Gnostics

By NATHANIEL DEUTSCH

Published: October 6, 2007

If Iraqi Mandeans are allowed to enter the United States in significant numbers, it may just be enough to save them and their ancient culture from destruction.

Op-Ed Columnist

Conservatives Are Such Jokers

By PAUL KRUGMAN

Published: October 5, 2007

If you’re poor, if you don’t have health insurance, if you’re sick — well, today’s conservatives don’t think it’s a serious issue. In fact, they think it’s funny.

I haven't seen "Sicko" yet, but I believe that a main premise is that healthcare doesn't belong in private hands because, by law, publicly held companies are required to make as much money as possible for their stock-holders. In summary, Medicare Part D is terrible:
National

Medicare Audits Show Problems in Private Plans

By ROBERT PEAR

Published: October 7, 2007

Medicare recipients have been victimized by private insurers that run the drug benefit program, according to a review of federal audits.

I just found out that it's not actually illegal to drink alcohol in New York if you're under 21, just to buy it. You can even drink out at a restaurant as long as your parents pour it from the bottle into the glass. If you're not in public, it doesn't matter. http://alcoholpolicy.niaaa.nih.gov/stateprofiles/StateProfie.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_drinking_age

Did you know that Dennis Kucinich is a vegan and recently married a red-haired girl from England who is 31 years younger than he? She's his third wife. I think he has a worse chance of getting elected President than Guiliani with his marital history.
http://vegnews.com/wedding_2006_ED.html

I'll end with on a funny note and then head to bed... or go work on my proposal for work. UGH!!!...

There's a digital billboard on our drive home from Widener on 95 -- basically a big TV screen. It automatically cycles through ads. I find it to be really distracting while driving. The last two night it's been especially distracting...

We looked up and there was a huge photo of a mean looking guy, with his name and WANTED FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER. As we stared, the billboard changed to: Philadelphia, Have a Pleasant Evening! Pretty funny.

The next night as we drove by, there was an even meaner looking guy with WANTED FOR MURDER. This promptly changed to: Philadelphia - The City of Brotherly Love. We almost crashed from laughing.

one more quick article. I can't believe this one was published.

CNN.com -- Signs you may be misdiagnosed

First, look at these pieces of advice... if your symptoms don't match your diagnosis, it might not be the right diagnosis. I don't know if that's the most overly-obvious thing I've ever heard or the most ignorantly simple.

Second, I'm pretty sure a good chunk of people diagnosed with cancer refuse to believe it and go to find a second opinion -- they just found one of the few people where the second opinion disagreed. In her case, the original labs came back positive twice and she had the symptoms... but by some very unlikely chance, the labs were wrong twice in a row and the symptoms were due to something else; and yet all this is presented to make the doctor look like an idiot somehow. Yeah, we doctors are always jumping the gun to diagnose our patients with a rare fatal cancer. But imagine if the doctor had insisted her tumor was benign and her symptoms were due to menopause and actually she turned out to have cancer -- that doctor would have been painted a fool too.

Finally, I love that they give you the signs so you can diagnose yourself with misdiagnosis.

CNN.com -- Deadly amoeba lurks in Florida lakes
By John Zarrella and Patrick Oppman
ORLANDO, Florida (CNN)-- Something in the lakes around Orlando, Florida, has claimed the lives of three boys this summer.

I had to post this because N. fowleri was one of the scarier things we learned about in med school, and everyone should know about it.

If you've talked to me in the past two days, I've complained about tonight's class and how we had three week's worth of reading and 5 written assignments due today. In class he realizes it's way too much to talk about in one class (yeah, duh, and too much to accomplish in 6 days) and he decides not to collect two of the assignments and cancels all of the reading for next week so we can catch up with discussion. You know this means that eventually weeks of reading are going to get scunched (a real word) together again.

I finished my awesome Health Policy Survey presentation (thanks to all, copies will be distributed) and now I'm going to search for an article to do my article summary on for Information Systems... we have several articles to read each week, but we have to find a unique one to read and analyze for our homework.

On the bright side, I'm not currently studying for a shelf exam (sorry guys).

Wedding stuff has gotten totally pushed to the side, except for a colossal to do list that I made up. Nonetheless, I've been extra excited about it lately -- it's nine months from Friday! I got to show a new co-worker my wedding dress pictures :)

I feel like I'm leaving something out, but it's impossible for it to be important.

I remember!
I'm buying this:
Cookie cutters for 3-D cookies! Awesome!

CNN.com -- :-) turns 25

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania (AP) -- It was a serious contribution to the electronic lexicon.

Carnegie Mellon professor Scott E. Fahlman was the first to use the :-) in a computer message.

:-)

Twenty-five years ago, Carnegie Mellon University professor Scott E. Fahlman says, he was the first to use three keystrokes -- a colon followed by a hyphen and a parenthesis -- as a horizontal "smiley face" in a computer message.

Discovery Channel--
Medieval Diaries Shed Light on Climate Change
Bradley S. Klapper, Associated Press
Sept. 17, 2007 — A librarian at this 10th century monastery leads a visitor beneath the vaulted ceilings of the archive past the skulls of two former abbots. He pushes aside medieval ledgers of indulgences and absolutions, pulls out one of 13 bound diaries inscribed from 1671 to 1704 and starts to read about the weather.

Napoleon's Sister's Breast Cast in Plaster
Rossella Lorenzi, Discovery News
Aug. 15, 2007 — Expert male hands applied plaster to the young breast of Napoleon's sister to create an actual mould, according to a new investigation into the marble portrait of Pauline Bonaparte.

Created by Antonio Canova (1757-1822), Italy's most celebrated neoclassical sculptor, the statue is known as Venus Victrix, or "Venus the Victorious," and depicts Napoleon's favorite sister lying half-naked on a couch. [...read more]

In case you were wondering, I did come home and take a nap.

Today I saw this adorable 3-year-old girl for a well child exam. She had this gigantic smile and these long eye lashes and every time I asked her any question, she would nod and then look at me with the huge smile and her eyes opened as wide as possible, and I would just crack up; the exam took forever. She was also running around the room in her underwear because that was more comfortable that the paper gown they had given her. I asked her what she likes to do a daycare and she said, fight with her cousin. I asked her how she fights with her cousin and she said, "I say that he hit me." Good strategy. Her mom is 7 1/2 months pregnant and told me that her daughter recently asked her how her new baby brother was going to get out. The mom called up her own mom to see how Grandma thought she should answer that question; Grandma said just tell her the truth. So Mom told her daughter how the baby would come out, and the 3-year-old says, "Mom, you're nasty!" and runs out of the room. That may be the funniest thing I heard all rotation.

If you are not in the center of a major city, take a look at the sky tonight. We should still be able to see the end of the Perseids meteor shower. There has also been a new moon which has helped with visibility. Apparently during its peak two nights ago, there should have been a shooting star every minute.

We have our last "modules" (homework discussion) tomorrow at duPont. It feels kind of weird because last Wednesday our third hour was led by Dr. Stine, a developmental pediatrics doctor; she had taught us once before. I thought she was quite old, but actually she has only in her late 60's or so but very ill with chronic lymphoma. She died at home the next day. She was very dedicated to teaching and it's a weird feeling to know we were her last students.

Another late night to bed... probably another nap tomorrow :)
I love naps.

Of course I have to share any squirrel news....


Squirrels Outwit Rattlesnakes in Infrared
Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News
Aug. 13, 2007 — Like Wile E. Coyote's hapless quest to catch the Roadrunner, rattlesnakes have attempted to catch California ground squirrels for well over a million years, and now scientists know one reason why the squirrels usually win.

Their tails freak out the snakes, researchers report in this week's Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The secret is the squirrel's ability to heat up its tail before flicking it in admonishment at a threatening rattlesnake, the researchers believe. For the first time, the scientists captured the phenomenon using a special infrared camera. [...read more]



In related news, today Glen saw a squirrel jump 8 feet from a fence to a tree, much like Superman.

Squirrels!


Discovery Channel - Big Food Makes Squirrels More Vigilant

Washington

Surgeon General Sees 4-Year Term as Compromised

By GARDINER HARRIS

Published: July 11, 2007

Former Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona said that Bush administration officials tried to weaken or suppress health reports.

I liked this article, and plus there's a Lost connection for true nerds like me -- during the first season some people thought The Monster was a mapinguary.

International / Americas

A Huge Amazon Monster Is Only a Myth. Or Is It?

By LARRY ROHTER

Published: July 8, 2007

Nearly every Indian tribe in the Amazon, including those that have had no contact with one another, have a word for the mapinguary, or “the roaring animal” — but is it still out there?

Some stuff:

1. From a NYT article about how doctors don't actually understand HIPAA:

Medical professionals can talk freely to family and friends, unless the patient objects. No signed authorization is necessary and the person receiving the information need not have the legal standing of, say, a health care proxy or power of attorney. As for public health authorities or those investigating crimes like child abuse, Hipaa defers to state laws, which often, though not always, require such disclosure. Medical workers may not reveal confidential information about a patient or case to reporters, but they can discuss general health issues.

Who knew?!


2. Congratulations to Russia... really just to Amy who seems quite excited.
SI.com - Welcome to Russia
Sochi beats South Korean city for '14 Winter Olympics


3. What's in Bill Clinton's shirt?
4.

Water From Air, Low-Tech Style

Tracy Staedter, Discovery News

June 15, 2007 — Leaves and spiderwebs beaded with dew have inspired a low-tech solution for collecting fresh water.

WatAir, an inverted pyramid made from elastic canvas, recycled polycarbonate, metal or glass, can reap dozens of liters of water a day from the air. The inexpensive solution could help bring clean drinking water to people in remote or polluted areas. Read more...

(I can't get the title font a normal size. And the spacing is weird. Oh well.)

I meant to write last night but I forgot to open up the editing window before midnight, so then the entry would have been put under 'Thursday' and that would have just been confusing. So instead I focused on my studying and then went to bed -- crazy, I know.

Um I need to get to work so here's a quick article I was just reading:NYT - Sleek, Fast and Focused: The Cells That Make Dad Dad

By Natalie Angier
Published: June 12, 2007

"...Sperm are also fast and as cute as tadpoles. They have chubby teardrop heads and stylish, tapering tails, and they glide, slither, bumble and do figure-eights. So while a father may not be entitled to take the same pride in his sperm as he does in his kids, it’s fair to celebrate the single-minded cellular commas that helped give those children their start."

TV's 'Mr. Wizard' Don Herbert Dies

June 13, 2007 — Don Herbert, who as television's "Mr. Wizard" introduced generations of young viewers to the joys of science, died Tuesday. He was 89. Herbert, who had bone cancer, died at his suburban Bell Canyon home, said his son-in-law, Tom Nikosey.

I wanted to remind every body that Friday is Bob Barker's last day as host of The Price is Right (I have my calendar marked).
Then I saw this article: Bob Barker Offers to Fill In as Host of 'Price Is Right'
I didn't realize they took the summers off so now I guess we have to wait until the fall to see who will be hosting. Super exciting stuff!!! (you can see my standards for exciting have kind of fallen off).

Glen has a subscription to Wired magazine and they had this little mini article in the catagory "Japanese Schoolgirl Watch" about a gadget that curls and then kind of hairsprays your eyelashes. I thought the catagory just referred to the fact that this sounds like something that Japanese schoolgirls would use, but the product is indeed super Japanese. Check out its webpage.The company's other products are on the left and they are even funnier.

And finally, I saw on the wikipedia "Current Events" section that a new strain of Bartonella has been discovered. Normally, who would really care? But a couple of days ago I got a QBank practice question that described the symptoms of what turned out to be Cat Scratch Fever (Bartonella henselae) and then asked me which of given choices was caused by the same pathogen -- and every single answer choice was a disease caused by a different strain of Bartonella. So I take particular offense that scientists have decided to burden me with learning a sixth strain of this microbe.

Sports / Other Sports

Filly’s Stumble Becomes the First Step to History

By JOE DRAPE

Published: June 10, 2007

Rags to Riches, a filly, became the first of her sex to take the final leg of the Triple Crown in more than a century.

a GIRL won!

This is so cool!
I saw this construction going on at Independence Mall the last time we were at the Down Town Club (where we're having our wedding reception) and we were wondering what they were building. It turns out they're not building anything -- they're unearthing George Washington's Presidential Home. This article came out because they were going to bury it again and just have an informational thing on the site, but now they're thinking about figuring out a way to keep the ruins uncovered so people can see them.

Slave Passage Found at Washington Home

June 7, 2007 —Archaeologists unearthing the remains of George Washington's presidential home have discovered a hidden passageway used by his nine slaves, raising questions about whether the ruins should be incorporated into a new exhibit at the site.

The underground passageway is just steps from the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. It was designed so Washington's guests would not see slaves as they slipped in and out of the main house.

Here's a picture of me with those same two buildings in the background, sitting in one of the windows in the Down Town Club ballroom:



Two weeks and a year to go! I wonder what the archeology site will look like then :)

I'm having trouble coming up with anything that's not simple complaining, so here's some stuff I read today that wasn't in a review book (probably while I should have been reading a review book):

New York Times - Cheated of Future, Iraqi Graduates Want to Flee
I don't want to get sappy, but would you risk your life to finish your degree? I was thinking my answer would have to be no, but if you're risking your life just hanging out on your front steps, I guess there's not much difference either way.

CNN.com - Coast Guard: No survivors likely in transplant jet crash
that's just sad

A lighter side of medicine-related news

Doctor Trying To Get Unemployed Friend A Doctor Job

ALBANY, NY—"We have plenty of doctor-types around here already," said Dr. Richard Grafton, who called his newly jobless friend a "fast learner."

And I thought this was cool:
Discovery Channel - Dry Fla. Lake Yields Artifacts
There's a drought in Florida and I had heard that their big lake was at it's lowest recorded levels, but this makes it even more interesting.
Also, the article implies that the whole huge lake never gets deeper than 12 feet. Is that true?

OK, that fills my blogging quota for the evening ;)

AHHHH I didn't post for over 24 hours! it's been almost 29 hours! What happened? Am I alive???

I hope so, because it's too hot for Heaven.

I hadn't been sleeping well the previous few nights so last night I finally slept like a rock and hit the snooze button until the alarm stopped going off two hours later. So I've been playing catch up all day.

I did take a break and walk up to the Old Navy on Market Street... oh Market Street in the summertime, a sight to be seen! I finally got a few pairs of study pants that aren't quite pajamas so I can feel like I'm actually getting dressed in the morning. I really hate when they intersperse sale items with regularly priced items. I really thought these pants were $10.. or 25% off or something, because every thing around them was. I found out at the register that they weren't but I had already spent so much of my precious time picking them out of the post-Memorial-Day-Sale rubble and trying them on that I just paid the full price.
I also got some 0.3mm point rollerball pens at Staples! I'm so excited. I love superfine pens. And 4 different colors! I'm going to be taking the most microscopic notes ever!

My other complaint for the day is paperback books... especially thin ones. It's impossible to keep them open to the page you want. I know hardcover is expensive and spiral bound gets caught on everything but there must be another option... maybe this is where I can make my millions!

Cool find of the day: Loch Ness monster video.
On Reuters and on Discovery Channel
Everybody knows it's really a kelpie ;)

Oh and I had to turn off my google talk because it was way too distracting. If anyone is still making it to this blog I'll be surprised.