Every July since 1999 the fairgrounds in Wise, Virginia have been turned into a field hospital by the "Remote Area Medical Expedition". Free care is provided to those in need. Sanitized horse stalls become examining rooms. A poultry barn is fitted with optometry equipment. An open-air pavilion is filled with dental chairs and lamps. A converted 18-wheeler is an x-ray facility. During the 3-day event 2,700 people from 16 states were treated. Over 50% had no health insurance and 47% were underinsured. In 2009 expeditions are scheduled from Virginia to California - filing in gaps in the health care system.
The first retail clinics opened in 2000, providing more convenient and less expensive health care. A 2009 study published in the "Annals of Internal Medicine" compared the treatment of 3 routine illnesses - ear infection, sore throat and urinary track infection - at retail clinics, doctors' offices, urgent care centers and hospital emergency rooms and found no significant difference in patient outcome. In 2009 there are 1200 retail clinics. Unfortunately, more than half are in Florida, California, Texas, Minnesota and Illinois, with 18 states having none. The biggest concern about retail clinics is there aren't enough of them.
In 2008 the Maple City Health Care Center, a low-cost clinic in Goshen, Indiana, provided a way for money-strapped patients to pay for medical services. In the "More Than Money" program patients can pay by doing community service. The clinic offers $10 an hour toward payment of medical bills if patients volunteer at other non-profit organizations, such as a health care agency or a co-op market. As of November 2009 - about a year into the program - 34 patients have logged approximately 350 hours of community service. Not only do the patients benefit from this program, but the non-profits profit.
Finally, research published in "Health Affairs" shows that medical spending averages $1,400 more a year for obese people. Obesity-related health spending reached $147 billion in 2009 - double what it was about a decade ago. Obesity-related conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes, account for 9.1% of all medical spending compared to 6.5% in 1998. Excess weight is the biggest factor in developing diabetes, which costs $190 billion a year to treat; and about one-third of adult Americans are obese. It seems we won't get the fat out of any health care plan until we get the fat out of Americans.
Researchers at Quebec's Laval Hospital believe that it's not just genes that promote obesity. There seems to be something in obese women's wombs that programs fetuses to become fat children and adults. The study found that children born to severely obese mothers were very likely to become severely obese. However, children born to the same mothers after the mothers had bypass surgery were not very likely to become severely obese. Those children also had lower levels of blood fats and other indicators of future diabetes. Because of studies like this, many U.S. medical centers are "weighing in" on a biological explanation.
The womb, according to a study published in the journal "Current Biology", is also where babies start to learn language. The study included over 1,000 recorded cries of 30 French and 30 German newborns and found differences in the melody patterns of their cries. French has a pitch rise at the end of words or phrases and French babies' cries have a rising melody. German has a falling pattern and German babies' cries have a falling melody. It seems newborns tend to imitate the language patterns heard in the womb. Of course, thinking of babies' cries as melodies is new language for parents.
Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D.) are registered therapy dogs that are taken to libraries and schools to help children learn to read. Adults and classmates can be judgmental or intimidating. These dogs encourage reading confidence by being good listeners. If a child doesn't know a word, a volunteer speaking for the dog says the dog doesn't know it either; and the child and dog look up the definition together. Supposedly the reading skills of children who read to assistance dogs for 20 minutes weekly improve approximately 2 grade levels in 1 school year - or 12 dog years.
In the year 1975 selling turtles less than 4 inches wide as pets was banned because children who had put them in their mouths had gotten sick. Unfortunately, the ban has basically been forgotten. The American Veterinary Medical Association estimates there were almost 2 million pet turtles in 2006. Many turtles carry salmonella. Salmonella can spread to people who handle turtles and those people can spread it to others. In addition to diarrhea, vomiting, fever and stomach cramps, salmonella can cause kidney failure. It seems the assumption that turtles are good pets for children is "in the soup".
According to a 2001-2006 government health survey of approximately 3,000 children who'd been given blood tests, at least 20% of children aged 1 to 11 don't get enough vitamin D. That puts them at risk for weak bones, infections, diabetes and some cancers. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children have 400 units of vitamin D daily. Because many children don't drink 4 cups of fortified milk a day or eat lots of fish or spend enough time outside to get vitamin d from the sun, vitamin D supplementation is recommended. It's the D parents will want their children to get.
According to both nutritionists and scientists, Americans have a deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids. They are called essential fatty acids because they have to come from our diet - our bodies don't make them. Omega-3 is necessary for the development of a healthy brain. It also lowers the risk of heart disease, arthritis and cancer. It even fights wrinkles. Fish like salmon, tuna and halibut are rich in omega-3 fatty acids because they eat microscopic, ocean plants and seaweed. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in the green leaves of plants. That they originate in fish is a fish story.
Again, according to both nutritionists and scientists, Americans consume too much omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-6 is also an essential fatty acid. It also originates in plants - but in plant seeds. Human tissue needs the right mix of Omega-3 and Omega-6 because too much Omega-6 blocks Omega-3 from entering cells, causing blood clots and inflammation. Omega-6 is in vegetable seed oils. It's also put in processed foods to prevent rancidity. As Americans' intake of Omega-6 has increased, so have heart disease, arthritis and cancer. Obesity has also increased. Omega-6 fatty acids are in belly fat - the fat associated with "fat-ality".
According to a study by physiologists at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, more protein doesn't mean more muscle. Healthy adults in their 30's and late 60's were randomly assigned to eat 4 ounces or 12 ounces of lean beef in one sitting. Blood tests and muscle biopsies showed that eating 12 ounces didn't build more muscle. Only the first 4 ounces of lean beef, chicken, soy or dairy products turns into muscle. To gain muscle mass protein foods should be spread throughout the day. An increased number of smaller portions is the meat of the matter.
According to a study published in the "British Journal of Psychiatry", children who eat too much candy become violent as adults. More than 17,000 children born in 1970 were studied for almost 40 years. Of the children who ate candy daily at age 10, 69% were arrested for a violent offense by age 34. It wasn't the candy that caused the violence. Supposedly parents who use candy to bribe children to be good are teaching them to want immediate gratification, which supposedly leads to impulsive behavior and violence. Nevertheless, parents are free to consider this study to be sweet nothings.
According to a study published in the online journal "PLoS One", people become more alert to potential threat when breathing stress sweat. Stress sweat was taken from 144 people who tandem skydived for the first time. Twice samples of stress sweat and sweat from treadmill runners were given to 8 men and 8 women whose brains were being scanned. Although participants couldn't distinguish the sweats by smell, the stress sweat caused more activity in a brain area associated with emotion. In fact, discriminating between pictures of neutral and angry faces when breathing stress sweat was - no sweat.
According to a study done at Carolina State University, however, burning paraffin-based candles releases toxic chemicals into the air. Paraffin candles are petroleum-based. When they're burned, they release toluene, which can affect the nervous system and when inhaled in large doses by pregnant women, can cause birth defects. Paraffin candles also release benzene, which has been linked to cancer - especially leukemia. Although the Environmental Protection Agency is concerned about candles causing indoor pollution, it hasn't set standards for candle emissions. However, vegetable-based candles don't emit toxins; so you can breath easy.
According to research published in "Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery", certain behaviors make people look older. The research - based on 186 sets of identical twins - found that a twin who drank looked older than the non-drinking twin because excessive alcohol had damaged blood vessels and collagen. Every 10 years of smoking added 2.5 years to the smoking twin's looks. Unprotected UV exposure caused the exposed twin to have wrinkled, mottled skin. A divorced twin looked an average 1.7 years older than the married or single twin, but surprisingly a widowed twin looked 2 years younger. Of course, for those without an identical twin for mirror imaging, there are mirrors.
Police talk changed to code in the 1920's because of the scarcity of radio channels. Police had to get on and off the air quickly. It was also thought codes would provide privacy. Not anymore. In fact, the differences in local codes cause confusion. For example, an Independence, Missouri police dispatcher used plain English - instead of 10/33 - when radioing the Highway Patrol that one of their officers was down. To the highway Patrol 10/33 meant traffic backup. In 2006 the Department of Homeland Security asked law enforcement agencies to voluntarily talk in plain English, but some still use "double talk".
In plain English, a study done by 2 researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found that women have become less happy than men. In spite of the progress brought by the feminist movement 35 years ago, women's happiness has been declining over the past 3 decades, while men's happiness has remained stable or slightly increased. The study took into consideration women's age, marital status, labor force participation and whether they had children. Although the study found that the unhappiness gap covered all demographics, further research is necessary to find out why. And why aren't men less happy? Perhaps because of women.
There are more than 100 million men and women using electric bicycles in China - about 4 times the number using private cars. Although E-bikes are also popular in Europe, they're just catching on in the U.S. About 200,000 sold in 2008. E-bikes have a small motor and a throttle. By law they can't have more than 1 horsepower or go faster than 20 mph on motor power. E-bikes range in price from a few hundred to more than $13,000. They're supposedly for customers wanting comfortable, green transportation - but in a down economy E-bikes make going up hill easier.
Boston Beer Co., maker of Samuel Adams beer, teamed with Weihenstephan, the renowned German brewery, to make a new beer. The 2-year project resulted in a yet unnamed beer that will be 10% alcohol instead of the usual 4%-7% and be bottled with a cork instead of a metal cap. It will also be brewed following Germany's purity law, allowing only 4 ingredients - water, malt, hops and yeast. When it's released in 2010, the 2 brewers hope their premium, craft beer will win over more wine and spirits drinkers. That may depend on what's brewing economically.
Between 2005 and 2006 the Transportation Security Administration confiscated 13 million items from passengers' carry-on bags. Liquids in access of 3 ounces are immediately disposed of. Guns and firearms are turned over to local law enforcement. Items of value - electric saws, meat cleavers, 10-pound exercise weights, even a kitchen sink - are donated to state surplus agencies and sold - the states keeping the profits. Bats, clubs, knives and blades are confiscated the most; but instead of legally putting these items in checked luggage or mailing them, 90% of passengers relinquish them - realizing their protests won't fly.
Crickets don't fly, but different species have different calls. It's the males that make the calls and they do it by rubbing their wings together. However, what sounds like a continuous chirp to humans is actually a series of pulses - or rhythm. For example, the snowy cricket's chirp is made up of 8 pulses, which are arranged in a rhythm of 2 beats, 3 beats, 3 beats. The Riley's tree cricket divides its chirp into 11 beats. The different calls enable female crickets to know which calls are from their species. Basically, female crickets are "on call".
For humans musical training can improve hearing. According to studies presented at Neuroscience 2009, serious musicians are better at perceiving and remembering sounds. This is because sounds are interpreted by the brain and experience improves the brain's ability to interpret. Fifteen classically trained musicians and 16 non-musicians were asked to listen to a voice speaking simple sentences amid increasingly loud conversations. Because this experiment is similar to musicians being able to hear their own instruments amid many others, the musicians excelled in the experiment. Music teaches auditory concentration, which improves hearing - which should be music to our ears.
Something else that requires concentration is getting silk from golden orb-weaving spiders - a species that bites. The spiders have to be gently harnessed to a small machine that holds them down. A hand then carefully pulls the golden thread from each spider and wraps it around a spindle for weaving on a hand loom. After about 20 minutes of "silking" the spiders are released back into nature. It took Madagascan weavers 4 years, over 1 million spiders and half a million dollars to weave a one-of-a-kind, 11-by-4-foot tapestry, finished in 2009. Arachnophobiacs, however, might prefer using silk worms. Their silk comes from cocoons.
For those confused by the stock market, there are simpler indicators of an improved economy. According to a restaurant advisory consultant, large piles of garbage behind restaurants mean people are eating out again. According to a chief economist, people wear bright colors when they’re confident. Because men’s ties are an inexpensive way to change a wardrobe, men wear pink or fuchsia ties. According to a market research analyst, because jeans are relatively inexpensive, they’re one of the first things customers buy. Obviously, men in restaurants wearing pink or fuchsia ties with jeans would indicate a strong economy.
Economically challenged U.S. cities are using parking fines to help balance budgets. New York City made approximately $600 million in parking ticket revenue in 2008 – about 50% more than in 2002 – requiring the hiring of 200 new citation officers. Atlanta outsourced its parking enforcement to a private company. Instead of Atlanta’s usual $2 million in fines, the company promised the city $5.5 million. Washington, D.C. has put cameras on street sweepers to take pictures of cars parked in their path, hoping to earn an extra $2 million annually. It seems ticketing has become a “fine art”.
Business at bordellos in Berlin – where prostitution is legal – is down in the down economy. Locals aren’t spending as much and fewer potential customers are coming to Berlin on business. Nevertheless, “Maison d’Envie” (House of Desire) has found a way to improve its business. Customers who support the area’s popular green movement by not coming to the bordello by car get a 5-euro ($7.50) discount. To qualify for the discount, customers must show the receptionist a bicycle padlock key or proof they’d used public transportation. Because walking can’t be proven, there is no discount for walkers – but this hasn’t caused a “walkout”.
Snails, however, seem recession proof in 2009’s economy. In Bulgaria, the European Union’s poorest country, snail farmers can’t keep up with the demand. Although France and Italy are their biggest customers, there are orders from Germany, Austria and the Netherlands. Japan wants fattened snails; Dubai wants the new, orange, carotene snails; and orders for baby snails will likely reach 1 billion. About 900 tons of snails and snail products will be exported in 2009 - 6 times more than in 2008. Presently Bulgaria has 50 snail farms, but 300 more are expected to open in 2010. Meanwhile, the U.S. economy improves at a snail’s pace.
In 2005 a manure fire started in a Nebraska feed lot, spread and burned for months. Manure stored in bags on a truck in Texas started a deadly fire. It seems that as manure breaks down, it produces both methane and hydrogen sulfide gases. If this happens in extremely hot weather, spontaneous combustion can occur. The manure can explode and catch fire. Exploding manure isn’t uncommon on farms and isn’t an uncommon cause of wildfires. Now knowing the danger of combining manure with hot air, it’s surprising that Washington, D.C. isn’t always exploding into flames.
In 2007 the painting “Profile of the Bella Principessa” was bought on behalf of a Swiss collector for $19.000. That was approximately the amount paid for the painting at auction by the gallery owner 11 years before. However, what was thought to be a 19th century, German painting is actually a painting by Leonardo da Vinci worth more than $150 million. Authenticity was proven by a digital scanner, which found the print of an index or middle finger on the painting. That fingerprint matched Leonardo’s fingerprint on his painting “St Jerome” in the Vatican. Who knew Leonardo da Vinci finger painted?
In 2009 the discovery of a vegetarian spider was published in “Current Biology”. Unlike the other 40,000 species of spiders known to science that are meat-eaters, 2 scientists working independently of each other in Costa Rica and Mexico discovered a neotropical jumping spider that eats leaf tips of acacia trees. Previously it had been thought that the stinging ants which feed on the melon-like acacia food protected the trees from all other plant-eaters. However, the eyesight, agility and cognitive skill of the “Bagheera kiplingi” allow it to avoid the ants. For arachnophobiacs this discovery unfortunately has legs.
In 2009 who knew NASA was running out of plutonium-238? Because plutonium-238 was a byproduct of the Cold War, none has been made since the 1980’s. NASA has enough for the next Mars Rover and the next major mission to outer planets, but the heat which is given off by plutonium-238 and converted into electricity is essential for future space missions that are too far from the sun for solar power. When or if Congress approves $30 million to restart production, it will take 8 years to make the 11 pounds NASA needs yearly. Thus the future of outer-planet space travel is left up in the air.
According to a report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, less than 10% of high school students eat the recommended daily amount of fruits and vegetables. The 2009 report was based on a 2007 national survey of approximately 100,000 high school students. The report found 32% had the recommended 2 servings of fruit and 13% had the recommended 3 servings of vegetables. Adults did only moderately better. A survey of adults found 33% met the fruit requirement and 27% met the vegetable requirement. Potato chips are America’s favorite snack, but unfortunately they don’t count as a vegetable.
According to 2 studies using similar data, smoking bans reduce heart attacks. Inhaling smoke causes blood clotting, which causes heart attacks. Non-smokers who inhale smoke at home or work have a 25%-30% higher risk of heart attacks. American, Canadian and European cities that have imposed smoking bans averaged 17% fewer heart attacks in the first year and averaged 26% fewer in the third year. In 2005 there were 1.26 million heart attacks in the U.S., causing approximately 445,687 deaths. These studies suggest a nationwide smoking ban in public and workplaces could prevent 100,000-225,000 heart attacks yearly and keep peoples’ lives from going up in smoke.
According to a study published in “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences”, a bad economy can be good for health. Between the years of 1920 and 1940, mortality decreased and life expectancy increased only during the recessions of 1921 and 1938 and during the Great Depression (1929-1933). Heart and kidney disease, as well as traffic accidents, also decreased during those 7 years. During the recessions of the 1980’s and 1990’s – both in the U.S. and other countries – mortality also decreased. This study should at least reassure people who say that recession is killing them.
According to research done at the University of Rochester in 2009, nature makes us nicer. In 3 experiments volunteers were shown pictures on a 19-inch computer screen – half were shown pictures of buildings, roads and cityscapes and half were shown pictures of landscapes, lakes and deserts. In a fourth experiment some volunteers worked in a room with houseplants and some worked in a room without houseplants. In all experiments, those of the 370 volunteers who were exposed to nature rated close relationships and community more important than they had before the study. It seems niceness can be a “natural resource”.
According to a study of more than 2,500 toddlers published in the journal “Child Development”, spanking may be harmful to both behavior and mental development, having long-lasting effects. Toddlers don’t understand enough about right and wrong or punishment. One-year-olds who were spanked tended to behave more aggressively at age 2 and didn’t perform as well at age 3 on a test measuring thinking skills. Parents who spank are more likely to be younger, less educated, single, depressed and/or stressed. Parents who were spanked are most likely to spank. Unfortunately, it becomes do unto others as they did unto you.
According to Harvard research, few states require child-care providers to meet specific requirements for nutrition and physical activity necessary for fitness. This contributes to the fact that one-fifth of four-year-olds representing all demographics are obese. Because approximately three-fourths of children ages 2 to 5 spend at least part of their day in child care, that care has to change. As of January 2009 Delaware, Georgia, Alaska and Nevada had made the most changes in child-care licensing requirements. Idaho and Louisiana had made the least. The other 44 states fell somewhere in between – which is an unhealthy state for America’s preschoolers.
According to a first-of-its-kind study done at the University of Illinois, classmate putdowns make it harder for good students to learn and for not-so-good students to catch up. Using U.S. Department of Education data on more than 10,000 sophomores in more than 650 high schools, 20% said they were verbally putdown by other students. Although boys experience putdowns more than girls and African American students who consider themselves good students experience putdowns most, the problem exists in both public and private schools. One thing students shouldn’t have to learn in school is how to put up with putdowns.
According to 2 studies published in “Pediatrics”, teenagers with their own car or free use of a car are much likelier to crash than teenagers who share a car. Of more than 2,000 teenagers studied, teens who had to ask for keys, had specific driving rules and had their whereabouts monitored had half as many crashes. They were also 71% less likely to drive drunk and 30% less likely to use a cell phone while driving. Car crashes are the #1 cause of death for American teenagers, killing more than 5,000 every year. Seemingly, parental involvement is the key to safe teenage driving.
