Corpus Callosum is written by a psychiatrist at a small community hospital somewhere in midwestern USA. Email to cc.scienceblogger at gmail dot com.
July 31, 2006
Category: Armchair Musings
When I finished residency, I took a position at a University clinic north of town. In order to get there, I had to cross a bridge over a river. I drove over that bridge about 100 times before the first...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:31 AM • 4 Comments • 1 TrackBacks
July 30, 2006
Category: Photos of Interest
From the City of Rocks....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:55 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 29, 2006
Category: Humor
Here is the video that provides a little comic relief, after reading about our latest efforts to study biological weapons, as mentioned in my last post. Here is your army. Here is your army on drugs....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 11:14 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Bioethics
This is another upsetting bit of news about our government. The Washington Post is reporting laboratory being built in Ft. Detrick, Maryland. Known as the National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center (NBACC), the new facility will conduct biological warfare research...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:02 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Politics
I'm sure everyone has read about this by now, but every once in a while I just speak up to add to the resonance in the echo chamber. If this is confirmed, it would be a flagrant illegal act by...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:50 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Medicine
This is an archived post from September, 2005, posted here and now because I am away on vacation. As I go about my days, I get the impression that there is a lot of confusion out there about the treatment...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:12 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 28, 2006
Category: Armchair Musings
This is an archived post from October 2005. It is one of my more whimsical entries, but it does have aserious intent. The recent National Geographic film, March of the Penguins, has generated a tremendous amount of controversy: an avalanche...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:32 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Photos of Interest
At La Cueva. I'd appreciate it if someone could identify this lizard. It is about 5 inches (12cm) long. UPDATE: thanks to a tip from Kevin, I think I have ID'ed the little guy......
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:01 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 27, 2006
Category: Photos of Interest
This is the approach to Aguirre Springs, on the east slope of the Organ mountains....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 2:58 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Medicine
This is an archived article from 2004, scheduled to be posted today to fill a vacation-induced gap. A recent article in the LA Times reports on hazards associated with herbal sex aids. This brings to mind a couple of reasons...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:16 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 26, 2006
Category: Medicine
This post on Black Triangle reminds me that it is a good idea to spread this warning, at this time of year. He notes several medications that increase the risk of heatstroke, or otherwise pose risks in heat and bright...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 11:00 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 25, 2006
Category: Psychiatry
Being on vacation over the following two weeks, I've scheduled publication of some old posts. The formatting might be a little funny, but I can't really check that ahead of time. The preview function in MT is not perfect. This...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:20 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 24, 2006
Category: Politics
Mike, at The Questionable Authority, has a valuable perspective on what I wrote earlier, in First, Do No Harm, Part II. He corrects some of my sloppy thinking on the matter, plus, he knows more about the subject than I do....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:50 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Armchair Musings
This week's Ask-a-ScienceBlogger question is: If you could have practiced science in any time and any place throughout history, which would it be, and why?... Hmmm. I am not going to answer that question, exactly. Instead, I will rephrase it,...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:46 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 23, 2006
Category: Medicine
American Scientist has an article about the potential for controlling mosquito-borne diseases, by genetically modifying the insects to make then inhospitable to malaria and dengue. (Most of their articles are subscription-only, but this one is openly accessible.) I mention this...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 7:42 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Meta
Long-time readers have noticed that I tend to hype free software and resources from time to time. After SB redesigned the skin for our blogs, I decided that I should redo the banner. The old one was done in...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 1:12 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 22, 2006
Category: Armchair Musings
Coturnix picked up on an interesting study, which shows that "Simply asking college students who are inclined to take drugs about their illegal-drug use in a survey may increase the behavior." It is a finding that makes researchers nervous, presumably...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 11:44 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Politics
I haven't done much frank political blogging since moving to ScienceBlogs. But this is just too provocative to pass up. Afghanistan close to anarchy, warns general · Nato commander's view in stark contrast to ministers' · Forces short of equipment...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:37 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 21, 2006
Category: Photos of Interest
Hostess Twinkies Sushi Japanese animation, Hello Kitty, samurais, ninjas, and Sushi are really popular right now! Here"s a wild recipe that"s super easy to make and super fun to eat as a light and fruity snack! This recipe transforms...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:17 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 20, 2006
Category: Medicine
This is from a study published in the latest NEJM: The "Gender Gap" in Authorship of Academic Medical Literature — A 35-Year Perspective [abstract/full text/editorial (subscription required for full text and editorial)]. First, the good news: During the past four...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:07 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Commentary
This is cool. This is not. Reading the Undercover Activist Blog, published by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), I learned of the development of a new type of solitude assault vehicle: the Quadski, by Gibbs Technologies....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 3:03 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Issues
A lot of people are writing about this, and I do not really have anything new to contribute. But I will say it anyway. Researchers whom I trust, people of fine moral character, think the restriction on federal funding for...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:05 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 19, 2006
Category: Meta
Ok, the ScienceBlogs new skin is up. It looks nice. I was afraid that would happen. Now my banner looks out of place. I will need to design a new one that uses #f5ffe6 and/or #ebffcd. Maybe something with #ebffcd,...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:27 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Science in the Media
This is a follow-up to the post from a couple of days ago. It might not make a lot of sense unless you have read that post, or are otherwise familiar with the issues regarding genetically-modified crops. In general, there...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:12 AM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 18, 2006
Category: Photos of Interest
Some unexpected demands have impeded my progress on the "transgenic drug" series. I've written part of what I planned to post today. But I want to work on it some more. In the meantime, here is a picture...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 1:19 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 16, 2006
Category: Medicine
There is controversy in Peru, of all places, about the experimental use of a treatment for diarrhea in children. Diarrhea is a major cause of mortality in underdeveloped nations, especially in children. From the Wikipedia page on infant mortality: Major...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:00 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Photos of Interest
The UM Center for Organogenesis will have a booth at the Art Fairs in Ann Arbor, featuring their Bio-Artography. They'll be at booth 155, on East University St. There will be a few extra people in town for the Fairs....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 1:41 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 15, 2006
Category: Medicine
The Wellcome Trust Biomedical Image Awards for 2006 have been announced. The winners can be seen here. This photograph shows nerve cells growing along synthetic silk fibers. The tiny blue dots are Schwann cells. Schwann cells are a type of...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:01 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 14, 2006
Category: Energy
A friend and colleague of mine drives around in a cute little VW bug powered by biodiesel. There's a peace sign on the front of it, which helps it get better mileage. But peace sign or not, there has been...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 12:00 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Psychiatry
This subject is not really news anymore, but I am writing about it to call attention to a review article, VNS Therapy in Treatment-Resistant Depression: Clinical Evidence and Putative Neurobiological Mechanisms. In this post, I provide a little overview of...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:15 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 12, 2006
Category: Armchair Musings
Even though electronic music is all the rage these days, people are still figuring out new ways to make music without digital intervention. Samuel Gaudet and Claude Gauthier, mathematicians at the University of Moncton in New Brunswick, have developed the...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 7:40 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 11, 2006
Category: Social Commentary
Medical interventions alway carry risks. So do other types of interventions, such as those carried out in the name of national security. Just as physicians must not let their enthusiasm for healing carry them into the realm of medical misadventure,...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:01 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 9, 2006
Category: Bioethics
I wonder how long it will be, before Blue Cross starts requiring people to fly to the other side of the planet for liver transplants. Indian medical care goes global By Jagpreet Luthra in Delhi Sunday 18 June 2006, 21:22...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 4:08 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Politics
Foreign Policy magazine has an article (The Terrorism Index) about the Global and Perpetual War on Terrorism. It is a compilation and analysis of the results of a survey of 117 experts on foregin policy and terrorism. The main finding is...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 3:02 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Photos of Interest
The Toda people are a small pastoral tribe of less than 1,000 people who reside in the Nilgiri hills of Southern India. Shown here is a typical Toda hut, about 3 m (10 ft.) high, 5.5 m (18 ft.)...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 2:50 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Issues
There are a two poems written by veterans, on the site for Yes! magazine. The magazine is a written by progressives, with the intention of trying to keep their messages positive. When it comes to war, it is hard to...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 2:16 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Photos of Interest
One of our cats is called Microsoft; another is called Patches. I chuckle about that, sometimes. Above is a picture of Patches, transformed by a java applet that can be found here. It appears that the original intent...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 8:30 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Commentary
Are You Popular? FYI News/Coronet Instructional Film 9 min 52 sec This is a 1947 film from Coronet Instructional Films, presumably intended for use in high schools. It was put together by Alice Sowers, Ph.D, the director of the...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 2:16 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Issues
I was happy to see this article in the New York Times: More Lenders Join in Pledge to Safeguard Environment By CLAUDIA H. DEUTSCH Published: July 6, 2006 Three years ago, 10 financial institutions — with Citigroup the only United...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 12:07 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 8, 2006
Category: Computing
I am having a bit of trouble publishing posts. So it may be a couple of days before substantive posting resumes....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 11:20 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Politics
Earlier, I wrote a post entitled Selective Moral Outrage, in that post, I discussed the fact that some site, particularly conservative sites, picked on the New York Times for reporting on the monitoring of international money transfers. It wan't just...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 7:28 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Science in the Media
Usability Tips: How to read blogs more efficiently I can tell that people are clicking on my "add to Bloglines" button, but few are actually completing the process. I can only surmise that people are clicking on it in order...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 1:14 AM • 7 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 7, 2006
Category: Photos of Interest
This is the Spiral Galaxy NGC 2403 from Subaru, as noted on NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:40 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 6, 2006
Category: Medicine
There has been some blogosphere and mediasphere activity regarding the following article (Age at Drinking Onset and Alcohol Dependence) in Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. The New York Times picked it up (permalink), and Jake posted about it at...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:31 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Commentary
Is up at Skeptic Rant. Really cool graphics this time. Took a lot of work. Clever. Plus, it seems that everybody is reading it....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:18 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Armchair Musings
What do the following have in common: heliocentrism, evolution, Freudian psychology, and neuroscience? And what does this have to do with the controversy about whether nonhuman creatures have emotions?...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 12:36 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 5, 2006
Category: Photos of Interest
What part of the 50 US States is in the Eastern Hemisphere? Hint: it was taken over by the Japanese in World War II. Answer below the fold......
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 7:32 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 4, 2006
Category: Armchair Musings
It's funny how these things work out sometimes. I was reading an article on the Christian Science Monitor website, about simmering controversies regarding the religious views of our founding fathers (in the USA). As I was reading it, it...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:46 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Issues
I want to get back to reply to this comment: Comments The Bush administration has not been against science in any conceivable way. I hate to see people use a lie to push a political cause. I would ask all...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 6:17 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Commentary
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 2:35 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 2, 2006
Category: Politics
It was pointed out to me after I put up the FUD post, that Steven Clemons (of the Washington Note) recently posted an excellent example of the use of fear-mongering: June 25, 2006 NATIONAL SECURITY FOR FAMILIES: IT'S FOR KIDS...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 5:46 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Armchair Musings
A long time ago, Grrlscientist tagged me with a meme. So long ago, in fact, that ScienceBlogs did not even exist. So it may as well have been in a galaxy far, far, away. It was a book meme....
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 10:05 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Social Commentary
I just finished reading Chris Mooney's column in Seed Magazine, As Science Goes, So Goes the Nation, which is a thought piece about the war on science. Then I read his blog post about the column. I'm not going to rehash what he says there; it is perfectly clear as it is. I do want to mention one thing that this reminded me of, that I had intended to blog about long ago, but never did...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 2:11 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
July 1, 2006
Category: Computing
For various reasons, I am now mostly using a computer in the living room, rather than the study. That is fine, but it is far from the cable modem. That would be no problem, having a wireless card installed. But...
Posted by Joseph j7uy5 at 9:55 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
