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I recall reading a story somewhere - might have been slashdot, I don't remember - where some country greatly reduced its cases of MRSA by no longer prescribing antibiotics unless they were really needed. I think it was The Netherlands?

It was Norway

The basic physics say you're more than okay.

      Very well. Expose yourself to direct sunlight 24/7 and let's see how long it takes for you to get skin cancer.

      Just because "the basic physics" you mention in your claim point to there being less energy involved than sunlight, this does not eliminate the possibility of risk - especially when sunlight is a KNOWN carcinogen.

Actually, there is such a thing as a sun allergy, but it's rare.

And of course, the sun is i-don't-know-how-many orders of magnitude more powerful than any wi-fi network, so these people claiming an allergy are still full of it.

Never mind. For anyone interested, look here and here . Both seem to be pretty reputable sources.

Actually, while I wouldn't put salt in an open exterior wound, I've found it does help with in-the-mouth canker sores. Whenever a nwe allergy season kicks in it takes my body awhile to adjust, and if I'm not careful what I eat then I end up with sore white craters in my inner lip or sometimes cheek. I've found that wetting a Q-tip, putting salt on it, and then rubbing it into the wound causes an initial sting, then blood rises to the surface and they become less bothersome for awhile. They tend tend to heal faster when I do this too.

For those that aren't too keen on the idea of packing salt into the open cut, you can also gargle salt-water for a similar cleansing effect, though I find it's not quite as effective as applying it directly.

Googling for it, many sites do recommend salt-water to cleanse wounds:

Wilderness survival, Intellihealth, and Pediatric advisor (for skin infection)

Other common substances I've heard that can be good for cleaning wounds include garlic and honey.

I've never really understood the expression "salt in an open wound" myself. Having used it in various situations the sting rarely lasts long and afterwards it usually hurts less than before the cleansing.

I wonder how well a mixed solution of natural anesthetic, capsaicin, and salt and maybe garlic extract would work? Might be a good thing to keep around in a naturist's first-aid kit, or perhaps just concentrated solutions of the above and a good water purifier (purify water on-site and mix). I've been meaning to grow myself some hot peppers anyhow, so perhaps I'll buy a plant or two and see if they survive my rather less-than-green thumb.

The Internet is a hypochondriacs wet dream.....

This site is quite a good read if you are sick of seeing commercials for riduculous "Fad Medicine": http://www.quackwatch.org/

It's a really entertaining site! It's scary to know that there are people stupid enough out there to make money for the "doctors" out there that offer such bogus "remedies/treatments/therapies" etc.

A really scary site is Aetna's IntelliHealth section on "Complimentary & Alternative Medicine". I can't belive that a major medical provider is allowed to post/advertise such unbelievably stupid things.

Aetna InteliHealth URL:

http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/8513 /34968.html

Symptoms include:

• Sore throat
• Enlarged lymph nodes
• Chills
• Joint aches
• Loss of appetite and slight weight loss
• Nausea and vomiting, occasionally
• A red rash, usually on the chest -- much more common if the person has recently taken the antibiotics ampicillin or amoxicillin (both sold under several brand names)
• Abdominal pain
• Enlarged spleen

Moiche

It may not have been OK, but it may also not have been the chemicals. It's pretty much a universal human phenomenon, it just reaches clinical significance only rarely.

I'm reasonably comfortable with the technology now - I know that a local company doing the laser correction does a "no touch" technique where they use the laser exclusively without the microkeratome

I found a couple of references:

A comparison between PRK, LASIK, and LASEK.

A discussion of Bowman's layer

so no foreign objects touch the optical surface of your eye

That sounds like marketing speak. Think about it: a laser erodes the surface of your cornea ("eye"), resulting in what amounts to a massive wound, left to heal while exposed to the dust and dirt of the outside world.

apparently it provides a smoother finished surface with less chance of issues at night.

Apart from any concerns over the long-term effects, larger risk of complications with non-flap techniques is apparently why the flap techniques were introduced.

"Lead Poisoning is the most common environmentally caused disease in the United States, affecting 4-5% of children nationwide."
link

"Lead poisoning is the leading environmentally induced illness in children. At greatest risk are children under the age of six because they are undergoing rapid neurological and physical development."
link

"New research suggests that millions more children than previously thought might have lead-linked mental impairment, while another study supports a strong link between lead exposure and juvenile delinquency."
link

"Lead is a highly toxic metal that was used for many years in products found in and around our homes. Lead may cause a range of health effects, from behavioral problems and learning disabilities, to seizures and death."
link

... and these are just some quotes from google results.

A quick search on good returns these: Do it yourself desk exercises
Desk Exercise of the Day
And here's the google cache of a list of 10 more desk exercises

"Eating cookies" and "loud sounds and flashing lights" aren't addictions. The article is talking about people who are addicted to information. In an article about sugar addiction, I found an interesting explanation, "Whatever the lab coats decide to call it, [they] know how sugar makes them feel. When they reach for another chocolate-chunk cookie, they say they're yielding to the tug of something deeper than a mere lack of willpower. They use the language of addiction because they consider themselves addicts." I think you're trying to compare apples to oranges. There are people who like to drink, and then there are people who like to drink. It's pretty obvious which ones have the problem, imho. No different for information addicts.

Perhaps you're thinking of Arch Obeler's "Chicken Heart" episode of Lights Out. Bill Cosby did a bit about how he freaked out upon hearing the story on the radio as a kid.

Robert Heinlen makes reference to the actual case somewhere in one of his Lazarus Long stories.


Apparently, the actual experiment has been repeated many times. Although I can't track down the longest lived one.

...fatal diseases (which bubonic plague always is if left untreated)...

Just a minor nitpick.

"Without prompt antibiotic treatment, plague is fatal in 50 percent to 90 percent of cases.

Even with appropriate antibiotics and hospital care, about 15 percent of plague patients in the United States die. Pneumonic plague is the most rapidly fatal form of plague, and most victims will die if they do not receive antibiotics within the first 18 hours after symptoms begin."
-Source

It's not totally fatal, though those that survive often have permanent scaring. After all some infected people managed to live through it even back in the European dark ages. Of course it's more than bad enough that I wouldn't ever want to encounter it.

Here are several cites;

Road Dust Contributes To Asthma, Allergies

ALLERGIC TO RADIALS?: PRELIMINARY STUDIES LINK AIRBORNE TIRE PARTICLES TO ASTHMA

Tire Home Page

So; not "proven", but a very strong candidate. And as for why tire particles are different now? Tires now are harder and the particles are smaller and more likely to become airborne.

Intelligence is the product of Research.

I did some digging:

Article 1 - Fetus does not like pot

Article 2 - Using pot as birth control? Not too bright, IMO

Intelligence is the product of Research.

I did some digging:

Article 1 - Fetus does not like pot

Article 2 - Using pot as birth control? Not too bright, IMO