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Fight Tooth Decay with Electricity
Erica Campbell writes "According to IsraCast, The Israeli Company Fluorinex Active has developed a new technology that can protect the tooth from cavities for 5 years with one simple electrical treatment. The company is currently working on a small device which, together with a gel, will impose an efficient ion exchange process through an Electro-chemical reaction in which fluor ions displace the Hydroxide ions at the outer layer of the tooth. This is intended to produce a new mineral layer with significantly improved chemical and physical resistance to the aggressive bacteria and the resulting acidic environment in the mouth."
Your teeth can be protected largely by not eating too much sugary food - your acidic saliva is quite capable of destroying a lot of bacteria. It's your gums that require care.
Would this process affect the coloration of the teeth?
It'd really suck to lock in any staining...
500GB of disk, 5TB of transfer, $5.95/mo
However, when pressed, the company acknowledged the new device would be ineffective against pieces of broccoli and spinach.
><));>
Not in my mouth...please?
Any chemodentists (dentochemists?) have anything to say about this? 5 years sounds pretty crazy for one treatment.
Well, this is at least correctly targeted towards the /. crowd, most of whom only brush once every 5 years (whether they need it or not)
Go to the dentist and get a free shock-therapy session. This should help those with Dentophobia.
Luckily I bet I can improvise one of my one; all I need is an old lamp cord, a football mouthpiece, and some high fluoride gel toothpaste.
I Am My Own Worst Enemy
Think reception will improve?
We'll see how well that 5-year warranty holds up after I'm through with it!
But... does it run Linux?
Sweet! (literally) Now I can just rinse with Red Bull before bed time and I'm set.
but, I'm somewhat reluctant to even try anything that claims to put a coating on my teeth that will last for 5 years. What happens if you don't like it or if you have sensitive teeth that react to this "flouridation" and cause you pain?
It's one thing to electroplate your refrigerator, it's another thing entirely to electroplate your teeth. Although, these guys would probably give it a go.
I guess we wouldn't have to brush our teeth for 5 years then! Cool!
The nasties really happen below 3mm (anaeorobic bacteria). Even your denatal hygenist can't do much below 3mm (though you can have your gums reduced). How does the gel get down there if your dentist can't?
"I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey
What could possibly go wrong? /rhetorical question
Don't take life so seriously. No one makes it out alive.
...that you posted that under Hardware. I thought of the crumbling difference between hardware and software...
I hope I didn't brain my damage.
WTF are "fluor ions"?
http://outcampaign.org/
most /.ers needed another excuse to not brush regularly, and now they have one. this is indeed a happy day.
your acidic saliva is quite capable of destroying a lot of bacteria
Stupid twat! If you had acidic saliva you wouldn't have any teeth. If your saliva isn't PH7 you better see a doctor/dentist immediately!
I want to be able to chew gravel in comfort.
Is an effective mouth wash, right?
- Genetically modified bacteria to fight tooth decay?
- Vaccine for tooth decay?
Enquiring minds want to know.Ok, I'm preparing for the tin foil hat jokes, but fluoride's actually not good for people. Granted, a treatment that binds fluoride to the surface of the teeth is better than drinking it, but I'd prefer if we didn't fuck with fluoride at all. Almost all fluoride that's produced is merely a biproduct of other chemical reactions. If city governments didn't buy this stuff from chemical plants to put in drinking water, they'd have to dispose of it like any other toxic waste.
Is it safe?
Electro-chemical reaction in which fluor ions displace the Hydroxide ions at the outer layer of the tooth
:)
Hell, for $50 I'll displace the whole tooth with a "2 X flour".
I'll even toss in my grandmas dentures for free.
Wanna fight ? Bend over, stick your head up your ass, and fight for air.
Not all the Arabs in Israel are Palestinian. That doesn't rule out the possibility that Khawaled and Zuabi might be Palestinian but it wouldn't be my first guess.
Your saliva is not usually acidic.
t est.htm
http://www.healingdaily.com/conditions/saliva-ph-
FDA lobbying begins: US Dental Assocaition vs Energizer Bunny!
Engineering is the art of compromise.
I guess this could be considered a bio-hack. Hopefully there's more of this type of treatments to come.
Religion for nerds. Stuff that really matters
When I was 10 I tried touching a 9-volt to my braces. Nuff said.
Ok so you found a site with an agenda: Eliminating flouride consumption, that claims it's bad. Right, of course they are going to claim that. Now I can find information from respected orignizations, like the CDC and NIH, that says it's not only fine but good for oral health.
n dex.htme sAndConditions/Fluoride/WaterFluoridation.htm
http://www.cdc.gov/oralhealth/waterfluoridation/i
http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/HealthInformation/Diseas
Now I don't care to argue with you about who to believe, I'm just pointing you that you are presenting only a source with an agenda. Have a look at what the CDC has to say, as well as others.
Israelis...
1 time operation on your teeth....
Conspiracy theories forming!
Hrrmm... I've already had plenty of shock-therapy from dentists. I'd be glad of some move away from medieval barbarism on their part :)
It sounds like you are electroplating your teeth. I figured it would be some kind of electroshock therapy:
"Brush your teeth, Timmy or I'll have to send for The White Angel to come and ask you 'Is it safe?' "
"You'll get nothing, and you'll like it!"
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: Lord, Jack.
General Jack D. Ripper: You know when fluoridation first began?
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: I... no, no. I don't, Jack.
General Jack D. Ripper: Nineteen hundred and forty-six. Nineteen forty-six, Mandrake. How does that coincide with your post-war Commie conspiracy, huh? It's incredibly obvious, isn't it? A foreign substance is introduced into our precious bodily fluids without the knowledge of the individual. Certainly without any choice. That's the way your hard-core Commie works.
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: Uh, Jack, Jack, listen, tell me, tell me, Jack. When did you first... become... well, develop this theory?
General Jack D. Ripper: Well, I, uh... I... I... first became aware of it, Mandrake, during the physical act of love.
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: Hmm.
General Jack D. Ripper: Yes, a uh, a profound sense of fatigue... a feeling of emptiness followed. Luckily I... I was able to interpret these feelings correctly. Loss of essence.
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: Hmm.
General Jack D. Ripper: I can assure you it has not recurred, Mandrake. Women uh... women sense my power and they seek the life essence. I, uh... I do not avoid women, Mandrake.
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: No.
General Jack D. Ripper: But I... I do deny them my essence.
Credit to IMDB for the actual quotes. My memory of them was somewhat less than accurate. ;)
--
Sig nature
There are many primates that subsist almost exclusively on fruit that has substantial amounts of sugar. They live for 20 years and their teeth are fine.
The problem of tooth decay is complex, but this oft repeated lie doesn't get to the bottom of it.
I don't read or respond to AC posts
"The only way to stop it is through transdental electromicide. I'll need a golf cart motor and a thousand volt capacitator, stat."
When I was a kid, we only had one Darth.
One of the first things I learned while working at a solar power firm was the concept or use of anti-corrosion techniques, which just sounded amazing to me at the time. Essentially you can protect metal from oxidising by putting a residual electrical charge over it -- which you can get directly from a working solar panel during the day. Night-time hours would be powered by a battery that you would charge with the excess electricity from the panel accumulated during the day.
I'm oversimplifying it massively here, but cathodic protection is a priority application for solar panels and equipment in remote areas, such as pipeline and radio-transmitter installations in the high Arctic.
This treatment sounds like a weird and cool transferral of the idea to teeth.
========================================
Death will come, and will have your eyes
-- Pavese
Tooth decay has gone waay down since the introduction of Flouride toothpaste and fluoride washes. That's why dentists have had to expand into the profitable areas of tooth straightening, whitening and laminating. Now this new thingy may be of benefit, but it might be more economical and more just to put the money into public education about dental health and some into giving the poor more dental checkups.
My point is that the assumption that an Arab in the state of Israel is necessarily Palestinian is a sign of ignorance.
Care to say why?
Because Palestinians and Israelis are not traditionally cooperative with each other. Whereas there are many non-Palestinian Arabs living in Israeli cities. Travel for Palestinians within Israel, as you should know, is difficult. Statistically, it's likely that the two Arab members of the project are not Palestinian. Sorry if this is not politically correct enough for you.
I've been there and seen the reality myself. You?
Most US dentists won't offer this treatment, they simply lose out on too much business. It is doubtful it would even get an ADA seal.
Here, have a candy!
(Herman, Jim Unger)
I bet you could get the same effect by applying a current while brushing your teeth with regular fluoride toothpaste. Maybe Gillette will come out with a toothbrush that has a battery in the handle. Ground return via your hand. Better make sure to use the correct polarity though!
You're wrong, chap, but you're also right. Eating less sugary foods saves the day. But your reasoning was wrong. Our tooth enamel becomes soluble at any pH more acidic than about 4.5. When our tooth enamel dissolves, we set ourselves up to get holes all the way through the enamel. As I understand it, our bodies have no way of replacing enamel once its gone. And enamel is what keeps our teeth from getting infected. Our poor gums are sensitive too, though, as you noted. But there's more.
So the thing to do is keep our moth more basic than 4.5 (normal is about 5, I think). But the sugars that you noted get digested by the bacteria in our mouth, and then the biproduct of the digestion is lactic acid. This increases the acidity in out mouth (or decreases the pH). If you brush well enough that you have no bacteria in there, then you can eat all the sugar you want to no detriment. But most people have some bacteria in there, so we need to brush it out. But there's even more.
Toothpaste is designed not only to be all bubbly and tasty, but to make our mouth more basic (raise the pH) as well. That's why there is sodium flouride in toothpaste. The flouride ion attaches to the free hydrogen ions that are making our saliva acidic. But keeping our mouths alkaline still can't save our enamel that's already gone. It sounds to me like this new technology maybe kind of can though...
a zap to stimulate your love life...oh wait this is /.
"You're everywhere. You're omnivorous."
Why do they want to electrocute my precious bodily fluids?
$REALLY_OLD_LAME_JOKE_ABOUT_BRITISH_TEETH
Reason: Don't use so many caps. It's like YELLING.
Get your own free personal location tracker
You guys are seriously missing the big picture here...HELLO, ERICA CAMPBELL!!
:D
http://www.ericacampbell.com/
In my opinion, IsraCast is a marketing firm for what have often turned out to be dishonest schemes to take investor money. BE CAREFUL!
Note that the IsraCast press release says, "The company is currently working on a small device..."
And flouride is a poison anyways, so any change is a good change if you ask me.
Are you talking about Hydric Acid, a highly corrosive industrial solvent? Accidental respiration of which "is the second leading cause of accidental death, averaging approximately 8000 deaths per year in the United States alone."
Can you be Even More Awesome?!
DANGER!! IsraCast is known, in my opinion, for selling ideas to investors that have little likelihood of making money.
Last week I stuck my finger in a light bulb socket... now that I think about it; my teeth do seem pretty darn white!
Do you think government is about serving citizens? To get the ear of a senator or congressmen as a citizen is not likely, but for a corporation with a large donation made to a politician's campaign the story is different and that "donation" is gonna buy some clout and lobbying power.
Effect of fluoridation of water on teeth, study ...
Tooth decay declined substantially in prevalence and severity when Hong Kong children consumed less fluoride
Does anyone else use Sugar in the Raw? It is suppossed to be healthier than the bleached and processed white table sugar that has its molasses content removed. This more natural sugar tastes pretty good too, I have no idea why the processed sugar is so prevalent.
but i guess they know what they are doing? you wouldnt think electricty could do anything as far as teeth go
No man, its cool. I'm saving you on dental bills.
God spoke to me.
Of course no "Palestinians" really exist, they're just pretending being a separate nation. It's just a clever trick to get international support for killing Jews and establishing a terrorist state.
They admit it themself. Zuheir Muhsin, of the PLO's Military Department and Executive Council said in 1977:
"There are no differences between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese. We are all part of one nation. It is only for political reasons that we carefully underline our Palestinian identity, because it is in the interest of the Arabs to encourage a separate Palestinian identity. Yes, the existence of a separate Palestinian identity serves only tactical purposes. The founding of a Palestinian state is a new tool in the continuing battle against Israel."
Abe's only hope is "transdental electromicide". Dr. Riviera asks for a golf cart motor with a 1000 volt capacimator, but the two-second hesitation pushes him past schedule. Nick improvises by ripping the cords from an operating lamp and shocking the sh-- hell out of Abe. "Keep doing that every five seconds", the "doctor" instructs. The malpractice charges are dropped, and Dr. Nick enthuses "Free nose jobs for everyone!" starting with Jasper, who wants a Van Heflin.
Sure, this was to treat Skin Failure but the ancilliary benefits are just starting to come to light.
"Let him go, Ralph. He knows what he's doing." --Otto Mann (simpsons)
...welcome our new fluor-ion elctro-plated toothed overlords! That's right, I have no shame.
Never let a lack of data get in the way of a good rant.
welcome are new shameless overlords!
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
Now dentists like Louie Rocco of the Bronx cannot treat customers who come into his office suffering from tooth decay after a long day of driving cabs. At least he won't be punching anyone in the teeth and no one will wake up from sedation with pants mysteriously unbuttoned.
As any chemistry geek knows a fluorine ion (F-) can replace a hydroxyl ion (OH-). In teeth, fluoride causes formation of hydroxyfluoroapatite, where some of the OH's have been replaced with F's.
The compound with the fluoride is slightly stronger physically, it also has better pK values. The pKa and other values tell us about the solubility of a compound in acids or bases. Fluoroapatite is less soluble in acid. This means cavities will not form as easily when bacterial start producing acid in the teeth.
Normally, fluoride gets into our teeth through diffusion. Fluoride is in reasonably high concentrations in saliva anyway, but topical application of fluoride (for instance brushing your teeth) will increase the amount of strong fluoroapatite in your enamel.
This method uses a current to influence the exchange of OH for F in tooth enamel. It is nearly similar to the copper plating experiments you may have seen in high school.
Fluoride is only bad if ingested in large quanties. Fluorosis, a discoluration of the teeth, is caused by problems with the enamel producing cells in childhood. It can happen if children habitually eat toothpaste. It will not happen with topical application.
Skeletal bones can be adversely affected by fluoride, but this also requires high internal F- levels. It is unlikely to happen with topical application of toothpaste.
5 years of protection, according to FLUORINEX ACTIVE LTD.? That must have been pretty short years.
h tm
http://www.matimop.org.il/newrdinf/company/c6167.
FLUORINEX ACTIVE LTD. was established on April 2004 and currently
is conducting a comprehensive in-vitro research in cooperation
with the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. The research goal is to
optimize the parameters of the treatment and to prove its
efficacy on a solid statistical basis.
What a "solid" statistical basis that must be.
If they would make a device that gave you an electric shock every time you reached for a candy bar, it would help prevent tooth decay AND obesity.
Some see the vessel as half full; others see it as half-empty; We pour it out on the floor and laugh
Whatever happened to the genetically engineered bacteria that A) displaced the natural bacteria in your mouth and B) didn't produce acid?
I read about this a few years ago (I think) and this was supposed to eliminate tooth decay with just one treatment. They were even into human testing...
Bigtime Consulting - "We're the best because we cost the most"
"You know what they put in the water, don't you? Fluoride. Yeah, fluoride -- on the pretext that it strengthems your teeth! That's ridiculous. You know what that stuff does to you? It weakens your will, destroys your capacity for free and creative thought, and makes you a slave to the state!"
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Conspiracy_Theory
Ripper: Have you ever seen a commie drink a glass of water?
Mandrake: Well, no I... I can't say I have, Jack.
Ripper: Vodka. That's what they drink, isn't it? Never water?
Mandrake: Well I... I believe that's what they drink, Jack. Yes.
Ripper: On no account will a commie ever drink water, and not without good reason.
Mandrake: Oh, ah, yes. I don't quite.. see what you're getting at, Jack.
Ripper: Water. That's what I'm getting at. Water. Mandrake, water is the source of all life. Seven tenths of this earth's surface is water. Why, you realize that.. seventy percent of you is water.
Mandrake: Uhhh God...
Ripper: And as human beings, you and I need fresh, pure water to replenish our precious bodily fluids.
Mandrake: Yes. chuckles nervously
Ripper: You beginning to understand?
Mandrake: Yes. chuckles. begins laughing/crying quietly
Ripper: Mandrake. Mandrake, have you never wondered why I drink only distilled water, or rain water, and only pure grain alcohol?
Mandrake: Well it did occur to me, Jack, yes.
Ripper: Have you ever heard of a thing called fluoridation? Fluoridation of water?
Mandrake: Ah, yes, I have heard of that, Jack. Yes.
Ripper: Well do you now what it is?
Mandrake: No. No, I don't know what it is. No.
Ripper: Do you realize that fluoridation is the most monstrously conceived and dangerous communist plot we have ever had to face?
[Fuck Beta]
o0t!
I read an artile a few years back (clipped it and saved it somewhere, have to dig it out).... of a scientist that developed a bacteria that could be swabbed on your teeth one time, and would displace the bateria in your mouth that give off acid as a byproduct (and thereby causing tooth decay).
It was still awaiting FDA approval, because apparently I guess the 'treatment' could be passed by simply kissing another person or exchanging saliva that contained the mouth friendlier bacteria.
I thought, this will never be allowed out, it would put a huge industry of dentists out of business. Dentists know how evil softdrinks and sugar are, and yet they do nothing to fight it (perhaps they can't).
But I thought, I sure want this treatment and be ahead of the curve.
My detist told me at 35 I had the teeth of an 80 year old, and I brush several times a day and floss as well. The culprit? Soft drinks. A lifetime addiction to softdrinks. Which also led to me becoming terribly hypoglycemic.
There is nothing soft about softdrinks, or other drinks containing sugar and caffeine. Your teeth are porreous like a sponge. You drink a softdrink and all that gets into the poors and the bacteria grows, and their acid waste products start eating away at your teeth. You can brush and brush all you want, all you are doing is brushing the outside of the sponge so to speak.
Do yourself a favor, never touch a softdrink again. They are pure rot.
Instead, eat fresh vegtables, some protein with every meal, and complex carbohydrates like wholewheat pasta (like spagetti, but the brown variety... I saw it in Walmart yesterday for the first time).
But organizations like the ADA make sure they don't get very far.
:T:R:A:N:S:
Do you think anyone is going to listen to a Wonka regarding tooth decay?
Bizarre devices that add hardened layers to teeth seems like the wrong way to go. I want to know when the FDA is going to approve the modified streptococcus mutans bacteria they developed at U of Florida. Strep M lives in your mouth naturally. When it eats sugar, it excretes lactic acid. The lactic acid is what rots your teeth. The Strep M they made at UofF has been "fixed" so that it doesn't produce lactic acid. The way you use it is simple. They innoculate your mouth with the new Strep M and instruct you to eat lots of sugar. The new Strep M quickly displaces the natural Strep M. So far, tests show that the natural, damaging Strep M doesn't come back. No electricity, no gel; the major source of tooth decay is simply eliminated. More here
Conclusion: the Empire squashes the Federation like a bug. Accept it.
1. Hook car battery up to teeth.
2. Hit the ON button.
3. ????
4. PROFIT!!!
Jes' wondering.
"Win treats sysadmins better than users. Mac treats users better than sysadmins. Linux treats everyone like sysadmins."
For those like me who through illness have had practically no enamel on their teeth and have had to have numerous fluoride treatments which have a limited success rate, this treatment could be the difference between keeping my existing teeth or no teeth at all within a decade.
I only wish it was available 5 years ago before I had to lose 6 teeth. I only wish I had perfect sparklies so I wasn't so self-conscious.
insecurity asks the wrong question irritation gives the wrong answer
will it take care of your STANK BREFF??
Depends. If his teeth are still good, he may really be onto something!
A post a day keeps productivity at bay.
"Fighting the global war against tooth decay is in the vital national interest of Great Britain," said Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the UK, as he announced the march of infantry on Nazareth, home of Fluorinex. "We're sure Jesus can spare a few chapels. We will stop at nothing to honor his sacrifice -- with our glistening white smiles, if necessary."
Reaction from the United States was guarded. In an apparent reference to the incident, President Bush repeatedly mumbled to himself, "Lisa needs braces? Dental plan?" while speaking to reporters today on the subject.
Asked if the United States would be taking up the British invasion at the UN Security Council, Bush said he always liked the Monkees better than the Beatles anyway.
Q: What did the comedian say to the crowd?
A: If I knew, this joke would be funny.
Well, if that Wonka was Dr Wonka from the 2005 movie, I'd be scared not too!
In theory there is no difference between theory and practice.
In practice, however, there is.
To keep Perfect teeth,
you can get each surface of each tooth polymer coated with a
nice hard plastic film.
Bacteria, Acid, Black Coffee, basically
nothing can harm the coating on the teeth.
Often coated teeth will never get a single cavity.
Typical coatings cost $60~$80 a surface, with 5 surfaces or more
on a tooth.
But it is worth it to get for yourself and your kids,
so you never have to face the dentists drill.
Most Dentists don't promote it,
oddly enough - many dental plans wont pay for the expensive
preventitive treatment, but they'll pay for them to drill holes in your head!
Flouride is poison.
http://www.fluoride-history.de/
http://www.fluoridealert.org/
http://www.apfn.org/apfn/fluoride.htm
http://www.fluoridation.com/
http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic181.htm
And my mother said that chewing on batteries was bad for my health!
I prefer to eat cranberries than going through any form of electrical treatment.
Mmmmm.... cranberries....
w00t
D-oh! Why on earth didn't someone think of this decades ago? This is basically the same process used in industry all over the place, from electroplating to automotive paint application. It's so obvious now that someone has done it!
--
Don't like it? Respond with words, not karma.
Unless you reeeeally think the Gubamint is out to get us, I would definitely trust the cdc.gov and the nih.gov over, um, "fluoridealert.org".
Do you happen to live in Ithaca, NY by any chance? That's the only place I've ever lived (I went to Cornell) who didn't fluoridate the water.
I will not go into the years of dental work I've had to have done to repair the damage from just those 4 years (although admittedly, living in a fraternity and often crashing without brushing probably exacerbated it). I have 2 caps, multiple fillings and just... I had to spend a lot of money, put it that way. My oral hygiene habits didn't change THAT much from pre-Cornell, yet I got almost all my cavities there. Oh, yes, don't even get me started on the between-the-teeth cavities. Those were the best. (I floss like a motherf***er now)
I'll take the goddamn fluoride, thanks.
Fruits contain glucose and fructose which are simple natural sugars that are healthy. What causes big time dental problem is the modern processed white table sugar(brown sugar also), that is refined and not natural but are stripped of all nutritional content and act as weak posions.
Don't trust anything developed in israel. Remember PROMIS.
And if your saliva is alkali, the calcium in your saliva will redeposit onto your teeth. Your teeth enamel are constantly being dissolved and replaced via this process. Google for CaviStat for a product based on this.
Hydrofluoric acid (HF) is a strong acid whose conjugate base is the fluoride ion (F-). In toothpaste, it is generally added as the soluble sodium salt (NaF). The pKa of HF is ~3.2. Unless your saliva pH is lower than 3.2, addition of F- won't help. The pH of toothpaste is, to my knowledge, above 7, meaning it is slightly basic and capable of countering the acidic environment produced by bacteria. However, it's not the fluoride ion that's responsible for this.
Sometimes i get the feeling that the collective knowlege of slashdot could solve any problem, and adapt to any task.
Now, if we could only learn to get along...
Not really. It's so that the fluoride gets incorporated into the inorganic matrix of the enamel, replacing calcium ions, so that the matrix turns from hydroxyapatite to fluoroapatite, which dissolves at a much lower pH.
No matter what, your mouth will undergo an excursion into low pH after every single event during which you take in calories, be that a meal, a snack, a single grape, whatever. An interesting side note is that people with lots of cavities will actually see their pH drop lower from the same amount of sugar than someone with no cavities.
I forget from school, but I think the pH at which you start pulling out calcium is somewhere around 5.5.
You will *never* brush well enough that you have no bacteria. It's not a reasonable goal. The proper goal is to limit access to fermentable carbohydrates throughout the day (that's how the lactic acid gets produced), and hopefully tip the bacterial balance in your mouth away from cavity-causing and/or perodontitis-causing species.
Oops. It's hydroxide getting replaced, not calcium.
The problem is that there were NO states in the middle east earlier this century. The quote above has some truth. When the European powers pulled out of the middle east they drew arbitrary borders and gave control of those borders to tribes or sects or warlords in a somewhat arbitrary way. The states as drawn in the Middle East do not really reflect the ethnicity or culture of the people who live within. Inevitably the strongest group within each country rises to power and persecutes the minority.
Israel is just one of all the states in the Middle East that had arbitrary borders drawn by the European powers at the end of the war. The only reason the Israeli/Palestinian conflict gets so much press is that Arab governments have long used Israel as "the enemy" as a political tool. There is much rhetoric and little real care for the suffering of the Palestinian people. There is more interest in humiliating Israel than alleviating the suffering of the people. If the conflict in Israel evaporated tomorrow and an equitable solution was found most Arab goverment would be very unhappy. Then the brutalities that these governments perpetuate on thier own people equalling and exceeding those that the Israeli army hands out will become the focus of the peoples anger.
Take for example Iran, long a champion of the Palestinian people. It holds big rallies, funds Hamas and takes every opportunity to denounce the evil Zionist empire. However, the Iranian regime fervently persecutes it's own religious minorites. The Bahai's for instance are one of the most peacefull and sensible religious groups I have come across and yet in Iran they are refugees in thier own country, unable to get jobs or practise thier religion for fear of the wrath of the government, yet the Bahai's have never once advocated rebellion or war or raised a weapon against the Iranian government. In fact part of their doctrine states that they must always act in accordance with the laws of the land in which they reside. I can't agree or disagree with this but it leads to a bunch of peacefull people who are nothing to be scared of yet the Iranians stamp on them very hard.
This however doesn't justify Israeli army actions against civilians in the West Bank or Gaza, the collective punishments, and the roadblock strip/search humilations that occur. Still the conflict should be seen in light of the history of the area and that there is no simple one line bit of rhetoric that will justify or condemn one group or another. In the end they all live on one bit of land and will have to figure out how to live together.
K
The bikini - security through obscurity since 1943
Previous poster 100 years ago:
You're probably right. The Wright Brothers' idea smacks of human flight, which we all know is impossible because:
1- Humans do not have feathers
2- Humans' bones are not hollow and therefore are too heavy for flight
3- Imitating the motion of bird's wings is mechanically very complex and requires heavy machinery which is itself too heavy to fly
4- Hot air balloons and zeppelins work just fine anyway.
Moral: Comparing a technology to another similar one doesn't add any useful information.
Whereas comparing an analogy to another similar one is valid?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/lookaroundyou/2000/200 024.shtml
This one is free: Announce that you must not eat broccoli and spinach when doing this, and kids will swarm you to get one!
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
It's not just white spots. Severe flourosis looks pretty horrible, and flouride poisoning can have other serious results, in adults and children.
well a floride coating is what natrually protects our teeth, thats why tap water, and toothpaste have this as an additive. Actually I just read that tooth decay is on the rise because many of us no longer drink tap water wwhich is forified with floride
Like many Americans my age, I grew up with a positive association to fluoride. Toothpaste commercials told me that fluoride helped prevent tooth decay and that I should brush my teeth with fluoride toothpaste, so I used it every day. The dentist gave me fluoride treatments for my teeth. Fluoride was also added to municipal water supplies, so drinking tap water (and anything made with it) gave me a daily dose of fluoride too. Like most other people, I assumed it must be healthy. Otherwise, why would people add it to toothpaste and water?
Fluoride is not added to the tap water to protect our teeth.
Firstly, the American Dental Association states that all ground and surface water in the United States contains some naturally occurring fluoride. There is no such thing as "fluoride-deficient" water. Furthermore, only calcium fluoride occurs naturally in water, and it has never been used for fluoridation. The chemicals used to fluoridate 90% of public drinking water are industrial grade hazardous wastes captured in the air pollution-control scrubber systems of the phosphate fertilizer industry, called silicofluorides. The most commonly used one is Hydrofluosilicic acid.
http://www.fluoridedebate.com/
The fluoride used for water fluoridation is considered by the FDA as an "unapproved drug". Research shows fluoridation is unnecessary since we're already receiving 300% or more of the American Dental Association's recommended daily amount.
http://www.nofluoride.com/
The FDA does not regulate tap water. The EPA does. Despite official government policy, the union of 1500 scientists, lawyers, engineers and other professional employees at the EPA opposes water fluoridation.
http://www.fluoridealert.org/hp-epa.htm
As you probably already know, the fluoride used in tap water is a neurotoxin including cadium and mercury.
http://www.prn2.usm.my/mainsite/bulletin/nst/2001/ nst34.html
Fluoridated water has caused cancer in children. The increased cancer risks, identified in a newly available study conducted at the Harvard School of Dental Health, were found at fluoride exposure levels common in both the US and Britain.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,690 3,1504672,00.html
Fluoridated water disrupts DNA enzyme repair. Fluoride affects fertility rates.
http://www.drkaslow.com/html/fluoride.html
The fluoride used in tap water causes genetic damage. One US Government report investigated 156 deaths over 3 years. They concluded that fluoride accumulates in body tissues and may eventually cause fatal illnesses.
http://www.health-science.com/fluoride_toxicity.ht ml
IF you stopped reading by now, your ADD is probably caused by water fluoridation. The fluoride used in tap water is linked to alzheimers, lower IQ rates in children, and dementia.
http://www.fluoridation.com/brain.htm
Japan, Germany, Sweden, Russia, Holland and Finland have all had mass fluoridation schemes and stopped them. France has never allowed it, and Belgium have gone a step further and banned the sale of fluoride tablets and chewing gum. Between 1990 and 2000, no less than 77 US and Canadian cities either rejected fluoridation or abandoned existing schemes, some after several deca
I think one of the problems with the flouride gel and other fluoride treatments is that they primarily affect the surface of the tooth. Decay is essentially a process of demineralization followed by structural failure (cavitation) when enough mineral substance has been lost.
Your body can actually repair teeth, provided cavitation has not occured. When the tooth structure is first lost, there are pore created in the enamel surface. Later mineral loss comes from below the surface, creating. You've got a sort of void inside the tooth, with a thin smooth shell over the top of it. As long as this surface layer is not breached, you can remineralize the lesion.
The reason, as you note is the critical pH of 4.5. Below this, mineral dissolves. Above this pH, mineral gets laid down. One of the problems with remineralization, however, is that the surfaces pores narrow and close during remineralization, making it hard to get new mineral into the body of the lesion. So, what you really need to fully repair the tooth is cycles of low and high pH. Ironically, plaque can aid in this as it can soak up some fluoride and release it over time.
Anyway, if this technology can repair the subsurface of the tooth, that would be significant. I wonder how they can, though.
random notes:
You can never really get rid of the all the bacteria in the mouth. One hour after a professional cleaning, you've got new biofilm laid down. I think it's back to normal within hours/days. Fluoride doesn't just strengthen teeth, it inhibits glycolysis in some oral bacteria.
I used to think this as well. But then I thought about it a little harder--enamel can only come back out of solution when our saliva gets more basic if there is dissolved enamel in our saliva. Because we swallow and spit, and our body just naturally replaces our saliva constantly, there we lose the dissolved enamel. So then when saliva gets more basic again, there's no dissolved enamel around to redeposit on your teeth. Note also that our saliva isn't actually "alkaline," someone else was saying that the pH is 5.5 when our saliva starts dissolving our enamel. I think that sounds right (I was thinking it was 4.5 before). And looking around on google just now it appears that saliva can get above 7, but I get the feeling that for most people it is between 6 and 7. So not really "acidic" in the sense that this acid can kill anything (I hope that other guy's post got modded away), but not really "alkaline" either.
The article claims, "6-9 volt, at low amperage." How do you keep a 9 volt separation across an acidic liquid? They can't forecefully control both. The mouth has very low resistance, so they'd have a high current if they put 9 volts across it. If they want low current, they drop the voltage. Ohm's law is hard to beat.
While fluoride can protect teeth, it is also a poison when ingested. That is why you shouldn't eat toothpaste. So I question the wisdom of adding fluoride to the water supply.
And you know what, humans still cannot fly.
Zeppelins and airplanes are non-human.
And yet, the Wright Brothers' idea was commercially viable. The problem wasn't the arguments against human flight, which were, like your description of anodization, perfectly valid.
The problem was your assumption that if they seemed similar, they had to suffer from the same challenges.
I remember a device similar to this one (although, I think, without the special "paste" involved) that was developed in Australia, and shown on Beyond 2000, back in the mid/late 1980's. It was a device, custom fitted and molded like a retainer, with batteries and electronics in it to produce a current in your mouth while you slept at night to reduce/eliminate tooth decay from plaque. From the way it was presented on the program, it seemed like something which should have been, at most, five years to market (at least somewhere, if not in the United States). Yet it still has not been manufactured and marketed, not even to the dental services community. Every once in a while, we see another story like this pop up in the news. But we never, ever, seem to be able to purchase the product from our dentists! Personally, I don't think such a product could replace proper brushing or dental checkups and cleanings. However, such a product might make for healthier, stronger teeth for people throughout their lives, which can only be a good thing. So - what/who is blocking this technology from becoming widespread, and why?
Reason is the Path to God - Anon
I was responding to the original poster, who has diabetes and wants to slim down. In that case, I would especially avoid anything with high-fructose corn syrup.
Processed foods with the fat and fibre removed alter our normal digestion. Our bodies are supposed to get fat and fibre through our diet. Cutting out fat will not necessarily force our bodies to burn body fat, and probably will lead to decreased absorption of certain vitamins and minerals. (There are always exceptions, but almost everyone will experience negative health effects from consuming processed foods.)
Worse, processed foods with all the additives, preservatives, and other chemicals affect our immune systems and other body processes in various ways. (Why put those un-natural foods in your body in the first place?) And processed foods have Omega-3 essential fatty acids (EFAs) removed, which explains why the typical person in the US has an un-healthy ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3 EFAs of over ten-to-one. (The ratio should be below two-to-one.)
Many doctors and nutritionists tell diabetics to switch to fat-free and sugar-free foods, but diatetes actually gets worse for over 90 percent of those patients. Doctors have even told them to stop eating fruit (because of the sugars), but that is misguided -- as many diabetics have discovered.
Similarly, dentists tell patients that artificial sweeteners like aspartame and sucralose will not cause dental caries, because they are not fermentable carbohydrates. All the scientific studies in the world can be bent to produce the desired results. If any dentist totally trusts those studies (from the makers of artificial sweeteners), let him/her consume a diet beverage or coat his/her teeth with the artificial sweetener before going to sleep. Would anyone have that much trust to keep that crap on the teeth all night? I certainly would not risk it. Perhaps you would.
It's up to you what you put in your body. But if you only worry about dental care, you might neglect a lot more of your body. Your teeth (and gums) are only part of the total system. And you can brush, floss, and rinse to keep your teeth and gums clean and healthy.
chlorine was used in WWI as a weapon
... and she is in the top 5% of the class.
It was also used in Seattle during the WTO protests as crowd control.
At least according to one of my law school members
I then walked away muttering "Fucking idiot" under my breath.