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Should We Build a Dinosaur?
By John Tierney, The New York Times, April 14, 2009
When I endorsed the idea of resurrecting a Neanderthal from DNA, I was a little surprised at how many indignant comments it inspired. I’m not sure how representative that reaction was — there could be a selection bias for indignation when posting comments — but I’ll assume there are a fair number of people who don’t like the idea of recreating extinct hominids.
Then how about Jack Horner’s scheme to build a dinosaur?
( Read more... )
18 and Under: Another Awkward Sex Talk: Respect and Violence
By PERRI KLASS, M.D., The New York Times, April 14, 2009
Not long ago, in the clinic, a fellow pediatrician and mother asked whether we were still teaching our sons old-fashioned elevator etiquette: stand back and let the ladies off first.
We all protested that we don’t particularly like it when men pull that elevator stunt — hospital elevators tend to be packed, and the best thing to do if you’re near the door is get out promptly — but we had to admit we thought our adolescent sons should know the drill.
Once you start asking about whether there are special lessons that should be taught to boys, people jump pretty quickly from elevators to sex (or maybe that’s just the crowd I run with). Sex, after all, is a subject on which pediatricians give plenty of advice. And it becomes very tricky to formulate that advice without making some unpleasant assumptions about adolescent sexuality.
( Read more... )
Really? The Claim: Nasal Irrigation Can Ease Allergy Symptoms
By ANAHAD O’CONNOR, The New York Times, April 14, 2009
THE FACTS
Pollen forecasters are predicting a heavy season this year, so allergy sufferers may be struggling to find relief.
For some, the neti pot, a nasal irrigator that resembles a small teapot, has become an alternative remedy. While it is not nearly as convenient as popping a pill or using a spray, several recent studies have found that nasal irrigation can reduce symptoms of allergies and other nasal problems.
( Read more... )
Personal Health: Keeping Those Bed Bugs From Biting
By JANE E. BRODY, The New York Times, April 14, 2009
Throughout my early childhood I was tucked into bed with a gentle admonition: “Good night, sleep tight. Don’t let the bed bugs bite.” Not that my parents or I had ever seen a bed bug or known anyone bitten by one.
But these days this old saying has resonance for many more people than in years past, including those who sleep in expensive homes and four-star hotels. Last month, a family living in a $3 million private house in Brooklyn discarded rooms’ worth of furniture, the cushions carefully slashed and notes attached saying the pieces had bed bugs and were not safe to take.
Had this been the case 40-odd years ago when I became a New York homeowner, I might have had a hard time furnishing my rooms; most were decorated with foundlings, including cushioned chairs. In those days, street scavengers like me had little reason to worry about bed bugs.
But the bed bug problem has become so widespread in 21st- century America that The Journal of the American Medical Association published a clinical review in April, “Bed Bugs and Clinical Consequences of Their Bites,” by Jerome Goddard, a medical entomologist at Mississippi State University, and Dr. Richard deShazo, an allergist at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
( Read more... )
By John Tierney, The New York Times, April 14, 2009
When I endorsed the idea of resurrecting a Neanderthal from DNA, I was a little surprised at how many indignant comments it inspired. I’m not sure how representative that reaction was — there could be a selection bias for indignation when posting comments — but I’ll assume there are a fair number of people who don’t like the idea of recreating extinct hominids.
Then how about Jack Horner’s scheme to build a dinosaur?
( Read more... )18 and Under: Another Awkward Sex Talk: Respect and Violence
By PERRI KLASS, M.D., The New York Times, April 14, 2009
Not long ago, in the clinic, a fellow pediatrician and mother asked whether we were still teaching our sons old-fashioned elevator etiquette: stand back and let the ladies off first.
We all protested that we don’t particularly like it when men pull that elevator stunt — hospital elevators tend to be packed, and the best thing to do if you’re near the door is get out promptly — but we had to admit we thought our adolescent sons should know the drill.
Once you start asking about whether there are special lessons that should be taught to boys, people jump pretty quickly from elevators to sex (or maybe that’s just the crowd I run with). Sex, after all, is a subject on which pediatricians give plenty of advice. And it becomes very tricky to formulate that advice without making some unpleasant assumptions about adolescent sexuality.
( Read more... )Really? The Claim: Nasal Irrigation Can Ease Allergy Symptoms
By ANAHAD O’CONNOR, The New York Times, April 14, 2009
THE FACTS
Pollen forecasters are predicting a heavy season this year, so allergy sufferers may be struggling to find relief.
For some, the neti pot, a nasal irrigator that resembles a small teapot, has become an alternative remedy. While it is not nearly as convenient as popping a pill or using a spray, several recent studies have found that nasal irrigation can reduce symptoms of allergies and other nasal problems.
( Read more... )Personal Health: Keeping Those Bed Bugs From Biting
By JANE E. BRODY, The New York Times, April 14, 2009
Throughout my early childhood I was tucked into bed with a gentle admonition: “Good night, sleep tight. Don’t let the bed bugs bite.” Not that my parents or I had ever seen a bed bug or known anyone bitten by one.
But these days this old saying has resonance for many more people than in years past, including those who sleep in expensive homes and four-star hotels. Last month, a family living in a $3 million private house in Brooklyn discarded rooms’ worth of furniture, the cushions carefully slashed and notes attached saying the pieces had bed bugs and were not safe to take.
Had this been the case 40-odd years ago when I became a New York homeowner, I might have had a hard time furnishing my rooms; most were decorated with foundlings, including cushioned chairs. In those days, street scavengers like me had little reason to worry about bed bugs.
But the bed bug problem has become so widespread in 21st- century America that The Journal of the American Medical Association published a clinical review in April, “Bed Bugs and Clinical Consequences of Their Bites,” by Jerome Goddard, a medical entomologist at Mississippi State University, and Dr. Richard deShazo, an allergist at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
( Read more... )
