TrilbyKat

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U.S. to Start Testing Swine Flu Vaccines in Children

The syntax of the title just bothers me. We're going to start testing the vaccine "in" children? It makes me think that they'll be used like little incubators or something to see how the vaccine plays out. Then again, that's not too far off the mark now, is it? Still, with several known cases in my area locally since July (a rare month for flu!) I could possibly see a parent being willing to let their child participate in a clinical trial. I know the CDC is very worried about this flu season. The fact that the government is willing to license this vaccine as if it were just a seasonal formula change shows that. Getting vaccinated is always a calculated risk. Is the disease deadly enough to warrant risking a vaccination? Maybe so. The nerve disorder link is pretty scary though. Here's some more info on that and the CDC H1N1 Flu site: http://www.thehera ld.co.uk/news/news /display.var.25257 61.0.GPs_on_alert_ for_rare_nerve_dis order_after_swine_ flu_jabs.php http://www.foxnews .com/story/0,2933, 539880,00.html http://www.cdc.gov /h1n1flu/  (Aug 19, 2009 | post #5)

Science / Technology

Social robots offer a preview of tomorrow's classroom

I should be scared, but that link was pretty hilarious. It really does seem that we're headed that way. Throw the dumbing down of our youth - aka Cousin Jethro's "declining " humans - into the mix (where's the hamburger button on this cash register?) and it's an information processing nightmare. “Any fool can use a computer. Many do.” (Ted Nelson) “There are only two industries that refer to their customers as ‘users’.” (Edward Tufte) A computer lets you make more mistakes faster than any invention in human history – with the possible exceptions of handguns and tequila.” (Mitch Radcliffe) If you ever write the story of that "little ol' lady in room 316" I really want to read it! :)  (Jul 28, 2009 | post #29)

Science / Technology

Social robots offer a preview of tomorrow's classroom

That was an idealistic view - my best case scenario. Things rarely play out the way I'd like them to in real life. Your points are all valid and I agree with them. Well, except the one where you make a supposition as to what I might think of you. I think that you are one of the clearest thinking and most entertaining writers on these boards. The voice of caution is a necessary one. Programming robots to teach children is just one small interval away from programming children. Technically though, we program our children anyway. That's why we say things like "Because I said so!" to our kids (just like our mom did) even though we swore we wouldn't. It's been programmed in and must be overwritten. Sadly, many parents do want to turn the care and raising of their children over to others. Even at home kids are given over to the television or the computer, often at an extremely young age, with no adequate adult input or supervision. Will children become attached to their robot teachers/caregiver s? Of course they will. Asimov knew that when he wrote the short story, Robbie. It's not just children that will become attached though. There are currently electronic "pets" and virtual interaction available for all ages. For instance PARO, the Therapeutic Robot, is even being used to help the sick and the elderly in clinical settings. http://www.parorob ots.com/ If you have time, take a look at this excerpt from the book Cognitive Systems: http://tinyurl.com /kp4kam I do believe that the human factor needs to stay in our lives at all ages. Still, I wonder how long it will be before the first robot "spouse" comes online ... As a side note on the drug culture, have you heard of sewer epidemiology? Here's an overview: http://www.popsci. com/scitech/articl e/2008-02/your-sew er-drugs Oregon State University just completed their study here on illicit drug use and meth was present in all our municipalities. It's just heartbreaking. http://oregonstate .edu/ua/ncs/archiv es/2009/jul/new-st udy-uses-wastewate r-map-large-scale- patterns-illicit-d rug-use  (Jul 26, 2009 | post #24)

Science / Technology

Social robots offer a preview of tomorrow's classroom

Possibly one day we will have individualized learning environments for each student, maximized for their developmental level, attention span and any special needs and talents. This environment would be capable of being adjusted on a real time basis. Classroom teachers would be facilitators, observers, advisors - all assisted by machines that would make sure benchmarks were met, work was corrected, subject mastery was achieved and that each student got the attention they needed to learn each subject. Maintaining order would also be the educator's domain. Core subjects would be interspersed with electives, hands-on learning, physical activities, other group interaction and free choice. Good educators will always be needed in some capacity - not that teacher's unions only support the good teachers. It's often more about the politics of the situation and people's individual egos, as is so much in life.  (Jul 20, 2009 | post #12)

Cats

Cat Lovers

Hi Lizard, I found that Costco has decent prices on their large bags of premium food - they even carry organic. Congrats on your new home, MP :) And your new itty-bitty kitty, Hemp :) Have a great week everyone! ='.'=  (Jul 18, 2009 | post #4319)

Cats

Cat Lovers

I haven't read that book yet - even though I bought it for my grandma. I'll have to borrow it. The Neurotic Cat one sounds good, too. There was a book I read as a kid called "How To Live With A Calculating Cat" and it was one of my favorites! Did the Vet Tech thing work out okay? :) Hi to everyone else here, too! White Fire - glad your kitty recovered. That sounded very frightening. blue_bear - your ginger kitty sounds adorable. Male neutered kitties can become real homebodies. I know mine is!  (Jul 17, 2009 | post #4314)

Random

Corrupt-A-Wish

Granted, but you develop a sudden and extreme allergy to Rock Star energy drinks which causes you to swell up like a blow fish. <(0_0)> I wish I had some delicious sushi.  (Jul 11, 2009 | post #25)

Science / Technology

Black Hat: Your Social Security Number Can Be Predicted With On...

That's weird, I don't see them. Those ads are definitely annoying though, in an almost surrealistic way. But hey, private information and cuff links go together like um ... um ... okay I just don't see the connection. Some sites do subscribe to the ads and I see them, but I wonder if I don't see them here because I'm on a Mac using Firefox. I used to see them a lot more using IE on my PC. I also wonder if it was related to the browser or some spyware that Avast let slip by. But if so, who got the (minuscule) payoff? I do see ads for "Local Vida Deals" from Sears here. Which is funny, as Sears is 45 miles away. My town is too small to have any real local deals, although the cafe has excellent pie. Speaking of Kontera, their claim is "Monetize Your Blog with Kontera In-Text Ads" but it's more like Moronize. P.S. Currently my profile page has 2 pest ads on it (should I be offended?) and my hometown has a link to an ad (in German) showing a woman holding a scary-looking dead red fish that I think she plans to decapitate. http://ewe.at/de/k uechenmodelle/tren dsetter  (Jul 11, 2009 | post #3)

Science / Technology

Black Hat: Your Social Security Number Can Be Predicted With On...

Well now, this just bums me out. Plus, here's more. At a certain point in time the US government began requiring social security numbers for children in order for them to be claimed as tax deductions. Siblings that were registered at the same time may have consecutive ending numbers if the paperwork was processed together. Randomizing would have been a better system. Next thing you know someone will be suggesting tattoos (on the hand or forehead, of course) that only show up under ultraviolet light or implantable information chips. Well guess what? Those could be hacked or forged, too. Still, it is sad to see how vulnerable our private information may be.  (Jul 9, 2009 | post #1)

Science / Technology

Is Rapamycin Going To Be The Fountain Of Youth?

I found it quite interesting that the mice were already older (60 human years equivalent) when the drug was finally able to be used in their food and it still increased life expectancy dramatically. Rapamycin was originally discovered in a random soil sample taken from Easter Island (Rapa Nui) decades ago. http://tinyurl.com /rapamycin  (Jul 9, 2009 | post #1)

Cats

Going For The Guinness World Record

That's a good question. I went to the Guinness Book of World Records online and they currently have very few accessible records. A link from the page about the current record holding cat was no longer working. Someone will probably publish it if the record is officially verified as broken by Stewie. I'll keep an eye out for it. Here is the current longest cat at 48 inches: http://www.verismo cat.com/htmscripts /leo-guinness.htm  (Jul 8, 2009 | post #2)

Cats

Should cats be allowed oudoors?

I feel the same way about keeping birds (and other caged animals) now. I had parakeets and cockatiels growing up and bred a few specialty guinea pigs when my kids were little, but no more. I kept the cages for rehabilitating wildlife. My dad was a land surveyor who brought home displaced/injured rosy boas, baby birds, voles, horned toads, tortoises and more, so I got a lot of experience there, but always with the hope of release. Not all of them made it, of course. A few summers back we were able to raise a robin only a few days old (completely bald!) to maturity. It learned to forage as we put sod and bugs into its cage once it started hopping around. We released it once we saw the other juvenile robins starting to forage in the meadow. It flew off immediately. Sad, but the goal is not to tame them, so it was really a success. Hope you have a good week. :)  (Jul 6, 2009 | post #410)

Cats

Should cats be allowed oudoors?

If licensing cats is considered to be an expensive inconvenience for a person, then perhaps they should consider a goldfish or pet rock. Personally, I believe that communities will eventually unite in their desire to control unwanted pet populations by requiring all pets to be fixed unless a breeding certificate of some sort is obtained. Hopefully breed standards will be met and only reputable breeders that practice sound genetic techniques (testing for genetic disease, fixing animals not suitable for breeding, etc.) will be allowed to be in the program. For those that think we will lose something by this, that "responsible " owners will be paying for it all and that the price of kittens will skyrocket and only pedigreed pets will be available I beg to differ. The fees that owners pay will go toward enforcement and collection of fines from the "irresponsibl e" owners. It will take years and years before a dent is put in the millions of pets euthanized annually. Plus, would it really be so terrible if pets became a bit more valuable, so that not one was unwanted? Animal Shelter Euthanasia: http://www.america nhumane.org/about- us/newsroom/fact-s heets/animal-shelt er-euthanasia.html Also, for those that think that this is not an important issue compared to crime, poverty, etc. I say that it is a part of the larger picture of personal responsibility and is thus interrelated. Children are our hope for the future. Teaching and requiring responsible pet ownership sets an example of doing the right thing for ourselves and our communities. Caring for unwanted puppies and dogs is even being used in several prisons with successful results. The inmates learn to be responsible for these animals. In turn, they do a service for their community and receive unconditional love from their charges. Some prisons have had inmates train puppies for disabled persons, as well. For more about these programs see the following links: http://www.coyotec ommunications.com/ dogs/prisondogs.ht ml http://www.petresc ue.com.au/article/ 635 http://www.cnn.com /2009/LIVING/wayof life/06/19/o.puppi es.behind.bars/ http://www.examine r.com/x-669-Pet-Re scue-Examiner~y200 9m1d23-Pups-on-Par ole-heals-dogs-and -prison-inmates http://www.puppies behindbars.com/abo ut.asp http://www.pawsinp rison.com/  (Jul 6, 2009 | post #408)

Cats

Should cats be allowed oudoors?

Speaking of animals wandering off from their property, we have a neighbor whose horse kept getting loose and wandering into the road. They were having trouble caring for it and containing it. Let me tell you it gives you a shock to come around a curve and see a 700+ lb horse in the street! They eventually found a home for it before it was hit, thank goodness. Their dog kept getting loose, too and then it killed my other neighbor's pet Polish hen. They were more careful after that, but it was a pretty sad thing. My own dog can't be trusted at all not to run off in the street. We have to watch her carefully at all times. One of their cats has moved in with my grandmother, but they have a lot more. She called to see if they would give it to her, but they said no. The cat appears to have made its choice, though and won't leave, so technically I guess it has two owners. My grandmother has already taken it to the vet and made sure it was fixed and healthy. It's an indoor/outdoor cat, just like her other cat. I guess I feel that cats, like dogs, should also require some kind of licensing. If licensing my cat is what it takes to ensure rabies and other vaccines for all cats, I'd gladly help pay for that. When we pay the fee for our dog, it's cheaper because she is fixed. The same would be true for cats, I'm sure, and that would not only encourage owners to fix their cats, it would also help pay for the cost of caring for cats turned in to animal control.  (Jul 6, 2009 | post #407)