Blogging, blaming and outing or alerting
Hello, visiting Blamers! (and thanks for the emails) So, it appears I am the only person who’s worked out Switchbutt Dorktor‘s identity, or at least the only person who’s owned up to it. Short summary for non-Blamers: Anonymous doctor posts a couple of rants about obstetric anaesthetic management on his blog. Said rants are filled [...]
Why insomniacs love the internets
Safe for work: [link] Related posts: And lo, the internets did not let me down Thursday Themed Cheezburger: The Seventh Virtue – Love Not-so-evil internets: making kids better writers I love the Internets Poetry for Insomniacs – Dorothy Parker
So, my kids really are mutants
From Newsweek – Autism: New Findings in from Big Gene Study So what are the preliminary findings? What this shows is that there are rare chromosomal changes, what we call copy number variations, [associated with autism] rather than a single base pair or DNA sequence. What does that mean? Humans often have common genetic variations [...]
Not so appropriate to call them machines – ya think?
Reproduced in full from Japan Times:Yanagisawa calls women ‘birth-giving machines’ MATSUE, Shimane Pref. (Kyodo) Health minister Hakuo Yanagisawa referred to women as “birth-giving machines” in a speech Saturday on welfare and health care. Addressing prefectural assembly members of the Liberal Democratic Party in Matsue, the 71-year-old Yanagisawa touched on the nation’s declining birthrate and said, [...]
Photos painting pictures
I came across this vintage poster from 1937 a few days ago, aimed at enticing an international market to come visit Australia: The artist is Douglas Annand. Some links I’ve also followed in the last few days, in discussions about the second anorexic catwalk model to die this year: The (Photoshop) Art of Beauty – [...]
Pro-sex, anti-misogyny:where’s the non-vile porn?
Everybody who wrote about porn over the last few decades has noted that the most popular porn is becoming more and more violently misogynistic and cruel, overwhelmingly portraying coercive, abusive sex. This is a trend which seems to not only endanger the porn performers but also distorts porn-consumers’ expectations of sexual relations generally, which harms [...]
Underweight mammals
In the first two instances, people look and say “starving” and “cruelty” and “neglect” and someone gets prosecuted.
Growing Up Different: Temple Grandin’s experiences with autism (and mine)
The whole article speaks to me about my experiences raising my autistic son, but this section especially:
AUTISTIC TACTILE PROBLEMS
I pulled away when people tried to hug me, because being touched sent an overwhelming tidal wave of stimulation through my body. I wanted to feel the comforting feeling of being held, but then when somebody held me, the effect on my nervous system was overwhelming.
Small itches and scratches that most people ignored were torture. A scratchy petticoat was like sandpaper rubbing my skin raw.
Facing the evidence
An episode of the Health Report on Radio National asked whether our doctors really know what treatment works best for their patients?
Does the current system, which essentially teaches doctors just enough science that they can go into an apprentice programme for their final professional training, absorb and react quickly enough to evidence regarding whether their treatments are actually effective or not?
Dr Alex Barratt provides data which shows that most
Interesting autism research
Autism risk linked to older fathers – study:
Children fathered by men at age 40 and older have a higher risk of developing autism, possibly because of mutations or other genetic changes, according to new research.
The study “provides the first convincing evidence that advanced paternal age is a risk factor for autism spectrum disorder,” said the authors
The first shots of the HPV vaccine
Ian Frazer, the discoverer, is doing a bit of a whirlwind tour today for the cameras – vaccinating some girls and young women in both Brisbane and Sydney on the first day that Gardasil is approved for use in Australia.
As yet there’s no government subsidy for the vaccine (which protects against the virus that causes the main form of cervical cancer), so the full course of three shots costs over A$400. There’s nonetheless no shortage of takers, and a growing number of men interested in the vaccination as well so they can be confident of not infecting their partners.
Skepticism and Autism
The 31st Skeptics’ Circle is up at Terra Sigillata. Biotech, alternative medicine, climatology, religion and more. My favourite post is by Dick about his personal experiences with The Fleecing of the Autism Community. “These frauds sell crap, preying on the concern of parents for their children. They guilt us by saying, “Wouldn’t you do anything [...]
Owie owie ow
I’m awake at 5:45am because of two consequences of following the unwritten law of Sydney: thou shalt spend Australia Day beside the harbour. The corollary laws? First the schedule confusion law: thou shalt forget to put thy bins out when bin day falls on a public holiday, thereby having to rush downstairs at 5:30am, grab [...]
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