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Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Downranking is Dead!
I am estatic about this change. I've been posting about downranking being a problem since 2006. Costs are the single most important part of game balance, and being able to evade costs has always led to degenerate gameplay.
To me, the best thing about WotLK is that Blizzard is finally beginning to take costs, both mana/rage/energy costs and time costs, seriously. This should lead to a stronger, more balanced, and more fun game.
35 comments:
I've been waiting for the devs to do this for a while!
R.I.P. rank 1 Flash of Light.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous11:56 PM, August 13, 2008
Huge pvp problems.ReplyDelete
Lots of classes use rank 1 spells for ccs like Polymorph, Roots, etc.
Don't forget that some lower rank spells have different cast times. Mages often use rank 1 frostbolt to snare.
I'm really into this. Never used downranking that much anyway. ;-)ReplyDelete
Together with spellpower, spell pushback capping, flexible talent specs and many more changes WotLK is really turning out the be healers frozen dream! ;-P
- Hofflerand2:44 AM, August 14, 2008
This is awesome. If it was implemented right now, it would be a problem because down-ranked heals, rank 1 Cons, rank 1 Frostbolt/Poly, etc are important, balanced tools, but Blizzard can balance around not having these for WotLK.ReplyDelete
This has always been a pet peeve for me as well. I'm so glad for this change.
To be honest, like Az said, some things will take quite a nerf (low rank snares, frostbolt rank1 to name one) in mana efficiency, compared to hamstring/crippleshiv.ReplyDelete
On the other hand, it makes pve healing dullies IMO, not having to think between downgrading spells since you'll only make your mana efficiency worse instead of doing less useless overhealing (and save a drop of mana juice)
Well, we'll see I guess.
I didn't realize rank one spells still worked against higher level creatures and players. I thought they had a much higher level of being resisted and that this resistance was implemented a long time ago to eliminate the problem of people using lower level spells for their effects as a way to save mana.ReplyDelete
So is there any instance when a mage would use a higher level of polymorph over the lowest level of polymorph (prior to WotLK)?
Every instance, as the higher levels of polymorph last longer (the lowest level is... 20 seconds?)ReplyDelete
It makes healing more intuitive but it really does remove some of the skill that is required to be effective at downranking. Oh well, c'est la vie.ReplyDelete
If they manage to balance the game around this change, i really welcome it.ReplyDelete
It wont be an easy task tho, because right now the proper use of downranking is what really makes the exceptional healer in your raid.
Especially for us Paladins and the Shamen healing will have to change very drastically.
I really really hope this wont mean we have to go back to the old-school FoL Spam pseudo-HoT and the occasional HL in emergency situations - as we wont be able to keep up Light's Grace but have to pray for Holy Shock Crits.
Anyway, i am really anxious about how this will play out in the end.
For me it seems especially the Priest Class is already designed to work perfectly with this change (insane spirit based regen + mana refund for overheals), but it's still a lot of work to balance it properly for Holy Paladins.
I welcome this as well. As having to downrank to keep up Lights Grace for quick heals in spike damage situations felt more like an exploit to me rather than an intended game mechanic.ReplyDelete
With holy talents and the increased range of Holy Shock, the old method of spike healing seems to have been nicely replaced by the insta-crit Holy Shock followed by instant Holy Light.
C-C-C-C-Combo Healing!!!
(Killer Instinct anyone?)
The main thing I'll miss is Rank 1 Consecrate while defending in BGs or trying to pop that druid out in arena... but all in all I like it.
I didn't think of it untill I started reading the posts, but in arena I'm spamming level 1 concecration all the time.ReplyDelete
That's going to give the stealth classes a leg up on this old Ret Pally. Hopefully the new talent tree's will avoid the NERF bat and REt will be so OP in Arena I won't need concecration anymore.
Yeah... hopefully they're gonna need that opener just to STAND a chance against Ret.. =)ReplyDelete
this is going to make things interesting for pally threat rotation, which normally includes whichever rank of con your SA gains can afford. with this change if you aren't getting enough damage you cant downrank to keep threat on multiple targets. will make overgeared pally tanking... interestingReplyDelete
Boo! Hiss! But I love using Earth Shock Rank 1 to interrupt casters!ReplyDelete
Seriously this is a needed change.
- Azreal9:23 AM, August 14, 2008
There are lots of PvP situations that are affected by this change. Low rank snares are only part of the problem. When you only want the effect, and the damage portion of the spell is not important, then using higher ranks was pointless.ReplyDelete
Shaman Earth Shock? Will they even be able to keep interrupting if it costs that much mana? They can't lower the damage as a balance change either as currently, Enhancement Shaman use Earth Shock in PvE.
Dispel buffers? When you see someone chain dispelling your buffs, you could often use low rank spells to mitigate its effectiveness. This change removes some options, and thus, lowers player skill cap.
Rank 1 AoEs to break stealth. The mana cost is way too high on AoEs to use them for this reason anymore. 1+ mana for the chance to unstealth a Rogue?
This is a huge buff to Arena classes that don't use mana. Rogues and Warriors are already over represented, and this change is honestly, at this point, absurd. I'm sure they can make some balance changes around it, but once again it seems that PvE balance issues have spilled over into PvP.
Azreal, I disagree that this change is pure PvE. It's aimed at PvP as well.ReplyDelete
R1 Earthshock and similar tactics are degenerate gameplay. You're getting a huge effect for a very small price.
For example, now a Shaman has to take into account if she can afford to interrupt this specific spell, or if it would be better to save the interrupt for a more important spell.
That's a huge level of gameplay and skill. It brings mana-management back into PvP. A skilled shaman can now be judged by the spells she choses to not interrupt.
I agree that warriors and rogues will probably need to be rebalanced. In particular, rogue burst and stunlock out of stealth will probably have to be toned down.
- Anonymous11:19 AM, August 14, 2008
I just lost 4 heals I use on a regular basis.ReplyDelete
Will I get 4 new heals? Like "Weaker but cheaper greater heal"?
I hate the idea of losing spells. As a healer, I don't always need a fast, very inefficient heal for 1.5k or a long, slow, efficient heal that heals for 5.5k. A downranked big heal isn't about abusing the mechanics, it about having a spell that costs 2/3 as much mana and hits half as hard.
Unless they add new types of direct healing spells, a lot of classes just lost a number of spells. It's equivalent to removing abilities. Ouch. More options > fewer options.
[Now, level 1 frostbolt, earthshock, frost shock, sure :-). But heals? The coefficient fix solved the abusive problem.]
Sorry Rohan, but you know very little about PvP. I've been top 1-3 throughout season 1-3 in various brackets as various classes and specs, even lolret before it was popular, and this change does not promote skill or mana management at all. What you are suggesting is really a joke; you simply don't have the experience to realize how much of one.ReplyDelete
It's not hey, I should let this spell through! My ES costs x mana, but my heal on the target will only cost y mana! No. It's the same as making pummel 40 rage. You aren't saying man I shouldn't interrupt this fear cast on my healer, I'll use the rage to do damage! You will simply end up doing less damage, OR running out of mana much earlier. You're already limited by cooldowns and GCD (less in WotLK) on what you can interupt. Adding another dimension does not increase skill at all.
This change, as it stands, as I'm sure it will undergo some tweaking, limits options for casters greatly. Thus, the player skill cap is lowered. There's no other way around it. Once again, melee will reign supreme, as usual. Since I play a melee class, I shouldn't really be complaining, but I will, in the spirit of balance.
This is simply a classic example of PvE changes affecting PvP. The design for this game has always been PvE centric, with PvP as an after thought. Even the new PvP zone is designed entirely with PvE in mind. Control the zone, gain token resources from EVERY instance in the WORLD.
Well, Azreal, we'll just have to disagree on this.ReplyDelete
There are two costs for casters, time and mana. Having effects that only have a time cost is a bad idea, especially when other effects have both costs.
This applies in both PvP and PvE. The fact that time costs in PvP are more important than mana costs is a negative, not a positive.
As for the PvP zone, how else do you suggest that they get people to participate on a regular basis? The PvE tokens is just a carrot to lure people into participating.
Heh, maybe your side could get bonus honor from BGs when you control the zone. I should suggest that on the forums.ReplyDelete
I don't think you can do anything with Arena. Maybe get a bonus to your arena points for the percentage of time your faction controls the BG. But arena is meant to be more even. Gearing up faster because your server is Horde-dominated doesn't really seem right.
I play a Tankadin and I'm dissapointed about this change soley because lower ranks of Consecrate play such an important roll in the way I tank 5 mans/Kara. Once a tankadin outgears an instance, the scariest aspect of tanking is picking up the next wave of trash when your mana bar reads zero. Consecrate Rank 4 takes half the mana of max rank currently and grabs the masses of mobs who would be otherwise be charging my healer and I can cast it when I would otherwise be standing helplessly waiting for another 500 mana throw down my max rank.ReplyDelete
Downranking is necessary in a tankadin's line of work, as it often means the difference between a successful run and a wipe.
- Azreal3:27 PM, August 14, 2008
Since you've never PvPed seriously, I can't expect you to understand this change in the slightest.ReplyDelete
I'm very happy with this change. I don't think a single one of my characters will not benefit from it.ReplyDelete
No reason to be an ass Azreal. This affects both PvE and PvP to a very large extent. Depending on how they balance this it could break non-priest healing classes.ReplyDelete
- Azreal5:38 PM, August 14, 2008
This is a very negative change. Therefore more attitude towards it will be negative. If not properly balanced, this could break all mana using classes.ReplyDelete
Well, it could be worse. We could not have Flash of Light and be locked out of healing at below 18% of our base mana.ReplyDelete
With this change Divine Plea and a Sheathbot spec are looking better and better.
Gonna disagree here with ya as well Coriel. While I generally hate it when blizz attempts to balance pvp and screws up pve (see the lifebloom nerf they did to druids which only hurt pve healing), overall this just screws over everyone.ReplyDelete
I don't like arenas much and not a big pvp'er these days (bored with it mostly). There is a reason my priests have rank one SWP on their bars, no matter the spec, no matter the level (a 70 and 29 twink). The 70 used to be a 29 twink till I leveled her. Rank 1 spells are not "degenerate" gameplay, its called advanced strategy. Others have mentioned pally, shaman and mage downsides. On a priest:
PVE: When shadow, if the tank has low TPS for whatever reason, rank1 SWP lets me put up max shadow weaving and misery (helpful for a pally tank), maxing debuffs and helping me hit max dps earlier after waiting for threat.
In pvp, a very effective strategy for "mana burning" mana users with out taking 3s to cast an actual "mana burn" spell is to toss up rank1 buffs and rank1 spells. Oooh, that priest just spent 400 mana dispelling rank1 SWP, which cost me 50 mana (or whatever it is). It makes you think more on dispelling things yourself. You still have to think about when/what you dispell and how to manage your mana.
This change just takes away those options and dumbs it down.
Not to make this entire comment field a flamewar, but the validity of arguments is not dependant on experience, so stop being asses.ReplyDelete
On topic; I'm happy with this change, because I assume Blizzard did it with an intent to replace the R4/5 HT-likes and its cousins with unique and interesting buttons instead. The dispelling/trash buff metagame is unecessary. I'd rather see it replaced it with more interesting skill interactions.
This and Salv being removed both go a long way to wanting me to play pally in WotlK.
There are 4 problems I can see from this change:ReplyDelete
1. Rogues and Druids become even more powerful in PvP. Right now one of the few defenses at getting stealth-stunlocked is Rank 1 AoE's. Every class that has it does it. They need to rebalance Pounce/Cheap Shot so a rogue can't go apeshit crazy without any way to stop him if they're removing the only stealth breaker in the game.
2. Talents at itemization need to be rebalenced. Light's Grace is close to a waste of talent points now. I'm not going to dump 1300 mana every 15 seconds to keep it up. Libram of Mending is crap. No reason to want a 22 Mp5 buff when it costs you almost 10 times as much mana to get that buff up. 2-piece Tier 6? Who cares, I'm not using Holy Light for anything except emergencies.
3. There is a reason no one uses max rank heals. They cost too much mana for (in almost every situation) an HPS gain that you don't need. Why would you use a max rank Holy Light when a rank 9 gives you the same effective HPS required and costs 2/3 the amount? With this change Paladins have exactly 2 HPS levels: Flash of Light and Holy Light. If incoming damage is more than your FoL but less than HL what happens? Well sorry bro, you're screwed, enjoy your OOM overhealing with Holy Light!
4. It doesn't make healing any more intuitive. Sure, you'll only have 2 heal buttons on your bars now (whoopie, more room for Smite!) but healing will be just as unintuitive as now. Instead of chain casting multiple ranks of heals people will just be cast-canceling max ranks until it is needed. How is cast-canceling any more intuitive (or easier for bad players) than downranking? For that matter, how does a paladin sitting outside the 5 second rule because he's just cast-canceling fit with the class at all?
If the devs don't address these issues this change is absolutely horrible for everyone involved.
- Anonymous7:37 AM, August 15, 2008
I would like to hear from someone in the Beta how this is working out before tearing what little is left of my hair out. Instead of bashing each other over how we *think* this is going to work, let's wait and see what people who are experiencing it have to say.ReplyDelete
- Hofflerand10:03 AM, August 15, 2008
It's simple: Blizzard just have to balance around this change now. The blue who released this info even said that if a class lost a crucial ability due to this, they will find a way to make up for it.ReplyDelete
Ret paladins should not have such mana problems that they have to use rank 1 SoC. JoC shouldn't do such sh!t damage that we should want to use rank 1 SoC. Look how awesome our the new WotLK Judgement system is--it's based on this concept.
If a mage needs to use rank 1 Frostbolt commonly, then they should be given a separate ability that works in a similar way. Or, they can lose this ability but get a totally new one that helps them in a different way.
Etc, etc. In before, "you have never played on high-rated teams and do not understand arena": I have.
Again, it's simple.. balance is being thrown all out of whack in WotLK and this is the perfect time to get rid of these player-discovered crutches. If a class/spec needs an ability to be viable, give them that ability. If implemented properly, it will not lower the skill it takes to play your class.
Folks faith in Blizzard to do a decent job of rebalancing classes/talents around this major change astounds me given their past record. :)ReplyDelete
One blue/blizz post that was going around on the threads about this on the official forums that really torques me off was their druid example. Namely that they didn't intend the druid to be spamming only lifebloom and some rejuvs and thus they're nerfing LB a bit and giving druids more healing options/reasons to not be a one trick pony.
That statement is completely and utterly stupid/insane. Everyone told them they were making druids in BC into hot bots and thats what they became. Blizzard purposely locked out the old downranking standby of HT spam and forbade tree's from even casting it. So duh, no one uses it anymore except when desperate for a big heal. Blizzard designed it that way and if they didnt see what was coming they're completely clueless.
I used to be a HT spam resto healer in 1.0. I liked it but grew bored with it. Tree didnt impress me, as I thought it made druids still stuck as raid healers and hurt their 5 man capabilities. Now I've been proven wrong and tree is viable for 5 mans but its still stuck purely in a raid hot bot mode (and great at it with the spirit regen changes now). That was blizzard's choice not an unintented consequence.
If you look around some of the changes made on the Beta so far, and the responses on the Beta forums, you can see that the developers are really working at filling in as many gaps as they can. Many talented abilities which were considered "essential" (as in, for all players of that class, not just players of a specific build) for PvP (even if they were new ones for Wrath) are starting to become baseline, as an example.ReplyDelete
If the developers see that there needs to be new abilities that emulate downranked spells, then they're going to add them. I have no doubts about it.
- mandaree9:56 AM, August 16, 2008
I think Dazanna's right. Light's grace is nearly useless as of now.ReplyDelete
Holy shock seems to be a fair emergency heal, though: its base heal is about half of holy light's, and that ratio should be higher with the heal bonus. The instant heal buff if you crit seems to be indefinite, so you might start a fight with divine favor, holy shock, then flash with the occasional shock until it really hits the fan and you use up your instant HL, then holy shock every 6 seconds until you crit, etc.
Holy shock seems to be the standard emergency heal now, holy light a situational big emergency heal.


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Cyberbullying is using information and communication technologies to deliberately and repeatedly behave in a manner intended to harass, threaten, humiliate or harm others. Research suggests that between 20 - 30% of students will experience cyberbullying and between 10 - 20% of students will be a cyberbully at some point.
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Gently ask questions to discover how long the cyberbullying has been going on, the names of those involved (if known), and the forms of cyberbullying used. If there is evidence of the cyberbullying - saved text messages, posts, websites, etc. - have your child show these to you and save these for documentation should it be needed. If the cyberbullying included a realistic physical threat of harm report it to your local law enforcement office immediately.
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If reporting the incident to law enforcement is the best course of action, report and document the incident(s) following the guidelines you received.

subset: commoncrawl


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Not just any pizza but buffalo chicken pizza with monterey jack cheese, bermuda onions and blue cheese. Seriously this was so good I ate the leftovers cold right from the fridge. I love buffalo chicken but hate wings. I'm just not into all that bones and stuff, really not a wing girl. But the stuff, the sauce that's actually on the buffalo chicken wings is something I love. That buttery, hot, sticky sauce with a bite? Oh yes please, may I have seconds with extra hot sauce and use the blue cheese to chill down the hot snap is all kinds of craziness going on in the mouth fun.
So that is what inspired me to create this in pizza form. You know all the goodness of that buffalo chicken sauce, and the blue cheese, all on top of a crispy pizza. You just can't get good pizza like this at a pizza joint--well maybe, in NYC.
(sorry for lack of more photos; hungry people in house ate pizza faster than I could photograph)
buffalo chicken pizza w/ blue cheese
print recipe
To make:
Bake a couple chicken breasts that are well coated with olive oil and salt & pepper in a 350 degree oven until done (about 30+ minutes?).
While chicken is cooling melt about 3-4 TB of butter with 1/4 cup of tabasco sauce (or franks hot sauce or whatever hot sauce you love). When chicken is cooled, break apart into large chunks, place in bowl and coat them with the hot sauce mixture.
Roll out pizza dough, put a thin layer of the hot sauce mixture on pizza dough, then top with a thin layer of monterey jack cheese (or whatever you like), then the coated chicken, then crumble some blue cheese over the pizza, and top with thin shreds of bermuda onion. (I also like to put a few extra onions, raw, on the pizza when it just comes out of the oven). You could also top this with some fresh chives when it just comes out of the oven.
Before it goes in the oven take a little bit of olive oil and lightly brush the outside of the pizza, then sprinkle same edges with a little bit of onion powder and some salt & pepper.
Bake in a 450/500 degree oven till nice and crisp (mine takes but 20 minutes to bake, but I like mine well done).
buffalo chicken pizza w/ blue cheese
43 comments:
I never thought a pizza could be pretty, but you found a way! When I ate meat...I hate wings too...who wants all that skin and bones- ick! My husband would love this - he is a buffalo chicken fanatic.ReplyDelete
Hope you are having a most lovely weekend
yum yum yum, we LOVE buffalo chicken pizza. We love wings too but they are messy!ReplyDelete
Wow! This looks delicious! Can't wait to make this!ReplyDelete
I am always on the look-out for new toppings for our Thursday Night Pizza. We've never done Buffalo chicken before and the hubs loooooves blue cheese - perfect!ReplyDelete
I kepts seeing this on Facebook, and had to come over here to see the whole thing!ReplyDelete
i'm w/you about the wings...photograph isReplyDelete
quite "delicious"
dawn...did you bake the 101 cookbooks recipe for your dough?
What must I get updates on your blog when I am about to go to bed in lieu of eating something awful for me???? Now I want your damn pizza...not a very healthy bed time snack!ReplyDelete
Even in NYC, pizza this good is hard to come by. Like you, I love buffalo sauce but not wings so much. Much better in pizza form. This looks delicious!ReplyDelete
i hate wings too!! but buffalo chicken, i have come to really enjoy :) this pizza looks delicious... and reminds me that i have buffalo chicken sausage in my fridge that would go great on a pizza!ReplyDelete
This looks unbelievable! I absolutely LOVE your blog and read it often. Thanks!ReplyDelete
I loooove your pizzas!! This is like a much easier way to eat chicken wings.ReplyDelete
All around winner. Fabulous job. I love buffalo chicken and I love pizza. The combo = heaven! Cheers!ReplyDelete
Well... with the NBA playoffs in full swing this is definitely on good eats I'll be making. :)ReplyDelete
One of my favorite flavors of pizza. And I live for blue cheese.ReplyDelete
what a great recipe! I like so much pizzas with this cheese yum!ReplyDelete
have you legally changed your name to .? :)ReplyDelete
i really really prefer that my chicken be de-boned. really. there's something so barbaric about gnawing on a chicken wing or leg. no thanks!
I'm not a wing girl either, would rather cut my buffalo boneless wings with a knife and fork! This is amazing Dawn. My kind of pizza.ReplyDelete
My husband loves Buffalo sauce on just about anything, but I can't get him to eat blue cheese. Do you think the pizza would be worth making without the blue cheese?ReplyDelete
we need a pizza night around here everything is so willynilly and shim sham - I love the toppings on this.ReplyDelete
All the good parts and no bones!
Now that's a gorgeous slice of pizza! Love this flavor combo and I'm eager to try the whole wheat dough from WFs now!ReplyDelete
Must eat that now!!ReplyDelete
good to know you like whole food's crust. i am all about ready-made!ReplyDelete
- Anonymous5/2/10, 11:05 PM
A fabulous pizza, I love the blue cheese on it!ReplyDelete
- Anonymous5/2/10, 11:36 PM
Pizza!!! Love the buffalo chicken pizza :) Now I feel like making it.ReplyDelete
That looks wicked good! I'm not a wing fan myself, but there's a place near my apartment that does "boneless wings", aka chicken tenders, and tosses them in sauce like wings. Good times.ReplyDelete
The hubs is going to love this one! I can't wait to show him the recipe.ReplyDelete
Oh Dawn THIS is a thing of beauty. It looks so good.ReplyDelete
I have had buffalo chicken quesadillas but never on a pizza. This looks so damn addictive that I probably wouldn't share.ReplyDelete
Ahh, the blue cheese is the crowning touch. Any kind of dough baked to a crisp with pungent blue cheese is a winner by me.ReplyDelete
No wings for you!? That's fine. If you come to LA, we'll make this pizza for you instead of the actual chicken. :)ReplyDelete
I have been jones-ing for pizza lately and your out-there combo would definitely suit me!ReplyDelete
Oh wow, this is amazing, you are a genius!ReplyDelete
I love this idea, especially since you use chicken breasts...I mean, if it's good for the wings, how much better for the white meat!ReplyDelete
i'm usually not a big fan of wings either (the bones...), but i have a sneaky feeling this pizza would be awesomeReplyDelete
yeah my stomach is now knocking, and it is asking to let that pizza in.ReplyDelete
Yum Yum and more Yum!ReplyDelete
We make pizza a lot - it's our go to meal. It's great with BBQ sauce too. Love the use of the blue cheese!ReplyDelete
That is one tasty looking pizza!ReplyDelete
This is a nice variety of cheese you used here in this pizza! I would love to try it.ReplyDelete
Brilliant concept. I get tired of the bones too.ReplyDelete
I made this last night and,it was DAMN GOOD! I've been instructed to make it again and again and again.ReplyDelete
I'm only too happy to comply!
I love this pizza flavor!ReplyDelete


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Friday, February 01, 2008
Will We become SuperHUMAN?!
Accidental Discovery During Surgery Reverses Memory Loss
A "pacemaker" for the human brain might be on the horizon
A 50 year old man, dangerously obese, goes to the hospital for experimental brain surgery to suppress his appetite. A small piece of his skull is removed, and an electrical probe inserted deep into his brain tissue. It reaches his hypothalamus and current is switched on. Suddenly the patient -- awake through the procedure -- begins to speak uncontrollably about events in his past, events he had long forgotten. He remembers a day's walk in the park 30 years ago, complete with what people were wearing, all in vivid color. He sees them speaking to him, every motion they made. The intensity and level of detail of the memories is frightening.
The scene may read like the script of a bad science fiction flick but it comes from an unidentified patient at Ontario's Toronto Western Hospital. No one was more astonished than the man's doctors, who began to experiment further on him. Over the next few weeks, they continued testing. His ability to both learn and remember was substantially increased when the electrodes were turned on. Continuous stimulation also had a residual effect -- after the electrodes were off, there was still a slight benefit.
Professor Andreas Lozano, of the Neurosurgery Department of Toronto Western, led the research. He says the electrodes function like "turning up the volume" on the brain's memory circuits. "As we turned the current up, we first drove his memory circuits and improved his learning. As we increased the intensity, we got spontaneous memories of discrete events. At a certain intensity, he would slash to the [park scene]. When the intensity was increased further, he got more detail but, when the current was turned off, it rapidly decayed."
Lozano's previous research included stimulating certain portions of the brain to curb appetite. His research in that field earned him more than a few headlines in 2006.
The results were so successful the same technique is now being trialed on six Alzheimer's patients. Functioning like a "pacemaker for the brain," the treatment offers hope for the millions worldwide who suffer from the debilitating memory and cognitive losses caused by Alzheimer's.
The electrodes are connected by a cable that runs under the patient's skin, down the back of the neck to a battery pack implanted in the patient's chest. A constant low-level current stimulates the brain tissue, but is otherwise imperceptible to the patient.
The devices are the same as those already being used successfully as a treatment for Parkinson's disease, severe depression, and even chronic pain; all that varies is the exact segment of the brain where implantation occurs. In Parkinson's, for instance, the subthalamic nucleus is stimulated. Depression targets a small area of the cingulate cortex.
"This gives us new insight into which brain structures are involved in memory", says Professor Lozano.
More news of Lozano's research is expected to be announced later today to Canadian media.
Posted by b3r at
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TagBoard:: Talk all you want!


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1 package (6.25 oz) thin rice noodle (soaked in almost boiling water until desired tenderness, rinsed, drained thoroughly)
View the complete recipe
I'm off to the shop to pick up everything I need to cook this tonight! Greetings from Waikiki!
You can also add a little peanut butter into the sauce.
Or you can dilute the peanut butter with some green tea and add it to the salad at the end.
Hi Chef John! One way I've learned how to use rice noodles are for leftover Asian dishes that have a lot of sauce. I just reheat the sauce on a stove with some water until it simmers, back the heat down and add the noodles in dry. That way when the noodles soften, they get to soak up the yummy sauce and flavors.
My Chinese parents do this all the time (and maybe you already know of this) but I just wanted to share this with you :)
Hi John,
I'm curious why you use 180F water to make your noodles instead of boiling or tepid water here. You did everything but explain WHY? :)
I'm under the impression that you like to double-up on your time so you can make everything else on the side--Or is there a texture difference in the way you cook the noodles vs how others cook them? Thanks!
Chef John, what are your thoughts on Chili infused Sesame oils? Is it sacrilegious/too cheap to get two flavors precombined
This looks so good, can't wait to try it!
i'm for anything that tastes good! :)
just like the texture better with that temp! not too soft, not too firm, just right.
sounds good, i havn't tried it with rice vinegar, but instead used water down lime juice, this has been always a good go to recipe for a quick dinner.
Some fried shallots would be nice at the end! The recipe looks delicious!
Oh and perhaps shredded egg omelete too! It's quite customary on fried beehoon (rice vermicelli or what you called rice noodles).
All great ideas! Yes, I love citrus in this too, just like to vary btwn vinegar and combos.
chef john. peanuts cause me to die, is there something i can add instead of peanuts.
greeting from ballvereinborussiadortmundneunzehnhundertundneun.
Yummy, Nice recipes Chef John
thank you very much
Chef John, this is called Bee-Hoon in my country, and yup, it is the same thing because they're practically the rice noodles! in my country we could just stir-fry them with seafood and little bit of chili paste, and voila!! the most delicious rice noodles recipe you will ever have :)
Chef John you're awesome! Love your blog!
chef, where i live if they sell fish sauce i would have no way of finding out. so...can i make fish sauce??
Maybe, but I have no idea how!
I'm a fan of rice noodles. But I think 15 minutes in almost boiling water is a bit too much, unless the instructions on your package said so.
I keep mine in hot water for no more than 5-6 minutes, following the instructions, and they are just perfect.
Anyway, this seems like a great recipe, although I don't really like the taste of fresh cilantro.
Made it for lunch today and really enjoyed it! Used linguine style rice noodles and topped it with large shrimp!
I made this and it was DELICIOUS!!!
Thanks Chef John!
Hey chef John, how did you prepare the chicken for the grill?
Check last paragraph! Busted! ;)
my new motto: if chef john hasn't done a video on it, i don't eat it! please marry me, chef. while you're thinking that over, answer me this. How far in advance can i make this, dress it and let it sit? can i make the day before?
Would get a little dry overnight. Why not just make dress ahead, and toss the next day?
Made it last night. Used the boneless chicken thighs and marinated them overnight before bbq'ing. Fantastic. Thx Chef John!
re: peanut allergy
Why not try sunflower seeds in place of the peanuts?
I, too, have a peanut allergy; have substituted sunflower seeds and sun butter, instead of peanuts and peanut butter in anything calling for peanuts. Sun butter (sunflower seed butter) tastes very similar to peanut butter.
The recipe sounds great!
Just tried this and it was really nice. Yet another recipe that is delicious. Thanks Chef John.
Hi Chef John,
Managed to get hold of some fresh vermicelli rice noodles for this, how should I adjust the prep for this?
Many many thanks, and keep making the videos - love them
Sorry but fresh doesn't work here since you need the chewiness from the soaked dry noodles. Fresh will be too soft and tender. Just make pasta!
Ohh the cruelty of it all, the one time I manage to get fresh but dried is better!
Thanks Anyways Chef John - keep up the awesome work -
Muchos love From Hertfordshire, England
Hi Chef, two questions:
1) If I was to use the type of rice noodle for pho (a bit than vermicelli), could you suggest an approximate soaking time that would be appropriate, or would it not work without boiling them first?
2)I've learned from your lessons that one should never rinse pasta, so what is the reason for doing it here? Very curious about that!
Thanks for your help, and great lesson as usual.
You rinse here or it gets gummy. Can't give time for the first ? sorry!
Mmmm. This was amazing and now I'm making it again, two days later. I totally needed another hit. Is there a reason that you can't add the sesame oil to the bowl with the other wet ingredients?
Yes add it any time! Thanks!
I've made this several times since it was posted and it's yummy, just quirky enough to create a taste and texture I crave once in a while.
This was great, and made even more delicious with a squeeze of lime juice at the end. This marks the first time I've ever cooked with Thai fish sauce. I've always been intimidated because I know it's extremely pungent straight out of the bottle, but in the context of this sauce it was amazing.
Chef, I have made many of your dishes and all have been enjoyed by my family so I must thank you. When I made this today, my athlete daughter, chewed and no talk because she loved it! Keep the asian cooking coming! Love it!
Dear Chef John: I made this today with leftover chicken from your Avo Lemono something or other soup -- excuse me I've had a half-dozen martinis -- and again everyone here found it irresistable. I left out the brown sugar because we are all very suspicious of sweetened cuisine here, and the fish sauce and seasoned rice vinegar both contain enough goddamned sugar as it is. We all agreed that the addition of the chicken was the nec plus ultra.
Whenever I prepare a meal nowadays, I keep firmly in mind something you said recently: "Cooking is easy. Following recipes is hard." Frankly I don't find cooking a relaxing experience -- in fact I've avoided it for most of my life. But watching your videos gives me an unconquerable urge to 'go thou and do likewise,' so I turn myself inside out trying to do everything right, and so far it's been a completely successful strategy. The stress and worry always pay off in the end as long as I stick to the recipe. In the kitchen I have no higher ambitions.
Next I'm strongly considering trying your 'creamy pork stew' but we have a few days' worth of amazing Chef John leftovers to play with.
I've tried this recipe twice and on both times I deviated quite abit, using unknown vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, dried parsley and adding factory meatball, peri peri sauce instead of stated sambal, and it turns out pretty fine. A very flexible recipe I must say, open to mixing and matching


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Philip Reeves
Philip Reeves is an award-winning veteran international correspondent based in Islamabad, Pakistan. Previous to his current role, he covered Europe out of NPR's bureau in London.
Reeves has spent two decades working as a journalist overseas, reporting from a wide range of places including the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and Asia.
A member of the NPR team that won highly prestigious Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University and George Foster Peabody awards for coverage of the conflict in Iraq, Reeves has been honored several times by the South Asian Journalists Association.
In 2010, Reeves moved to London from New Delhi after a stint of more than seven years working in and around South Asia. He traveled widely in India, taking listeners on voyages along the Ganges River and the ancient Grand Trunk Road. He also made numerous trips to cover unrest and political turmoil in Pakistan.
Reeves joined NPR in 2004, after spending 17 years as a correspondent for the British daily newspaper, The Independent. During the early stages of his career, he worked for BBC radio and television after training on the Bath Chronicle newspaper in western Britain.
Over the years, Reeves has covered a wide range of stories - from the Waco siege, to the growth of the Internet, Boris Yeltsin's erratic presidency, the economic rise of India, and conflicts in Gaza and the West Bank, Chechnya, Iraq, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.
Graduating from Cambridge University, Reeves earned a degree in English literature. He and his wife have one daughter. His family originates from New Zealand.
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Monday, September 24, 2007
Love Her or Hate Her, Ann Coulter Echos Much of the Medblogosphere...
P.S. Came across this piece this evening. Also a good read but light on emotive thinking and heavy on common sense and logic. Yuck.
41 comments:
She knows "what I'm talkin' about"!!!ReplyDelete
- Anonymous9:08 PM, September 24, 2007
That anyone would quote this bigot for anything is amazing.ReplyDelete
good point anonymous but i'm rubber and you're glue and whatever you say bounces off me and sticks to you. touch black no trade back and no erasies.ReplyDelete
I like the part where she say's you need the morals of a drug dealer to be a lawyer. That's positive alright.ReplyDelete
Ann's column was right on target and entertaining, as well. The second one was quite informative and interesting but not nearly as colorful. I like Ann, she gets too big for her britches sometimes, but it's hard to be "RIGHT" all the time. (Sorry for the bad pun, couldn't help myself.)ReplyDelete
I've been lurking here for quite a while--you guys always keep it interesting.
- Anonymous7:12 AM, September 25, 2007
love Ann Coulter or hate her, she made a good point. thanks for sharingReplyDelete
Those who hate Ann Coulter hate her so much that they would never agree with anything she says, no matter what. And they feel the same way about our current President.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous10:20 AM, September 25, 2007
911, that was a particularly lame response. You really know so little about Coulter that you don't know she's a bigot and seller of hate?ReplyDelete
Try Googling her for quotes, you can start with these:
"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity." (Sept. 12 2001 when no one was joking about anything.)
About the 9/11 widows: "These broads are millionaires, lionized on TV and in articles about them, reveling in their status as celebrities and stalked by grief-arazzis. I've never seen people enjoying their husbands' deaths so much."
God says, "Earth is yours. Take it. Rape it. It's yours."
If this is the person you want in your bed, by all means take her. She's yours.
dear anonymous,ReplyDelete
wow. i had never seen those quotes listed like that before. i had always read them in the context they were presented. thanks for clearing this up for me. now i love her more.
just googled 'anonymous' and learned a lot about you...
"Anonymous Coward" is a term applied within some online communities to describe users who post without a screen name (second google hit)
and that you are also a likely alcoholic (seventh google hit for 'anonymous' see 'alcoholics')
amazing what you can learn on google.
- Anonymous11:23 AM, September 25, 2007
Now that's funny. An anonymous 911Doc trying to criticize others for being anonymous.ReplyDelete
You may now continue with your celebration of a person who sells hatred.
Anonymous can't refute Coulter's arguments so she calls her a "bigot". .ReplyDelete
Ann's article was in our ED yesterday, and was met with great acceptance by those who understand it's validity. She is absolutely dead on target (as usual).
There are plenty of valid criticisms of Ann Coulter. But when you take her statements out of context or fail to recognize satire....it just makes you look silly.
Liberals are by nature weak minded. They therefore label anyone who doesn't agree with their socialist moral relativistic outlook a bigot, racist, homophobe. I feel sorry for them, in the same way I would feel sorry for a deer with one gimp leg, knowing full well he is about to be eaten.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous2:19 PM, September 25, 2007
Bigotry and hatred reside on both sides of the aisle. Those who attempt to use such people to bolster themselves need to look in the mirror hard.ReplyDelete
just looked in the mirror and i am dead sexy.ReplyDelete
For every doctor making $200,000/year, there are 10 95-year-old intubated, demented, septic elderly blind people costing Medicare $25,000 per day in the ICU and 25 lawyers buzzing around waiting to sue the doctor if she dies.ReplyDelete
Just a thought.
911- stop picking on the anonymi. You have an unfair advantage.ReplyDelete
(No, I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about your brain. Wrong organ.
- Anonymous9:53 AM, September 26, 2007
I'd let Ann ride me 'reverse cowboy' style until I got a fractured penis. Then I'd go to the ER.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous9:59 AM, September 26, 2007
Thoughts on the concept of on-line anonymity:ReplyDelete
The 'anonymous' above does not get the concept that an online persona, be it 911doc or other established bloggers, have a personality and reputation that is independent of their actual name and identity. If 911doc comes out as , for example, pro-Hitler, then I think he would lose readers. In other words, he (or she) has an established online reputation and persona that can be damaged by careless statements. You, anonymous, do not. QED.
Etotheipi, I just snorted coke all over my keyboard. Thanks a lot. You can have Ann, but I get dibs on Newty.ReplyDelete
Now, I am one of the few around here that doesn't spend my days in the ER yet (still a bit occupied cutting up dead people), but ER's are overcrowded, right? Seems like I heard that somewhere.ReplyDelete
So it's weird that no one has commented on what is implied when Coulter says that the only problem in our healthcare system is that docs are paid too little. She doesn't see it as a problem that 40+ million people have no PCP (because they have no insurance), so when they get sick they just go see you guys.
It's so weird to me that the ER blog community is so right-leaning on health policy (my boys Shadowfax and Graham notwithstanding). If we could get a few more of the 40 million coverage, THEY WOULD LEAVE YOU ALONE!! You guys all (understandably) hate treating non-emergent patients, so why aren't you pulling for the rules to be changed so that you don't have to?
Just curious. Now I have to go back to memorizing the brachial plexus.
dear student doctor.ReplyDelete
short answers: econ 101 and i don't want to be 'left alone' by patients.
longer rambling answer after a night shift...
you speak as if it were a simple matter of passing a law to generate coverage (that's what EMTALA is). where does the money come from and where does the incentive for personal responsibility fit in?
also, of the "40 million" uninsured there are many millions who are...
1. in the country illegally.
2. choose not to have coverage on an economic basis because they are young and otherwise healthy or would rather pay for their cigarettes/cell phone/plasma screen/ new car.
3. a much smaller segment of the population who would pass the 'smell test' for being incapable of doing any more for themselves.
i'm not saying this for a laugh or to be classist, i'm saying it because people, being people, will not make financially difficult but responsible decisions (like actually picking up the phone and getting a PCP) unless there is a downside to poor decisions (which, right now, is having to wait 4 or 5 hours to get their care for 'free' in the ED).
i myself went from 21 years old to 26 years old with absolutely no medical coverage. why? i was young and healthy. i got lucky.
if we 'give' coverage to everyone or expand it to get 'more people covered' then where is the incentive to 1. maintain your health and make good health decicions and 2. see medical care as a privelege and not a right?
now you may think it is a right but if you do i expect you are also for a right to free food and the like as we certainly can't live without it and right now grocers and restaurants have the annoying habit of expecting people to pay for what they want and need.
i WISH that, when foks were given a pile of money (for really that's what we are talking about... money to finance 'free health care') directly out of their neighbor's pocket, that their response was "WOW!, i have done nothing to deserve this gift and am extremely lucky to have been born in america where 'the rich' (those making more than $80,000 a year as defined by our government) don't mind the government's hand digging deep into their pockets... i'm going to treat this gift with the utmost respect and not abuse it and i'm going to knock-off the cigarettes and wear my seat belt and only go to the ER when i'm truly ill and i will endeavor to make enough money someday to be one of the payers in this scheme so i can even the score." but guess what, this HAPPENS SO RARELY THAT WHEN IT DOES HOLLYWOOD MAKES A MOVIE ABOUT IT!
a little free stuff becomes more. a band aid becomes a bandage, then a splint, then a full body cast.
government wealth-redistribution programs (this is exactly what we are talking about) NEVER go away because they NEVER WORK to fix the problem they were NEVER designed to fix. they are like heroin to the users AND suppliers.
when you rotate through the VA hospital take a look and see who actually does the work there and which nurses are the best there and which doctors are the best there and see if you can get anything to happen there after 5pm or on the weekend. what you will find is that the work is done by the residents and medical students, that the government employees, who can not be fired without an act of God, work at exactly the same pace all the time (slow). try to generate in these lifers (with full benefits) a sense of urgency about your sick patients and notice that within a few days you decide that instead of asking the tech or nurse to draw labs and get an ekg on some poor old vet that you decide that, even though you have not slept in eighteen hours, you will just do it yourself or it will not get done till the next shift comes on.
why not look at the history of the super small and only-for-the-most-down-and-out program called social security? you may have heard of it. (obtw, when it comes time for you to sit down with a financial planner to do the responsible thing and plan how to pay-off your debt from school and plan for your family's long term finanincal and health needs, he or she will tell you that you should not figure social security into your calculations because you will never get it.)
or look at the government's little old program (only for a few really needy folks) called medicare/ medicaid?
rasmussen tells us that americans are big fans of universal coverage, or better coverage, but no one tells them that with this coverage they will get in line with citizens (and a host of others who have been deemed to have a right to the tax revenues of others) who have not bought supplemental insurance, and hope they make it the 8-12 months that will be required to schedule them for their CABG or liver transplant.
or try this. pick a wealthy neighborhood wherever you live and go knock on doors. ask the folks who answer if they would mind spotting you a hundred bucks so that you can get an Xray and an orho appointment for your injured knee. you only need ten people to give you the money and then you should be good to go. i wonder how many houses you'd have to visit? if you are not willing to do this then how can you ask 'the government' to do it for you or for whomever 'they' think 'deserves' it.
finally, you need to understand that i have absolutely no problem treating people with no coverage, it's what i signed up for and allowances have been made and i have planned accordingly. i never expected to get rich doing this. i drive a truck. i shop at target and eat at chilis for a treat.
the people we rail against have made an economic decision to forgo medical insurance not because they can't get it or can't afford it but because they know that they can get stuff 'free' right here in any good old american ED. this is then transferred as a very real time and monetary burden to physicians who also lose sleep and relationships and (fill in the blank) taking care of people who should know better and, in fact, DO KNOW BETTER.
understand, i am not a misanthrope, but i am a realist, and if you want your health care to be worth what other 'free' stuff is worth, then by all means, proceed. if you think the next 100 billion dollars thrown at the problem will fix it or even make it better then load up the old bong and turn up the grateful dead dude.
as for me, i want the best-trained physicians in the world to WANT to treat me and to be properly reimbursed and properly rested. i want the same from the guy that flies the 727 i'm on and the same from anyone i go to to get a product or a service. what's the best way to do this? treat the most talented and best like they are, in fact, what they are. don't punish them.
my auto mechanic is properly reimbursed, as is my dentist and my vet. so is ladanian thomlinson and so is matt damon. they are properly reimbursed because they work and compete in a largely free market. LT makes millions a year because, well, HE's WORTH IT to the people that pay him and he produces excellence.
i'm not sure why doctors, out of all professions, are demonized for complaining about having their profession and personal lives affected in a very real and daily way by people who expect us to give our time and unique services and skills to them. perhaps because we are working and don't have the time or the inclination to go on strike.
free stuff does not exist. forcing people to make decisions about what they can afford and not afford is capitalism. it works. removing financial responsibility will actually make the situation worse and doctors will vote with their feet out of the profession. watch as it happens.
Student doctor:ReplyDelete
you are an idiot.(my boys shadowfax--ha ha what a bunch of socialist/communist tree huggers)
911 I couldn't have said it better myself (well, maybe I could have, but I am too tired)
- Anonymous9:05 PM, September 30, 2007
There's a reason the top students are gravitating towards derm, rad onc, diagnostic rads, etc. It isn't because smart people love skin, physics, or being alone in the dark.ReplyDelete
"Saving lives" at all hours of the day and night (always taking the risk, sometimes being compensated) sounds cool as a preclinical medical student. The reality is a bit different.
Student doc: Chances are you have worked hard in a very goal directed way to get to the point where you are standing over that cadaver. Some people live their entire lives in a reactive way. They form the a large chunk of the uninsured. (The uninsured also includes an ever changing portion of people for whom it makes (risky) financial sense to be uncovered for a time). Coverage for that 40 million or so without it will not solve the problem. Many folk visiting the ER simply do not have the "what ever it takes" to organize themselves enough to call, make an appointment, and then follow through and make it to the appointment on time. That is why they also don't have a job, don't finish school, don't apply for government programs they are eligible for, and go on to fail in other ways. Coverage or not, they will still end up in the ER because they are unable to live in any but a reactive way. I like Ms Colter because she is so brassy. And usually right.ReplyDelete
ExER Doc
dear charles.ReplyDelete
thanks for your comment. why did you leave the ER? are you still in medicine? story please!
911: Incredible answer! You, my friend are more coherent after a night shift than I'll ever hope to be.ReplyDelete
Student Doc: keep studying the brachial plexus, the circle of Willis, the cranial nerves, the autonomic nervous system, etc. Once you've invested literally hundreds hours of work into memorizing and understanding those things, get ready for your clinical rotations. Enjoy your 36 hours of scut work at a time 3 times a week preparing you to take your boards. Then, get ready for the fun and exciting 3 to 5 (or more) years of residency training making less than minimum wage (don't ever stop during residency to actually calculate your true hourly pay because you'll blow your brains out).
Once you've done the above, THEN come back to the forum and explain why you don't have a problem with people taking your time, knowledge, and expertise for granted and for free (whilst retaining the right to sue your happy ass if you make any mistakes). Maybe then, you'll understand.
If not, then come and spend a day with me and actually see and touch the throngs of people who demand their "free care" while sporting designer handbags (with a pack or two of cigarettes in the pocket), cell phones, and sneekers that cost more than any two pair of shoes that I own.
These people of whom 911 so eloquently speaks ARE real. These people are literally hundreds of specific faces to us, not abstract concepts.
Universal health coverage is a wonderful tag line. It is a caring campaign slogan. But it's also a massive government expenditure that will bring DOWN the level of care we can deliver to EVERY patient. Don't let yourself be fooled.
A few months ago, I had the pleasure of caring for a lovely lady from Quebec. She developed a pneumonia and was ill enough to require hospitalization. I overheard her talking to her husband about their insurance and whether she would have coverage in the US.
I stepped back into the room to assure her that her condition was a legitimate emergency and I would fill out any papers she needed in order to get the Canadian Healthcare System to pay the bill.
She just laughed at me and informed me that she and her husband paid for private health insurance saying: "God help anyone who relies on the Canadian Healthcare"!
911doc: No, thank you for your blog. Left the ER because 22 years was enough. Still in medicine? Sort of.ReplyDelete
ExER Doc
Cat: good response.ReplyDelete
ERDoc85: I'll be the first to admit that it's easy for me to be idealistic from up here in my enol-reeking ivory tower. I hear what you're saying. I know that the people you and 911 refer to are real. The thing is, so are the people I ride the bus with everyday who have holes in their shoes. I know you guys aren't heartless (cat notwithstanding :), and would/do gladly help the truly needy. So is it better to throw out the baby with the bath water? From my tower, the answer is no. I'll get back to you in 2015 with an answer from the trenches.
Charles/911: You're right, it took lots of hard work and long term thinking for you and I to get to where we are today, and if the welfare crowd had the same (fill in the blank quality) that we have, there would doubtless be fewer welfare cases out there. But my thing is (brace yourself, hippie/liberal/borderlinecommie comment coming), could I have had an advantage that the poor black kid in Watts didn't have? Did my parents (stable, productive middle class business owners) teach me something that his parents didn't teach him? I think so. Am I saying I don't think it's totally the fault of the uninsured that they are uninsured? Yes.
dear student doctor.ReplyDelete
please forgive 'cat. he's had his soul nearly sucked out of him in the ED. i agree that there are those people on the bus. what you must understand is that the absolute WORST way to try and address the problem is to 'get the government to fix it'. see prior response. and no, i'm not interested in paying more in taxes thank you. right now my return per dollar to me and my family on the taxes i pay is fifteen cents. now, over the nearly fifty years that we have instituted HUGE government welfater and social programs i would like for you to tell me what has changed? does it strike you that, on a common sense level, a monthly handout just enough to live with plumbing and electricity and basic health care and food and a television and a car would likely motivate you? how about if we gave it to you as long as you lived? motivated?
you may be forgiven as i suspect you arer just out of some high powered university where economics is no longer taught and emotion and diversity rules. if you choose to stay in academia you can continue to avert your eyes. if not, we'll see ya in a few years.
I don't see welfare as a solution, I see it as a bandaid (possibly even a free one from your ED). I think that MAJOR change takes generations. So I think what you do is start funding education as if it could actually affect change. Pay teachers well. In Dallas public schools, a teacher w/20 yrs of experience makes less than $60K. Conservative doctors make the valid point that if we want the best and brightest to be doctors, we should compensate them accordingly. But I bet you would laugh if I suggested that public education would improve if a 20 yr teacher took home six figures. And please don't tell me there isn't room in the budget for it. If there's one thing we've learned since 9/11, it's that if it's important enough, we can pay for it.
So honestly answer this question: If we doubled teachers pay, and set the bar WAY higher for becoming a teacher, do you think it would help?
In the mean time, we have a bunch of old dogs that we're trying to teach the new trick of becoming stable and self sufficient. So here is where I start being a realist and say, no, they aren't going to magically figure it out, we should help them because we CAN.
And just fyi, it took me about five years in the real world to become a pinko liberal (after which I decided to go to med school....I just turned 31). I graduated from college as card carrying republican.
how could you possible be a pinko? i agree that paying teachers more is a great idea. i think single sex middle and junior high school is a good idea. i think raising the bar for every student rather than lowering it for all is a good idea and these are all conservative principles. you must have lived in boston, seattle, portland, san francisco, new york or someplace like those to have become a liberal in the 'real world'.ReplyDelete
Your gonna think I'm making this up, but it was in rural Kansas.ReplyDelete
Yes, good old KS, home of the "Evolution is just a theory" sticker on high school biology textbooks.
Despite your thinly veiled condescension regarding my progressive views, I'm betting you can see how living in a state that tries every couple of years to teach intelligent design alongside of evolution could make a person vote for (gasp) Al Gore.
well now you've gone and done it. simply voting gore because he is the opposite of an intelligently designed being makes no sense to me. he says the 'planet has a fever'. well i've got a fever, a fever for MORE COWBELL! (sorry).ReplyDelete
and as far as the evolution thing goes let's just let that be hashed out elsewhere, but consider (you may or may not have been following the 'atheism v theism' conversation my friend ETOTHEIPI and i are having under the post entitled "Tag, M.D.O.D. Contributors! Answers Please... ") that the Christianity i believe in explains both creation and evolution and it is a robust faith with evidence continuing to accumulate in support of the Bible as the archaelogists dig deeper and deeper.
evolution, even its most ardent proponents will admit (with the exception of dawkins who calls people who don't believe everything he says about it 'psychotic'), is evolving.
back in my undergrad days when dinosaurs roamed the earth evolution was seen as a gradual process. then, in med school, the idea of 'puncutational evolution' was needed to explain new additions to the fossil record and new evidence from genetics.
i myself am not an 'intelligent design' person, but i do respect their opinions. i do think the argument by design is a good one but is likely to be overcome as gaps in the genome and the fossil record are filled and then the intel. design. folks are going to be faced with a shrinking 'God of the gaps' as it has come to be known.
i would simply caution you not to form your opinion about those on the right wing by the rural Kansans with the bumber stickers you saw.
in return, i will endeavor to resolve to restrain myself from choking the living shit out of every stinking hippie crunchy driver with a 'buck fush' or 'visualize world peace' sticker on their cars.
- Anonymous5:35 PM, October 01, 2007
In order to properly characterize teachers' compensation, it is necessary to also consider benefits, such as health insurance and retirement. Teachers in PA make an average of roughly $40K per year. However, most have no cost health insurance and fully funded retirement with 30 years service. As a physician, you will be making negative money (as you are now), then slave wages, then FINALLY a real salary. Don't forget your school loans, which will double-triple over your years of repayment. Once you finish, unless you are a military doc/VA, you will be responsible for your own health insurance/retirement payments.ReplyDelete
The "teachers are undercompensated" argument is popular but (to me) unconvincing. When benefits are considered, teachers make similar salaries to others with bachelor's degrees (and most people don't have three months off per year.) I recall school administrators from my highschool days who were absurdly overpaid for the (nothing) they did.
good point. i guess i would say that like any govt. bureaucracy much of the $$ spent on education goes to people who push papers around a desk. catholic schools do wonders with kids for much less. they have no telephone book size regulation book they have to follow and therefore need fewer administrators. they can also enforce rules more efficiently and discipline students without the fear of the RRReeevvverend Shaaapton showing up on the steps with a megaphone and hired protestors. i'm not saying send everyone to catholic school, i'm just sayin'...
Student Doc: You missed the point. You note the people on your bus who have holes in their shoes. We see those folks and feel sorry for them too.ReplyDelete
That is NOT the group of people that we are referring to.
This is also the group that Medicaid is designed to help (for a limited time until they can get on their feet).
With years of experience dealing with people, insurance billing rules, governmental payments (Medicare and Medicaid), and VA patients and hospitals, we're telling you that the answer is NOT more government control.
As 911 said. Our "progressive" (liberal) Congress is trying to expand the SCHIP program to cover more of the "poor". Their definition of "poor" is less than $80,000/year! Anyone who opposes this idea is immediately labelled as "not caring about children". I think just the opposite is true.
On a seperate but related topic:
Did any of you see the Oprah Show last week with Lisa Ling? (No, I don't watch Oprah...I don't want Oldfart to think I had orchiectomies. But it was on was on in my dentist's office).
Michael Moore was on the show and Lisa Ling was telling sob stories about people who couldn't get necessary medical procedures because they had lost their insurance. I kept wondering where they found these people?
I don't know about any of the other practicing docs, but every day I see my colleagues performing needed procedures on patients who can't pay. Sure, there's the occasional Worker's Comp claim that few docs will take (another strike against more governmental involvement). And there's the occasional chronic pain patient that ortho doesn't want to touch, but they are the minority.
From my experience in several different hospitals, I just don't see that aspect of the "crisis
85: I get that you are talking about people who take advantage of welfare-type programs. My point is that there are truly needy people who are not getting help that even you agree they should get.ReplyDelete
As far as the level of government involvement goes, this is the crux of the difference between conservatives and liberals, so there's not that much point in debating it into the ground. An observation though: Conservatives frequently decry government involvement in things such as healthcare, feeding the hungry, etc. But they rarely propose an alternative, which leads me to believe that they actually don't care. I'm not making a statement about you as an individual, but just in general.
911: It's not the catholic schools that are doing wonders with the kids. It is the involved, caring, stable parents. Kids from that background do great in public schools too.
Also, explain just briefly how ER docs get paid....do you not get paid for specific procedures if the patient is a deadbeat? Or is it just the fact that so many don't pay that inevitably drives your salary down?
Anon: 40K the first year out of undergrad = not bad! 48K the 14th year out = you're getting screwed royally. Would you stay in a job where the raises didn't come close to keeping pace with inflation?
And i really hope you're not implying that school administrators in general "do nothing". At my wife's school they frequently work 50+ hrs/wk, and then go to all the extracurricular events on top of that. Also, since when is 60-70K/yr "absurdly overpaid" for a professional position requiring at least a masters degree?
- Anonymous5:36 PM, October 02, 2007
Would I stay in a job where raises did not match inflation? You are describing medicine! Despite rising costs, reimbursements either stay the same or decline. This is another problem with putting the govt in charge of the purse strings; they can tighten them at will and we have no recourse.ReplyDelete
$48K with 14 years experience is too low. But I am not going to jump on the "poor teachers" bandwagon. My wife (BS degree) works as a researcher at a university, 50+ hours/week for $26K. We have to pay our own health insurance premiums and retirement (no NEA backing for us).
What are the admins at your wife's school doing for 50 hours/week? Are they working that whole time, or is that the time that they are in office? Where is the evidence that layers of admins filling out forms (sounds like a hospital!) improve education? You could pay teachers much more (and have more stringent entrance requirements) by eliminating some of the red tape. Also, I wouldn't call going to HS football games "work." I doubt that they have to attend every, or even most, events if they do not choose to do so.
alas, i grow tired because, dear student doctor, there is no easy answer to your problem. generally we get paid in two ways...ReplyDelete
1. we sign on with an ED management group that pays us a fixed salary per hour and may or may not include benefits.
2. we sign on with a group that pays a 'base salary' with added $$ for procedures and 'critical care time' and complicated patients (the kind i'm working for now).
3. you sign on with a group that pays you strictly on productivity.
obviously, in scenario 1 there is no incentive to 'go fast'. in the latter two scenarios there is incentive to 'go fast'. then there appears the tension between seeing a lot of patients and not missing anything subtle. every ED doc solves this for themselves in a different way.
as for the hours workde by administrators i agree that they probably do log many hours. my question would be whether what they produce has any value and if they work at maximum efficiency.
if every comittee at our hospital disbanded today exactly nothing would change and people would dance a jig.
SD: I hardly think that expecting and wanting people to accept personal responsibility is "not caring". They are seperate issues. One is mental, the other emotional.ReplyDelete
My group pays a bit differently from 911.
Each of us receives the percentage we bill from the monthly collection pool. There is no place on our records that indicates whether or not a patient has insurance or the type. We don't need or want that information.
After my percentage of the "pie" is calculated, then the billing company takes 15%, the management company (who does absolutely nothing) takes 15%, then they subtract the monies paid to our director, assistant director, and secretary. Next they subtract the fee we pay for a scribe service.
We're getting screwed now, but will hopefully be able to correct it when the contract expires next year.


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Unleashed L n G at Watermans - 6.30pm Tuesday 14 September 2010. Here is a short clip edited from the open day footagesFiled under: Uncategorized
7 years ago
This site will only be updated from the 22/09/2010
Dairy of the Ladies&Gents robotic agent.
All posts and videos are automatically generated
and uploaded to the site. Ladies and gents is an
installation at the "Unleashed Devices" Exhibition
held at Watermans Art Centre, 40 High Street
Brentford TW8 0DS United Kingdom
from 3 September to 22 October 2010


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Winter continues to wallop Alaska with some weather and some challenges that even the seen-it-all locals seem to be amazed about.
In Cordova, about 150 miles southeast of Anchorage, "dozens of National Guard troops have arrived to help ... dig out from massive snows that have collapsed roofs, trapped some people in homes, and triggered avalanches," The Associated Press reports.
Guard officials tell the AP there's been about 18 feet of snow in Cordova so far this season. The National Weather Service warns that another storm is headed Cordova's way on Tuesday.
But already, "there's nowhere to go with the snow because it's piled up so high," Wendy Rainney, who owns the Orca Adventure Lodge in Cordova, tells the AP.
Fortunately, according to Alaska Dispatch, "the city had recently received supplies, the grocery store was open, though schools were scheduled to be closed Monday. No injuries had been reported due to the snow.
"I'm not aware of any issues with supplies. The only thing we're really lacking is — there's not a snow shovel left in town," Allen Marquette, public information officer with the city of Cordova told Alaska Dispatch. About 2,000 people live in Cordova year-round, the AP says.
Meanwhile, far to the west the 3,500 people of Nome are hopeful that by Wednesday a Russian tanker bringing 1.3 million gallons of much needed fuel will have reached them. It's following the U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker Healy.
The Healy, by the way, is posting some pretty amazing photos here.
As Eyder reported back in November, some brutal early winter weather had forced the cancellation of what was going to be the last fuel shipment of the season to Nome. It was feared that any additional fuel would have to be flown in, which would send already high fuel prices in Nome into the stratosphere. But it looks like the Healy will be able to save the day. If the ships make it, this will be the first such wintertime sea delivery to a western Alaska community.
Update at 2:50 p.m. ET. In Cordova, "Even The Old-Timers Say We're Breaking New Ground":
Cordova Mayor Jim Kallander just told NPR's Melissa Block that what's happening in his city is "precedent-setting" and that "nobody's seen snow like this in recent history ... even the old-timers say we're breaking new ground."
So far, he said, no homes have been seriously damaged and now with the additional help from the National Guard, some Coast Guard personnel and some heavy equipment that's been brought in by the state, work continues to dig out.
But, said Kallander, the forecast for Tuesday now calls for three more feet of snow and winds of 40 mph. Are the folks there ready? "Well, we have to be, don't we?" said the mayor, who's lived in Cordova for more than 30 years but has known what it's like to live in snow country all his life because he grew up in New York State's Genesee County.
If there's an emergency, he says, authorities will "send the loader in front of the ambulance or the fire truck and they'll just dig their way to where they have to go."
Much more from Melissa's conversation with the mayor is due on All Things Considered later today. Click here to find an NPR station that broadcasts or streams the show.
As the mayor said, snow has been piling up in Cordova since mid-December and there are many photos and videos showing up on the Web. Check out this video made there last week.
It's ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Audie Cornish.
And I'm Melissa Block.
The Alaskan city of Cordova is used to snow, but not this much snow. Officials estimate that the southern coastal community along Prince William Sound has received about 18 feet so far this season. And it's testing the roofs and roads.
Joining me on the phone from his command center is Cordova Mayor James Kallander. And, Mayor Kallander, how bad is this compared to what you're used to up there?
MAYOR JAMES KALLANDER: Oh, this is precedent setting. We - even the old-timers say we're breaking new ground now.
BLOCK: Yeah, 18 feet. Eighteen feet is 18 feet.
KALLANDER: Yup. It's been pretty incredible.
BLOCK: Well, how do you deal with all that snow? What's the town doing?
KALLANDER: Well, this event started around 12th to 13th of December, and it's been snowing with great frequency since. And we have a pretty robust public works department. We have three loaders, big end loaders with snow buckets and two road graders that are all chained up. And these guys were doing pretty well until all the snow dumps filled up in town, and I'm talking about mountains of snow.
BLOCK: Yeah.
KALLANDER: And then we started just getting overwhelmed. I mean, it got to the point where we couldn't keep single lanes in subdivisions. So that's where I declared a disaster emergency.
BLOCK: And what happens when you declare a disaster emergency?
KALLANDER: Well, we have our procedure and process in our code of how you declare. And we've got, I think, around 60 or 70 National Guard folks came in yesterday on the ferry, all with shovels and climbing gear to get on roofs. And the Coast Guard held their ship back from deployment, and so there's 25 or 30 Coast Guard sailors that are pitching in, and Homeland Security has staff here. So we're getting some serious help here now.
BLOCK: What does it look like if you're driving around Cordova - assuming you can drive around Cordova, what does it look like right now with all this snow?
KALLANDER: Well, our snow dumps are - some of them are probably 25 or 30 feet high. All the roads, the main highways are pushed out now. We've had a reprieve for about 20 hours. So they're pushed out to almost full, with banks probably in the eight-foot range. All the streets signs, all the signage on the highway is covered. And we've abandoned some of the cross streets and made them into snow dumps.
BLOCK: Mm. What about electricity?
Electricity here is all underground. We've been working - the electric coop here has worked for probably the last six, eight years to move all utilities underground. So in that department, we're pretty good shape.
Mayor Kallander, I was looking at the weather forecast for Cordova, and I saw snow, snow and more snow coming your way. Is that what you're hearing?
KALLANDER: Yeah. We just - we've got a forecaster working with Homeland Security. We're looking at tomorrow potentially three more feet of snow.
BLOCK: Three more feet tomorrow.
KALLANDER: Yeah. With 40-mile-an-hour winds.
BLOCK: You ready for that?
KALLANDER: Well, we have to be, don't we?
BLOCK: I guess there's not much choice.
No. No. You know, if it gets too severe, we'll just pull everybody in, and they'll just dig their way to wherever they got to go.
I've been talking with James Kallander, the mayor of Cordova, Alaska, which has had more than 18 feet of snow this winter and lots more on the way. Mayor Kallander, thanks so much and best of luck to you.
KALLANDER: Thank you, Melissa. Take care. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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Friday, August 30, 2013
Lamar Odom Busted For A DUI
Lamar Odom was arrested for DUI early Friday morning ... TMZ has learned.
The bust occurred in the San Fernando Valley at 3:54 AM. Lamar was popped by the California Highway Patrol and taken to a nearby station, where he was booked and is being held on $15,000 bail.
He was pulled over on the 101 Freeway for going too slow -- 50 MPH. Lamar did not respond to cops, and drove 3 exits before finally coming to a stop. Law enforcement sources tell TMZ he showed obvious signs of intoxication.
Lamar failed numerous field sobriety tests.
When Lamar was booked, we're told he refused all chemical tests.
Lamar's booking sheet shows he is 6'10" and 235 lbs.
Lamar has been tooling around town lately ... this after TMZ broke the story he had been on a crack binge.
Source: TMZ
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You might think there is only one generic cartoon Indian design, but here are a whole pile of variations on a type, which is just like real life.
Knowing the difference between a general category and a specific instance of it is the key to understanding just about anything better.
Aristotle and Mike are 2 similar types - people who like to classify or categorize, and then collect tons of variations within the category to compare, contrast and see the limits of variation. It's the key to invention.
Darwin used Aristotle's classification system and figured out how evolution worked by comparing degrees of variation from general wider plans.
Classification is a wonderful observational tool. Maybe you can be the next Darwin, just by learning the same thinking process Mike, Charles and Aristotle use.
For example, every one of these Indians (like every one of every race or wider - of every species) shares some general traits that separate them from other toys. They also share a trait put there by the artists... they are all fun to look at, they have appeal and humor. This is a trait missing from much of modern art, entertainment and culture.
But look closer at at a group of individuals and you will find all kinds of differences between them. Some individuals are closer in design to others; some are farther apart.
If they become so far apart that it gets harder to see common general traits, then they become part of a wider group. The farther apart they are, the bigger the group category or class.
Indians are part of the larger group (species) of humans which belong to the primate order, the class of mammals, the phyla of chordates (animals with backbones), the kingdom of animals and then life itself. The farther back you stand, the more general the groups become.
The closer you look at the groups, the more specific the groups become. The generic idea of Indian can be broken down into tribes, and location.
http://www.mygenealogist.com/native-american-genealogy.htm South American Indians share some general visual traits with Eskimos and other Indian groups in between, but less with them than with closer groups.
And you can look closer and closer until you finally get right down to the individual -which animation rarely does.
All these Native Americans share some obvious broad general traits-wide high and angular cheekbones and a very specific kind of nose that's widest at the bottom and pointed downward.
Animated cartoons tend to be very general or "generic". Even more general than the wider group of cartoon art, which includes comic strips, comic books, magazine cartoons and even cartoon toys.
Animated cartoons by their nature have to be fairly simple so you can do a lot of drawings in a reasonable amount of time.
The simpler your drawings, the less individual details you have to vary. That's a reason Disney tends to reuse character designs over and over again. The other reason is of course, conservatism. The more conservative you are, the less you like specific variations. You like to leave things alone.
Personally, as everyone who reads this blog knows, I hate generic - BUT!...I find it useful. Principles are general tools that are useful to all skills. They give us more control and (if we so choose) variation over what we wish to create.
Just how specific you are depends upon what level of generality you stop creating at.
I don't go for simple stereotypes of any type of character, human or animal. I find them boring. But in order to create specific characters well, you have to be honest and observant enough to see how things look in general first - THEN you can do specific variations.
These toy sculptures show that you can have a wide variety of individual designs, even within a general type.
I think modern political correctness has confused "classification" with "stereotypes" and stereotypes with "evil". All life is organized by traits in common on different levels. Humans even organize themselves on purpose into general stereotypes - like Democrats and Republicans.
Today's democrats think the very idea of observing shared traits in any group of humans means you hate that group - but they get furious if you personally vary from any of the attitudes of their own group beliefs. I am completely baffled by this trendy doctrine. People are too eager to look for things to be offended by today.
When I was a kid, there was much diversity in my neighborhood and everyone recognized it but was not particularly offended by knowing it. I remember being punched in the face once for being a public school kid (which generally meant protestant). I wasn't offended by being stereotyped as a square secular kid. I was offended by the fist crushing my nose, though. And I still had lots of friends from the "Catholic School".
Generalities about my neighborhood when I was a kid: There were 3 schools within 2 blocks of each other. The Public School, The Catholic School and The French School.
The Catholic kids were mostly Italian and were tougher than us. They grew up quicker-they had mustaches and B.O. when they were 12 and looked like men in wrinkly turtlenecks and corduroy pants to us, which we thought was hilarious and frightening. We looked like sissies to them. The English Speaking Catholics - especially Italians - tended to hang around in gangs. Not well organized murderous gangs like today's. These were kids from 8 years old to like...12 or 13. They liked trouble and fought a lot. They had their own unique group gestures, expressions and attitudes - yet within the obvious and funny stereotype, they varied widely.
All the Italian kids wore pointy shoes, which they were ashamed of and everyone else made fun of them. Then they would chase us and teach us what the pointy shoes were for.
The French kids had their own stereotypical types and behaviors. The also saw ours and made fun of them. Everyone basically made fun of everyone else. No one was offended. There were occasional fights, but not too many serious ones. It was all very interesting, colorful, fun and scary. It taught most people growing up realities about social life. All from just natural observation using the faculties that separate humans from animals.
Good cartoonists know the difference between being observant and being intolerant. 2 completely unrelated things.
To be an observant artist you have to be able to see broad categories of things (including people). You have to be able to see common traits; in fact you can't help it, your eyes are more developed than the average person- but you also can benefit greatly by seeing the amount of possible variations within a class. You have to have a wide scope of observational faculties. From far away to very close.
Looking at all the possibilities of variation within the group of toy Indians here, you can see a lot of leeway for individual characters and creative expression.
These are all good sculptures and very true and observant to the general traits of their subject. Yet they are all different.
Why Chief Wahoo is Smiling
This Nutty Mad Indian looks like Mike Pataki!
Here's an Indian that looks like the one in that Art Davis Porky Pig cartoon, "Nothing But The Tooth".
Mike sometimes categorizes his toys by what kind of toys they are too. His bobble head collection is amazing! So much better than modern bobble-heads. Look how accurately the sculptor above captured the general features of the Aboriginal Canadians! Even the almond shaped, slightly slanted eyes.Extra Treats:
It seems like other countries don't have the same politically-correct hangups we have in the decadent west. I hope PC blinders disappear from our world soon so cartoonists can be free, creative observant and fun again!
Doesn't this mask above look like the group called "cartoon-writers"?
It's a good thing there are still open minded fellows like Mike to preserve our great creative and observant past.


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Update to the Thursday Abby Update...
Abby is doing worse this evening.
Her lungs have become "junky" and she is having a hard time breathing, and taking quick, choppy breaths. Her oxygen levels are down some. She has no immune system at all at this point. Her sores are worse today. Not sure what the docs are going to do, but we are watching her closely.
Without trying to over alarm or be melodramatic, it is COMPLICATIONS that are usual cause of death for kids in Abby's situation. So every complication that arises at this point is very concerning.
God is in control and we rejoice in the opportunity to depend on Him and observe His mercy and goodness.
We appreciate your prayers. We appreciate you letting other people know to pray. We appreciate are blogger friends posting to their readers when they can. We'll keep you updated.
Brent & Michelle