Researchers have spent years studying superagers in an attempt to understand what sets the senior citizens apart.
“It’s not so long ago that we thought the only trajectory there was was to get old and senile,” said Prof Emily Rogalski, from Northwestern University, speaking at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Austin, Texas.
“We need to push the envelope and see what is possible in older age and how did [people] get there.”
Researchers say studies show that superagers appear to be more resilient to the slings and arrows of life, and are more extroverted and less neurotic.
But they have also made another discovery. Looking at the brains of 10 superagers after they died, Rogalski said they discovered these individuals have more of a certain type of brain cell known as Von Economo neurons than average elderly individuals.
These neurons are also found in a small group of higher mammals and are thought to increase communication.
One of the regions they are found in, said Rogalski, is an area thought to be important for attention and working memory, known as the anterior cingulate. That area, Rogalski notes, was also thicker in superagers than in average 50- and 60-year-olds.
“We find that in the superagers we look under the microscope and find they have more Von Economo neurons than average 80-year-olds, and more VE neurons even than 20-year-olds,” said Rogalski.
“We can’t explain how they ended up with more Von Economo neurons or why that is important. But these are a special type of neurons that have only been found in a couple of regions of the brain.”
Studies have shown there are other differences as well.
“When we look at the rate of cognitive thinning in the cognitively average 80-year-olds, their brains are thinning at nearly two and a half times that of the superagers,” said Rogalski.
Scientists have also been working on exploring the presence of a protein known as amyloid in the brain, a substance that can cluster, resulting in the plaques linked to Alzheimer’s disease.
Claudia Kawas, a geriatric neurologist at the University of California, Irvine, said autopsies showed that some of the superagers also had the deformed proteins in their brain, yet still retained their powers of cognition and memory.
The team hopes that the findings might help scientists to unpick what causes Alzheimer’s and other dementias, and why some people might be resilient.
The researchers say they have also found that common human vices do not necessarily need lead to an early grave, with many superagers saying they smoked and enjoyed a tipple.
“We ask them why is it that you think you are a superager, how did you get here, and there are a couple of funny ladies and they will say, well it’s because I have a martini with my friends every day at 5 o’clock. Others have never had a drink,” said Rogalski.
Being underweight also seemed to matter, with those who had a very low body mass index after the age of 80 more likely to die. “It’s not bad to be skinny when you’re young but it’s very bad to be skinny when you’re old,” said Kawas.
However, Rogalski added, that did not mean that people should take up bad habits to live longer, noting that some people might have a genetic makeup that allowed them to tolerate smoking and drinking.
Nonetheless, Rogalski thinks we can learn from superagers. “We are getting quite good at extending our lifespan but our health span isn’t keeping up and what the superagers have is more of a balance between those two, they are living long and living well,” she said.
More about: #superagers


Earth Island News
Mangrove Action Project
When the Zhangjiang Guolin Aquatic Products Company, an international shrimp farmer and exporter, opened shop along the tranquil coastline of the Leizhou Peninsula in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, it was either unaware of or unconcerned about the detrimental effects of its activities on the vast coastal ecosystem. The subtropical, ecologically diverse Peninsula, with its breathtaking bays, estuaries, and mangrove forests, is one of many mangrove ecosystems endangered by rapid expansion of shrimp farming worldwide.
Every winter, flocks of waterbirds migrating on the East Asian- Australasian flyway stop to rest and feed on the branches of the mangrove trees in the Zhangjiang Mangrove National Nature Reserve. Chinas largest mangrove forests are in Zhangjiang, home to 24 known mangrove species.
But today, Zhangjiang is depressingly sparse. Too much duck grazing and shrimp farming, as well as poor monitoring and conservation efforts by Chinas State Forest Administration, have left this reserve desolate and damaged beyond repair. Conservationists may have expected the regions protection under the Ramsar Convention, which theoretically protects over 120 million hectares of wetlands in 141 countries, to have had a greater impact on ensuring the sustainability of the mangrove ecosystem there.
A mangrove tree is one of natures masterpieces, combining aesthetics with functionality. The intricate mangrove thickets, also called mangles, can survive in highly saline habitats lethal to many other plants. Mangroves create dramatic forests on humid tropical coastlines, providing many irreplaceable services to our planets well-being. They create nutrient-rich habitats for fish, crustaceans, and other marine wildlife; serve as safe havens for birds; protect offshore coral reefs from siltation; provide safe access to food, water, and wood for human beings in these regions; and protect them from natural disasters such as strong winds and flooding.
Americas appetite for shrimp has reached unprecedented heights, amounting to an average of 3.4 pounds of shrimp eaten per person annually. Despite recent efforts by the US Department of Commerce to raise tariffs against Chinese exporters of shrimp, the Guangdong regions shrimp exports amount to revenues of about 100 million dollars a year. Reports of degraded mangrove ecosystems by Zhangjiang visitors notwithstanding, the Chinese government claims in its report to the United Nations Environment Programme that it has protected Zhangjiangs nature reserve effectively. Many countries fail to monitor and report on the true state of their protected wetlands.
Environmental groups and bird conservationists are attempting to bring these complexities to public consciousness. One such effort is the new campaign for migratory birds launched by Mangrove Action Project (MAP) and its partner organizations in North America, Honduras, Guatemala, and Brazil. MAPs new campaign first aims to research and reveal how the destruction of mangrove ecosystems endangers migratory birds, whose livelihood depends on their capacity to rest and feed in the mangrove forests en route to their destination. Second, MAP hopes to redefine mangrove ecosystems to include the salt and mud flats in the vicinity of mangrove forests. These salt flats and mud flats contain essential nutrients and serve as future venues for the mangroves when these walking trees have to shift their positions inland as sea level rises.
Many shrimp farmers who have not
torn down a mangrove forest have instead opted to build aquacultures in
neighboring salt flats and mud flats. While initiatives to protect
mangrove forests are widespread, efforts to protect all aspects of the
mangrove ecosystem are fragmented at best. In the long run, saving
mangrove forests at the expense of salt flats and mud flats is
meaningless. It is time to start considering alternatives to the
practice of destroying mangrove ecosystems for shrimp farming, such as
integrated fish and rice farming or the integrated mangrove-shrimp farm
system. While these alternatives may initially require a greater
start-up investment, low-budget shrimp farming clearly is not worth the
cost of the consequences caused by the death of the mangroves.


- What is the setting (time, place, circumstances) of the story? How do you know?
- Explain the significance of the possessive pronoun his in the phrase “his bench.”
- Why is Soapy moving uneasily on his bench? How do you know?
- Soapy is not interested in exotic European getaways or trips to Palm Beach. What does “the Island” offer him?
- Why doesn’t Soapy want to receive charity? Be specific. Why is it “better to be a guest of the law” according to Soapy?
- On his way home Soapy finds himself outside of a church. What is happening inside the church. Be specific.
- What is the theme of this story?
- What is the mood/tone of this story?
- What literary devices does O. Henry use in this story? (foreshadowing, irony, metaphor, simile, personification, etc.)
- “The Cop and the Anthem” was published over a hundred years ago. Do you think it’s still relevant? Why or why not?
- Could this story unintentionally contribute to negative stereotypes about homeless people, or people in who repeatedly go to jail? Why or why not?
- Do you think Soapy is, or could be, a “good” person? (To answer this question, you first need to decide what your criteria for being a good person is.)


Common Nutritional Challenges for Teenagers: Adolescent Obesity
Obesity is a medical condition in which a person has too much body fat. Calling childhood obesity an "epidemic" and a "national health crisis," the Whitehouse Childhood Obesity Task Force Report to the President reported nearly one third of children ages 2-19 is overweight or obese, and one quarter of all Americans age 17-24 are unqualified for military service because of being overweight (United States White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity, 2010). Fortunately, the childhood obesity epidemic has moved out of the shadows and into the spotlight thanks to the First Lady, Mrs. Obama, who launched her campaign to battle childhood obesity, called "Let's Move".
Obesity occurs when people eat more food (the body's fuel), than the body requires. When the body consumes food in excess of its fuel requirements, it stores these extra calories in the form of body fat. Bodies that are highly active, have greater caloric requirements than sedentary bodies. Thus, obesity can develop from eating too much food, or not being active enough, or both. The problem with excess body fat, is that it leads to development of other medical complications and problems. Obesity can prevent the body from using blood sugar correctly, which may lead to the development of Diabetes. Excess fat circulating in the blood stream can block arteries causing blood clots to form as blood circulation slows at the blockage, the same way water slows and pools at a dam. The clots can break free and cause heart attacks and strokes. Excess weight strains the heart and cardiovascular system as they must work harder to carry the extra weight around. Excess weight also puts too much pressure on bones and joints, leading to pain and premature joint deterioration. Historically, these medical conditions were limited to adults, but doctors are noticing an alarming trend as more and more youth are being diagnosed with these same problems.
How can parents determine if their children are obese? First, parents should raise this question with the child's physician or other health care provider. Medical personnel typically use the Body Mass Index (BMI) to determine obesity. The BMI uses a calculation that allows comparison between people because it factors in height, weight, and age. The Centers for Disease Control has a website that people can use for free to determine their BMI rating or their children's BMI. Based on the BMI, people's weight can be classified as Underweight, Normal, Overweight, or Obese.
It is simplest to prevent obesity in the first place. But if you find your child is obese, we suggest you review the sections on caloric requirements, and nutritional guidelines for practical suggestions about fostering healthy eating habits. It is important not to tease or shame children or teens who have become overweight or obese. This only serves to create a poor self-image and makes achieving a healthy weight more difficult. Furthermore, subsequent problems can develop such as an Eating Disorder.
There is a strong correlation between overweight youth and overweight parents (Whitaker, Wright, Pepe, Seidel & Dietz, 1997; Guillame, Lapidus, Beckers, Lamber & Bjorntorp, 1995) Therefore, if one or both parents have not yet adopted healthy eating patterns, it is never too late to begin. In this way, the entire family is sharing a goal of improving their health. Thus, the best way for parents to help their pre-teens and teens combat obesity is to model a healthy lifestyle that focuses on plenty of fun physical activity and a wholesome, balanced diet with proper portions, a wide array of healthy food choices, and limited amounts of junk food. This does not mean youth should be expected to avoid all junk food. Such an approach would be experienced as punitive and runs the risk that youth will develop a negative relationship with food.
Because obesity results from an imbalance between food consumption and physical exertion, it is often easier to correct by adding in additional activity rather than taking away or restricting foods. Overweight and obese teens might be encouraged to take up a new sport, or enroll in a new class such as dance or Taekwondo. There are even electronic video games in which players must use their whole body to play a virtual sport. More ideas about physical activity opportunities can be found later in this article under the Exercise & Sports section. Parents should always consult with their children's doctor or pediatrician if they are concerned their youth is overweight, experiencing negative effects of obesity, or need help losing weight. Older adolescents living on their own should be encouraged to consult their doctor under these circumstances, as well.


Peru faces strong running water with land slides.
The heavy rain caused erosion and land slides in Peru that so lives almost being lost. A lot of property was lost including houses. Animals were being taken off by running water that was crashing objects in a closed tunnel. The worst scene is when a woman survives being taken by water in the closed tunnel. This is the effect of climate change and global warming .


|Title||El grupo de discusión como técnica de investigación en la formación de traductores: dos casos de su aplicabilidad|
|Authors||Huertas Barros, E. and Vigier Moreno, F.J.|
The qualitative research technique known as focus or discussion group is especially adequate for gathering information on the opinions, beliefs, perceptions, interests and attitudes of a group of individuals involved in a given object of study. In this article, we firstly focus on the main methodological issues which all studies based on focus groups must follow, depicting both characteristics and design phases. In the following, we describe two practical cases which have successfully applied focus groups for obtaining valuable data on two different objects of study dealing with translator training assessment. Thus we reveal the suitability and validity of this technique in this type of research projects.
|Journal citation||2, pp. 181-196|
|Web address (URL)||http://www.entreculturas.uma.es/n2pdf/articulo11.pdf|


BACKGROUND: Meteorologists are using many new techniques and technologies to help predict the weather. From flying sensor-equipped planes into storms, to using "night vision" infrared light on satellites, your local weathercaster is relying on improved ways of seeing ahead of the storms.
FLYING INTO THE STORM: Weather forecasters in the middle of the U.S. are making better local predictions for pilots and others thanks to an airborne sensor being tested by NASA's Aviation Safety Program. Known as TAMDAR, the instrument allows aircraft to automatically sense and report atmospheric conditions. The data is collected and sent via satellite to a ground data center that processes and distributes up-to-date information to weather forecasters and pilots. Initial research shows that the airborne sensor accounts for a 10 percent to 20 percent improvement in forecast errors in numerical models in measurements of temperature. The sensor also measures humidity, pressure, winds, icing and turbulence with the help of the GPS satellites, which gives location, time and altitude information.
NIGHT VISION AND WEATHER: Atmospheric scientists at the University of Alabama in Huntsville have developed a new weather forecasting system that uses both visible and infrared images taken by satellites. By merging the two sets of image data, the forecast model gets new readings for cloud top temperatures every 15 minutes. The system is 65 percent accurate in providing one-hour warning before heavy rain starts to fall within a thunderstorm. The new system can also help warn of possible turbulence above storms and downwind from mountain ranges. Doppler radar might miss this kind of turbulence in clear air, but the waves can be detected by satellite infrared sensors. Rising air cools while sinking air warms, and these alternating bands of temperature differences show up in the infrared. Satellite information is also available over most of the globe, and thus can provide hazard warnings over areas not covered by Doppler or aviation radar systems.
WHAT IS DOPPLER RADAR: Doppler radar uses a well-known effect of light called the Doppler shift. Just as a train whistle will sound higher as it approaches a platform and then become lower in pitch as it moves away, light emitted by a moving object is perceived to increase in frequency (a blue shift) if it is moving toward the observer; if the object is moving away from us, it will be shifted toward the red end of the spectrum. Doppler radar sends out radio waves that bounce off objects in the air, such as raindrops or snow crystals, and then measures how much the frequency changes in returning radio waves to better determine wind direction and speed.
The American Meteorological Society contributed to the information contained in the TV portion of this report.


The Use of Anticonvulsants in Dogsby Deborah Lundin
Anticonvulsants are prescription medications typically used to treat seizures, or epilepsy, in humans as well as their canine companions. While this is the typical use, your veterinarian may also prescribe anticonvulsants for other conditions, including chronic pain. If prescribed for the treatment of seizures, anticonvulsants require a lifelong commitment from you, the canine parent, as your dog must continue to take the medication for life.
What Are Canine Seizures?
Seizures are the most common neurological condition in dogs and, as in their human counterparts, these seizures are caused by a disturbance in normal brain activity and function. This disturbance typically causes uncontrollable muscle activity. Seizures can be caused by various different conditions, such as liver disease, brain tumors and brain trauma. In addition, they can also be an inherited condition and run in family lines. Dogs with an inherited seizure disorder should not be bred. Breeds predisposed to epilepsy include beagles, shepherds, border collies, cocker spaniels, dachshunds, Irish setters, Labrador retrievers, poodles, Saint Bernards and Siberian huskies.
The most common use of anticonvulsants in dogs is for the treatment of seizures; however, not all dogs with seizures require medication. If your dog experiences a seizure, your veterinarian will evaluate his medication needs. Typically anticonvulsants are not prescribed unless your dog has had more than one seizure in a month, a series of seizures close together or immediately following each other, or severe grand mal seizures.
Types of Anticonvulsants
While many anticonvulsants can treat seizures in dogs, the primary first-line medications include phenobarbital and potassium or sodium bromide. While both medications are effective against seizures, your veterinarian's prescription will depend on your dog. Anticonvulsants do not come without side effects. The most common with these two anticonvulsants include behavioral changes, sedation, reduced muscle coordination, excessive thirst, excessive urination and excessive appetite. Other anticonvulsants include levetiracetam, zonisamide, primodone, topiramate and gabapentin.
Not Just for Seizures
In addition to treating seizures, one anticonvulsant medication, gabapentin, is also used to treat nerve pain in dogs. Common causes of nerve pain include intervertebral disk disease and spinal cord tumors. It is also prescribed for pain associated with cancer.
Following Directions is Essential
Once your veterinarian prescribes an anticonvulsant, whether for seizures or another condition, it is essential to follow the instructions for that specific medication. If your dog suffers from seizures, she will require medication for life. Do not stop medication without the guidance of your veterinarian. VCA Animal Hospitals states that increased seizure activity can occur if medications are stopped. In non-epileptic dogs, stopping an anticonvulsant medication can even trigger seizures.
- VCA Animal Hospitals: Seizures -- General for Dogs
- Claws and Paws Veterinary Hospital: Epilepsy (Seizure)
- Veterinary Neurology Center: What’s the Best First Line Anticonvulsant? [PDF]
- Specialty Veterinary Compounding Pharmacy: Anticonvulsants
- VCA Animal Hospitals: Gabapentin
- petMD: Neuropathic Pain in Dogs
- Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images


Signs of a Massive Impact
Research funded by NASA and the National Science Foundation has led to evidence of an impact crater believed to be associated with the "Great Dying," the largest extinction event in the history of life on Earth.
Scientist Luann Becker and her team found extensive evidence of a 125-mile-wide crater, called Bedout, off the northwestern coast of Australia. They found clues matched up with the Great Dying, about 250 million years ago. The impact, depicted above, wiped out 90 percent of marine and 80 percent of land life.
Image Credit: Continental Dynamics Workshop/NSF
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+ Read Press Release


We’ve already found water on the moon and now scientists from India say they’ve found signs of life there as well. The instruments on their first unmanned lunar mission, Chandrayaan-1, picked up signs of carbon, the main building block of life, on parts of the moon’s surface, just before it crashed into the moon’s south pole in November.
Similar observations were made by the Apollo 11 mission in 1969, which brought soil and rock samples back to Earth, where scientists found traces of amino acids (another basic building block of life).
The DNA website quotes Surendra Pal, director of the Isro Satellite Center (ISAC), as saying, saying, “It could be comets or meteorites which have deposited the matter on the Moon’s surface; or the instrument that landed on the Moon [during the Apollo 11 mission] could have left traces, but the presence of large sheets of ice in the polar regions of the moon, and the discovery of water molecules there, lend credence to the possibility of organic matter there.”
When you’re stuck in Christmas shopping traffic, catch up on your radio listening. Regular unknowncountry.com. listeners only have access to a month of shows, but subscribers can listen, and re-listen, for an entire year, as well as download shows to an MP3 disc so you can listen in your car and in other places away from your computer. And if you don’t want to negotiate all those crowds, give everyone on your list a gorgeous crop circle calendar. As a subscriber, you’ll get 10% off. You get all this for less than $4 per month. So what are you waiting for? Subscribe today!
Art credit: Dreamstime.com
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A Language for Teaching
I’m hoping to send Software Design by Example to the publisher by the end of this month, and it has me thinking once again about what a programming language designed for teaching ought to look like. Here’s one request:
Built-in support for incremental exposition of code.
Most good books on programming interleave exposition and code in ways that most languages don’t directly support. For example, authors commonly want to write something like this to give readers a roadmap for what’s coming next:
class Grid: ...constants... def __init__(self, size): ...set up... def fill(self, value): ...fill entire grid with value... def adjacent(self, x, y): ...return neighbors of (x, y)...
They then want to fill in those markers one at a time further down the page or a few pages later:
def fill(self, value): for i in range(self.size): for j in range(self.size): self.cells[i, j] = EMPTY
I don’t know any programming language that allows me to write this as shown. Some “simple” text processing will allow me to write something like this in my source file:
class Grid: ## [+fill] def fill(self, value): ## [-fill "fill entire grid with value"] for i in range(self.size): for j in range(self.size): self.cells[i, j] = EMPTY ## [-fill] ## [+fill]
and then slice the marked regions to produce the two versions shown above, but having used (and built) several such systems, I keep wondering why we don’t just add this to the language itself. Literate programming promised this, and while I was a zealous user for a couple of years in the late 1980s, bolting LP onto pre-existing languages proved too clunky to catch on. And yes, there are tricks like the Blank Maneuver and tools like jdc for the Jupyter notebook, but the former confuses novices (“Wait, you’re deriving a class from itself?”) and the latter doesn’t support forward markers in the original definition to show where the later code is going to go.
This issue may seem pretty esoteric—after all, most programmers don’t write books—but it highlights two larger points. The first is that most programmers do have to explain the work at some point, and there’s precious little in-language support for doing that. The second point is that languages don’t have any other support for incremental exposition either. For example, every textbook has diagrams, but you can’t put those in your source code: Jupyter notebooks and R Markdown files can show you the plots produced by your code in situ, but they won’t let you draw things by hand.
So here’s my suggestion for an enterprising graduate student who wants to change the world: pick half a dozen books on programming and go through them to create a catalog of explanatory techniques. Once you have that, extend your catalog by looking at slide decks and videos of whiteboard talks, and then design a little language and editor with built-in support for the top N techniques: really built-in, not wedged into specially-formatted comments or requiring extra compilation steps to see what readers are going to see. The language itself could be as small as Quorum, Hedy, or Lox: it’s just there to give users something to explain.
I often ask people what they would work on if they could work on anything. Variations of this idea have been on my list for two decades; I don’t think I have enough years left to see it through myself, but I’d be happy to chat with anyone who wants to take it on.


Towards the end of last month Durban Local History Museums (DLHM) ran a seminar on the Durban Liberation Heritage Route, one of the projects run by DLHM. The seminar explained how this UNESCO initiated project came into being, and the importance of recognising the universal value of these sites, which are spread across Durban. By preserving, and in some instances unveiling, the history of these landmarks, the project with ensure that current and future generations will understand the incredible sacrifices that ordinary men and women made in order to achieve the rights that all South Africans enjoy today.
The route currently consists of 30 sites, the majority of which are located within a kilometre of each other inside the city centre, making it an ideal route for a walking tour. Part of the plan for the heritage route is to signpost the sites by means of a brightly coloured wayfinder pylon, which will provide information about each site in both English and Zulu. The wayfinder will also offer ways – by scanning a QR code with their phones or SMSing a free number – that visitors can access further information about the site they’re visiting. When they scan the code or send an SMS, they will be able to visit the website of the Durban Liberation Heritage Route at: www.amandladurban.org.za.
Image courtesy of www.iol.co.za


Glossary of criminolgy
Other Decks By This User
- Conflict theorists are concerned with issues such as:
- 1. The role government plays in creating a crimogenic environment
2. The relationship between personal and group power and the shaping of criminal law
3. The prevalence of bias in the justice system
4. The relationship between capitalism and crime
- Psychoanalytic Approaches
- 1. PsychoanalyticFocus on early childhood experiences an its effect on personality
2. BehavioristStress social learning and behavior modeling as the key to criminality
3. Cognitive theoristAnalyze human perception and how it effects behavior
- 1. Did not focus on the health part of human beings
2. Did not believe that the criminal person could control his/her criminal desires
3. Psychoanalytic theory held that the human personality contains three parts (these form the basis of personality): ID, EGO, SUPEREGO
4. In short, this approach contends that criminal behavior originates in the personality of the offender rather than the environment
- The ID
- i. Develops first in the individual
ii. the primitive part of individuals mental make up present at birth
iii. represents unconscious biological desires for sex, food, and other life sustaining necessities
iv. follows the pleasure principal and requires instant gratification
v. it is hedonistic
- The EGO
- i. Develops early in life
ii. that part of the personality that compensates for the ID
iii. guided by the reality principle
iv. the executive of the personality acting as a moderator between the ID and the SUPER EGO
v. when the Ego commits crime it is unable to grasp reality and develops into a sociopathic personality.
- The SUPER EGO
- i. Develops as a result of incorporating within the personality, the moral standards, and values of parents, community, and significant others, passed judgment on behavior
ii. When the SUPER EGO commits crime it is looking to be punished and feels guilt for the crimewants to be caught
- Organic disorders
- can be traced to a physical problem (head injury, disease, or degeneration)
- Functional disorders
- are those disorders where there is strange behavior but no know organic problems (hears or sees things that others do not)
- Mental Disorder Theories
- 1. Impulse Disorders
- a. A common category of mental disorder used to explain criminal behavior.
b. Can be functional and/or organic
c. Psychotic people lose contact with reality and have difficulty distinguishing reality from fantasy
- a. A common type of mental disorder that was first used to cover a class of diseases that referred to afflictions of the nervous system.
b. They have no demonstrable organic cause
c. Neurotic behaviors do t grossly violate social norms or represent severely disordered personalities
- Impulse Disorders
- a. Sudden, explosive, and driven to action
b. People with impulse disorders do not necessarily lose touch with reality or lose communication
c. Examples: kleptomania & pyromania
- A sociopath/psychopathic person(s) with an antisocial personality are:
- 1. an individual incapable of significant loyalty to individuals, groups, or social values
2. They are
a. grossly selfish
d. unable to feel guilt
e. unable to learn from experiences and punishment
- Behavior and Social learning theories
- 1. Initially developed by Albert Bandura
2. Based, in part, on Operant Learning Theory developed by B.F. Skinner
3. According to Operant Learning Theory (operant conditioning or behaviorism)rewards and punishments may be social or non-social
- Thinking Pattern theories
- are psychological theories that are focused on the offenders cognitive process.
- Cognitive Development theories
- contend that the way in which people organize their thoughts (think) about rules and laws result in either criminal or non-criminal behavior.
- moral reasoning
- The organization of thoughts as referred to by psychologists
- legal reasoning
- A term used when reasoning (morale reasoning)is applied to law issues.
- Marxist Conflict Theory
- 1. Class conflict
a. Social inadequacies and capitalism play a role in crime
b. According to conflict theories, conflict is a fact of life
i. Resources are scarce and the attempt to control resources generates a major portion of conflict in society
c. Sociological/criminological thermos are based on the consensus approach that views emerging norms and laws of society and the representative of the common feeling of society about what is right and what is wrong
d. William Bonger, an early Marxist Criminologist, argued that the capitalist system encourages people to be greedy and selfish and to pursue their own benefits without regard for the welfare of others in society.
- William Chambliss
- The leading spokesman among Critical Criminologist
- Left Realism
- a branch of Critical Criminology that has refocused attention on the destructive nature of street crime
- Feminist Criminology
- 1. Capitalism oppress women
2. Criticizes traditional criminology because traditional criminology has largely neglected gender
3. Criminology should recognize the significance of gender stratification
4. Traditional Criminology a\has misunderstood the female offenders and victims
- Realistic Criminology developed to challenge Marxist theory because:
- 1. Marxist theory is too simplistic
2. Doesnt account for crime in socialist countries
- Labeling theory is the same as Social Reaction theory. The two major concepts of Labeling theory are:
- 1. Looking Glass-Self. A person defines who they are based on how others see him/her.
2. Self fulfilling prophecy
- Culture Conflict theory
- when norms and values of one group violate these of another, culture conflict is produced.
- The Code of Hammuabi
- was the first to address victims rights
- Corpus Delecti
- -guilty act
- Strict Liability
- Some statutes exist where there is no need to establish a Mens Rea (guilty mind)
- Corpus Delicti includes:
- 1.The Definition of the crime
3.Mens Rea and
4.the combination of both and
5.the Elements of a crime, NOT the BODY of the VICTIM!
- criminal homicide is the most serious type of homicide
- The English Common Law established three forms of homicide
- 1.Justifiable homicide killing under circumstances sanctioned by the sovereign
2.Excusable homicide when one kills another by mistake or in self-defense
3.*Criminal homicide the most serious type of homicide; the unlawful killing of another person with evil intent
- consists of the unjustified offensive touching of another
- is either an attempted or threatened battery
- Voluntary Manslaughter
- is considered the second most serious form of criminal homicide
- Voluntary Manslaughter
can be defined as:
- 1.the intentional and unlawful killing of another person in response to adequate provocation
2.The provocation must be of such a nature as to cause a reasonable person to kill
3.The majority of the states still retain the use of the reasonable person standard to determine if sufficient time has elapsed to enable a reasonable person to gain control of his or her passion
- Misdemeanor-Manslaughter Doctrine
- If the defendant commits a misdemeanor and death results, he/she may be charged with involuntary manslaughter
- Opportunist Robber
- the most common type of robber, commits all types of thefts/larcenies, robbery is just one of them
- For the purpose of rape:
- sexual intercourse requires penetration of the penis into the vagina. Penetration does not have to result in a completed act of sexual intercourse
- Rape Shield laws
- prohibit the defendant or his attorney from questioning the victim regarding her previous sexual activity or introducing other evidence surrounding her past sexual practices.
- Acute Stress Disorder
- is experienced in the immediate aftermath of a traumatic event. Characteristics include:
1. development of anxiety
2. dissociative symptoms
3. other manifestations that occur within one month after exposure to the event
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- the development of characteristic symptoms following a psychologically distressing event that is outside the range of usual human experience.
- the number of all women raped who still suffer from PTSD
- Burglary (Texas Penal Code, Section 30.02)
- 1. The purpose of classifying this crime as a felony was to protect the innocent landowner in his home.
2. At common law the crime of burglary was to protect the property owner from intrusion at night
- The Professional burglar
- skilled burglars who exhibit the characteristics of career criminals; plan their crimes and concentrate on lucrative targets because this is how they earn their living.
- The professional fence
- full time career criminal that buys and sells stolen property.
- Extrafamilial sexual abuse
- exploitative sexual contact with perpetrators who may be know to the child (neighbors, baby-sitters, live-in partners) or unknown to the child.
- Spousal abuse
- any intentional act or series of acts that cause injury to the spouse. These acts may be physical, emotional, or sexual.
- The Cycle of Violence Theory
- asserts that violent behavior is learned within the family and bequeathed from one generation to the next. This is also known as the Intergenerational Transmission of Violence Theory.
- The cycle of violence theory sets forth the dynamics in of battering in spousal abuse. Walkers theory has three distinct phases:
- 1. The tension building phase
2. the explosion or acute battering phase
3. the calm, loving respite phase
- The Stockholm Syndrome
- occurs when persons who are held as hostages, captives, or prisoners of war begin to identify with the captors. These victims are isolated, mistreated and fear for their lives
- Theft typically refers to three types of crimes:
- 1. Larceny
3. Obtaining property by False Pretenses
- the highest form of interest that you may own in a piece of property
- defined in common law as an act where one took for his/her own uses the property of another.
- a crime against ownership; is the fraudulent conversion of property by someone to whom it has been entrusted
- Street Gangs:
- 1.Younger in age 12-25
2.Loose organizational structure
3.Look for attention, showy
4.Members usually grow out of gangs by getting married or moving away
5.use graffiti (drawings or writings on a wall or other surface) to identify themselves and their territory; and, in some instances, to communicate messages
- Prison Gangs:
- 1. Older in age 22 and up
2. Para-military structure
3. Attempt to avoid attracting attention to themselves
4. Blood in & blood out
5. Lifetime membership
6. Members must have been in prison at least once
- Tagging Crews
- individuals known as taggers who join together for the sole purpose of placing their names and slogans in visible places
- Characteristics of Gangs
- a. Diversitygangs vary by ethnic makeup, age of members, drug-related activity, and involvement in violent crime.
b. ChangeGangs evolve based on economic factors and demographic shifts
- Wisconsin v. Mitchell
- the United States Supreme Court unanimously upheld the constitutionality of Wisconsins hate crime statute which increased penalties for crimes motivated by hate or bias.
- Typologies of Hate Crime Offenders
- a. The thrill-seeking offenders groups of teenagers that are not otherwise associated with any other formal hate group.
b. The reactive offender has a sense of entitlement concerning their rights or life-style that does not extend to the victim.
c. The mission-oriented offender may suffer from a mental illness, but more likely are patriotic and survival groups such as the Montana Freeman, Republic of Texas, Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord; concerned with *racial puritythe purity of the Aryan Race or Gods children
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Its name: Curiosity Rover. Its missions:
Before you say that James Bond can do better, wait until you see the gadgets.
Now that you see that this new Mars Rover is the real deal, let's go into more details. First, let's see what's new. Second, what will it do? And finally how it will land on Mars.
The Mars Exploration Rovers are the most succesful mission to Mars. They arrived on Mars at the beginning of 2004, and one of them is still running today (Spirit has been officially lost now). So why does NASA send a new Mars Rover if the previous one is still working?
First, the Curiosity Rover will bring some new equipment. With over 10 experimental tools, it deserves his name of Mars Science Laboratory (Curiosity is actually his nickname). While the duo Spirit/Opportunity was focusing on geology and evidence of water (past and present), the new rover will look for the "habitability" of the Red Planet. It will also look for direct proofs of life on Mars by testing the presence of carbon compounds linked to life activity on Earth.
Second, it is bigger, more powerful, and can work a lot harder. I think the most distinctive feature is the battery system. The new Mars Rover will get rid of the big solar panels and replace them by a nuclear battery. There are some huge advantages to that system:
How much difference it makes? The Opportunity Rover has travelled 25km in 7 years of service. The Curiosity rover could travel up to 20km in its first two years (less if it finds good scientific sites to study). It's clearly thanks to the smaller and more powerful battery that the Mars Science Laboratory can carry so many tools.
A comparison of Mars Exploration Robots
As I said in the introduction, the mission of the Curiosity Rover is ambitious and complete: solve the Mysteries of Mars would sum it up nicely. While the previous missions had only 3 to 5 experiments, often limited to an immobile Mars Lander, this one will bring the full artillery and wander around a vast surface of the planet.
These experiments use the best of high-tech technologies. I especially like the rock-blasting laser! It won't actually explode big chunks of rock to carve its way through, but it can still do some pretty cool stuff. The laser can heat up a small portion of rock while a camera analyze the lights emitted by the target. This way, the robot can analyze the composition of rocks within a 9 meter range. Star Wars blasters are not so far away...
What is a typical day for the Curiosity Rover?
Well, it depends on the day. Curiosity will move for about 1 day out of 2. The other day is used by scientists to collect the data and plan the next day's objectives.
Here are some of the actions the Rover can make in one day:
I found the main NASA website for the Mars Science Laboratory is a little shallow (pages are too short, with only a few numberson each). On the other hand, the MSL Science Corner (opens in a new tab) does a great job at describing all the tools and planning about the rover. The information is older, but a lot more dense.
focuses on giving tips for real robots, and delivers the latest robotics news directly to you. Just type your e-mail and first name and get updated.
Robot Tips: the best of robotics delivered right to you.
First: why doesn't it land the same way as the previous rovers? They used huge airbags that would absorb the shock at landing. A little crude, but it worked. What would happen if the Curiosity Rover did the same? The airbags would fail and explode under the weight of the rover (4 times heavier than the Mars Exploration Rovers).
What's the solution? It's called the Sky Crane. The principle is the same as the cranes used for constructions. The little difference is that the Sky Crane is a flying robot with 4 thrusters for stabilization. The flying robot is first slowed down by the thin atmosphere of Mars, then by a parachute and finally controls its way near the ground to softly deliver the 900kg rover to the surface. Finally, the cables linking the rover to the Sky Crane will disengage and the flying robot will move to a safe distance to crash. It's unique, it's elegant, it's NASA.
For more on Mars Exploration Robots:


Florida is celebrating an anniversary – 2013 marks 500 years since its discovery by the Modern World – a claim no other state can make. Searching for the elusive Fountain of Youth, Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon landed near St. Augustine in 1513. Five hundred(!) years later, Florida’s landscape is ever-changing and ever-growing. In honor of this milestone, Florida is celebrating its heritage with Viva Florida 500, a yearlong homage to the state that so many call home.
The statewide initiative led by the Florida Department of State aims, “to highlight the 500 years of historic people, places and events in present-day Florida since the arrival of Juan Ponce de León to the land he named La Florida in 1513.
While Florida’s Native American heritage dates back more than 12,000 years, Spain’s claim in 1513 began a new era.” Viva Florida 500 plans to promote “the place where the world’s cultures began to unite and transform into the great nation we know today as the UnitedStates of America,” with more than 150 events statewide.
The main branch of the Collier County Museums held an Opening Ceremony on January 8, in honor of the Viva Florida 500 Celebration. Diplomats from Spain, France and Great Britain – the three European powers that once governed Florida – took part in a special flag presentation to the Collier County Board of Commissioners.
For Collier County, this means countless activities, presentations, displays and art exhibits. The Marco Island Historical Museum began its celebration on January 2, with a new exhibit entitled “Lost World: New World.” The free exhibit offers visitors a chance to learn about the first known cultures to exist in Southwest Florida. Learn about the Calusa Indians that inhabited Marco Island and follow their history through the discovery of Florida by the Spanish until their eventual disappearance in the late 1700s.
Not to be outdone, the Immokalee Pioneer Museum, the Naples Depot Museum and the Museum of the Everglades all began the year with events celebrating the state’s milestone.
Visit www.vivaflorida.org to obtain a list of events within the area or throughout the entire state.


Power Transporting is the ability to transport someone's power to another location. It is used to keep the user from any danger when the opponent uses their powers on the user. It is a mental power and when used, the power dissapears and goes to a different location.
Some people may misunderstand, but it doesn't move an ability away from the owner. Also, some users have the ability to transport numerous powers at once, even before the power is used on them. They can even transport the power into someone else to hurt them within.
- The power may be to powerful to control and transport.
- The user can't transport mental powers that they can't see such as telepathy, empathy, etc.


February 16th, 2011 Dr. Mele
Tubular breast deformity is a common, congenital breast abnormality found in both women and men. In men, the treatment is straight forward (see the bottom of this article). In women, however, additional aesthetic norms come into play, making the repair more complex.
Tubular Breast Deformity in Women
Tubular breast deformity is known by many names:
- Tubular breast deformity
- Tuberous breast deformity
- Snoopy Nose or Snoopy’s Nose deformity
- Constricted breast deformity
Women with mild constriction often come to see me to simply increase the size of their breast, not aware of the diagnosis. Women with more severe deformity, however, are often reluctant to show their breasts to others, and want to improve the size and the shape of their breasts. Correcting these types of problems is more challenging, but at the same time, quite rewarding.
Mild tubular breast deformity with constricted base was corrected with sub-pectoral breast augmentation (behind the muscle) and internal release (no lift needed)
Tubular Breast Abnormality is a Congenital Breast Deformity
While present at birth, the full extent of the tubular breast deformity is often not appreciated until puberty. This is when the breasts normally develop, and the full extend of abnormalities are revealed. While women with tubular breasts have smaller than average sized breasts, not all small breasts are tubular breasts. While the extent to which the deformities manifest can vary widely, several specific abnormalities are present.
Signs and Presentation of Tubular Breast Abnormality
Besides smaller size, the main components of the tubular breast are a constricted base and a tubular shape to the breast. This can be exacerbated by herniation of the breast tissue into the areola, causing “puffy nipples”. Technically, the nipple is not affected, but the areola, the colored skin around the nipple, may project out from the breast mound. The overall effect is an elongated or tubular shape to the breast. The true tubular shape is most noticeable in more severe cases.
The colloquial name for tuberous breasts is the Snoopy Nose or Snoopy’s Nose deformity. Snoopy is Charlie Brown’s white beagle of Peanuts fame. Picture the front of Snoopy’s muzzle. If you are not familiar with Snoopy click the link above. His white face represents the breast mound, his black nose sits like a ball on the end, and represents the herniated breast tissue filling the areola.
Treatment of the Tuberous Breasts
As mentioned above, tubular breasts tend to not fully develop. Often patients with tubular breasts desire breast augmentation to increase the size of their breasts. For mild tubular breast deformity, a breast implant may be sufficient treatment. When the breasts are more tubular, additional maneuvers are necessary to provide an enhanced result.
If the areola is overly full, a periareolar lift can reduce the puffy nipples, and prevent the breast tissue from herniating. Unlike for men, the breast tissue is not usually removed, just pushed back into its normal anatomical position. The constricted base seen with tuberous breasts also tends to shorten the distance between the areola and the base of the breast. The lift has the additional benefit of moving the areola higher on the breast, helping to center the nipple on the breast mound.
Moderate tubular breast deformity with constricted base, elongated breast and mild areolar breast tissue herniation, best seen in right breast (your left). Both size and shape were corrected with breast augmentation and peri-areolar lifts.
Traditionally, tubular breast were treated with breast implants placed in front of the muscle. With a periareolar lift, it usually possible to place the implant behind the muscle. This gives a more natural appearing breast mound, and makes it easier to perform mammography in the future. While silicone and saline breast implants can both give good looking results, for smaller breast, a silicone gel implant may give a better feeling result. It is important to discuss the pro’s and con’s of each option with your Board Certified Plastic Surgeon.
Tubular Breast Deformity in Men
In men, tubular breast deformity presents as an overly full areola or “puffy nipples”. Since men like flat chests, tuberous breasts are easily treated in with resection of the excess tissue. The procedure is similar to that used for Gynecomastia. A small “smiley-face” incision is made from 4 to 8 o’clock around the lower edge of the areola, and the excess glandular tissue is removed. The procedure provides a smoother contour, and a quick recovery.
Information on Tubular Breasts
More information on tubular breasts is available on the breast abnormalities page of my specialty breast site under Congenital Abnormalities – Tuberous or Tubular Breasts, and the Snoopy Nose Deformity. Tubular Breast Augmentation Before and After Pictures are also available in my main web site. The best information, however, is only available in person. If you would like to schedule a consultation appointment in my Walnut Creek Cosmetic Surgery office, please give me a call at (925) 943-6353, or use the contact form in the column to the left.
December 10th, 2010 Dr. Mele
Dr. Joseph Mele appears on KRON4's Body Beautiful.
To celebrate the debut of the new San Francisco Breast dot com (SanFranciscoBreast.com), a site dedicated to cosmetic breast surgery for the San Francisco Bay Area, I will be dedicating my appearance on Monday’s Body Beautiful on KRON4 to the breast. Breast augmentation, breast lifts, breast reductions, breast implant revisions, everything related to enhancing the breasts is open for discussion.
Body Beautiful is broadcast live at 11:00 AM on KRON4, so tune in and phone in with your breast questions. Whether you have had breast surgery, or are considering it, the show will cover a variety of topics. For a preview of what’s in store visit SanFranciscoBreast.com.
What’s new in Breast Enhancement Surgery?
The new web site is a comprehensive and authoritative review of the latest techniques in aesthetic breast surgery. Located in the San Francisco East Bay Area city of Walnut Creek, Plastic Surgeon, Joseph Mele, has lent his years of experience, and breast expertise, to this free patient education resource. The site is illustrated with graphics, videos and before and after pictures, and there is more to come. The list of topics covered is long and includes:
Breast Augmentation Lift
Breast Augmentation Revision
Gynecomastia Reduction – Breast Reduction for Men
Specialty Breast Procedures – Correction of Other Breast Abnormalities
I look forward to hearing from you on Monday. If you will not be able to watch KRON4 at 11 AM on Monday, December 13, 2010, and you have a question you want answered, you can send your question via the contact form to the left. I will send you a personal response, and perhaps your question will be answered live during Body Beautiful.
September 21st, 2010 Dr. Mele
Dr. Joseph Mele appears on the Bay Area's News Channel, KRON4's Body Beautiful
Thank you Bay Area plastic surgery patients, for a great show yesterday. We discussed breast augmentation, breast lifts, breast reduction and combinations of all the above. For anyone who missed the show, and is interested in seeing the broadcast, I will be posting it here in the San Francisco Plastic Surgery Blog very soon.
KRON4′s Body Beautiful
Body Beautiful is a live show that allows you to call in with your questions. Unfortunately, it was not possible to answer everyone’s questions in half an hour. However, you can always send me your question by using the contact form found in the lower left corner of this page.
Breast Lift Before and After Pictures
Several pictures where used to illustrate the results possible with Breast Augmentation (Mammaplasty) , Breast Lift (Mastopexy) and Breast Augmentation Lift (Augmentation Mastopexy). While censored for television, the breast augmentation before and after pictures demonstrated the natural fullness that can be achieved with a breast implant. The breast lift before and after pictures showed how the breast and nipple are lifted with the mastopexy. The two procedures can also be combined and the breast augmentation mastopexy, or breast augmentation lift. The breast augmentation mastopexy before and after pictures show what the procedures can achieve when performed together.
Breast Lifts not only lift the breast, but also reposition the nipple. Since the nipple and areola on the before and after pictures have to be censored for the breast lift video segment shown on network television, some of the details are lost. I will show you here, what I cannot broadcast on television.
Before Breast Lift with Breast Reduction: Notice the nipple position. When the nipple is located at the bottom of the breast, this is classified as Grade III ptosis. The breast mound is below the inframammary fold (IMF), and overlies the upper abdomen
After Breast Lift with Breast Reduction: The nipple and breast are now perky. The breast has been moved up onto the chest, and the nipple has been moved up on the breast. Can you find the freckle just above the nipple over in the before picture?
What Can a Breast Lift Do?
The above, breast lift with breast reduction before and after pictures, show what a lift can achieve. The breast has been lifted off the upper abdomen and placed back onto the chest. Since breast reduction was also performed, some breast volume was reduced. Reducing breast volume is not required to achieve a breast lift. A breast lift can be done with breast augmentation to add volume, with breast reduction to reduce volume or by itself when the breast volume is fine.
The pictures show that the nipple has been lifted from its dependent position at the bottom of the breast, to the point that is most anterior. The nipple was at elbow level before the lift, afterward the nipple is at the midpoint of the upper arm. Before the mastopexy the breast look old, sad and tired, afterward, the breasts appear young and perky.
Another measure of how for the nipple has moved is demonstrated by the freckle that is just above the nipple after the lift. The same freckle can be seen (more faintly) in the before picture, near the center of the chest, on the upper breast mound, about half way between the nipple and the collar bone. This shows not only how far the nipple has moved, but also how much breast tissue has been moved up under the skin. Even the cleavage has been moved up on the chest, and this is with volume reduction. Upper pole fullness can be further enhanced with the use of a breast implant.
Many Types of Breast Lifts are Available
The lift used above is an inverted-T mastopexy. This is also called the keyhole lift or anchor lift, and is the biggest lift performed. In the after picture the scar can be seen. It runs around in a circle around the nipple, from the nipple down to the base of the breast, and along the bottom of the breast in the inframammary fold (IMF). The vertical incision and the incision around the areola allow for the repositioning of the nipple higher on the breast. The periareolar (around the areola) incision also allows for reduction of the areola’s diameter if desired. The horizontal incision, in the IMF at the base of the breast, allows the breast mound to be moved upwards and reduces the skin in the lower breast to help support the breast tissue up.
Many types of breast lifts are available. My goal is to always choose the smallest lift that will give us the results we desire. In this case, this is the biggest lift available. While there is more scar length, the quality of the lift, and the control achieved, makes the result worthwhile. Not only is the breast rejuvenated in appearance, but the reduction of breast skin also firms the breasts, resulting in less pendulous breast movement and more patient comfort when physically active.
More Information on Breast Augmentation, Breast Lifts and Breast Reduction
Click on any of the following links for more information on the topic covered in this post courtesy of DrMele.com:
Breast Augmentation Lift
August 24th, 2009 Dr. Mele
Breast asymmetry is more the rule than the exception, and there are many ways in which breasts can be uneven. Size, shape and location all come into play. Asymmetry may effect the entire breast mound (see previous post) or just the nipples. Normally, the differences are small; however, as the magnitude of breast asymmetry increases, so does the desire for correction.
In my San Francisco Bay Area (Walnut Creek) cosmetic plastic surgery practice, I measure the differences between the breasts both subjectively and objectively every day. Small differences frequently go unnoticed. Often, asymmetry is first noted in the consultation for breast augmentation. When the difference is obvious, however, breast asymmetry can be the driving force toward seeking consultation with a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon.
This post is focussed primarily on areola asymmetry (the darker skin around the nipple) and nipple asymmetry (the raised part in the middle). Look for a post on breast asymmetry (the breast mound itself), including breast implant asymmetry, in the very near future.
One of the most common nipple asymmetries is caused by inversion (retraction) of the nipples. Inverted nipples can occur on one or both sides. Inverted nipples and even bifid (split or duplicated) nipples can be treated with minor surgery.
Before correction the nipple and part of the areola are hidden.
Inverted nipples are caused by short mammary ducts that pull the nipple inside the breast tissue. In the most pronounced forms even the areola maybe hidden. The scar for inverted nipple correction is normally hidden in the fold beneath the nipple. Since correction involves releasing the tight ducts, correction may interfere with the ability to breast feed, and this should be discussed with your plastic surgeon prior to surgery.
After correction the relatively large nipple can now be seen.
The size and shape of the nipple can also be adjusted.
Close-up of breast showing appearance of nipple enlargement after pregnancy.
Overly large nipples can be reduced in length and girth. In general, it is easier to reduce a large nipple than to enlarge a small one. Nipple reconstruction is performed after a mastectomy when the nipple is absent. With nipple reconstruction, especially when the breast has received radiation, the most difficult aspect is creating and maintaining nipple projection.
Close-up of breast showing appearance of nipple after nipple reduction.
There are times when the nipples are normally formed, but their location on the breast is asymmetric or they are just too low. Modest changes in nipple location can be improved with a periareolar approach. Several centimeters of motion can be safely accomplished with this method. The same periareolar technique can also be used for areolar reduction or to correct the overly full areola, as seen with a tubular breast deformity.
Larger asymmetries may require surgery similar to a breast lift. Formal breast lifts allow the larger movement of the nipples, and reshaping of the entire breast mound. See the previous San Francisco Plastic Surgery Blog posting by clicking here Breast Mound Asymmetry San Francisco: Breast Mound, Breast Implants. There are many types of lifts, and each has its own pros and cons. The art of Plastic Surgery is choosing the best approach for each individual San Francisco breast asymmetry patient. This will be the topic of a future posting.
August 16th, 2009 Dr. Mele
There are many ways in which breasts can be uneven. Size, shape and location are the most common. There can be asymmetry of the nipples as discussed in Breast Asymmetry San Francisco: Inverted Nipples and Asymmetry, or asymmetry of the breast mounds themselves discussed here. If the differences are small, everything appears normal; however, as the magnitude of asymmetry increases, so does the desire for correction.
There are times when the nipples are normally formed, but their location on the breast is asymmetric or low. This post will discuss breast mound asymmetry, including breast implant asymmetry and nipple location.
Modest changes in nipple location can be improved with a periareolar approach. In these cases an incision is made around the areola and differing amounts of skin are removed to move the nipple and areola in the desired direction. Several centimeters of motion can be safely accomplished with this method.
The same periareolar technique can also be used for areolar reduction. When the areola is too large, it be reduced to better match the proportions of the breast. The periareolar technique can also correct the overly full areola, as seen with a tubular breast deformity.
Larger asymmetries, require greater movement of nipple areola, and are accomplished with surgery similar to a breast lift.
Before breast augmentation and formal breast lift. Note the asymmetries. On left side (patient's right) both the breast mound and the nipple areola complex are larger and lower.
Formal breast lifts are also know as inferior pedicle breast lifts, inverted-T breast breast lifts or anchor scar breast lifts. This is the most versatile of the breast lift and allows for the largest movement of the areola and nipples, as well as reshaping of the entire breast mound. Larger corrections are possible with preservation nipple sensation and circulation.
After breast augmentation and an "inverted-T" breast lift. The periareolar and vertical components of the scar can be seen. The horizontal scar is hidden in the inframammary fold.
In this case a breast augmentation was used to adjust the breast volume; at other times a breast reduction is more appropriate. As previously dicussed, breast implant revision surgery may also be indicated for breast implant asymmetry from capsular contracture.
There are many types of breast lifts and each has its pro’s and con’s. The art of Plastic Surgery is choosing the best approach for each individual San Francisco breast asymmetry patient. I call this, using the smallest hammer necessary to get the job done. While bigger lifts leave a longer scar, choosing too small a lift still leaves a scar but it does not correct the original problem.


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Access JSTOR through your library or other institution:
Deconstructing Darwin: Evolutionary Theory in Context
David L. Hull
Journal of the History of Biology
Vol. 38, No. 1, The "Darwinian Revolution": Whether, What and Whose? (Spring, 2005), pp. 137-152
Published by: Springer
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4331924
Page Count: 16
You can always find the topics here!Topics: Evolutionary theories, Natural selection, Darwinism, Evolution, Internalism, Victorians, Externalism, Students, Empirical evidence, Biological evolution
Were these topics helpful?See something inaccurate? Let us know!
Select the topics that are inaccurate.
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The topic of this paper is external versus internal explanations, first, of the genesis of evolutionary theory and, second, its reception. Victorian England was highly competitive and individualistic. So was the view of society promulgated by Malthus and the theory of evolution set out by Charles Darwin and A.R. Wallace. The fact that Darwin and Wallace independently produced a theory of evolution that was just as competitive and individualistic as the society in which they lived is taken as evidence for the impact that society has on science. The same conclusion is reached with respect to the reception of evolutionary theory. Because Darwin's contemporaries lived in such a competitive and individualistic society, they were prone to accept a theory that exhibited these same characteristics. The trouble is that Darwin and Wallace did not live in anything like the same society and did not formulate the same theory. Although the character of Victorian society may have influenced the acceptance of evolutionary theory, it was not the competitive, individualistic theory that Darwin and Wallace set out but a warmer, more comforting theory.
Journal of the History of Biology © 2005 Springer


A TDR (time domain reflectometer) is an instrument that probably has the fastest rise time of any instrument in your lab, yet you can test its accuracy using a DC Ohmmeter.
What the TDR Measures
In all high-speed channels, reflections are bad. We try to engineer a channel to reduce the reflections, which all contribute to inter-symbol interference (ISI).
But in a TDR, reflections are our friend. We use the reflections of a signal when it encounters a change in the instantaneous impedance as the basis of operation of the instrument. The TDR also leverages the finite propagation speed of the signal. This transforms the location of the discontinuity into a time delay of when the reflection is measured at the source.
There are two important elements in a TDR instrument: a very fast step edge generator and a sampling scope to measure the voltage near the launch of the signal. Figure 1 shows how of these two elements are used to transmit and measure the reflections from a device under test (DUT).
The fast edge is launched into the DUT and propagates down the length of the interconnect. Wherever the edge encounters a change in the instantaneous impedance, a reflected signal is created, propagating in the backward direction toward the source. It is detected when the reflected edge makes its way back to the sampling scope. The magnitude of the reflection and when it is measured encode the information about the magnitude of the impedance change and its location.
From the signal’s perspective, it doesn’t matter what physical structure creates the change in instantaneous impedance. It could be from a change in geometry of a transmission line, and it can also be a discrete resistor in series or in shunt.
A TDR is sensitive to series resistance and shunt resistance
If the interconnect is uniform, the signal sees a constant instantaneous impedance between the signal and return path as it propagates down the line. If the edge encounters a discrete series resistance it sees this in series with the instantaneous impedance of the transmission line. This higher instantaneous impedance creates a small reflection. But, the rest of the path has no change in impedance, so there is no further reflection.
The impact of a small series resistance is to create an offset in the distributed impedance of the transmission line. This can arise, for example, when there is contact resistance in the connector due to a dirty connector or a loose connection.
If there is high series resistance in the interconnect, due to a narrow signal conductor, for example, the impedance will appear to gradually increase as the signal propagates down the line. The way to distinguish a geometry impact on the impedance or a series resistance is to measure the DUT from each end. If the instantaneous impedance increase is due to a distributed series resistance, the impedance profile will look “uphill” in both directions. Figure 2 shows examples of these two effects in transmission line structures.
When the resistance is a shunt, across the signal and return path, it is in parallel with the instantaneous impedance of the transmission line. If this resistor is placed at the end of the transmission line, the resistor shorts the open, and its resistance dominates the instantaneous impedance.
The signal cannot tell the difference between the instantaneous impedance of a uniform 50 Ohm transmission line and a 50 Ohm resistor between the signal and return at the end of the line. Figure 3 shows the TDR response from two structures; one is a 50 Ohm transmission line and one is a 50 Ohm shunt resistor. Both are engineered with small discontinues at the launch. It is only by waiting to see the reflection from the open at the end of the coax cable that you can tell which is which.
TDR from discrete resistors
The instantaneous impedance of a resistor in parallel with an open is its resistance. In principle, if we measure the TDR response of a discrete shunt resistor, we should see just the resistance of the resistor.
In practice, the connection of the discrete resistor to a coaxial connector, like an SMA, will always result in a large discontinuity. Due to the long leads, the discontinuity will always be high, looking like an inductive discontinuity. An example of the measured TDR response from a 50 Ohm axial lead resistor soldered on an SMA connector is shown in Figure 4.
We can model the connection as a short, high impedance, uniform transmission line, with the 50 Ohm SMA on one side and the resistor on the other. If the short discontinuity is lossless, there will be reflections from the front end and back end of the discontinuity. And, the reflection from the back end will rattle around inside the discontinuity, reflecting off of each end.
If we wait long enough (roughly 5 round trip times) for all the reflections to die out, we will see the net reflection from the change of impedance between the 50 Ohm of the source and the resistance of the discrete resistor. This principle can be illustrated in a simple simulation. Figure 5 shows the simulated TDR response from a 0.1 nsec long 200 Ohm transmission line in series with a 75 Ohm ideal resistor. The rise time is 35 psec.
You can see the multiple reflections inside the 200 Ohm transmission line. Its TD = 0.1 nsec. The round-trip delay between the reflection from the front and from the back of the 200 Ohm transmission line is 2 x TD = 0.2 nsec. Even with such a high impedance difference, after 5 x round trip delay = 1 nsec, all the reflections have died away and the measured impedance is the impedance of the resistor, 75 Ohms.
This suggests a powerful way of testing the accuracy of a TDR using discrete resistors.
Verifying the accuracy of a TDR with Resistors
I took a selection of axial lead, ¼ watt carbon resistors with values of roughly 10 Ohm, 30 Ohm, 50 Ohm, 70 Ohm, 100 Ohms, 150 Ohms and 330 Ohms, and soldered them to SMA connectors. I was not trying to engineer a low launch discontinuity. I measured the resistance between the signal pin and outer shield of the SMA with a Keithley 196 System DMM, which has a NIST traceable absolute accuracy of 0.1% in resistance. I was careful to eliminate the artifact of the 0.3 Ohm series resistance of the test leads.
Generally, it is difficult to reduce the contact resistance to less than 0.1 Ohms, which contributes an error at the 1% level for the 10 Ohm resistor.
When I measured these SMA mounted resistors with my TDR, I measured the responses shown in Figure 6. In this example I used a 50 psec rise time.
While they each have a very large discontinuity at the launch, if we wait for these initial reflections to die down, the final, long time impedance as measured by the TDR is very close to what is measured with the DMM. Here is a summary of the differences between the DC DMM Ohmmeter measurements and the 35 psec TDR measurements:
DMM Resistance TDR resistance relative error
R = 9.96 Ohms 10.1 Ohms 0.14 Ohms/10 Ohms = 1.4%
R = 32.3 Ohms 32.5 Ohms 0.2 Ohms/32.2 = 0.6%
R = 50.8 Ohms 50.9 Ohms 0.1/51 Ohms = 0.2%
R = 74.1 Ohms 73.8 Ohms 0.3 Ohms/74 Ohms = 0.4%
R = 100.0 Ohms 99.7 Ohms 0.3/100 = 0.3%
R = 153.4 Ohms 151.8 Ohms 1.6 Ohms/153 = 1.0%
R = 329 Ohms 324 Ohms 5 Ohms/329 = 1.5%
Near 50 Ohms, the absolute accuracy is less than 1%.
If you want confidence in the accuracy of your TDR, it’s easy to build a few samples of resistors, measure their resistance with a TDR and compare to their DC resistance. As long as you wait long enough for all the launch discontinuities to die out, you should measure the same resistance with the DMM as with the TDR. This is a test of the calibration accuracy of your TDR. It is one step every TDR user should take to gain confidence in the accuracy of the instrument.


NOAA issues Atlantic tuna management measures
The measures include areas in the Gulf of Mexico where gear is restricted in April and May — a time of year when the species spawns in that area — as well as off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, a prime bluefin feeding ground from December through April. The new restrictions also include a cap on Atlantic surface longline incidental catch of bluefin both at the vessel level as well as at the fleet level.
Atlantic bluefin tuna is regarded as one of the most important and prized species in the ocean. Weighing upwards of 1,000 pounds and reaching more than six feet long, bluefin tuna are near the top of the ocean food chain, giving them an important role in the marine ecosystem. They are also extremely valuable on the commercial market, which makes them particularly vulnerable to unreported and unregulated fishing internationally.
“The United States is committed to protecting Atlantic bluefin tuna using sustainable, science-based management, and we will continue to be an international leader in its management,” said Eileen Sobeck, assistant NOAA administrator for NOAA Fisheries. "These measures allow fishermen to continue fishing for their target species using alternate gear. We are balancing the needs of the fishermen with the recovery of bluefin tuna."
Amendment 7 includes measures to reduce the dead discard of bluefin tuna and improve discard accounting through individual transferable quotas in the pelagic longline fishery, as well as enhanced monitoring and reporting requirements in all fishing categories.
Under the new regulations, fishermen will have a strong incentive to avoid catching bluefin tuna incidentally when pursuing swordfish and other Atlantic tunas, since bluefin tuna catch (landings and dead discards) will be counted against individual longline vessel quotas. Longline fishing for bluefin will cease when the combined landings and discard catch hits the quota.
NOAA Fisheries has identified bluefin tuna as a species of concern, but it is not listed as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act. NOAA scientists remain concerned about the status of the Atlantic bluefin tuna, and will continue to monitor this species closely.
NOAA Fisheries held more than 15 public meetings for this action along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts during the public comment period for the proposed regulations, which closed on January 10.
The environmental impact statement includes the ecological and socioeconomic analyses of the amendment.
During the recent ICCAT meeting in Italy, the U.S. delegation for the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna worked to reach agreement on science-based management measures for shared stocks. ICCAT members approved an increase to the Total Allowable Catch for the western Atlantic as well as the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean stocks of bluefin tuna. The changes are in line with scientific advice and the western Atlantic TAC will allow that stock to continue to increase.
NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth's environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our other social media channels.


New Beginnings provides numerous courses, for groups of all ages, geared to prevent and confront the tragedy of sexual assault.
Programs will vary with each age group and can be modified to suit your needs.
This is not a comprehensive list; there are many more programs available from New Beginnings. Please contact us to learn more or to schedule a program for your group.
The Green Dot violence prevention initiative is gaining popularity around the state. There is a renewed sense of hope that the collective impact of individual actions can indeed result in a reduction of violence.
A Green Dot is any behavior, choice, word, or attitude that counters or displaces violence – by promoting safety for everyone and communicating utter intolerance for sexual violence, interpersonal violence, stalking, and child abuse.
If you are interested in bringing a Green Dot presentation to your business, organization please contact us.
Play It Safe
Play it Safe!® is a child abuse awareness and prevention program that incorporates age-appropriate scripts and movies to teach children how to reduce their risk of sexual and physical abuse, and sexual assault. It teaches them to recognize potentially abusive behavior, provides the tools to respond to threatening situations, and encourages them to report abuse to a trusted adult.
Play it Safe!® is an evidence-informed, age-appropriate risk reduction program for Pre-K through high school age students. Since 1983, more than 1.5 million children in north Texas have learned about personal safety from The Women’s Center’s Play it Safe!® program. Each grade level’s interactive curriculum speaks to children in a way that they can best learn and respond.
6th Grade – BE BRAVE
“Be Brave” is a bystander intervention program that teaches the importance of making choices to stand up, take action, and do something to help others being hurt. The students will develop skills and confidence when responding or intervening to concerns they see around them at school or play. The hope is for the students to leave feeling empowered to be brave enough to make a difference! The students will have fun by being actively involved using music and activities.
7th Grade – STEP IN, SPEAK UP
“Step in, Speak up” is based on the bystander intervention model of bullying prevention. It explores dynamics of bullying and helps participants to develop practical solutions to bullying based on individual experiences in their school communities
8th Grade – Healthy Relationships
“Healthy Relationships” helps students understand the different types of relationships they may have and how they can identify what is healthy and unhealthy. It also explains the effects of an unhealthy relationship. The program will give students the tools they need if they encounter or witness dating abuse.
NetSmartz Internet Safety
NetSmartz Internet Safety is an exciting interactive programs for kids of all ages. There are different courses geared for grades K-2, 3-6, tweens, teens, and parents!
The program educates audiences on the tactics of internet sexual predators, addresses sexual exploitation and solicitation, and explains effective safety practices. Kids really get involved and love these programs! While we do not do this program ourselves, we are happy to loan you the materials.
Signs and Symptoms of Child Sexual Abuse is a one-day, 60-minute program.
School Staff and Parents
Innocence Shattered is a program geared to help school personnel and parents better understand the appropriate professional boundaries between school staff and students. The course explains and helps recognize the offender’s tactics and the impact they have on their victims.
Innocence Shattered is a one-day, 35-minute program.


Radon is a cancer-causing, radioactive gas. It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, and chemically inert.
Radon is formed by the natural radioactive decay of uranium in rock, soil, and water. Naturally existing, low levels of uranium occur widely in Earth's crust; it can be found in all 50 states. Once radon is produced, it moves up through the ground into the air and can also dissolve into ground and surface water.
Radon is estimated to cause thousands of deaths each year. That's because when you breathe air containing radon, you can get lung cancer. Surgeon General has warned that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States today. Only smoking causes more lung cancer deaths.
Nearly one out of every 15 homes has a radon level EPA considers to be elevated 4 pCi/L or greater. The U.S. average radon-in-air level in single family homes is 1.3 pCi/L. Indoor radon levels are very important because of the percentage of time we spend indoors.
The only way to determine how much radon is in the area is to test for it. The EPA states that any radon exposure carries some risk; no level of radon exposure is always safe. However, EPA recommends homes be fixed if an occupant's long-term exposure will average 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) or higher.


“How can we measure the energy used when an electron is added?”
We know that the energy of an atom changes when an electron is added. But how can we measure so? Well, we know that electrons are always placed into orbitals. And we know that an element’s oxidation state is contingent upon the numbers of orbitals filled. And on top of that, the more orbital shells are filled, the smaller the radius becomes, therefore magnifying the force. So wouldn’t it make sense that it is easier for an electron if most of the valence shells are filled? Therefore, electrons become easier to add the higher occupancy of orbitals.This makes sense because as we move from left to right, elements tend to become more negative in their reactions. Scientists have termed this principle electron affinity.


There is overwhelming evidence that animals are reservoirs for several of the most important food-borne and waterborne agents. Manure and wastewater from animal feeding operations have the potential to contribute pathogens and pollutants, such as antibiotics, nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), hormones, sediments, heavy metals, organic matter, and ammonia, to the environment and eventually could impact human health. Some of the illnesses resulting from these agents cause only temporary health problems, while others cause severe crises and even death.
Years ago, diseases such as tuberculosis, brucellosis, diphtheria, and scarlet fever were commonly spread through milk (Table 1). TB testing, brucellosis eradication, and pasteurization resulted in a dramatic decline in milk-borne disease outbreaks. From 1950 through the 1970s, several disease outbreaks were caused by pathogens in processed milk and manufactured dairy products (e.g.,Salmonellae in dried milk products, toxicogenic Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus in certain cheeses). In the 1980s several previously undetected bacteria were related to illnesses (Listeria, Campylobacter, and Yersinia).
Even now, pathogen contamination of water and food supplies has received national attention. Salmonellae contamination of pasteurized milk affected hundreds of thousands. Listeriosis in cheese has caused dozens of deaths. Cryptosporidium parvum from farm runoff in the Milwaukee water supply sickened more than 400,000. E. coli O157:H7 has been found in hamburger (often from spent dairy cows), and recently several people were sickened and some children died because of a contaminated water supply at a fairground which may have been polluted by livestock waste.
|Years||Notable Diseases or Pathogens Associated with Dairy Products|
|1900-1940s||Diptheria, tuberculosis, brucellosis, Q-fever, septic sore throat|
|1950-1975||Salmonellosis, Staphylococcus enterotoxins, brucellosis, Bacillus cereus, Enterotoxigenic E. coli|
|1975-1986||Hemorrhagic E. coli, Yersinia enterocolitica, Campylobacter jejuni, Salmonella typhimurium, Listeria monocytogens|
Most dairy food-borne illness outbreaks are due to microorganisms in food. Bacteria in dairy food can cause intoxications or infections. Infections occur when the microorganism is eaten and established in the body, usually multiplying inside the intestinal tract and irritating the lining of the intestines. Intoxications occur when bacteria grow in foods and release preformed toxins. Bacteria have recently been linked to illnesses caused by milk that previously have never been or were rarely known to have been associated with milk or dairy foods.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has recently estimated that 76 million cases of gastrointestinal illnesses are caused annually by food, resulting in 325,000 serious illnesses requiring hospitalization and 5,000 deaths. The CDC reports that more than 95% of estimated food-related deaths are due to six pathogens: Salmonella, 31%, Listeria, 28%, Toxoplasma, 21%, Norwalk-like viruses, 7%, Campylobacter, 5%, and hemorraghic E. coli, 3%. Of these six, Salmonella, Campylobacter, hemorraghic E. coli and Listeria have been associated with dairy foods.
It must remembered that unknown agents account for approximately 81% of food-borne illnesses and hospitalizations and 64% of deaths. Ninety percent of Listeria cases require hospitalization because it causes serious illness, whereas, much of the E. coli and Salmonella illnesses are not reported. Food-borne transmission is attributed to 36% of acute gastroenteritis, and of hospitalizations caused by bacterial pathogens, 60% were due to food-borne transmission.
Many of the pathogens of greatest concern today were not recognized as causes of food-borne illness 20 years ago (hemorraghic E. coli, Listeria, Campylobacter, Cryptospordium). CDC has targeted four bacterial pathogens – E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella enteritidis, Listeria monocytogenes, and Campylobacter jejuni – as those of greatest concern
Most cases of food-borne and waterborne illness in healthy adults are self-limiting and of short duration. Diarrhea, cramps, nausea, and vomiting are the most common acute symptoms of many food-borne and waterborne illnesses, which can range from mild to severe. These symptoms are commonly found regardless of pathogen.
Most of the pathogens can be found as contaminants of raw milk, eggs and poultry products, meats, shellfish, vegetables, and, last but not least, water. Many of these illnesses can be transmitted by other vectors, such as contaminated or infected food handlers or equipment. Pregnant women, newborns or young children, elderly people, and the infirmed are more prone to these illnesses, although many also attack healthy people.
While the likelihood of serious complications is unknown, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration estimates that about 2 to 3% of all food-borne illness cases lead to secondary long-term illnesses. For example, E. coli O157:H7 can cause kidney failure in young children and infants; Salmonella can lead to reactive arthritis and serious infections; Listeria can cause meningitis and stillbirths; and Campylobacter may be the most common precipitating factor for Guillain-Barre syndrome.
According to the CDC, Campylobacter is the most common bacterial cause of diarrhea in the United States, resulting in 1 to 6 million illnesses each year. Also each year, an estimated 1,850 people become seriously ill from Listeria monocytogenes. The disease primarily affects pregnant women, newborns, and adults with weakened immune systems.
Many emerging zoonotic pathogens (disease-causing organisms that transfer from animals to humans under natural conditions) are becoming increasingly resistant to antimicrobial agents, largely because of the widespread use of antibiotics in the animal reservoir. Therefore, public health concerns include the patterns of antimicrobial use in agriculture, as well as in human medicine.
Briefly described below are microbes that can be transmitted from animals to humans directly or through dairy foods and water supplies and thus are a potential threat to human health. Listed are only those that may be transmitted through milk or meat from spent dairy cows. Pathogens such as human enteric viruses and Giardia have not been included.
|Hemorraghic E. coli||Listeria||Campylobacter||Staph aureus||Streptococci|
The U.S. Food Safety Inspection Service has proposed a concept of pathogen reduction that traces back to the dairy, farm, or ranch. However, eradication on the farm seems very unlikely for major food-borne pathogens. For one thing, the concept of food safety through on-farm testing will be expensive to implement. It is important to recognize common sources for herd or farm exposure to many of these pathogens. According to Jim Cullor, Ph.D., (University of California, Davis), probable on-farm critical control points for many of these human pathogens will be: (1) housing and bedding, (2) water and waste management areas, (3) hospital pens, calving pens, treatment areas, (4) bulk tank milk, and (5) young stock and cull animals.
Steps to Take
- Identify and reduce stresses, such as overcrowding, among healthy animals.
- Clean and chemically sanitize reasonable contact areas, such as sick cow stalls, maternity pens, and contaminated feed materials and water.
- Isolate animals with diarrhea.
- Provide proper clothing and show covers for workers and visitors to the farm.
- Have foot baths available for people and clean them on a regular basis.
The most common method for destroying pathogenic bacteria and other organisms and also for eliminating organisms that spoil milk or cause off-flavors is pasteurization. According to the CDC, raw milk drinkers are 158 times more likely to contract illness caused by Salmonella than those who consume properly pasteurized milk.
However, some microorganisms, not the pathogens, survive pasteurization. Milk producers must continue with farm practices that protect the public from food-associated hazards even though few illnesses can be traced to the farm. Producers must be aware of public perceptions of possible hazards and risks so they can strengthen current quality practices and prevent adverse circumstances.
The primary entry points of a pathogen into the milk supply are cows, people, and equipment. Cows are normal carriers of many pathogens, either on the hair or skin from exposure to soil, manure, surface water (ponds and creeks), and other environmental sources.
People can also carry pathogenic bacteria. Because many of the organisms have their origin in human feces or infections, people can directly cross-contaminate the milk, the cow, or the equipment through poor personal hygiene. Employees can also become contaminated from soil and manure on the cow and, in turn, cross-contaminate the milk or equipment.
Unsanitary equipment primarily results from improper cleaning and sanitizing. When milk contacts unsanitary surfaces, such as pipelines, milker parts, the bulk tank, or other sources, it can be contaminated with pathogens. Even if contact surfaces are properly cleaned and sanitized, they can contaminate milk if they come in contact with other disease carriers, such as rodents, roaches, flies or other insects, manure, or contaminated water. We must remember that pasteurization of any sort is no match for bad sanitation and substandard practices.
Many of the pathogens listed (except Listeria monocytogenes) will not grow and multiply below 40 F. Refrigerating milk will not kill the organisms, but it will limit their ability to reproduce. Milk producers must ensure temperature control according to regulations. Cool milk rapidly (less than two-hour chill time) to less than 40 F and maintain the temperature at that level. However, Listeria is a cold-loving bacteria that can grow at 37 F or higher. While cool temperatures are the best way to control most pathogens, stop Listeria before it enters the system by cleaning and sanitizing everything properly.
Young animals are most susceptible to many of these organisms. They are more frequently found with the stress of inadequate housing. Cattle, especially young stock, should be kept clean and well nourished. Manure should be stored and spread when risk of disease transmission, such as times of high risk of runoff, is low. Narrow filter strips reduce the risk of stream contamination.
Management, Housing, and Feeding Precautions
- Clean and dry maternity and sick stalls. Animals with diarrhea should be segregated. Calves should be born in a clean, manure-free environment.
- Remove newborn calves from dam at birth and before nursing. Give newborn colostrum from dam or disease-free cows. Avoid feeding pooled waste milk.
- Keep young cattle separated from milking or dry cows.
- House in clean and dry loafing areas or environments. Cleanliness is important for cows’ teats and udders, housing and milking equipment, and milkers’ hands. Remove hair from udders, and milk clean, dry teats.
- Thoroughly clean and sanitize milking equipment and replace gaskets and other parts before they show wear.
- Water troughs should be cleaned weekly.
- Old feed should be removed daily from feed bunks. Feed storage areas and mixing equipment should be cleaned regularly. Cattle should receive fresh feed through a balanced ration.
- Caution should be exercised in selection of any outside animals. Animals introduced from outside should be isolated from the rest of the herd.
- Milk from cows with clinical mastitis or elevated somatic cell counts should not be added to the bulk tank for shipment.
- Implement an effective fly control program.
- Test water for bacterial quality and determine if it needs to be chlorinated.
- Monitor milk temperatures.
Food will always represent some biological risk. Food-borne illnesses are preventable. Adherence to good hygienic practices can result in food safety and ensure food quality. But you are not alone because food safety is the shared responsibly of governments, academia, the food industry, and the consumer.
Cullor, J.S. 1997. Mastitis and dairy environment pathogens of public health concern. Pages 20-32 in Proc. 36th Annual Meeting, Nat’l Mastitis Council, Madison, WI.
Partnership for Food Safety Education. Food-borne illness: A constant challenge. http://www.fightbac.org/content/view/154/86/
Pell, A.N. 1997. Manure and microbes: Public and animal health problem. J. Dairy Sci. 80:2673-2681.
Tauxe, R.V. 1997. Emerging Food-borne Diseases: An Evolving Public Health Challenge. National Conference on Emerging Food-borne Pathogens: Implications and Control. Emerging Infectious Diseases, vol 3., http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol3no4/tauxe.htm
Tybor, P.T. and W. Gilson. 1992. Dairy Producer’s Guide to Food Safety in Milk Production. Univ. of Georgia Bull. 1084, Athens. http://www.foodsafety.org/ga/ga005.htm
USDA, USEPA Unified national strategy for animal feeding operations. March 9, 1999.
U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition (FDA-CFSAN). Food-borne Pathogenic Microorganisms and Natural Toxins Handbook
Vasavada, P.C. 1988. Pathogenic bacteria in milk – A review. J. Dairy Sci. 71:2809-2816.
Gerald M. Jones
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech)


Common symptoms at the end of life include pain, feeling very tired, coughing, shortness of breath, rattle, delirium, and fever. Bleeding may also occur.
Pain medicines can be given in several ways.
In the last days, a patient may not be able to swallow pain medicine. When patients cannot take medicines by mouth, the pain medicine may be given by placing it under the tongue or into the rectum, by injection or infusion, or by placing a patch on the skin. These methods can be used at home with a doctor's order.
Pain during the final hours of life can usually be controlled.
Opioid analgesics work very well to relieve pain and are commonly used at the end of life. Some patients worry that the use of opioids may cause death to occur sooner, but studies have shown no link between opioid use and early death.
(See the PDQ summary on Pain for more information about opioids.)
Myoclonic jerking may be a side effect of opioid use.
Myoclonic jerks are sudden muscle twitches or jerks that cannot be controlled by the person having them. A hiccup is one type of myoclonic jerk. Myoclonic jerking often occurs in the arms or legs. Taking very high doses of an opioid for a long time may cause this side effect, but it can have other causes as well. In patients taking opioids, it may begin with jerking movements that happen once in a while and then begin to happen more often. Rarely, there is constant jerking of different muscle groups all over the body.
When opioids are the cause of myoclonic jerking, changing to another opioid may help. Different patients respond to opioids in different ways and certain opioids may be more likely than others to cause myoclonic jerking in some people.
When the patient is very near death, medicine to stop the myoclonic jerking may be given instead of changing the opioid. When myoclonic jerking is severe, drugs may be used to calm the patient down, relieve anxiety, and help the patient sleep.