Recently, those working in health care have been tracked for influenza vaccine. A study recently shows that this tracking can bring more compliance to getting the flu vaccine which will allow for a more healthy environment for patients who visit these healthcare facilities. An automated system tracks those who have not been vaccinated and sends out warning and updates to inform those people. Susan Wang, the author of the study stated that this system, “ reduced the administrative burden of the mandatory vaccination program.” The automated system that aids in tracking the staff that have or have not been vaccinated was developed by researches in the Epidemiology and Infection Prevention Program at the University of California Irvine Health System. Along with the reminders and alerts about receiving the vaccine and the deadline, the system also allows supervisors to view the vaccine status of those working under them. The study showed that the system was responsible for the 98% of the 7,000 individuals who were included in the policy who received the vaccine. There were only 130 people who received a written warning, and 5 who were removed from the schedule until they had received their vaccine. The system attributes to the health status of the environment and also helped cut overtime hours of those who administer the vaccines. This system was able to ensure a healthy environment for patients and staff, and reduce time and resources involved with the administration of the influenza vaccine.

This article relates to human health because it actually requires health care personnel to obtain aninfluenza vaccine. The system allows for documentation of those who have received a vaccine and sends out reminders to those who still need to receive a vaccine. This, in turn, led to more compliance and people to more quickly get their vaccines. As a result, the spread of influenza has been reduced in these healthcare facilities because the staff are required to get the vaccine and are not allowed to continue working if they have not received a vaccine after the deadline. The patients who now go into these facilities have a healthy environment, as do all the staff who work together. With the advancement of this automated system, comes the prevention of the spread of influenza.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-10/sfhe-ati102214.php

If you’re like me, you listen to music at all times of the day. I listen to it walking to class, when I’m sitting in my room, when I exercise, when I sleep. Music is a huge part of my life. Just recently I came across an article that detailed a study which found that music therapy helps children and adolescents with depression problems. I immediately found this study interesting because I’ve known that music is very beneficial to the development of children’s brains but I didn’t know it could have an affect on behavior. 

The study, which was carried out in Ireland at Queen’s University in Belfast, studied 251 children and young adults over a 3 year span who were being studied for emotional, behavioral, or developmental problems. 128 children received the usual treatment and 123 received the music therapy in addition to the regular treatment. When the treatment ended, researchers found that those who received the musical therapy had “significantly improved self-esteem and significantly reduced depression compared with those who received treatment without music therapy.”

The biggest problem question is what exactly constitutes music therapy? The article I found never went into detail with how exactly they were treating the children. What kind of music were they playing, for how long, in what environment? The answers to these questions are essential for understanding how exactly the study works. I looked online and could not find any other information on the study. I’m assuming this is because it’s fairly recent. Because of this it’s hard to rule out confounding variables. However reverse causation can be ruled out since the children being studied had these problems before being exposed to the therapy. The biggest factor of the study was that it was the largest experiment ever conducted on music therapy, making the sample size more than adequate.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/284296.php

Researchers can now study DNA of Alzheimer’s patients. Alzheimer’s disease is the progressive mental deterioration that can occur in middle or old age, due to generalized degeneration of the brain. This data details every gene of each person who participated in this study. The Alzheimer’s disease Sequencing Project was launched in February of 2012 as part of an effort to prevent and treat this disease. The first observations of this study can now be studied and examined.

This research of raw DNA provides a way to find genomic changes that put us at a further risk of Alzheimer’s. Genome sequencing outlines the order of all three billion chemical letters in an individual’s DNA, which is the entire set of genetic data that every person carries in every one of their cells. This project helps to identify genetic risks for the late onset of the disease. In addition, the study can also help discover versions of genes that can help to protect us. This is a big step in the prevention and treatment of this disease. The number of Americans over the age of 65 that have Alzheimer’s is 5 million. However, that number is expected to grow as the baby boom generation gets older.

Genome sequencing is a new and key strategy for identifying clues and factors that cause the disease. When the order of DNA in people without the disease is compared with the DNA of people with the disease, the differences in the order of the letters in the DNA would be the clues that will eventually help combat this disease. More research is continuing to be done by the project to aid in the effort of eradicating Alzheimer’s disease. With 410 people being studied so far, I believe the sample size is large enough to find some interesting and noteworthy data.

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http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=175535

A new strain of avian influenza has recently been found in Southeast Asia. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned that this new strain could be harmful to animal and human health. The virus is known as A(H5N6) and has been detected in the poultry in China. Thebird flu virus is very contagious. It can be spread between chickens, geese, and other poultry. The virus spreads quickly and deaths in the poultry can occur within just three days. Also, the FAO’s Chief Veterinary Officer reports that the virus has been detected in various places that are very far from one another, indicated just how quickly it spreads.

Although only one case of death has been reported from a human after being in contact with the poultry, the issue is still very worrisome. The big concern arises because many people all around the world consume the meat from these animals as a part of their everyday diets. The virus affects animal health because it can effect and spread so quickly, and can possibly be passed to humans through consumption. The good news is that there has only been one human death reported so this may suggest that the virus does not easily pass from poultry to humans. Although the virus is isolated to China, for know, Americans should always practice healthy and safe habits when handling/eating meat. Those who produce and trade poultry must make sure they detect and report the virus in the animals as closely as they can, and those who consume the meat should take all precautions while handling the meat such as washing hands, utensils, etc. Also they should be especially sure not to undercook meats. All who handle or come in contact should be careful until tactics can be found to slow, or eliminate the spread of the virus.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=48771#.VCRjGmRdWRk

Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition in which the pancreas produces little or no insulin, a hormone needed to allow sugar (glucose) to enter cells to produce energy and stem cells are undifferentiated cells of a multicellular organism that are capable of giving   rise to indefinitely more cells of the same type. Recently, researchers have determined a large-scale procedure to turn human embryonic stem cells into beta cells that are fully able to produce insulin for those who have type 1 diabetes. The treatment for people with type 1 diabetes tothis day is that they take daily insulin injections to maintain the levels of insulin in their blood. The co-author of this study is Douglas Melton of Harvard University. His goal is to replace insulin injections using natural procedures, like the beta cells. He has reported to ability to make millions of the cells and wants to be able to make a, “credit card-sized package of the beta cells.” These packets will be inserted into the patient and will not need to be replaced for over a year, a huge advancement for those who take insulin shots everyday. If Melton’s research and study works, stem cell research may then be able to be used for all different types of diseases. Aside from stem cells, pluripotent stem cells can also be used to obtain beta cells.Pluripotent stem cells are, “pre-specialized adult cells that are reprogrammed to morph into an undifferentiated state,” as the article reports. These cells work just as well as normal stem cells.

This breakthrough method can be extremely helpful to those who suffer from type 1 diabetes. It will be able to decrease their treatments by inserting one of the packets of the beta cells and being able to be treated for a year as opposed to the ever day treatment with insulin injections. With less insulin or no insulin blood sugar of the people with diabetes is not regulated and can be dangerous. This procedure can be helpful in solving that problem and patients will not need to be worried about keeping track of insulin levels everyday. It can also be a breakthrough for other disease that could be cured or treated with this stem cell research.

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2014/10/09/stem-cell-success-raises-hopes-of-type-1-diabetes-cure?page=2

Recently, a Liberian national named Thomas Eric Duncan was admitted to a Dallas hospital for symptoms of Ebola. Today, eleven days later, Mr. Duncan passed away. His death has sent our nation into a state of panic and as a result, many precautions have been taken to secure the safety of all American people starting with the monitoring of 48 people who had direct or indirect contact with Mr. Duncan, 10 of whom are listed as “high risk”. Also, select airports will begin conducting extra screening for diseases such as Ebola. These airports include J.F.K. International and O’Hare International. According to the World Health Organization, the current outbreak of Ebola is one of the largest in history, killing 3,879 people out of 8,033 cases as of October 5th. Regardless of the action taken by the United States, Ebola has still entered American soil. Though Ebola is a near fatal disease, it is possible Duncan could have been treated, thus preventing the whole scare. Duncan was admitted on September 28th but went to the hospital two days prior because he did not feel well. Doctors sent him home with only antibiotics. Once symptoms begin to noticeably show and become severe, the disease has spread throughout the body and has become contagious. However, no one could have stopped Duncan from entering the U.S. Duncan lied on his pre flight questionnaire, saying that he had not been in contact with the virus when he had indeed knowingly been in the presence of a pregnant women who later died from the virus.

My personal stance on the matter is that America has absolutely nothing to fear. We are taking the necessary precautions and we have detected the virus very quickly. Because the virus can take up to three weeks to become contagious and only spreads through bodily fluids, I believe if citizens are cautious around those who may be sick and visit the doctor’s immediately if feeling sick, we have a great chance of avoiding an outbreak.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/08/us-health-ebola-usa-idUSKCN0HX1OK20141008

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/08/ebola-dallas-deputy-sheriff-hospital-symptoms-death

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/08/us-health-ebola-usa-idUSKCN0HX1OK20141008

We all at some point in our lives have wondered if Earth truly is the only planet that houses lifeforms. Scientists especially have been grappling with this question for hundreds of years and some have made it their life’s goal to find an answer. Because of the improvement in technology, scientists have a better chance now more than ever to find the truth. Earlier this year, NASA issued a statement saying that they expected to find alien life within the next 20 years.

When searching for life on other planets, Mars has been the go to planet for decades mainly because of its proximity to Earth and because it has a similar atmosphere to Earth. After years of inconclusive findings, the Mars Express Orbiter made two very interesting discoveries. It found methane, which is often produced by living organisms, in the Martian atmosphere, and a large amount of hydrogen on Mars’ surface. Rovers Spirit and Opportunity also produced conclusive evidence that Mars’ surface at one point contained liquid water thus confirming Mars’ atmosphere was previously capable of sustaining said water. The most popular theory is that Mars experienced a massive flood that drained the surface and may have even affected Earth. More and more planets are being discovered and now scientists are saying that there are roughly 5,000 planets capable of sustaining life. NASA is in the process of developing new telescopes, one called the Webb Space telescope, which is capable of detecting atmospheric water vapor, thus implying there may be a large body of water somewhere in space.

Who knows what new evidence will be uncovered in the coming decades regarding extraterrestrial life. The only certainty is that technology will continue to develop and our odds of finding life will only become greater.

http://www.dailystar.co.uk/tech/389080/NASA-confirms-Extraterrestrial-life-DOES-exist-on-other-planets

http://www.icr.org/article/can-life-exist-other-planets/

If you ask this question to 100 doctors you’d get 100 different answers. Partly because the facts aren’t 100% clear and partly because every person views marijuana differently. There’s no doubt in my mind that many statements doctor’s make regarding marijuana are at least minimally influenced by their personal stand on marijuana. Yes, I’m a marijuana smoker and I don’t care who knows it. It doesn’t make me a bad person, I’m not ashamed of it. The real shame is that marijuana is largely condemned because of how it’s portrayed in pop culture (i.e. the ‘stoner’ image) even though there are hundreds of studies that show the positive effects it can have on people. It makes no sense that marijuana is illegal and cigarettes, which kill hundreds of thousands of people every year, are legal, especially because the dangers of cigarettes have been PROVEN!!!!

The University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) teamed up with the University of Alabama at Birmingham to study the effects of marijuana and tobacco on people’s lungs. They gathered data on over 5,000 adults who smoked marijuana or tobacco for over 20 years. They found a consistent loss of lung function with continued tobacco use, obviously. But the surprise was what they found regarding marijuana. The researchers found that both air flow rate, the speed in which a person can exhale, and lung volume, the amount of air a person can hold in their lungs at one time, increased in the marijuana users. The tobacco users studied generally smoked between 10 and 20 cigarettes a day while the marijuana users generally smoked 2 to 3 times a month. When the frequency of marijuana users using were higher, the findings were more on par with the tobacco users. Cigarette users smoke much more often then marijuana users because cigarettes are addictive whereas marijuana isn’t. No one smokes marijuana 10 to 20 times a day unless they’re Snoop Dogg or Tommy Chong.

The point is marijuana isn’t bad for you if it’s used in moderation. Unfortunately for most people, there is no such thing as tobacco use in moderation. Therefore cigarettes are much more unhealthy than marijuana. I just want to leave anyone reading with a question: would your view of marijuana change if it was legalized nationwide?

http://www.ucsf.edu/news/2012/01/11282/marijuana-shown-be-less-damaging-lungs-tobacco

The real reason why I’m taking this class is because I dropped Astronomy and had to pick another Gen Ed Science class. However, I chose this class over others available because it seemed more discussion based and there weren’t any real concepts to learn. I’m not a science major because science, along with math, are my least favorite subjects. I never did well in Biology or Chemistry in high school because I just wasn’t interested. My favorite subjects in school are history, psychology, and other subjects that focus on open ended questions.