Archive for March, 2008
Ovarian Cancer Research Fund
Here’s a worthy charity. We need more funds allocated to Ovarian Cancer and this organization spreads the wealth to hospitals to fund research just for ovarian cancer.
Ovarian Cancer Biomarkers Research Act
Is your senator supporting the Ovarian Cancer Biomarkers Research Act? If not, send them a letter here!!!
Send your Senator a letter to start taking action!
The Senate has introduced the Ovarian Cancer Biomarkers Research Act. This bill authorizes the National Cancer Institute to make grants to public and nonprofit entities to establish research centers of excellence devoted to the discovery of ovarian cancer biomarkers.
Political influence through the Internet
The Wall Street Journal makes a very good point that technology is here to stay in the political realm.
Does the Web Deserve The Power It Gained
To Influence Politics?
Suggesting that there is both good and bad with the Web and politics isn’t to say they exist in equal amounts. Say what one will about the shortcomings of blogs, I can’t imagine going back in time to a world where a relatively small number of newspapers and magazines — even though by and large they were very good ones — had an effective monopoly on what did and didn’t get printed about a campaign.
The Web isn’t going away, and so its boosters should no longer feel defensive when its inanities are pointed out. The YouTube political debates where voters submitted video questions, from January, for example, were described as a singular chance for citizens to question candidates directly, which sounded good until one of the questioners presented himself as a snowman.
Because it’s such a vastly powerful network, the Internet has the ability either to elevate or to debase the political discussion. Both will be occurring between now and November, though with a little luck, not in equal amounts.
Chemo costs rising
From the AP:
WASHINGTON - You’ve just been diagnosed with cancer, and the doctor is discussing treatment options. Should the cost be a deciding factor?
Chemotherapy costs are rising so dramatically that later this year, oncologists will get their first guidelines on how to have a straight talk with patients about the affordability of treatment choices, a topic too often sidestepped.
“These are awkward discussions,” says Dr. Allen Lichter of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, which is writing the guidelines. “At least we can bring this out in the open.”
Happy Easter!
Happy Easter! Yesterday, I saw the Easter bunny in Edinburgh, Texas and I have proof!
Uncle Willard
Just seven months after my mom passed away, her brother passed away days after he turned 77. He was a gracious man and a prominent farmer in the Edinburgh area. Losing two prominent family members on the Fike side, my mom, Patricia Jean Johnson and now my Uncle Willard, has been hard on all of us. I know that death is supposed to be a natural progression in life and we all must experience it, but death has become a too common occurrence in our family as of late. In fact, just when I catch my breath and think I might be getting over the grief hurdle, something happens to remind me my mom is really not here. My hope is that all my family will be wise in health and medical choices. Here’s to better and happier days to come!
Click on More to read the obituary.
Culture of Blogs
From the Washington Post:
There are more blog posts in Japanese than any other language, according to Technorati Inc., which tracks nearly 113 million blogs globally. Last year, Technorati found 37 percent of all postings were in Japanese _ about 1.5 million per day. Postings in English _ from Americans, Britons, Australians and people in many other countries _ accounted for 36 percent of the total.
Drink your tea and decrease your chance of Ovarian Cancer
MSNBC reports:
Could foods help prevent ovarian cancer?
A new study, published in the International Journal of Cancer in 2007, involved almost 67,000 women in the Nurses’ Health Study and looked at flavonoid consumption over 14 years. Although total flavonoid consumption was not shown as related to the risk of developing ovarian cancer, two particular flavonoids were. Kaempferol — a flavonoid found in tea, broccoli, kale and spinach — and luteolin — which is provided by peppers, carrots, cabbage and celery — were both identified as cancer protective. Women who consumed the most of these two flavonoids were 40 percent and 34 percent less likely, respectively, to develop ovarian cancer compared to women who consumed the least. Participants who consumed high levels of a third phytochemical, myricetin (found in tea, dried beans, raisins and blueberries), also seemed somewhat protected.
No audience for Political bloggers
I agree, unless you have a name and a good following, your blog is just taking up “cyberspace”.
What the blogging world lacks, it seems, is people who want to read all those blogs, especially blogs on politics.
In a January poll conducted online by Harris Interactive, only 22 percent said they read political blogs “regularly,” meaning at least “several times a month” and only 7 percent said they read them several times a week or more.
Emerging Media hits Newspapers during Primaries
Live! Primary Night Talking Web Heads (And Some You Can’t See)
There is no better sign that we have entered an era of total media convergence than the decision by the Washington Post and Newsweek to host live video broadcasts on the Web of the presidential primary results.One of the great benefits of being a print reporter is that you don’t have to vamp while trying to cover some event live when nothing is happening. Even with the immediacy of the Internet, when you can liveblog or near-live blog, you don’t have to update a post if there is nothing to add.
