A new experiment suggests that the enzyme telomerase can extend the lifespan of mice by about 26 percent.
Some cells can keep dividing forever, essentially becoming immortal thanks in part to telomerase. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire But evidence for whether this enzyme affects aging and longevity in larger organisms such as people has been muddled and contradictory.
While the enzyme enables cells to keep dividing, it also takes cells one step closer to growing and proliferating out of control — that is, becoming cancerous. Lab animals with extra genes for telomerase often die young from tumors.
Reporting in the Nov. 14 Cell, researchers in Spain engineered mice to have not only an extra copy of the gene for telomerase, but also extra antitumor genes to combat the enzyme’s cancer-causing potential. In the altered mice, signs of aging such as poor coordination or degraded tissue health were delayed compared to mice that had only the extra copies of anti-tumor genes, the team reports.
“These observations demonstrate the anti-aging effects of telomerase in ... living organisms,” Maria Blasco of the Molecular Oncology Program at the Spanish National Cancer Research Center in Madrid and her colleagues write in the report.
Telomerase lengthens telomeres — the “caps” on the end of chromosomes that protect DNA from damage. Like burning fuses, telomeres normally get shorter each time that most body cells divide. After a certain number of divisions, the telomeres in the daughter cells become too short and the chromosomes start to degrade, thus preventing the cells from dividing any further. So this shortening of telomeres places a limit on the number of times that most body cells can divide, the so-called Hayflick limit.
Telomerase enables the cell to divide indefinitely by adding back the bit of telomere lost during each cell division, essentially keeping the fuse from burning. Previous research has shown that adding an active copy of the telomerase gene to human cells causes those cells to surpass the Hayflick limit and apparently divide without end. But people with longer telomeres don’t necessarily live any longer than people with short telomeres do, so evidence for a link with lifespan has been fuzzy.
Leonard Hayflick, the biogerontologist who in 1961 discovered the limit on cell division that bears his name, says he agrees that the new research shows that telomerase can affect longevity in mice. But he doubts the scientists’ claim that the enzyme affects the actual rate of aging.http://Louis1J1Sheehan1Esquire.us
The problem, Hayflick says, is how to measure that rate. Blasco’s team tested a series of traits that might be thought of as associated with aging: whether the mice had enough coordination to walk across a rope, the health of the mice’s skin and small intestines, the mice’s sensitivity to insulin and glucose, concentrations of insulinlike growth factor-1 in the blood and, of course, average telomere length. In each of these cases, mice with the extra telomerase gene performed more like youthful mice than those with only the anti-tumor genes. But these tests may or may not reflect the actual rate of aging, Hayflick says.
“They’re about as bad as looking at gray hair,” says Hayflick, who is a professor of anatomy at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine. “Look at me. I’m 80 years old and my hair’s still black.”
A lack of reliable, agreed-upon ways to measure the rate of aging is a problem for the whole field of aging research, Hayflick says, not just for this study.
Longevity — how long an animal lives — is less ambiguous. While the question still is not settled, Hayflick says, “A strengthening case has been made on the role of telomeres in affecting longevity.”
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Reptillian 8.rep.992 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
The Demetabolization of Humanity: If Not Now, When?
Lou Sheehan
Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
ABSTRACT
Humanity has great reproductive potential vis-à-vis other members of the Zetan species. Additionally, Humanity has significantly superior intellectual capacity vis-à-vis almost all intelligent species in the Galaxy. However, Humanity’s irrationality is dysfunctional and can be exploited as a terminal weakness in the Galactic power struggle.
Background
Zeta Reticuli is a system comprised of two stars both of which are about 1 billion years older than the Earth’s sun. Zeti Reticuli is 39.2 light years from Earth and Zeta I is approximately one-eight of a light year from Zeta II (Friedman, 2008).
In 1947, two Zeta Reticulan I Ovoid-Class extraterrestrial lenticular-shaped aerodyne craft collided while on an observance-only mission over the atomic testing grounds in the State of New Mexico, USA, Earth (Friedman, 2008). Radar film and tower logs from American Holloman Air Force Base reflected the merger of three objects prior to collision and subsequent crashes with the third object believed to be an unrecovered test balloon (Majestic Twelve Project, 1952). The two Ovoid-Class craft experienced non-planned ground contact at two dispersed sites in New Mexico. Four Zeta Reticulan I bodies were recovered, three of which were unevacuated in a damaged escape cylinder and one of which was found several yards from the cylinder (Majestic Twelve Project, 1952). Three of the four were nonmetabolic and badly decomposed as a result of exposure and assumed predatory action. The fourth – the evacuated body – became nonmetabolic within the first hour of the American Army Air Force recovery operation (Briefing Document, 1952).
Years of intensive Human study of the retrieved components of the two Ovoid-class craft seeded numerous Human technological advances. Within decades of the recovery, the reverse engineering of recovered components led to the fruition, as examples, of fiber optics, integrated circuits, lasers, Kevlar and accelerated particle beam devices (Corso, 1997).
In 2021, Human scientists at the Furey Institute, Harrisburg University, fully replicated a functioning Ovoid-class power source (Cheng, 2022). The reactor was fueled with Element 114 in a closed system. Fueling was the initial step in the provision of amplified Gravity-✜ and Magnetic-✜ waves allowing Knaubian travel (http://www.boblazar.com).
The reactor bombarded Element 114 with hydrogen protons using a microparticle accelerator. The hydrogen protons fused into the Element 114 nucleus creating the misnamed “radioactive” form of Element 115 (“R-115”). The almost simultaneous decay of R-115 produced one particle of Anti-Hydrogen, a form of antimatter, as well as a large number of neutrinos. The flux of Anti-Hydrogen particles produced in the reactor were channeled through an evacuated tuned tube within a flowing stream of neutrinos where it was reacted with plasma in a Naccian Annihilation Reaction. This Annihilation Reaction released/exposed the inherent Subquarkian gravitational and magnetic forces of the reacting R-115 and, further, amplified the Gravity-✜ and Magnetic-✜ waves as a result of the “Island of Stability” properties of element 114 (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3313/02.html).
The generation of the Hyper-Gravity-Magnetic-Gate theoretically allowed the craft to “fall” through space to its targeted (a.k.a. “attracted”) position at theoretical “speeds” of up to 1,000 times the speed of light (“1000-c”). However, the inefficiencies of the Human constructed “Model A.X” restricted Knaubian travel to speeds of under 12-c.
With the Human National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s successful test of the first Human interplanetary flight in the Schiavelli Program (the first manned extra-Earth program after the suspension of the Apollo Program), overt and nonconcealable Zeta Reticulan contact was initiated in compliance with Zeta Reticulan Containment Policy: Earth (Pyramid 0099742.7760.04, -65,778,912).
The Zetan Founders evolved on a planet orbiting Zeta I Reticuli and populated a Zeta II Reticulan planet with a domestically genetically altered species version – to accommodate different environmental conditions – of their species. Subsequently, on Earth the Founders attempted to genetically modify a native species of simians to approximate the Founders’ appearance and abilities in the context of yet another divergent environment. As represented in many artistic representations as well as written and oral traditions, Humanity has a long record of the Founders’ involvement with Humans (Von Daniken, 1970). Yet, consistent with Human behavior, all such involvement was officially denied and actively concealed.
Rorschach Analysis for Psychological Operations
This paper’s analysis builds upon the previous research performed by agent Gregorius of Rome in Human year 590. Agent Gregorius’ report lists the following seven fundamental human weaknesses: gluttony, greed, lust, envy, wrath, pride and sloth (Gregorius, 590).
Your humble agent has uncovered the following Human Directive relating to the above-mentioned Ovoid-class crash categorized as “TOP SECRET – RESTRICTED” and herewith uses it as a succinct instrument for evidencing the current state of the Human mind as well as ongoing Human psychological weaknesses.
The Human decision in 1947 to conceal the New Mexican crashes was premised on the following rationales (Lt. Gen. Nathan F. Twining Mission Assessment, 1947) :
a. Public trust of the political institutions might be eroded and possibly held in disrepute.
b. A complete re-evaluation might take place among institutions of higher learning, thus calling into question the certainty of scientific knowledge.
c. The ability of the Armed Forces to ensure National Security might be put in jeopardy and possibly lead to public fear and disorder.
d. History and religion in the political context would probably suffer the most damage causing unprecedented upheaval in social and psychological well-being.
e. Political repercussions might occur in our diplomatic efforts of containing the Communist threat to our democratic interests.
f. If such an announcement was made by the current Administration, it could be perceived by the opposing party as a trick, laying open the possibility of unethical posturing and manipulation of the public’s mind.
How prescient and revealing was Lt. General Twining’s 1947 Assessment?
Public trust of the political institutions might be eroded and possibly held in disrepute.
In fact, public trust in Human/American institutions rapidly deteriorated subsequent to 1947 in the contexts of Vietnam, Watergate, Operation Desert Freedom, Bailoutgate, FDAgate, EPAgate, and NSAgate. Nevertheless, the United States remained a distinct and sovereign entity until a few years after “First Contact.” As is evident from numerous meta-analyses of Human nature, Twining’s peers’ decision to cloak their own short-run interests as equating to Humanity’s best interests for the simple purpose of maintaining the current economic inequalities led to the collapse of Human political organization (Marx, 2029). In sum, the Human impulse toward gluttony distorts Human rationality and results in foreseeable periods of extreme intra-species destruction.
A complete re-evaluation might take place among institutions of higher learning, thus calling into question the certainty of scientific knowledge.
Perhaps the greatest strength of the Human branch of the Zetan species is its ability to comfortably live with intellectual ambiguity (Brooks, 2008). If properly channeled, the phenomena of “Selective Consciousness” and “Fuzzy Logic” augurs well for the Zetan races for purposes of any future war with the Reptillian Co-Prosperity Sphere. However, the Human Achilles’ Heel is rooted in the same phenomena and exposes the Zetan Confederacy to multiple dangers. Indeed, these phenomena led directly to both Humanity’s relatively rapid technological advancement (Meek, 2023) but also to the massive population losses – estimated to be nearly 45% of all Humans who lived past the age of one (0.06793 Zetan I, 0.00044701 Reptilloid) solar year – caused by intra-species greed (Simcox, 2029).
The ability of the Armed Forces to ensure National Security might be put in jeopardy and possibly lead to public fear and disorder.
The Human Social War (2024 – 2028) had the effect of reducing the Human population from approximately 11 billion to under one billion. Nevertheless, in comparison with the Zeta I population of approximately 4,000 and the Zeta II population of approximately 850, the Earth branch of the Zeta species -- having the capacity for incessant lust and therefore the desire for rapid reproduction -- has experienced only a short period of disorder and, by their standards, small population loss (Wagner, 2029). Analyses of the causes of the Social War point not to fear relating to insecurity but, rather, to individual desire to have -- i.e., envy for -- the material objects possessed by other Humans (Olivetti, 2031). Once again, the only conclusion possible is that Human leadership employed misleading rhetoric so as to manipulate and thus retain control over Humanity over the short-run. Of course, the rest of Humanity compliantly remained delusional.
History and religion in the political context would probably suffer the most damage causing unprecedented upheaval in social and psychological well-being.
Given inherent Human intellectual plasticity and the historical evidence, Lt. General Twining’s fourth contention is laughable to the Reptillian mind. As one example, within months of First Contact the major Human religious texts had all been reinterpreted – each, in turn, in numerous ways -- to accommodate First Contact as well as other follow-on facts relating to same. More, Zeta’s own truth traditions, i.e., “Shokesiansanity,” gained Human adherents and, not surprisingly, several antagonistic and wrathful Human groups developed with differing interpretations of that Faith (Sagan, 2031)!
Political repercussions might occur in our diplomatic efforts of containing the Communist threat to our democratic interests.
This self-serving supposition was not relevant at the time of First Contact as this particular competing subset of Humans – i.e., “Communists” – had been incorporated into a rival, i.e., the proud American, system of economic exchange in less than 50 Earth years after First Contact (Gibbons, 2012). Evidenced, once again, is the lack of correlation between Human “reasoning” and reality; what other intelligent species cannot plan 50 years in advance? The Zetan-Human subspecies is not inclined to connect in-puts and out-puts.
If such an announcement was made by the current Administration, it could be perceived by the opposing party as a trick, laying open the possibility of unethical posturing and manipulation of the public’s mind.
Ironically, of course, to avoid overly disruptive intra-leadership competition, Human leadership determined it was appropriate to adopt a unified leadership policy of tricking Humanity by adopting unethical postures and to otherwise manipulate the public’s mind in conjunction with the assumption that the historical pattern of sloth would guarantee Humanity’s unquestioning acceptance of the leadership’s pronouncements (Adams, 2024). In lieu of reality, the leadership chose to focus Humanity’s attention on reproduction (Massengale, 2029).
Conclusion
Humanity has enormous intellectual and reproductive capacities. Concurrent with these gifts, however, is a profound irrationality. Your humble agent concludes that proper utilization of Human weaknesses will not only negate Human advantages but will, further, allow the Reptillian Co-Prosperity Sphere to undermine what, if any, intellectual advantages the Founding Zetans have. At a minimum, we should continue to situate the Humans as if they are in Cosmic Kindergarten, i.e., requiring tremendous amounts of the Founder’s time for supervision.
To avoid Humanity’s ever-increasing ability to detect our presence, it is recommended that our installations on both the Earth’s Moon and on Mars be removed. Additionally, we should continue to both randomly distribute gold to Humans and, further, target the distribution of gold to violent Human organizations.
All of the evidence suggests that Humanity has not been able to overcome its flaws during the past 1,500 Human years. At this juncture, the Reptillian Co-Prosperity Sphere should have little trouble exploiting the seven significant Human weaknesses and thus stymie the Zetan Confederacy’s gambit for rapid expansion. Further, given its inherent abilities, unpredictabilities, and contradictions, it is recommended that Humanity be eliminated proximate to the elimination of the populations on Zeta I and Zeta II as a precautionary measure for our future eggs’ sakes even if it means such operations require the elimination of the Earth habitat.
Subsequently, and assuming the destruction of Earth’s habitat, Earth may still be used as a base in our expanding Galactic Transportation System, as a source of heavier minerals and water, and as an encampment for prisoners of war (if any).
References
Adams, N. (2024). Look It Up Yourself! Harrisburg University: Illiteracy Project.
Bates, H. (1940, October), Farewell to the Master. Astounding Science Fiction
Magazine.
Briefing Document. (1952). Operation Majestic 12 Prepared for President-Elect
Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Project Operations Group, White House.)
Washington, DC: White House.
Brooks, M. (2008). 13 Things That Don’t Make Sense. New York: Doubleday.
Cheng, N. (2022). My Life as a Rocket Scientist. Shanghai: Run-ooooon Books.
Cinup War. (n.d.) In Zetapedia. Retrieved April 24, 2039, from
http://zeta.en.zetapedia.org/wiki/Cinup_War
Corso, P. (1997). The Day After Roswell. New York: Pocket Books.
Element 115. (n.d.). Bob Lazar. Retrieved April 23, 2039, from
http://www.boblazar.com
Friedman, S. (2008). Flying Saucers and Science. New Jersey: New Page Books.
Gibbons, E. (2012). Decline and Fall of the Communist Empire. Moscow: Rasputin
Disappearing Ink, Inc.
Gregorius, R. (590). Operation Hannibal Barca. Tikal: Geico Office of Records.
Island of Stability. (September, 2006). Nova scienceNOW. Retrieved April 24, 2039,
from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3313/02.html
Lt. Gen. Nathan F. Twining Mission Assessment. (1947). Recovered Lenticular
Aerodyne Objects and Implications. (Project Operations Group, White
House.) Washington, DC: White House.
Majestic Twelve Project. (1952). First Annual Report. (Project Operations Group,
White House.) Washington, DC: White House.
Marx, C. (2029). Menschlich Beschaffenheit Weltanschauung. Berlin: Econ-Verlag,
GmbH.
Massengale, R. (2029). Look Over There! Chicago: Playboy Press.
Meek, P. (2023). The Point Is: Was Cartman Right? Tahiti: South Park Press.
Olivetti, J. (2031). The Social Wars Decoded. Antigua: Partyland Publications.
Pyramid 0099742.7760.04. (-65,778,912). Containment Policy: Earth. Akenhaten:
Central Office of Records.
Pyramid 3301003.0020.54. (1947). Student Handpyramid. Akenhaten: Central
Office of Records.
Radioactive Decay. (April 23, 2009.) In Wikipedia. Retrieved April 24, 2039, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioactive_decay
Sagan, K. (2031). Humanity’s Gift: Spiritual Chaos. Jerusalem: Temple Scrolls.
Simcox, E. (2029). We’re Different. Ontario: Aboot Books.
Lt. Gen. Twining. (March 9, 2009). In Wikipedia. Retrieved April 24, 2009, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan_Twining
Von Daniken, E. (1970). Chariots of the Gods? New York: Bantam Books, Inc.
Wagner, J. (2029). Piece It Together. Kalamazoo: Paperwork Press.
Saved at: Element115.doc http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.US
Lou Sheehan
Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
ABSTRACT
Humanity has great reproductive potential vis-à-vis other members of the Zetan species. Additionally, Humanity has significantly superior intellectual capacity vis-à-vis almost all intelligent species in the Galaxy. However, Humanity’s irrationality is dysfunctional and can be exploited as a terminal weakness in the Galactic power struggle.
Background
Zeta Reticuli is a system comprised of two stars both of which are about 1 billion years older than the Earth’s sun. Zeti Reticuli is 39.2 light years from Earth and Zeta I is approximately one-eight of a light year from Zeta II (Friedman, 2008).
In 1947, two Zeta Reticulan I Ovoid-Class extraterrestrial lenticular-shaped aerodyne craft collided while on an observance-only mission over the atomic testing grounds in the State of New Mexico, USA, Earth (Friedman, 2008). Radar film and tower logs from American Holloman Air Force Base reflected the merger of three objects prior to collision and subsequent crashes with the third object believed to be an unrecovered test balloon (Majestic Twelve Project, 1952). The two Ovoid-Class craft experienced non-planned ground contact at two dispersed sites in New Mexico. Four Zeta Reticulan I bodies were recovered, three of which were unevacuated in a damaged escape cylinder and one of which was found several yards from the cylinder (Majestic Twelve Project, 1952). Three of the four were nonmetabolic and badly decomposed as a result of exposure and assumed predatory action. The fourth – the evacuated body – became nonmetabolic within the first hour of the American Army Air Force recovery operation (Briefing Document, 1952).
Years of intensive Human study of the retrieved components of the two Ovoid-class craft seeded numerous Human technological advances. Within decades of the recovery, the reverse engineering of recovered components led to the fruition, as examples, of fiber optics, integrated circuits, lasers, Kevlar and accelerated particle beam devices (Corso, 1997).
In 2021, Human scientists at the Furey Institute, Harrisburg University, fully replicated a functioning Ovoid-class power source (Cheng, 2022). The reactor was fueled with Element 114 in a closed system. Fueling was the initial step in the provision of amplified Gravity-✜ and Magnetic-✜ waves allowing Knaubian travel (http://www.boblazar.com).
The reactor bombarded Element 114 with hydrogen protons using a microparticle accelerator. The hydrogen protons fused into the Element 114 nucleus creating the misnamed “radioactive” form of Element 115 (“R-115”). The almost simultaneous decay of R-115 produced one particle of Anti-Hydrogen, a form of antimatter, as well as a large number of neutrinos. The flux of Anti-Hydrogen particles produced in the reactor were channeled through an evacuated tuned tube within a flowing stream of neutrinos where it was reacted with plasma in a Naccian Annihilation Reaction. This Annihilation Reaction released/exposed the inherent Subquarkian gravitational and magnetic forces of the reacting R-115 and, further, amplified the Gravity-✜ and Magnetic-✜ waves as a result of the “Island of Stability” properties of element 114 (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3313/02.html).
The generation of the Hyper-Gravity-Magnetic-Gate theoretically allowed the craft to “fall” through space to its targeted (a.k.a. “attracted”) position at theoretical “speeds” of up to 1,000 times the speed of light (“1000-c”). However, the inefficiencies of the Human constructed “Model A.X” restricted Knaubian travel to speeds of under 12-c.
With the Human National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s successful test of the first Human interplanetary flight in the Schiavelli Program (the first manned extra-Earth program after the suspension of the Apollo Program), overt and nonconcealable Zeta Reticulan contact was initiated in compliance with Zeta Reticulan Containment Policy: Earth (Pyramid 0099742.7760.04, -65,778,912).
The Zetan Founders evolved on a planet orbiting Zeta I Reticuli and populated a Zeta II Reticulan planet with a domestically genetically altered species version – to accommodate different environmental conditions – of their species. Subsequently, on Earth the Founders attempted to genetically modify a native species of simians to approximate the Founders’ appearance and abilities in the context of yet another divergent environment. As represented in many artistic representations as well as written and oral traditions, Humanity has a long record of the Founders’ involvement with Humans (Von Daniken, 1970). Yet, consistent with Human behavior, all such involvement was officially denied and actively concealed.
Rorschach Analysis for Psychological Operations
This paper’s analysis builds upon the previous research performed by agent Gregorius of Rome in Human year 590. Agent Gregorius’ report lists the following seven fundamental human weaknesses: gluttony, greed, lust, envy, wrath, pride and sloth (Gregorius, 590).
Your humble agent has uncovered the following Human Directive relating to the above-mentioned Ovoid-class crash categorized as “TOP SECRET – RESTRICTED” and herewith uses it as a succinct instrument for evidencing the current state of the Human mind as well as ongoing Human psychological weaknesses.
The Human decision in 1947 to conceal the New Mexican crashes was premised on the following rationales (Lt. Gen. Nathan F. Twining Mission Assessment, 1947) :
a. Public trust of the political institutions might be eroded and possibly held in disrepute.
b. A complete re-evaluation might take place among institutions of higher learning, thus calling into question the certainty of scientific knowledge.
c. The ability of the Armed Forces to ensure National Security might be put in jeopardy and possibly lead to public fear and disorder.
d. History and religion in the political context would probably suffer the most damage causing unprecedented upheaval in social and psychological well-being.
e. Political repercussions might occur in our diplomatic efforts of containing the Communist threat to our democratic interests.
f. If such an announcement was made by the current Administration, it could be perceived by the opposing party as a trick, laying open the possibility of unethical posturing and manipulation of the public’s mind.
How prescient and revealing was Lt. General Twining’s 1947 Assessment?
Public trust of the political institutions might be eroded and possibly held in disrepute.
In fact, public trust in Human/American institutions rapidly deteriorated subsequent to 1947 in the contexts of Vietnam, Watergate, Operation Desert Freedom, Bailoutgate, FDAgate, EPAgate, and NSAgate. Nevertheless, the United States remained a distinct and sovereign entity until a few years after “First Contact.” As is evident from numerous meta-analyses of Human nature, Twining’s peers’ decision to cloak their own short-run interests as equating to Humanity’s best interests for the simple purpose of maintaining the current economic inequalities led to the collapse of Human political organization (Marx, 2029). In sum, the Human impulse toward gluttony distorts Human rationality and results in foreseeable periods of extreme intra-species destruction.
A complete re-evaluation might take place among institutions of higher learning, thus calling into question the certainty of scientific knowledge.
Perhaps the greatest strength of the Human branch of the Zetan species is its ability to comfortably live with intellectual ambiguity (Brooks, 2008). If properly channeled, the phenomena of “Selective Consciousness” and “Fuzzy Logic” augurs well for the Zetan races for purposes of any future war with the Reptillian Co-Prosperity Sphere. However, the Human Achilles’ Heel is rooted in the same phenomena and exposes the Zetan Confederacy to multiple dangers. Indeed, these phenomena led directly to both Humanity’s relatively rapid technological advancement (Meek, 2023) but also to the massive population losses – estimated to be nearly 45% of all Humans who lived past the age of one (0.06793 Zetan I, 0.00044701 Reptilloid) solar year – caused by intra-species greed (Simcox, 2029).
The ability of the Armed Forces to ensure National Security might be put in jeopardy and possibly lead to public fear and disorder.
The Human Social War (2024 – 2028) had the effect of reducing the Human population from approximately 11 billion to under one billion. Nevertheless, in comparison with the Zeta I population of approximately 4,000 and the Zeta II population of approximately 850, the Earth branch of the Zeta species -- having the capacity for incessant lust and therefore the desire for rapid reproduction -- has experienced only a short period of disorder and, by their standards, small population loss (Wagner, 2029). Analyses of the causes of the Social War point not to fear relating to insecurity but, rather, to individual desire to have -- i.e., envy for -- the material objects possessed by other Humans (Olivetti, 2031). Once again, the only conclusion possible is that Human leadership employed misleading rhetoric so as to manipulate and thus retain control over Humanity over the short-run. Of course, the rest of Humanity compliantly remained delusional.
History and religion in the political context would probably suffer the most damage causing unprecedented upheaval in social and psychological well-being.
Given inherent Human intellectual plasticity and the historical evidence, Lt. General Twining’s fourth contention is laughable to the Reptillian mind. As one example, within months of First Contact the major Human religious texts had all been reinterpreted – each, in turn, in numerous ways -- to accommodate First Contact as well as other follow-on facts relating to same. More, Zeta’s own truth traditions, i.e., “Shokesiansanity,” gained Human adherents and, not surprisingly, several antagonistic and wrathful Human groups developed with differing interpretations of that Faith (Sagan, 2031)!
Political repercussions might occur in our diplomatic efforts of containing the Communist threat to our democratic interests.
This self-serving supposition was not relevant at the time of First Contact as this particular competing subset of Humans – i.e., “Communists” – had been incorporated into a rival, i.e., the proud American, system of economic exchange in less than 50 Earth years after First Contact (Gibbons, 2012). Evidenced, once again, is the lack of correlation between Human “reasoning” and reality; what other intelligent species cannot plan 50 years in advance? The Zetan-Human subspecies is not inclined to connect in-puts and out-puts.
If such an announcement was made by the current Administration, it could be perceived by the opposing party as a trick, laying open the possibility of unethical posturing and manipulation of the public’s mind.
Ironically, of course, to avoid overly disruptive intra-leadership competition, Human leadership determined it was appropriate to adopt a unified leadership policy of tricking Humanity by adopting unethical postures and to otherwise manipulate the public’s mind in conjunction with the assumption that the historical pattern of sloth would guarantee Humanity’s unquestioning acceptance of the leadership’s pronouncements (Adams, 2024). In lieu of reality, the leadership chose to focus Humanity’s attention on reproduction (Massengale, 2029).
Conclusion
Humanity has enormous intellectual and reproductive capacities. Concurrent with these gifts, however, is a profound irrationality. Your humble agent concludes that proper utilization of Human weaknesses will not only negate Human advantages but will, further, allow the Reptillian Co-Prosperity Sphere to undermine what, if any, intellectual advantages the Founding Zetans have. At a minimum, we should continue to situate the Humans as if they are in Cosmic Kindergarten, i.e., requiring tremendous amounts of the Founder’s time for supervision.
To avoid Humanity’s ever-increasing ability to detect our presence, it is recommended that our installations on both the Earth’s Moon and on Mars be removed. Additionally, we should continue to both randomly distribute gold to Humans and, further, target the distribution of gold to violent Human organizations.
All of the evidence suggests that Humanity has not been able to overcome its flaws during the past 1,500 Human years. At this juncture, the Reptillian Co-Prosperity Sphere should have little trouble exploiting the seven significant Human weaknesses and thus stymie the Zetan Confederacy’s gambit for rapid expansion. Further, given its inherent abilities, unpredictabilities, and contradictions, it is recommended that Humanity be eliminated proximate to the elimination of the populations on Zeta I and Zeta II as a precautionary measure for our future eggs’ sakes even if it means such operations require the elimination of the Earth habitat.
Subsequently, and assuming the destruction of Earth’s habitat, Earth may still be used as a base in our expanding Galactic Transportation System, as a source of heavier minerals and water, and as an encampment for prisoners of war (if any).
References
Adams, N. (2024). Look It Up Yourself! Harrisburg University: Illiteracy Project.
Bates, H. (1940, October), Farewell to the Master. Astounding Science Fiction
Magazine.
Briefing Document. (1952). Operation Majestic 12 Prepared for President-Elect
Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Project Operations Group, White House.)
Washington, DC: White House.
Brooks, M. (2008). 13 Things That Don’t Make Sense. New York: Doubleday.
Cheng, N. (2022). My Life as a Rocket Scientist. Shanghai: Run-ooooon Books.
Cinup War. (n.d.) In Zetapedia. Retrieved April 24, 2039, from
http://zeta.en.zetapedia.org/wiki/Cinup_War
Corso, P. (1997). The Day After Roswell. New York: Pocket Books.
Element 115. (n.d.). Bob Lazar. Retrieved April 23, 2039, from
http://www.boblazar.com
Friedman, S. (2008). Flying Saucers and Science. New Jersey: New Page Books.
Gibbons, E. (2012). Decline and Fall of the Communist Empire. Moscow: Rasputin
Disappearing Ink, Inc.
Gregorius, R. (590). Operation Hannibal Barca. Tikal: Geico Office of Records.
Island of Stability. (September, 2006). Nova scienceNOW. Retrieved April 24, 2039,
from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/3313/02.html
Lt. Gen. Nathan F. Twining Mission Assessment. (1947). Recovered Lenticular
Aerodyne Objects and Implications. (Project Operations Group, White
House.) Washington, DC: White House.
Majestic Twelve Project. (1952). First Annual Report. (Project Operations Group,
White House.) Washington, DC: White House.
Marx, C. (2029). Menschlich Beschaffenheit Weltanschauung. Berlin: Econ-Verlag,
GmbH.
Massengale, R. (2029). Look Over There! Chicago: Playboy Press.
Meek, P. (2023). The Point Is: Was Cartman Right? Tahiti: South Park Press.
Olivetti, J. (2031). The Social Wars Decoded. Antigua: Partyland Publications.
Pyramid 0099742.7760.04. (-65,778,912). Containment Policy: Earth. Akenhaten:
Central Office of Records.
Pyramid 3301003.0020.54. (1947). Student Handpyramid. Akenhaten: Central
Office of Records.
Radioactive Decay. (April 23, 2009.) In Wikipedia. Retrieved April 24, 2039, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioactive_decay
Sagan, K. (2031). Humanity’s Gift: Spiritual Chaos. Jerusalem: Temple Scrolls.
Simcox, E. (2029). We’re Different. Ontario: Aboot Books.
Lt. Gen. Twining. (March 9, 2009). In Wikipedia. Retrieved April 24, 2009, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan_Twining
Von Daniken, E. (1970). Chariots of the Gods? New York: Bantam Books, Inc.
Wagner, J. (2029). Piece It Together. Kalamazoo: Paperwork Press.
Saved at: Element115.doc http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.US
Monday, April 13, 2009
scientists 8.sci.0034 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Scientists find a surprisingly clear connection between sleep and a healthy body: the regulation of sugar levels in the blood.
Three large genomic studies, all online December 7 in Nature Genetics, describe the first genetic link between sleep and type 2 diabetes, a disease marked by high blood sugar levels (SN: 1/3/09, p. 5). http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN-ESQUIRE.US The research places bodily rhythms, including the clock that sets human sleep cycles, squarely in the blood sugar business.
Melatonin is a major regulator of the body’s sleep clock, best known for its sleep-inducing properties. People with a single-letter change in the gene encoding a molecule that senses melatonin are more likely to develop diabetes, the studies show. One of the studies also showed that the sensing molecule, known to be expressed in the brain, also sits on the outside of insulin-producing pancreatic cells.
The results identify the melatonin system as a “fascinating new target” for diabetes treatments, says endocrinologist Leif Groop of Lund University in Malmö, Sweden, who coauthored two of the new reports. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire These data link two trends in the United States — rising diabetes rates and falling sleep levels.
Gene therapy restores limited vision in three people with an inherited form of blindness. Studies in mice indicate that other cells in the retina can take over for rod and cone cells.
Blind may see Gene therapy restores limited vision in three people with an inherited form of blindness. Studies in mice indicate that other cells in the retina can take over for rod and cone cells (SN: 5/24/08, p. 8).
Early signal Before symptoms appear, inflammation-promoting genes become active in immune cells in the brains of people at risk of developing bipolar disorder (SN: 4/12/08, p. 228).
Scary malaria The parasite that causes malaria is showing signs of thwarting top-line drugs called artemisinins (SN: 11/22/08, p. 9). But new reports show evidence that a vaccine still in the testing stage halves a child’s risk of getting malaria (SN: 1/3/09, p. 15).
Four months after his December 2006 hand transplant, David Savage’s partial sense of touch in the new right hand activated the same brain area that would have controlled his original right hand 35 years earlier. The photo at left was taken shortly after the transplant, while the photo at right was taken one year after the procedure.
Same brain map Months after receiving a right-hand transplant, a man displays a partial sense of touch in the new hand, activating the same brain areas that would have controlled his original hand (SN: 11/8/08, p. 18).
A-beta on the brain Comatose patients make more amyloid-beta — a substance that forms characteristic plaques in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients — as the patients’ brains heal from injury (SN Online: 8/28/08).
Dopamine and zzzz’s The brain chemical dopamine builds up in some parts of the brain when sleep is lost (SN: 9/13/08, p. 11). Dopamine also aids in learning and memory, but too much of the chemical can hinder performance (SN: 8/30/08, p. 8).
Newborn neurons (green, above) help mice build memories. Other research shows that antidepressants may help trigger neuron generation in the hippocampus.
New neuron insights Newborn neurons (green, above) help mice build memories. Other research shows that antidepressants may help trigger neuron generation in the hippocampus (SN: 9/27/08, p. 5).
Glass a day Cell tests suggest that resveratrol, the substance that seems to account for the healthful effects of red wine, may have antiobesity effects (SN Online: 6/16/08). Other research muddies the idea that resveratrol can mimic the life-extending effects of a calorie-restricted diet, suggesting that the compound improves health but doesn’t necessarily lengthen life in humans. And it also may indirectly harm the brain (SN: 8/2/08, p. 14). http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN-ESQUIRE.US
Statin ups and downs Older people taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs seem less likely to develop dementia (SN Online: 7/28/08). A variant form of the gene SLCO1B1 may be responsible for muscle pain that statins sometimes cause (SN: 8/16/08, p. 9).
Astrocytes (purple) and neurons (green) in the visual cortex of a ferret. The cells contain dyes that allow researchers to track calcium levels. When neurons are active, astrocytes respond with increased calcium, which leads nearby capillaries to increase blood flow. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire This is a previously undiscovered role for astrocytes, once thought to only act as support cells for neurons. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN-ESQUIRE.US
Rising stars Astrocytes, usually thought of as support cells, regulate blood flow in the brain and may aid neuron signaling (SN: 8/2/08, p. 5).
Foul play A natural genetic variation in a protein that processes testosterone could help some athletes beat drug tests and finger others for cheating even when they play it clean (SN: 3/29/08, p. 195).
Not benign Dutch researchers advise physicians to avoid prescribing probiotics to patients with pancreatitis after a study finds the treatment triples the death rate in treated patients (SN: 2/23/08, p. 115).Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
A new drug can, with other therapies, suppress the most drug-resistant strains of the virus.
HIV updates Early HIV treatment can increase a patient’s survival chances (SN Online: 10/27/08). A new drug can, with other therapies, suppress the most drug-resistant strains of the virus (SN Online: 7/23/08). And clinics in Africa experience long lines for discounted or free male circumcision as word spreads that the operation provides partial protection against HIV (SN: 1/3/09, p. 14).
Out of sync Teenage female athletes’ temporary loss of menstrual periods coincides with a hormone imbalance. The find may help identify those people who are prone to developing the condition (SN: 7/19/08, p. 9).
Three large genomic studies, all online December 7 in Nature Genetics, describe the first genetic link between sleep and type 2 diabetes, a disease marked by high blood sugar levels (SN: 1/3/09, p. 5). http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN-ESQUIRE.US The research places bodily rhythms, including the clock that sets human sleep cycles, squarely in the blood sugar business.
Melatonin is a major regulator of the body’s sleep clock, best known for its sleep-inducing properties. People with a single-letter change in the gene encoding a molecule that senses melatonin are more likely to develop diabetes, the studies show. One of the studies also showed that the sensing molecule, known to be expressed in the brain, also sits on the outside of insulin-producing pancreatic cells.
The results identify the melatonin system as a “fascinating new target” for diabetes treatments, says endocrinologist Leif Groop of Lund University in Malmö, Sweden, who coauthored two of the new reports. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire These data link two trends in the United States — rising diabetes rates and falling sleep levels.
Gene therapy restores limited vision in three people with an inherited form of blindness. Studies in mice indicate that other cells in the retina can take over for rod and cone cells.
Blind may see Gene therapy restores limited vision in three people with an inherited form of blindness. Studies in mice indicate that other cells in the retina can take over for rod and cone cells (SN: 5/24/08, p. 8).
Early signal Before symptoms appear, inflammation-promoting genes become active in immune cells in the brains of people at risk of developing bipolar disorder (SN: 4/12/08, p. 228).
Scary malaria The parasite that causes malaria is showing signs of thwarting top-line drugs called artemisinins (SN: 11/22/08, p. 9). But new reports show evidence that a vaccine still in the testing stage halves a child’s risk of getting malaria (SN: 1/3/09, p. 15).
Four months after his December 2006 hand transplant, David Savage’s partial sense of touch in the new right hand activated the same brain area that would have controlled his original right hand 35 years earlier. The photo at left was taken shortly after the transplant, while the photo at right was taken one year after the procedure.
Same brain map Months after receiving a right-hand transplant, a man displays a partial sense of touch in the new hand, activating the same brain areas that would have controlled his original hand (SN: 11/8/08, p. 18).
A-beta on the brain Comatose patients make more amyloid-beta — a substance that forms characteristic plaques in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients — as the patients’ brains heal from injury (SN Online: 8/28/08).
Dopamine and zzzz’s The brain chemical dopamine builds up in some parts of the brain when sleep is lost (SN: 9/13/08, p. 11). Dopamine also aids in learning and memory, but too much of the chemical can hinder performance (SN: 8/30/08, p. 8).
Newborn neurons (green, above) help mice build memories. Other research shows that antidepressants may help trigger neuron generation in the hippocampus.
New neuron insights Newborn neurons (green, above) help mice build memories. Other research shows that antidepressants may help trigger neuron generation in the hippocampus (SN: 9/27/08, p. 5).
Glass a day Cell tests suggest that resveratrol, the substance that seems to account for the healthful effects of red wine, may have antiobesity effects (SN Online: 6/16/08). Other research muddies the idea that resveratrol can mimic the life-extending effects of a calorie-restricted diet, suggesting that the compound improves health but doesn’t necessarily lengthen life in humans. And it also may indirectly harm the brain (SN: 8/2/08, p. 14). http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN-ESQUIRE.US
Statin ups and downs Older people taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs seem less likely to develop dementia (SN Online: 7/28/08). A variant form of the gene SLCO1B1 may be responsible for muscle pain that statins sometimes cause (SN: 8/16/08, p. 9).
Astrocytes (purple) and neurons (green) in the visual cortex of a ferret. The cells contain dyes that allow researchers to track calcium levels. When neurons are active, astrocytes respond with increased calcium, which leads nearby capillaries to increase blood flow. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire This is a previously undiscovered role for astrocytes, once thought to only act as support cells for neurons. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN-ESQUIRE.US
Rising stars Astrocytes, usually thought of as support cells, regulate blood flow in the brain and may aid neuron signaling (SN: 8/2/08, p. 5).
Foul play A natural genetic variation in a protein that processes testosterone could help some athletes beat drug tests and finger others for cheating even when they play it clean (SN: 3/29/08, p. 195).
Not benign Dutch researchers advise physicians to avoid prescribing probiotics to patients with pancreatitis after a study finds the treatment triples the death rate in treated patients (SN: 2/23/08, p. 115).Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
A new drug can, with other therapies, suppress the most drug-resistant strains of the virus.
HIV updates Early HIV treatment can increase a patient’s survival chances (SN Online: 10/27/08). A new drug can, with other therapies, suppress the most drug-resistant strains of the virus (SN Online: 7/23/08). And clinics in Africa experience long lines for discounted or free male circumcision as word spreads that the operation provides partial protection against HIV (SN: 1/3/09, p. 14).
Out of sync Teenage female athletes’ temporary loss of menstrual periods coincides with a hormone imbalance. The find may help identify those people who are prone to developing the condition (SN: 7/19/08, p. 9).
Friday, April 10, 2009
mouse 4.mou.002 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
In a virtual setting where fifth-graders become wizards and athletes, and even change sexes, preteens stay true to their real-world selves. Classic sex differences in play preferences, characterized by rough-and-tumble games among boys and intimate conversations among girls, still exist after youngsters adopt a range of personas for virtual encounters, investigators find. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.ORG
Boys who create girl avatars — or computerized altar egos — and girls who create boy avatars still behave consistently with their biological sex, say psychologist Sandra Calvert of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and her colleagues.
In their new study, published online February 20 in the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, about 13 percent of fifth-graders chose opposite-sex avatars, a practice the researchers call gender-bending. Pairs of kids — all of whom knew each other — experimented more with avatar identities than pairs of unfamiliar children did in a similar, 2003 study led by Calvert. Same-sex pairs showed this pattern most strongly.
As fifth-graders learned to construct avatars and use these characters to interact with others in a multi-user domain, or MUD, experimentation with avatar costumes, sexes and names increased sharply. But as in real-world play, MUD play centered on self-exploration rather than self-alteration, Calvert asserts.
Boys and girls who knew each other often had difficulty playing together as avatars, she adds. Many boys wanted to play action-oriented games, while girls pressed for written conversations. That pattern reflects preteens’ preferences for playing in same-sex groups.
“MUDs can provide a virtual play space for preadolescent children to discover who they are, as well as a 21st century place to interact with friends,” she says.
Boys and girls in all cultures tend to differ in their play styles, remarks psychologist David Bjorklund of Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. “What’s impressive is that these behavioral styles extend to the virtual world,” he says.
Infrequent gender-bending observed in the new study supports the idea that young people typically view online worlds, from MUDS to blogs, as places to deal with real-life concerns, comments psychologist Kaveri Subrahmanyam of California State University, Los Angeles.
“People don’t go online to leave their bodies behind and find new selves, but instead seem to be taking their offline selves, including their biological selves, with them,” she says.
Calvert’s team studied 126 fifth-graders, most ages 10 and 11, randomly selected from five schools and a boys and girls club in the Washington, D.C., area. Participants included 61 boys and 65 girls. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire Pairs of children who knew each other entered a room where they used laptop computers to play in a MUD.
Each child first chose a name, a sex and a costume — wizard, firefighter, soccer player, regular kid in a T-shirt and jeans or punk kid in a leather jacket — for his or her avatar. Pairs then interacted using avatars for two 10-minute sessions, separated by a brief rest period.Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Children used a computer mouse to move their avatars, alter avatars’ facial expressions and body postures and switch among six background scenes. Kids typed messages to each other that appeared in speech bubbles above avatars’ heads. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.ORG
In her 2003 study of 84 preteens who didn’t know one another, Calvert found that only two boys created girl avatars and no girls chose boy avatars. In the new study, 21 girls and 11 boys engaged in gender-bending.
Boys who create girl avatars — or computerized altar egos — and girls who create boy avatars still behave consistently with their biological sex, say psychologist Sandra Calvert of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and her colleagues.
In their new study, published online February 20 in the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, about 13 percent of fifth-graders chose opposite-sex avatars, a practice the researchers call gender-bending. Pairs of kids — all of whom knew each other — experimented more with avatar identities than pairs of unfamiliar children did in a similar, 2003 study led by Calvert. Same-sex pairs showed this pattern most strongly.
As fifth-graders learned to construct avatars and use these characters to interact with others in a multi-user domain, or MUD, experimentation with avatar costumes, sexes and names increased sharply. But as in real-world play, MUD play centered on self-exploration rather than self-alteration, Calvert asserts.
Boys and girls who knew each other often had difficulty playing together as avatars, she adds. Many boys wanted to play action-oriented games, while girls pressed for written conversations. That pattern reflects preteens’ preferences for playing in same-sex groups.
“MUDs can provide a virtual play space for preadolescent children to discover who they are, as well as a 21st century place to interact with friends,” she says.
Boys and girls in all cultures tend to differ in their play styles, remarks psychologist David Bjorklund of Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. “What’s impressive is that these behavioral styles extend to the virtual world,” he says.
Infrequent gender-bending observed in the new study supports the idea that young people typically view online worlds, from MUDS to blogs, as places to deal with real-life concerns, comments psychologist Kaveri Subrahmanyam of California State University, Los Angeles.
“People don’t go online to leave their bodies behind and find new selves, but instead seem to be taking their offline selves, including their biological selves, with them,” she says.
Calvert’s team studied 126 fifth-graders, most ages 10 and 11, randomly selected from five schools and a boys and girls club in the Washington, D.C., area. Participants included 61 boys and 65 girls. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire Pairs of children who knew each other entered a room where they used laptop computers to play in a MUD.
Each child first chose a name, a sex and a costume — wizard, firefighter, soccer player, regular kid in a T-shirt and jeans or punk kid in a leather jacket — for his or her avatar. Pairs then interacted using avatars for two 10-minute sessions, separated by a brief rest period.Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Children used a computer mouse to move their avatars, alter avatars’ facial expressions and body postures and switch among six background scenes. Kids typed messages to each other that appeared in speech bubbles above avatars’ heads. http://LOUIS-J-SHEEHAN.ORG
In her 2003 study of 84 preteens who didn’t know one another, Calvert found that only two boys created girl avatars and no girls chose boy avatars. In the new study, 21 girls and 11 boys engaged in gender-bending.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
sugery 4.sur.111 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
http://Louis1J1Sheehan.us Brain surgeon Kenneth Follett had never received thank-you cards from his patients after performing an operation — until he started putting electrodes in their brains. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Follett, who holds positions at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Omaha, is among a select group of surgeons who over the past decade have been treating Parkinson’s disease by installing two tiny electrodes in a patient’s brain.
The change these devices induce can be astonishing, he says. Parkinson’s is characterized by brain degeneration, marked by a shortage of the neurotransmitter dopamine. That shortage results in movement problems. http://Louis1J1Sheehan.us After surgery, many patients are suddenly able to get around, do household chores and even go shopping, Follett says. “It has the potential to change people’s lives.”
Follett’s firsthand observations are now supported by clinical research. He and a team of fellow surgeons and scientists report in the Jan. 7 Journal of the American Medical Association that Parkinson’s patients randomly assigned to get medication plus the surgery show dramatic improvements, whereas patients getting just the best available medication do not.
The surgery, called deep-brain stimulation, isn’t new, having been first approved by regulators in 1997. But only one other study — reported by German scientists in 2006 — has tested the surgery against medication in a large, randomized trial. That study also showed benefits in patients who received both surgery and medication (SN: 9/2/06, p. 149).
Günther Deuschl, a neurologist at Christian Albrechts University in Kiel who led the German study, writes in JAMA that the new findings “have convincingly confirmed the six-month efficacy of deep brain stimulation for advanced Parkinson’s disease in the largest patient group studied thus far.”
The new findings also extend the benefits of surgery to older Parkinson’s patients, since one-fourth of the patients in the U.S. trial were age 70 or older. “They did as well as the younger patients” who underwent the surgery, Follett says.
What’s more, the new findings suggest that many worrisome side effects from the surgery fade over time.
The electrodes that doctors install — one on each side of the brain — are actually small, insulated wires that are connected to another wire that runs under the skin to a small battery beneath the skin of the torso. The electrodes are implanted into a part of the brain that normally acts as a relay station for messages. In Parkinson’s patients, a flurry of signals jam this message center, sending aberrant signals to muscles and causing tremors, muscle rigidity, paralysis and other problems. The electrodes send out a mild current that inhibits the stream of messages, relieving the clutter and calming muscle problems.
In the new study, researchers at 13 U.S. medical centers identified 255 people from 2002 to 2005 who had been taking medication for Parkinson’s disease for nearly 12 years, on average. Half were randomly assigned to get surgery and medication as needed. The others received medication only.
For six months, patients kept a log documenting how many hours per day they were able to move freely without paralysis, jerky motions or other problems. At the outset of the study, this time amounted to about seven hours a day, a number that went unchanged in those getting medication only. But patients assigned to surgery saw their free-movement time jump to 11 hours a day, on average, after six months. Over that time, these patients were also able to cut their medication intake by about half.
Fifteen medication-only patients experienced serious side effects, compared with 49 patients who underwent surgery. Complications from surgery tended to occur within three months of the procedure. Problems included headaches, falls, confusion, speech problems and slowed movement. One person who underwent surgery died of a brain hemorrhage within 24 hours.
But 99 percent of the side effects had resolved by six months as doctors remotely fine-tuned the intensity of the current being generated by the electrodes in each patient and modified each patient’s medication. “It’s a bit of a balancing act,” Follett says.
The challenge in using this surgery might be to determine earlier in the course of disease which patients would get the most benefit from the procedure, says neurosurgeon Robert Goodman of Columbia University in New York City. While medications such as levodopa are highly effective for years, many patients continue to lose mobility despite higher doses. And too much medication can bring on involuntary movements. Goodman estimates 10 to 20 percent of Parkinson’s patients fall into this trap. Those with true Parkinson’s disease — without dementia or other symptoms — would be good candidates for surgery, he says.
Despite the promising results, caution is in order, Deuschl says. He cites evidence that patients have an alarmingly high suicide rate in the first year following deep-brain stimulation surgery, a risk that lessens over time but still lingers after four years. There were no suicides in the six months patients were monitored in the new study. Further work to identify risk factors is needed, Deuschl says. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Follett, who holds positions at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Omaha, is among a select group of surgeons who over the past decade have been treating Parkinson’s disease by installing two tiny electrodes in a patient’s brain.
The change these devices induce can be astonishing, he says. Parkinson’s is characterized by brain degeneration, marked by a shortage of the neurotransmitter dopamine. That shortage results in movement problems. http://Louis1J1Sheehan.us After surgery, many patients are suddenly able to get around, do household chores and even go shopping, Follett says. “It has the potential to change people’s lives.”
Follett’s firsthand observations are now supported by clinical research. He and a team of fellow surgeons and scientists report in the Jan. 7 Journal of the American Medical Association that Parkinson’s patients randomly assigned to get medication plus the surgery show dramatic improvements, whereas patients getting just the best available medication do not.
The surgery, called deep-brain stimulation, isn’t new, having been first approved by regulators in 1997. But only one other study — reported by German scientists in 2006 — has tested the surgery against medication in a large, randomized trial. That study also showed benefits in patients who received both surgery and medication (SN: 9/2/06, p. 149).
Günther Deuschl, a neurologist at Christian Albrechts University in Kiel who led the German study, writes in JAMA that the new findings “have convincingly confirmed the six-month efficacy of deep brain stimulation for advanced Parkinson’s disease in the largest patient group studied thus far.”
The new findings also extend the benefits of surgery to older Parkinson’s patients, since one-fourth of the patients in the U.S. trial were age 70 or older. “They did as well as the younger patients” who underwent the surgery, Follett says.
What’s more, the new findings suggest that many worrisome side effects from the surgery fade over time.
The electrodes that doctors install — one on each side of the brain — are actually small, insulated wires that are connected to another wire that runs under the skin to a small battery beneath the skin of the torso. The electrodes are implanted into a part of the brain that normally acts as a relay station for messages. In Parkinson’s patients, a flurry of signals jam this message center, sending aberrant signals to muscles and causing tremors, muscle rigidity, paralysis and other problems. The electrodes send out a mild current that inhibits the stream of messages, relieving the clutter and calming muscle problems.
In the new study, researchers at 13 U.S. medical centers identified 255 people from 2002 to 2005 who had been taking medication for Parkinson’s disease for nearly 12 years, on average. Half were randomly assigned to get surgery and medication as needed. The others received medication only.
For six months, patients kept a log documenting how many hours per day they were able to move freely without paralysis, jerky motions or other problems. At the outset of the study, this time amounted to about seven hours a day, a number that went unchanged in those getting medication only. But patients assigned to surgery saw their free-movement time jump to 11 hours a day, on average, after six months. Over that time, these patients were also able to cut their medication intake by about half.
Fifteen medication-only patients experienced serious side effects, compared with 49 patients who underwent surgery. Complications from surgery tended to occur within three months of the procedure. Problems included headaches, falls, confusion, speech problems and slowed movement. One person who underwent surgery died of a brain hemorrhage within 24 hours.
But 99 percent of the side effects had resolved by six months as doctors remotely fine-tuned the intensity of the current being generated by the electrodes in each patient and modified each patient’s medication. “It’s a bit of a balancing act,” Follett says.
The challenge in using this surgery might be to determine earlier in the course of disease which patients would get the most benefit from the procedure, says neurosurgeon Robert Goodman of Columbia University in New York City. While medications such as levodopa are highly effective for years, many patients continue to lose mobility despite higher doses. And too much medication can bring on involuntary movements. Goodman estimates 10 to 20 percent of Parkinson’s patients fall into this trap. Those with true Parkinson’s disease — without dementia or other symptoms — would be good candidates for surgery, he says.
Despite the promising results, caution is in order, Deuschl says. He cites evidence that patients have an alarmingly high suicide rate in the first year following deep-brain stimulation surgery, a risk that lessens over time but still lingers after four years. There were no suicides in the six months patients were monitored in the new study. Further work to identify risk factors is needed, Deuschl says. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Monday, January 5, 2009
coal furnaces 4.coa.0 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
December 27, 2008
Burning Coal at Home Is Making a Comeback
By TOM ZELLER Jr. and STEFAN MILKOWSKI
SUGARLOAF, Pa. — Kyle Buck heaved open the door of a makeshift bin abutting his suburban ranch house. Staring at a two-ton pile of coal that was delivered by truck a few weeks ago, Mr. Buck worried aloud that it would not be enough to last the winter.
“I think I’m going through it faster than I thought I would,” he said. http://louis-j-sheehan-esquire.sampa.com/louis-j-sheehan-esquire/blog
Aptly, perhaps, for an era of hard times, coal is making a comeback as a home heating fuel.
Problematic in some ways and difficult to handle, coal is nonetheless a cheap, plentiful, mined-in-America source of heat. And with the cost of heating oil and natural gas increasingly prone to spikes, some homeowners in the Northeast, pockets of the Midwest and even Alaska are deciding coal is worth the trouble.
Burning coal at home was once commonplace, of course, but the practice had been declining for decades. Coal consumption for residential use hit a low of 258,000 tons in 2006 — then started to rise. It jumped 9 percent in 2007, according to the Energy Information Administration, and 10 percent more in the first eight months of 2008.
Online coal forums are buzzing with activity, as residential coal enthusiasts trade tips and advice for buying and tending to coal heaters. And manufacturers and dealers of coal-burning stoves say they have been deluged with orders — many placed when the price of heating oil jumped last summer — that they are struggling to fill.
“Back in the 1980s, we sold hundreds a year,” said Rich Kauffman, the sales manager at E.F.M. Automatic Heat in Emmaus, Pa., one of the oldest makers of coal-fired furnaces and boilers in the United States, in a nod to the uptick in coal sales that followed the oil crises of the 1970s.
“But that dwindled to nothing in the early 1990s — down to as many as 10 a year,” he said. “It picked up about a year ago, when we moved about 60 units, and then this year we’ve already sold 200.”
Dean Lehman, the plant manager for Hitzer Inc., a family-owned business in Berne, Ind., that makes smaller, indoor coal stoves, said his stoves were on back order until March. And Jeffery Gliem, the director of operations at the Reading Stove Company and its parent, Reading Anthracite, in Pottsville, Pa., which supplies coal and stoves to 15 states in the Northeast and Midwest, said the uptick in interest was the largest he had seen in 30 years.
“In your typical year you might have five, six, seven thousand stoves being sold,” Mr. Gliem said. “This year it was probably double that.”
The coal trend is consistent with steep increases in other forms of supplementary heating that people can use to save money — most of them less messy than coal. Home Depot reports that it has sold more than 80,000 tons of pellet fuel, a sort of compressed sawdust, for the season to date. That is an increase of 137 percent compared with the same period last year, said Jean Niemi, a company spokeswoman.
Coal may never make economic sense in areas far from where it is mined. But in places within reasonable delivery range, the price tends to be stable, compared with heating oil or natural gas. Prices for natural gas more than tripled in recent years before plunging in the last few months amid the downturn.
Coals vary in quality, but on average, a ton of coal contains about as much potential heat as 146 gallons of heating oil or 20,000 cubic feet of natural gas, according to the Energy Information Administration. A ton of anthracite, a particularly high grade of coal, can cost as little as $120 near mines in Pennsylvania. The equivalent amount of heating oil would cost roughly $380, based on the most recent prices in the state — and over $470 using prices from December 2007. An equivalent amount of natural gas would cost about $480 at current prices.
Mr. Buck said he could buy coal for $165 a ton. On a blustery afternoon recently, he was still studying the manual for his $2,300 Alaska Channing stoker, which gave off an intense heat in the den. An automated hopper in the back slowly dispensed fine anthracite coal chips into the stove’s belly, and every couple of days, Mr. Buck emptied the ash. He said he hoped the stove would cut his oil consumption in half.
“Now, somewhere, you’ve got to take into account the convenience of turning up your thermostat, versus having two tons of coal to shovel and the hopper and ashes to deal with,” Mr. Buck said. But if the $330 worth of coal in his makeshift bin “heats the house for the winter,” he added, “you can’t beat it.”
Wesley Ridlington, a homeowner in Fairbanks, Alaska, bought an outdoor coal furnace for $13,000 in March and uses it as his main source for heat and hot water.
On a recent evening, as the temperature hovered around 23 below zero, Mr. Ridlington worked to free up the rotating burning plate inside the furnace, which he figured was jammed by a pebble. He did not seem to mind the glitch, or, for that matter, loading the furnace twice a week and emptying the ash pan every night. “It takes a little bit of time,” he said, “but for the savings, it’s worth it.”
Mr. Ridlington said he was typically burning 1,500 gallons of oil each winter to heat his 3,300-square-foot home. At last year’s prices, that would have cost about $7,000, he said. This winter, he expects to burn nine tons of coal at a cost of about $1,400. http://louis-j-sheehan-esquire.sampa.com/louis-j-sheehan-esquire/blog
“The initial cost was expensive,” he said. “But in three to five years, it’ll be paid for, even with prices going down. And if fuel goes back up again, it’ll be even more savings.”
Rob Richards, who owns a business in Fairbanks that sells spas, pool tables, and now outdoor coal furnaces, said that when oil prices were higher, he could promise fuel cost savings of more than 75 percent and a payback of 18 months for an outdoor coal furnace. With oil prices down again, orders for furnaces have dropped off, and the savings are closer to 50 percent with a few years’ time to recoup the cost, he said.
“Still, you’re looking at a quick payback,” Mr. Richards added.
Coal was a dominant source of heat for American homes for much of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Americans were still burning more than 50 million tons for heating in 1950, according to the federal statistics.
But coal, primarily used today in power plants and steelmaking, has not been used for heating on a large scale for decades. Cleaner and more easily distributed forms of heating fuel — including natural gas, electricity and oil — displaced coal, and residential use dropped precipitously, to 2.8 million tons by 1975, and then to less than 500,000 tons by 2000.
Even with the recovery of the last couple of years, residential use of coal in the United States, at less than 300,000 tons today and representing a fraction of 1 percent of all coal use, is “not even a blip on the screen,” said Carol Raulston, a spokeswoman for the National Mining Association.
Still, even amid the steep decline, small upticks similar to the current one have appeared from time to time, and residential use of coal never entirely went away.
In Homer, Alaska, fall storms wash crude coal onto the beach from underwater deposits. In the mountains of eastern Kentucky or the hills of central Pennsylvania, residents can simply dig it out of the ground.
“As long as people have been mining coal up there,” said John Hiett of Kentucky’s Office of Mine Safety and Licensing, “people have burned coal in their houses.”
Government data suggest that about 131,000 households use coal as their primary source of heat, with perhaps 80,000 more using it as a secondary source. Those numbers are small enough that issues relating to pollution and greenhouse gas emissions have remained largely off the radar.
Burning coal does throw fine particles into the air that can pose problems for some people, similar to the problems involved in burning wood — though wood stoves and fireplace inserts are increasingly subject to regulation to cut down on pollutants.
“Coal stoves don’t have that,” said James E. Houck, the president of Omni Environmental Services, a firm in Portland, Ore., that tests air quality. “And there’s no regulatory pressure for them to have it.”
In some localities where residential coal burning is becoming a factor, that might be changing. In Fairbanks, air quality experts suspect the increase in coal burning — along with increased wood burning — is contributing to concentrations of fine particles well above federal limits.
“We see it as a real health hazard to Fairbanks,” said Jim Conner, the Fairbanks North Star Borough’s air quality specialist.
Concerns like these have not deterred companies marketing coal. Back East, the Blaschak Coal Corporation, a midsize supplier of anthracite in Mahanoy City, Pa., still emblazons company trucks and baseball caps with images of Santa Claus lugging a sack of coal.
“Everybody’s looking at wherever they can to save money,” said Daniel Blaschak, a co-owner of the company. “ ’Cause guess what? We no longer have disposable income. We are up to our necks in debt. And there’s very few things we can’t live without, but heat is one of them.”
Tom Zeller Jr. reported from Sugarloaf, Pa., and Stefan Milkowski from Fairbanks, Alaska. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire.
December 27, 2008
Burning Coal at Home Is Making a Comeback
By TOM ZELLER Jr. and STEFAN MILKOWSKI
SUGARLOAF, Pa. — Kyle Buck heaved open the door of a makeshift bin abutting his suburban ranch house. Staring at a two-ton pile of coal that was delivered by truck a few weeks ago, Mr. Buck worried aloud that it would not be enough to last the winter.
“I think I’m going through it faster than I thought I would,” he said. http://louis-j-sheehan-esquire.sampa.com/louis-j-sheehan-esquire/blog
Aptly, perhaps, for an era of hard times, coal is making a comeback as a home heating fuel.
Problematic in some ways and difficult to handle, coal is nonetheless a cheap, plentiful, mined-in-America source of heat. And with the cost of heating oil and natural gas increasingly prone to spikes, some homeowners in the Northeast, pockets of the Midwest and even Alaska are deciding coal is worth the trouble.
Burning coal at home was once commonplace, of course, but the practice had been declining for decades. Coal consumption for residential use hit a low of 258,000 tons in 2006 — then started to rise. It jumped 9 percent in 2007, according to the Energy Information Administration, and 10 percent more in the first eight months of 2008.
Online coal forums are buzzing with activity, as residential coal enthusiasts trade tips and advice for buying and tending to coal heaters. And manufacturers and dealers of coal-burning stoves say they have been deluged with orders — many placed when the price of heating oil jumped last summer — that they are struggling to fill.
“Back in the 1980s, we sold hundreds a year,” said Rich Kauffman, the sales manager at E.F.M. Automatic Heat in Emmaus, Pa., one of the oldest makers of coal-fired furnaces and boilers in the United States, in a nod to the uptick in coal sales that followed the oil crises of the 1970s.
“But that dwindled to nothing in the early 1990s — down to as many as 10 a year,” he said. “It picked up about a year ago, when we moved about 60 units, and then this year we’ve already sold 200.”
Dean Lehman, the plant manager for Hitzer Inc., a family-owned business in Berne, Ind., that makes smaller, indoor coal stoves, said his stoves were on back order until March. And Jeffery Gliem, the director of operations at the Reading Stove Company and its parent, Reading Anthracite, in Pottsville, Pa., which supplies coal and stoves to 15 states in the Northeast and Midwest, said the uptick in interest was the largest he had seen in 30 years.
“In your typical year you might have five, six, seven thousand stoves being sold,” Mr. Gliem said. “This year it was probably double that.”
The coal trend is consistent with steep increases in other forms of supplementary heating that people can use to save money — most of them less messy than coal. Home Depot reports that it has sold more than 80,000 tons of pellet fuel, a sort of compressed sawdust, for the season to date. That is an increase of 137 percent compared with the same period last year, said Jean Niemi, a company spokeswoman.
Coal may never make economic sense in areas far from where it is mined. But in places within reasonable delivery range, the price tends to be stable, compared with heating oil or natural gas. Prices for natural gas more than tripled in recent years before plunging in the last few months amid the downturn.
Coals vary in quality, but on average, a ton of coal contains about as much potential heat as 146 gallons of heating oil or 20,000 cubic feet of natural gas, according to the Energy Information Administration. A ton of anthracite, a particularly high grade of coal, can cost as little as $120 near mines in Pennsylvania. The equivalent amount of heating oil would cost roughly $380, based on the most recent prices in the state — and over $470 using prices from December 2007. An equivalent amount of natural gas would cost about $480 at current prices.
Mr. Buck said he could buy coal for $165 a ton. On a blustery afternoon recently, he was still studying the manual for his $2,300 Alaska Channing stoker, which gave off an intense heat in the den. An automated hopper in the back slowly dispensed fine anthracite coal chips into the stove’s belly, and every couple of days, Mr. Buck emptied the ash. He said he hoped the stove would cut his oil consumption in half.
“Now, somewhere, you’ve got to take into account the convenience of turning up your thermostat, versus having two tons of coal to shovel and the hopper and ashes to deal with,” Mr. Buck said. But if the $330 worth of coal in his makeshift bin “heats the house for the winter,” he added, “you can’t beat it.”
Wesley Ridlington, a homeowner in Fairbanks, Alaska, bought an outdoor coal furnace for $13,000 in March and uses it as his main source for heat and hot water.
On a recent evening, as the temperature hovered around 23 below zero, Mr. Ridlington worked to free up the rotating burning plate inside the furnace, which he figured was jammed by a pebble. He did not seem to mind the glitch, or, for that matter, loading the furnace twice a week and emptying the ash pan every night. “It takes a little bit of time,” he said, “but for the savings, it’s worth it.”
Mr. Ridlington said he was typically burning 1,500 gallons of oil each winter to heat his 3,300-square-foot home. At last year’s prices, that would have cost about $7,000, he said. This winter, he expects to burn nine tons of coal at a cost of about $1,400. http://louis-j-sheehan-esquire.sampa.com/louis-j-sheehan-esquire/blog
“The initial cost was expensive,” he said. “But in three to five years, it’ll be paid for, even with prices going down. And if fuel goes back up again, it’ll be even more savings.”
Rob Richards, who owns a business in Fairbanks that sells spas, pool tables, and now outdoor coal furnaces, said that when oil prices were higher, he could promise fuel cost savings of more than 75 percent and a payback of 18 months for an outdoor coal furnace. With oil prices down again, orders for furnaces have dropped off, and the savings are closer to 50 percent with a few years’ time to recoup the cost, he said.
“Still, you’re looking at a quick payback,” Mr. Richards added.
Coal was a dominant source of heat for American homes for much of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Americans were still burning more than 50 million tons for heating in 1950, according to the federal statistics.
But coal, primarily used today in power plants and steelmaking, has not been used for heating on a large scale for decades. Cleaner and more easily distributed forms of heating fuel — including natural gas, electricity and oil — displaced coal, and residential use dropped precipitously, to 2.8 million tons by 1975, and then to less than 500,000 tons by 2000.
Even with the recovery of the last couple of years, residential use of coal in the United States, at less than 300,000 tons today and representing a fraction of 1 percent of all coal use, is “not even a blip on the screen,” said Carol Raulston, a spokeswoman for the National Mining Association.
Still, even amid the steep decline, small upticks similar to the current one have appeared from time to time, and residential use of coal never entirely went away.
In Homer, Alaska, fall storms wash crude coal onto the beach from underwater deposits. In the mountains of eastern Kentucky or the hills of central Pennsylvania, residents can simply dig it out of the ground.
“As long as people have been mining coal up there,” said John Hiett of Kentucky’s Office of Mine Safety and Licensing, “people have burned coal in their houses.”
Government data suggest that about 131,000 households use coal as their primary source of heat, with perhaps 80,000 more using it as a secondary source. Those numbers are small enough that issues relating to pollution and greenhouse gas emissions have remained largely off the radar.
Burning coal does throw fine particles into the air that can pose problems for some people, similar to the problems involved in burning wood — though wood stoves and fireplace inserts are increasingly subject to regulation to cut down on pollutants.
“Coal stoves don’t have that,” said James E. Houck, the president of Omni Environmental Services, a firm in Portland, Ore., that tests air quality. “And there’s no regulatory pressure for them to have it.”
In some localities where residential coal burning is becoming a factor, that might be changing. In Fairbanks, air quality experts suspect the increase in coal burning — along with increased wood burning — is contributing to concentrations of fine particles well above federal limits.
“We see it as a real health hazard to Fairbanks,” said Jim Conner, the Fairbanks North Star Borough’s air quality specialist.
Concerns like these have not deterred companies marketing coal. Back East, the Blaschak Coal Corporation, a midsize supplier of anthracite in Mahanoy City, Pa., still emblazons company trucks and baseball caps with images of Santa Claus lugging a sack of coal.
“Everybody’s looking at wherever they can to save money,” said Daniel Blaschak, a co-owner of the company. “ ’Cause guess what? We no longer have disposable income. We are up to our necks in debt. And there’s very few things we can’t live without, but heat is one of them.”
Tom Zeller Jr. reported from Sugarloaf, Pa., and Stefan Milkowski from Fairbanks, Alaska. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
erectus 4.ere.02221 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire
A newly found, million-year-old African skull is fueling an ongoing debate over whether Homo erectus was a single wide-ranging species or several localized ones. The skull appears similar to those found in Asia, suggesting that the populations were in fact one species. http://louis2j2sheehan.bloggerteam.com
Fossils of H. erectus were discovered in Java in the 1800s. For many years, this species was recognized as the sole link between humans' earliest direct ancestor, Homo habilis, and modern Homo sapiens. H. erectus emerged 1.8 million years ago and may have survived to times as recent as 50,000 years ago.
Beginning in the 1980s, with the advent of new methods of analysis, some anthropologists have argued for splitting up H. erectus (SN: 6/20/92, p. 408). Proponents of this argument hold that European and African specimens formerly considered H. erectus belong to another species that they call Homo ergaster. They say that H. ergaster evolved into modern man but the Asia-bound H. erectus came up against an evolutionary dead end. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire . http://louis2j2sheehan.bloggerteam.com
Arguments have raged, with some scientists proposing that observed differences between specimens are due to evolution in a single species over time�most African fossils are older than Asian ones�rather than the presence of two distinct species.
The newfound specimen is younger than most African fossils assigned to H. ergaster and contemporary with some Asian H. erectus specimens, with which it shares striking similarities.
This is the first time that it's been possible to compare Asian and African fossils from the same period, says W. Henry Gilbert of the University of California, Berkeley, who discovered the fossil. The find may vindicate researchers who argued against dividing the species, he says.
The skull�which is missing the lower face, jaw, and teeth�comes from a fossil-rich region 140 miles northeast of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Scratch marks suggest that the individual may have been killed by a lion or hyena that ate the lower face and gnawed the skull in an attempt to extract the brain, says study coauthor Tim White, also of UC-Berkeley. Researchers spent 2 years cleaning the partially crushed skull.
With the new specimen in hand, White and his coworkers compared 14 groups of H. erectus and H. ergaster skulls from Asia, Africa, and Georgia, formerly in the Soviet Union. The researchers found a considerable overlap in shape between specimens from Asia and the other geographic regions, they report in the March 21 Nature. Features such as a short bulging forehead in the new fossil are similar to those in Asian H. erectus, says White.
Though most anthropologists are excited with the find, some disagree with the authors' conclusions. "The researchers should be congratulated on finding such a fantastic specimen," says Bernard Wood of George Washington University in Washington, D.C. However, they can't rule out that the new specimen is H. ergaster, he adds.
"I don't think this will conclude the debate," says Chris Stringer of the Natural History Museum in London. He points out that scientists who support dividing the species based many conclusions on dental features of H. erectus. These can't be compared with the new fossil because it's missing its teeth.
Others feel the fossil provides unequivocal evidence of a single species. "This slams the door shut [on the debate]," says C. Owen Lovejoy of Kent (Ohio) State University. "Now, all these specimens can be confidently restored to their original designation as H. erectus."
"This find should put the issue to rest," agrees Milford Wolpoff of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. However, he adds, "no discovery ever seems to put things to rest in a field as contentious as paleontology."Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire .
Fossils of H. erectus were discovered in Java in the 1800s. For many years, this species was recognized as the sole link between humans' earliest direct ancestor, Homo habilis, and modern Homo sapiens. H. erectus emerged 1.8 million years ago and may have survived to times as recent as 50,000 years ago.
Beginning in the 1980s, with the advent of new methods of analysis, some anthropologists have argued for splitting up H. erectus (SN: 6/20/92, p. 408). Proponents of this argument hold that European and African specimens formerly considered H. erectus belong to another species that they call Homo ergaster. They say that H. ergaster evolved into modern man but the Asia-bound H. erectus came up against an evolutionary dead end. Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire . http://louis2j2sheehan.bloggerteam.com
Arguments have raged, with some scientists proposing that observed differences between specimens are due to evolution in a single species over time�most African fossils are older than Asian ones�rather than the presence of two distinct species.
The newfound specimen is younger than most African fossils assigned to H. ergaster and contemporary with some Asian H. erectus specimens, with which it shares striking similarities.
This is the first time that it's been possible to compare Asian and African fossils from the same period, says W. Henry Gilbert of the University of California, Berkeley, who discovered the fossil. The find may vindicate researchers who argued against dividing the species, he says.
The skull�which is missing the lower face, jaw, and teeth�comes from a fossil-rich region 140 miles northeast of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Scratch marks suggest that the individual may have been killed by a lion or hyena that ate the lower face and gnawed the skull in an attempt to extract the brain, says study coauthor Tim White, also of UC-Berkeley. Researchers spent 2 years cleaning the partially crushed skull.
With the new specimen in hand, White and his coworkers compared 14 groups of H. erectus and H. ergaster skulls from Asia, Africa, and Georgia, formerly in the Soviet Union. The researchers found a considerable overlap in shape between specimens from Asia and the other geographic regions, they report in the March 21 Nature. Features such as a short bulging forehead in the new fossil are similar to those in Asian H. erectus, says White.
Though most anthropologists are excited with the find, some disagree with the authors' conclusions. "The researchers should be congratulated on finding such a fantastic specimen," says Bernard Wood of George Washington University in Washington, D.C. However, they can't rule out that the new specimen is H. ergaster, he adds.
"I don't think this will conclude the debate," says Chris Stringer of the Natural History Museum in London. He points out that scientists who support dividing the species based many conclusions on dental features of H. erectus. These can't be compared with the new fossil because it's missing its teeth.
Others feel the fossil provides unequivocal evidence of a single species. "This slams the door shut [on the debate]," says C. Owen Lovejoy of Kent (Ohio) State University. "Now, all these specimens can be confidently restored to their original designation as H. erectus."
"This find should put the issue to rest," agrees Milford Wolpoff of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. However, he adds, "no discovery ever seems to put things to rest in a field as contentious as paleontology."Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire .
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