Ozone Layer

Whatever Happened to the Hole in the Ozone Layer?

Stuart Fox
Life's Little Mysteries Staff Writer
LiveScience.com Stuart Fox
life's Little Mysteries Staff Writer
livescience.com Thu May 6, 8:50 am ET

Three British scientists shocked the world when they revealed on May 16th, 1985 - 25 years ago - that aerosol chemicals, among other factors, had torn a hole in the ozone layer over the South Pole. The ozone layer, which protects life on Earth from damaging solar radiation, became an overnight sensation. And the hole in the ozone layer became the poster-child for mankind's impact on the planet.

Today, the ozone hole - actually a region of thinned ozone, not actually a pure hole - doesn't make headlines like it used to. The size of the hole has stabilized, thanks to decades of aerosol-banning legislation. But, scientists warn, some danger still remains.

First, the good news: Since the 1989 Montreal Protocol banned the use of ozone-depleting chemicals worldwide, the ozone hole has stopped growing. Additionally, the ozone layer is blocking more cancer-causing radiation than any time in a decade because its average thickness has increased, according to a 2006 United Nations report. Atmospheric levels of ozone-depleting chemicals have reached their lowest levels since peaking in the 1990s, and the hole has begun to shrink.

Now the bad news: The ozone layer has also thinned over the North Pole. This thinning is predicted to continue for the next 15 years due to weather-related phenomena that scientists still cannot fully explain, according to the same UN report . And, repairing the ozone hole over the South Pole will take longer than previously expected, and won't finish until between 2060 and 2075. Scientists now understand that the size of the ozone hole varies dramatically from year to year, which complicates attempts to accurately predict the hole's future size.

Interestingly, recent studies have shown that the size of the ozone hole affects the global temperature. Closing the ozone hole actually speeds up the melting of the polar ice caps, according to a 2009 study from Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research.

So even though environmentally friendly laws have successfully reversed the trend of ozone depletion, the lingering effects of aerosol use, and the link between the ozone hole and global warming, virtually ensure that this problem will persist until the end of the century.

article is from Yahoo!

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Lack of sleep linked to early death

Lack of sleep linked to early death: study

Wed May 5, 9:44 am ET

LONDON (AFP) – People who get less than six hours sleep per night have an increased risk of dying prematurely, researchers said on Wednesday.

Those who slumbered for less than that amount of time were 12 percent more likely to die early, though researchers also found a link between sleeping more than nine hours and premature death.

"If you sleep little, you can develop diabetes, obesity, hypertension and high cholesterol," Francesco Cappuccio, who led research on the subject at Britain's University of Warwick, told AFP.

The study, conducted with the Federico II University in Naples, Italy, aggregated decade-long studies from around the world involving more than 1.3 million people and found "unequivocal evidence of the direct link" between lack of sleep and premature death.

"We think that the relation between little sleep and illness is due to a series of hormonal and metabolical mechanisms," Cappuccio said.

The findings of the study were published in the Sleep journal.

Cappuccio believes the duration of sleep is a public health issue and should be considered as a behavioural risk factor by doctors.

"Society pushes us to sleep less and less," Cappuccio said, adding that about 20 percent of the population in the United States and Britain sleeps less than five hours.

Sleeping less than six hours is "more common amongst full-time workers, suggesting that it may be due to societal pressures for longer working hours and more shift work"

The study also found a link between sleeping more than nine hours per night and premature death, but Cappuccio said oversleeping is more likely to be an effect of illness, rather than a cause.

"Doctors never ask how much one sleeps, but that could be an indicator that something is wrong," said Cappuccio, who heads the Sleep, Health and Society Programme at the University of Warwick.

Research showed no adverse effects for those sleeping between six and eight hours per day.

p.s: nasihat pada diri sendiri- jagalah tidur anda!!

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Expectant Mom's Exercise Keeps Newborn's Birth Weight Down

MONDAY, April 5 (HealthDay News) -- Regular moderate-intensity exercise during pregnancy reduces an infant's birth weight, which may lower the child's risk of obesity later in life, researchers say.

In a new study, 84 first-time pregnant women were randomly assigned to exercise or control groups, with those in the exercise group participating in a weekly maximum of five 40-minute sessions on a stationary cycle. They did this program until at least 36 weeks into their pregnancy.

Babies born to mothers in the exercise group were an average of 143 grams lighter than infants born to mothers in the control group, and also had a lower body-mass index (a measurement that takes into account height and weight), the researchers found.

The exercise training had no effect on the mothers' body weight or body-mass index during late pregnancy, and had no effect on insulin resistance from the start of the study to late gestation, according to the report published online in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

"Our findings show that regular aerobic exercise alters the maternal environment in some way that has an impact on nutrient stimulation of fetal growth, resulting in a reduction in offspring birth weight," study co-author Dr. Paul Hofman, of the University of Auckland in New Zealand, said in an Endocrine Society news release. "Given that large birth size is associated with an increased risk of obesity, a modest reduction in birth weight may have long-term health benefits for offspring by lowering this risk in later life."

Hofman added that the "physiological response to pregnancy appears to supersede the chronic improvements in insulin sensitivity previously described in response to exercise training in non-pregnant individuals. This may be an important finding for athletes who want to continue regular training during their pregnancy as it suggests that training will not have a major adverse impact on insulin resistance."

SOURCE: The Endocrine Society, news release, April 5, 2010

HealthDay

data obtain from: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_97212.html

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Barotrauma

What is Barotrauma?

Barotrauma refers to injury sustained from failure to equalize the pressure of an air-containing space with that of the surrounding environment. The most common examples of barotrauma occur in air travel and scuba diving. Although the degree of pressure changes are much more dramatic during scuba diving, barotraumatic injury is possible during air travel.

Barotrauma can affect several different areas of the body, including the ear, face and lungs. Here we will focus on barotrauma as it relates to the ear.


What are the Symptoms of Barotrauma?

Symptoms of barotrauma include “clogging” of the ear, ear pain, hearing loss, dizziness, ringing of the ear (tinnitus), and hemorrhage from the ear.

Dizziness (or vertigo) may also occur during diving from a phenomenon known as alternobaric vertigo. It is caused by a difference in pressure between the two middle ear spaces, which stimulates the vestibular (balance) end organs asymmetrically, thus resulting in vertigo. The alternobaric response can also be elicited by forcefully equalizing the middle ear pressure with the Politzer maneuver, which can cause an unequal inflation of the middle ear space.

What Causes Barotrauma?

Barotrauma is caused by a difference in pressure between the external environment and the internal parts of the ear. Since fluids do not compress under pressures experienced during diving or flying, the fluid-containing spaces of the ear do not alter their volume under these pressure changes. However, the air-containing spaces of the ear do compress, resulting in damage to the ear if the alterations in ambient pressure cannot be equalized. Rarely, barotrauma may be the result of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Slow compression hyperbaric oxygen therapy is associated with a lower risk of otoc barotraumas than traditional hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

Barotrauma can affect the outer, middle, or inner ear.

How is Barotrauma Diagnosed?

Diagnosis is initially based on careful history. If the history indicates ear pain or dizziness that occurs after diving or an airplane flight, barotrauma should be suspected. The diagnosis may be confirmed through ear examination, as well as hearing and vestibular testing.

How is Barotrauma Treated?

For outer ear barotrauma, the treatment consists of clearing the ear canal of the obstruction, and restricting diving or flying until the blockage is corrected and the ear canal and drum return to normal.

For middle ear barotrauma, treatment consists of keeping the ear dry and free of contamination that could cause infection. Topical nasal steroids and decongestants may be started in an attempt to decongest the eustachian tube opening. The presence of pus may prompt the use of appropriate antibiotics. Most tympanic membrane perforations due to barotrauma will heal spontaneously. If the eustachian tube demonstrates chronic problems with middle ear equalization, the likelihood of recovery is drastically reduced.

Prevention of air barotraumas to the middle ear has been attempted with dasal decongestants or vasoconstrictors with mixed results. “Pressure equalizing” ear plugs claiming to prevent in-flight barotrauma are available in many airports for purchase. A trial evaluating the effect of these earplugs to placebo found them to have no effect on barotrauma.

For inner ear barotrauma, treatment consists of hospitalization and bed rest with the head elevated 30 to 40 degrees. Controversy exists whether this type of injury needs immediate surgery. Once healed, a diver should not return to diving until hearing and balance function tests are normal.

this information is taken directly from American Hearing Research Foundation. More information can be obtain at its website.

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Another Reason To Quit Smoking

CIGARETTES may contain traces of pigs' blood, an Australian academic says with a warning that religious groups could find its undisclosed presence "very offensive".

University of Sydney Professor in Public Health Simon Chapman points to recent Dutch research which identified 185 different industrial uses of a pig - including the use of its haemoglobin in cigarette filters.

Prof Chapman said the research offered an insight into the otherwise secretive world of cigarette manufacture, and it was likely to raise concerns for devout Muslims and Jews.

Religious texts at the core of both of these faiths specifically ban the consumption of pork.

"I think that there would be some particularly devout groups who would find the idea that there were pig products in cigarettes to be very offensive," Prof Chapman said today.

"The Jewish community certainly takes these matters extremely seriously and the Islamic community certainly do as well, as would many vegetarians.

"It just puts into hard relief the problem that the tobacco industry is not required to declare the ingredients of cigarettes ... they say 'that's our business' and a trade secret."

The Dutch research found pig haemoglobin - a blood protein - was being used to make cigarette filters more effective at trapping harmful chemicals before they could enter a smoker's lungs.

Prof Chapman said while tobacco companies had moved voluntarily list the contents of their products on their websites, they also noted undisclosed "processing aids ... that are not significantly present in, and do not functionally affect, the finished product".

This catch-all term hid from public view an array of chemicals and other substances used in the making of tobacco products, he said.

At least one cigarette brand sold in Greece was confirmed as using pig haemoglobin in its processes, Prof Chapman said, and the status of smokes sold was unknown.

"If you're a smoker and you're of Islamic or Jewish faith then you'd probably would want to know and there is no way of finding out," Prof Chapman said.

The Sydney office of British American Tobacco Australia was contacted by AAP.

A spokeswoman said a comment would be provided although it was not immediately available.

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Paul Meier Dialect Services

http://www.paulmeier.com/index.html

Whether you're an actor wanting instruction and coaching in dialects, voice-over, or Shakespeare; an ESL student;a regional dialect speaker needing "accent reduction;" or someone who wants to learn an accent just for fun, you've come to the right place! Paul Meier has been teaching British and American dialects (Yorkshire dialect, Scottish dialect, Cockney dialect, New York dialect, etc.), and foreign language accents (French accent, German accent, Russian accent etc.) for over 30 years in the U.S.A. and his native England, coaching some of the biggest names in movies — Tobey Maguire of Spiderman fame, for example — and hundreds of plays, films, and musicals. With his long experience as a voice-over artist (the voice of Wal-mart's Smiley), and as an actor in audio books (Ayn Rand's Anthem), he's uniquely qualified to help others in these fields. Welcome to Paul Meier Dialect Services.

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Case Study 1

material obtain from:

http://www.upstate.edu/cdb/grossanat/hnsmgrp3ans.shtml

Case Study 1

A young man was taken to the emergency room with a knife wound in the right side of the
neck. The blade pierced the skin and the sternocleidomastoid muscle in a horizontal
plane at a point approximately 4 cm directly posterior to the angle of the mandible. Bleed-
ing from the wound was not substantial. Compresses were applied to the area, the bleed-
ing came under control, the skin was stitched and the patient was allowed to go home.

When he returned to have the stitches removed one week later, the following symptoms
were observed: his tongue deviated markedly to the right upon protrusion; the floor of the
mouth on the right side was relaxed and lengthened; the hyoid bone was tilted slightly from
the horizontal plane, the right side being higher than the left; a generalized weakness of
the infrahyoid muscles was present on the right side of the neck.

There was no sensory loss from the tongue or from the skin of the neck. Taste sensation
from the tongue was normal. The function of the sternocleidomastoid and platysma
muscles was unimpaired. After one year, function was restored to the tongue and associ-
ated structures.

QUESTIONS / PROBLEMS

1. Did the knife enter the posterior triangle of the neck?

No. It pierced the SCM directly and did not enter one of the major named triangles of the
neck. The SCM divides the anterior from the posterior triangle, etc., etc., but is not "in"
either triangle.

2. Damage to what structure would account for the symptoms described above?

Damage to the right hypoglossal nerve can account for all of the symptoms. As described
below, this nerve not only is motor to most tongue muscles, but it also carries fibers from
C 1 (and sometimes C 2) that supply the geniohyoid, superior belly of the omohyoid and
the thyrohyoid muscles. Recall, however, that the C 1 fibers are only traveling with the
hypoglossal nerve and strictu sensu are not part of it. Nevertheless, they probably would
have been cut or injured along with the hypoglossal fibers.

3. Why did the tongue deviate to the injured side?

On the right side, the denervated muscles do not have the same strength as the muscles
on the left (unaffected) side; hence, the muscles on the left overpower/override the right
muscles and the tip of the protruded tongue deviates to the weakened right side. The
tongue can be protruded in the midline only when the muscles on both sides work
together. The tongue is protruded solely by the muscles on the intact side; therefore,
when one hypoglossal nerve is severed or damaged, the protruded tongue deviates to the
paralyzed or weakened side.

4. What caused the problems with the hyoid bone and the infrahyoid muscles? Why were
the latter not totally denervated?

The problems relating to the position of the hyoid bone resulted from the fact that
C 1 fibers were running with the hypoglossal nerve. These fibers supply the geniohyoid
(a suprahyoid muscle) and two infrahyoid muscles, the superior belly of the omohyoid
and the thyrohyoid. The geniohyoid pulls the hyoid bone forward, shortens the floor of
the mouth, elevates the hyoid bone and helps to open the jaw. The floor of the mouth on
the right side was relaxed and lengthened because of the injury sustained by the nerve
to the geniohyoid. The thyrohyoid and omohyoid depress the hyoid bonee and the thyroid
cartilage during swallowing and speaking. Since the nerve supply to 2/4 infrahyoids were
damaged and the nerve supply to only 1/4 suprahyoids was injured, the right suprahyoids
were stronger than the righ infrahyoids and tended to elevate the right side of the hyoid
bone.

5. Account for the fact that only minimal bleeding occured from the site of the wound.

The knife did not penetrate sufficiently deep to sever either the internal or external carotid
arteries which lie medial (deep) to the hypoglossal nerve.

6. Describe the relationships of cranial nerves IX, X, XI and XII to the arteries and other
landmark structures in the neck.

The relationships of cranial nerves IX-XII, the carotid arteries and other structures in the
neck are of considerable importance. The glossopharyngeal nerve (IX) and the pharyngeal
branches of the vagus (X) lie lateral to the internal carotid and medial to the external carotid
arteries. The superior laryngeal nerve (from vagus) lies medial to both arteries. The main trunk of the vagus descends posterior to the internal and common carotid arteries. The
accessory nerve (XI) crosses the posterior triangle of the neck diagonally from the jugular
foramen to the anterior border of the trapezius muscle. The hypoglossal nerve (XII) is the
most superficial of the cranial nerves in this area. It descends from the hypoglossal canal,
hooks around the occipital artery and lies superficial to the internal and external carotid
arteries.
(REFER TO THE DIAGRAMS THAT FOLLOW)

7. Why do you think that the patient recovered use of the affected structures in this
particular case?

The nerve was not completely severed. The supra- and infrahyoids displayed weakness but
not paralysis, hence not all of the C 1 fibers were severed.

For additional information, refer to:
Netter plates: 24, 27, 29, 63, 65, 122, 123.
Snell, pages: 645-652, 656, 673, 681, 684, 709, 786, 801-802.

On the diagram above, label structures 1 - 4, and then complete the chart below concerning
vagal innervation of the larynx.

	Name	Component Fibers	Function(s)	Symptoms Produced by a Lesion of this Structure
1	Superior Laryngeal Nerve	somatic motor; somatic sensory; special sensory; preganglionic parasympa- thetic; (postganglionic sympathetic)	Forms an external and an internal branch; this is the parent nerve of 2 and 3 (see below)	All of those listed for 2 and 3 below since this is the PARENT nerve.
2	Internal Layngeal Nerve	somatic sensory; special sensory; preganglionic parasympathetic; (post- ganglionic sympathetic)	Supplies region from epiglottis down to vocal cords	No cough reflex; lack of sensation above vocal cords; no glandular secretions released by mucosal glands from epiglottis to vocal cords, i.e. region above vocal cords
3	External Laryngeal Nerve	somatic motor; somatic sensory; (postganglionic sympathetic)	Regulates the cricothyroid muscle	Hoarseness or a very low- pitched voice; vocal cords cannot be lengthened/ AD-ducted
4	Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve/ Inferior Laryngeal Nerve	somatic motor; somatic sensory; preganglionic parasympathetics; (postganglionic sympathetics)	Motor to ALL instrinsic muscles of larynx (NOT cricothyroid, however); sensory to mucous mem- brane below vocal folds; stimulates/regulates glandular secretion from mucosal glands below vocal folds	Vocal Fold cannot be AB-ducted on side of lesion; folds come to rest halfway between ab- and ad-ducted; speech and breathing may be impaired, especially if the nerve is only partially bisected

TELL ME DOCTOR...

There are eleven rather typical complaints given below. Using what you have learned about
the cranial nerves, indicate which nerve (or nerves) you think has been compromised. Be
specific and be prepared to pinpoint the site of the lesion if possible.

1. "The reason why I did not leave the house sooner once the fire broke out was because
I could not smell the smoke."

Cr. I, olfactory

2. "I can't feel anything over my right cheek, lower lip or most of my tongue and my mouth
is almost totally dry."

Lesion might have been at or very near foramen ovale. The designation "almost or extremely
dry" usually accompanies complaints about the malfunctioning of the parotid; the description
"slightly dry or partially dry" usually goes along with impairment of the submandibular and/or
sublingual glands, with the parotid intact and functioning. Of course, if the lesion had been
bilateral even more spectacular symptoms would have been reported.

3. "I can no longer close my eye tightly or whistle a tune."

Cr. VII, motor supply to orbicularis oculi (temporal and zygomatic branches), orbicularis oris
(buccal branches) and buccinator (buccal branches).

4. "I seem to have a lot of difficulty turning my head now and I think that there is a big
difference in the contour of my neck."

Cr. XI, spinal accessory; motor supply to sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles.

5. "I keep having dizzy spells and feeling sick to my stomach (Cr. VIII, vestibulocochlear
nerve). Yesterday I lost my balance as I was walking down the street. The muscles on the right
side of my face don't seem to be working right (Cr. VII, facial nerve). I can barely taste my food
(Cr. VII, chorda tympani, special sensory), my mouth is rather dry (Cr. VII, chorda tympani,
parasympathetic, submandibular ganglion) and my right eye is very dry. I seem to be making
almost no tears in that eye (Cr. VII, parasympathetic, greater petrosal nerve, ptergopalatine
ganglion, zygomaticotemporal nerve to lacrimal nerve)."

Lesion might have been at level of internal acoustic meatus.

6. "I know that you said my ear was infected, but why am I so sick to my stomach? I
seem to be coughing a lot but I don't think that I have a cold."

Cr. X, Vagus nerve, auricular branch.

7. "Last night I didn't dry my hair after I took a shower and went to bed with wet hair. I
woke up in the middle of the night because I felt so cold. Then, I decided to go to the
bathroom, and when I looked in the mirror I noticed that the corner of my mouth was
drooping and that I was drooling."

Sounds like Bell's palsy; Cr. VII, especially the motor, buccal and marginal/mandibular
branches to the orbicularis oris.

8. "After I had that lump removed from the right side of my chin, the right corner of my
mouth began to droop and the right side of my neck developed all these baggy folds."

Cr. VII, marginal and cervical branches to orbicularis oris and platysma muscles.

9. "Ever since that accident, I find that the dentist can drill my lower teeth and I don't
feel a thing!"

Cr. V 3, inferior alveolar nerve, sensory to lower teeth and gums.

10. "My right pupil isn't the same size as my left. In fact, it doesn't change its size; it is
always dilated."

Cr. III, parasympathetic, ciliary ganglion, nerve to sphincter pupillae.

11. "Ever since I suffered that blow on the side of my head, I have double vision. It causes
no end of trouble for me as I am going down the stairs."

Cr. IV, superior oblique.

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