Medical hypotheses
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The mid-20th century saw the rise of the boy-genius, probably because a personality type characterized by prolonged youthfulness is advantageous both in science and modern life generally. This is the evolution of 'psychological neoteny', in which ever-more people retain for ever-longer the characteristic behaviours and attitudes of earlier developmental stages. Whereas traditional societies are characterized by initiation ceremonies marking the advent of adulthood, these have now dwindled and disappeared. ⋯ Since modern cultures favour cognitive flexibility, 'immature' people tend to thrive and succeed, and have set the tone of contemporary life: the greatest praise of an elderly person is to state that they retain the characteristics of youth. But the faults of youth are retained with well as its virtues: short attention span, sensation- and novelty-seeking, short cycles of arbitrary fashion and a sense of cultural shallowness. Nonetheless, as health gets better and cosmetic technologies improve, future humans may become somewhat like an axolotl - the cave-dwelling salamander which retains its larval form until death.
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We hypothesize that aerosolization of anesthetics administered intravenously to patients in the operating room may be an unintended source of exposure to physicians. This may lead to inadvertent sensitization, which is associated with an increased risk for developing addiction. This may contribute to the over-representation of certain specialties among physicians with addiction. ⋯ This report provides preliminary evidence of detection of aerosolized intravenous anesthetics using two newly developed analytical methods. We conclude that the potential exists for chronic exposure to low levels of airborne intravenously administered drugs. Further studies are under way to determine the significance of this exposure.
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Although 'hard work' and 'busyness' are somewhat similar terms, there seem to be significant differences in the way that they are used. While hard work has always been a feature of complex societies, modern society can be seen as evolving toward being dominated by jobs characterized by busyness. Busyness refers to multi-tasking - having many sequential jobs to perform and switching frequently between them on an externally-imposed schedule. ⋯ But busy jobs are hard to eliminate because they are those in which it is optimal for a variety of disparate and unpredictable tasks to be done by a single person. Consequently, those individuals who can cope with, even thrive-upon, busyness are becoming indispensable. In future 'the busy shall inherit the earth' (or, at least, the most powerful and highest paid jobs), not just in science but in all major social domains.
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Cobalamin carrier proteins,the Transcobalamins (TCS), are elevated during trauma, infections and chronic inflammatory conditions. This remains un-explained. It is proposed that such TC elevations signal a need for cobalamin central to the resolution of inflammation. ⋯ Cobalamin's established regulation of EGF may additionally preserve normal function of macrophages and the coagulation cascade in wound healing. By regulating NFkappaB, Cobalamin may also be the as yet unidentified mediator needed to potentiate the anti-inflammatory action of eicosanoids derived from omega-3 essential fatty acids. Moreover, animal and human clinical data suggests that high dose cobalamin may prove a promising approach to SIRS/sepsis/septic and traumatic shock.
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It is plausible to assume that in the future science will form the compulsory core element both of school curricula and multi-disciplinary undergraduate degrees. But for this to happen entails a shift in the emphasis and methods of science teaching, away from the traditional concern with educating specialists and professionals. Traditional science teaching was essentially vocational, designed to provide precise and comprehensive scientific knowledge for practical application. ⋯ Specialist vocational science education will progressively be shifted to post-graduate level, in Masters and Doctoral programs. A multi-disciplinary and conceptually-based science core curriculum should provide an appropriate preparation for dealing with the demands of modern societies; their complex and rapidly changing social systems; and the need for individual social and professional mobility. Training in rational conceptual thinking also has potential benefits to human health and happiness, since it allows people to over-ride inappropriate instincts, integrate conflicting desires and pursue long-term goals.