Things in life
1. Jon Stewart quote of the day:
"Doesn't elite mean 'good?' Is that not something we're looking for in a president anymore? ... I know elite is a bad word in politics. You want to go bowling and throw back a few beers. But the job you're applying for---if you get it and it goes well---they might carve your head into a mountain. If you don't actually think you're better than us, then what the fuck are you doing? ... [N]ot only do I want an elite president, I want someone who is embarrassingly superior to me."
2. Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine
It not new news that there is now a vaccine, which, according to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "protects against four HPV types, which together cause 70% of cervical cancers and 90% of genital warts. One,Gardasil®, has been available since 2006, and I believe at least one more is still in testing.
A point to note is that for the vaccine to be effective, you have to receive it before you start having sex. The vaccine , which was approved by the FDA in 2006, has been tested most widely in girls 11-12 years of age. At the moment, the Advisory Committee on Vaccine Practices associated with the CDC and the American Cancer Society recommend routine vaccinations for girls 11-12 years of age, and also recommend it for girls 13-18 years of age.
Now, most of us are past that - the Advisory Committee on Vaccine Practices continues to recommend the vaccine for women up to age 26, the ACS feels that there is not enough evidence at this point to recommend it "for all women in this age group", but advises that people "talk to their doctor or nurse about whether to get the vaccine based on their risk of previous HPV exposure and potential benefit from the vaccine."
I am not sure how to parse that last statement. One reason the "potential benefits" of vaccination vary - notice the ACS is discussing "all" women in this age bracket -is obviously that some will have had sex, I can't speak for other factors.
The vaccine is expensive, but currently covered by some insurance plans. This is a very long way of saying that females and people who have an interest in the females not getting cervical cancer should at least take note of this.
Links:
http://www.cdc.gov/std/Hpv/STDFact-HPV-vaccine.htm
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_6x_FAQ_HPV_Vaccines.asp
3. Airplane meals
So, you've been flying on airplanes for a while now, and if your flight is long enough that the airline thinks it absolutely must feed the passengers, you're probably used to your little foil-wrapped rectangular plastic box of "Chicken or fish?" or similar. I have nothing in particular against airline food, but did you know that on many airlines you can request special meals for free?
Mom discovered this at some point in the long annual searches for trans-pacific flight tickets online, and we soon started to experiment with the possibilities. Why? Because you often got your food served earlier, and it was interesting. ("But how will the "Indian Vegetarian" be different from the "Vegetarian"?"), and it's a free service offered by airlines.
On at least one occasion we did something like request one "Low-salt", one "Indian Vegetarian" and one "Fruit Plate" for the three of us, and then proceeded to spend every mealtime comparing the different meals and sharing it between us. Yes, there really is a "Fruit Plate" option, they replace every part of the standard meal with fruit. Later, we switched to one person ordering a special meal, and one or two people not, then we could compare the "control" and the "special" meal. Often the special meals were more tasty, but sometimes they were decidedly not. Sometimes they brought special surprises - "Hey! You got a bagel! And more chocolate! I should have ordered the Kosher meal!"
I sometimes wondered what ticketing agents thought of our "low salt/indian vegetarian/fruit plate" family, and imagined that it would have been even more interesting to request, say, Kosher, Halal, and Jain (available on selected routes only) meals for the three of us.
I now feel somewhat guilty for writing this - as if I'm encouraging the wasting of resources and somehow demeaning the labour of the hardworking people who work to arrange meals that are gluten-free, low-sodium, vegan, "Infant", low-cholesterol, or one of the many other available options. It's good that the airlines do try and make sure that everyone will have something they are able to eat during flights, see for example Continental's full list of meal options here: http://www.continental.com/web/en-us/content/Travel/inflight/dining/special/default.aspx?SID=6B52B0CA46914C8E93B8A7CBF4952910
...and I'm not sure how to conclude this entry. The air's been bad lately, and now I have a cough. I need to write 800 characters on a topic of my choice in Chinese history between the First Opium War and Sun Yat Sen's establishment of the Republic, and also prepare a three-minute presentation on "anything I want" about Deng Xiaoping's reforms.
4.I hope you all are well.
"Doesn't elite mean 'good?' Is that not something we're looking for in a president anymore? ... I know elite is a bad word in politics. You want to go bowling and throw back a few beers. But the job you're applying for---if you get it and it goes well---they might carve your head into a mountain. If you don't actually think you're better than us, then what the fuck are you doing? ... [N]ot only do I want an elite president, I want someone who is embarrassingly superior to me."
2. Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine
It not new news that there is now a vaccine, which, according to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "protects against four HPV types, which together cause 70% of cervical cancers and 90% of genital warts. One,Gardasil®, has been available since 2006, and I believe at least one more is still in testing.
A point to note is that for the vaccine to be effective, you have to receive it before you start having sex. The vaccine , which was approved by the FDA in 2006, has been tested most widely in girls 11-12 years of age. At the moment, the Advisory Committee on Vaccine Practices associated with the CDC and the American Cancer Society recommend routine vaccinations for girls 11-12 years of age, and also recommend it for girls 13-18 years of age.
Now, most of us are past that - the Advisory Committee on Vaccine Practices continues to recommend the vaccine for women up to age 26, the ACS feels that there is not enough evidence at this point to recommend it "for all women in this age group", but advises that people "talk to their doctor or nurse about whether to get the vaccine based on their risk of previous HPV exposure and potential benefit from the vaccine."
I am not sure how to parse that last statement. One reason the "potential benefits" of vaccination vary - notice the ACS is discussing "all" women in this age bracket -is obviously that some will have had sex, I can't speak for other factors.
The vaccine is expensive, but currently covered by some insurance plans. This is a very long way of saying that females and people who have an interest in the females not getting cervical cancer should at least take note of this.
Links:
http://www.cdc.gov/std/Hpv/STDFact-HPV-vaccine.htm
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_6x_FAQ_HPV_Vaccines.asp
3. Airplane meals
So, you've been flying on airplanes for a while now, and if your flight is long enough that the airline thinks it absolutely must feed the passengers, you're probably used to your little foil-wrapped rectangular plastic box of "Chicken or fish?" or similar. I have nothing in particular against airline food, but did you know that on many airlines you can request special meals for free?
Mom discovered this at some point in the long annual searches for trans-pacific flight tickets online, and we soon started to experiment with the possibilities. Why? Because you often got your food served earlier, and it was interesting. ("But how will the "Indian Vegetarian" be different from the "Vegetarian"?"), and it's a free service offered by airlines.
On at least one occasion we did something like request one "Low-salt", one "Indian Vegetarian" and one "Fruit Plate" for the three of us, and then proceeded to spend every mealtime comparing the different meals and sharing it between us. Yes, there really is a "Fruit Plate" option, they replace every part of the standard meal with fruit. Later, we switched to one person ordering a special meal, and one or two people not, then we could compare the "control" and the "special" meal. Often the special meals were more tasty, but sometimes they were decidedly not. Sometimes they brought special surprises - "Hey! You got a bagel! And more chocolate! I should have ordered the Kosher meal!"
I sometimes wondered what ticketing agents thought of our "low salt/indian vegetarian/fruit plate" family, and imagined that it would have been even more interesting to request, say, Kosher, Halal, and Jain (available on selected routes only) meals for the three of us.
I now feel somewhat guilty for writing this - as if I'm encouraging the wasting of resources and somehow demeaning the labour of the hardworking people who work to arrange meals that are gluten-free, low-sodium, vegan, "Infant", low-cholesterol, or one of the many other available options. It's good that the airlines do try and make sure that everyone will have something they are able to eat during flights, see for example Continental's full list of meal options here: http://www.continental.com/web/en-us/content/Travel/inflight/dining/special/default.aspx?SID=6B52B0CA46914C8E93B8A7CBF4952910
...and I'm not sure how to conclude this entry. The air's been bad lately, and now I have a cough. I need to write 800 characters on a topic of my choice in Chinese history between the First Opium War and Sun Yat Sen's establishment of the Republic, and also prepare a three-minute presentation on "anything I want" about Deng Xiaoping's reforms.
4.I hope you all are well.