afraid you might get sued tonight for contributing to childhood obesity? well, fear not, all you mini-mcdonalds, enticing children with your impossibly tasty triglyceride-filled treats. the center for consumer freedom has created a liability waiver for your legal peace of mind.

now, turn on those porch lights without fear!

ht: gary.

extreme makeover ruins lives! and it's globalization's fault! or, at least according to a new book intriguingly entitled the new individualism (no, not that new individualism). and i quote:

the craze for television makeover shows on gardening, plastic surgery and clothing is partly responsible for a dangerous addiction to reinvention that can ruin lives

reality shows convince viewers that they should improve themselves, creating "disposable identities" and impossible expectations. worse still, globalization creates the fast-paced and fluid economy that demands immediate, impossible, change. elliott and lemert warn this pressure leads to "emotional crisis, depression, confusion, breakdown, loss of personal identity and even suicide."

this dark forecast is contradicted by a study published in 2002 by the american psychologist. the study, by jeffrey arnett, suggests that "new individualism's" underlying force may be positive:

identity becomes less based less on prescribed social roles and more on individual choices, on decisions that each person makes about what values to embrace and what paths to pursue in love and work.

arnett poses three reactions to this choice: identity confusion, seeking refuge in a structured subculture, or open embrace of the decision. most embrace their ability to pick-and-choose, and arnett sees this as not deleterious, but as increasing the likelihood that "they will find a psychologically rewarding match between these choices and their individual desires and abilities."

this all goes back to the tired choice crap: to choose, or to not have a choice? that is the question. psychologists can debate, but i know i'd rather suffer through the agony of selecting a perfectly fitting jeans, or a much cuter nose, than be without. the real question is, would i be just as happy with ill-fitting jeans if i didn't know the perfect ones existed? no, by definition; i'd be uncomfortable.

Labels: decision making, well being

how does the brain adapt to changes in environment? ask a neuroscientist, and the answer may very well be - if the neuroscientist is a particularly honest one - "i have no idea."

well, that’s not quite fair. we know it has something to do with change in a neuron’s dendritic branches, the arms that grab on to neurotransmitters, allowing messages to pass from one neuron to the next. this theory is young. it seems to hold water, though, so we’re running with it.

so what does this have to do with addiction, pray tell? well, a few years ago researchers found that stimulants in cocaine, speed, and even cigarettes do quite a bit of this dendritic modification. that seemed evident, even innocuous, until researchers hit us with another theory: the capacity for this change in neurons (i.e., structural plasticity) may be finite. there is only so much a neuron can adapt, and stimulants are using up some of that precious capacity.

a recent study published in behavioral neuroscience partially confirms this fear. the study, done on rats using nicotine, notes that although we attribute the ill effects of addiction to brain damage,

at least some of the psychological effects associated with stimulant use may be related to subsequent limits on structural plasticity rather than frank damage.

in sum, drugs may diminish the ability to adapt to new circumstances and experiences. unfortunately, that ability is the one thing a recovering addict needs most.

source: hamilton, d. a. and kolb, b. differential effects of nicotine and complex housing on subsequent experience-dependent structural plasticity in the nucleus accumbens. behavioral neuroscience vol 119, no. 2

Labels: neuroscience

thank you to everyone who donated to DC’s light the night walk. my team raised over $1,750! DC walks have raised $1.4 million so far this year. this money will not only go to research, but also to family and patient counseling, financial aid, education programs, caregiver resources, and more.

at the start of the walk, leukemia survivors and patients lit their white balloons first. the wave of white lights throughout the sea of walkers was incredibly emotional. each balloon is attached to a story, one of tears, suffering, and – often – a feeling of helplessness. every nine minutes someone dies from blood cancer, and countless suffer untenable lives everyday.

although the situation is grim, the outlook is not. i think we all caught the distinct smell of hope in the air that night. we will conquer this.

thank you again to all of my sponsors, and to my wonderful teammates, for putting us one step closer.

thanks also to bristol-myers squibb, without whom we would be much further from a cure.

Labels: personal

the leukemia and lymphoma society's light the night walk is tomorrow night.

a big THANK YOU to those who have donated.

to those who are saving their $ for katrina victims, please keep in mind that many leukemia patients lived in that region. the society is doing their best to restore normal lives for these doubly-afflicted people. your donation can help!

a statement from the society on their hurricane efforts:

"In order to help meet the critical need to restore health care to the communities ravaged by the hurricane, the Society will commit $1 million to help get blood cancer treatment centers and patient support services in the devastated areas up and running again. The organization will carry out this commitment through two of its major fundraising campaigns: a half million dollars from the 2005 Light The Night Walk and a half million dollars from this year's School & Youth Programs.

Labels: personal, social

forgive me for pointing out the obvious, but comments are down. disappeared, in fact. not quite sure why, but i'll try to figure it out.

and no, it's not a clever way to get greg to stop harassing me to post.

Labels: personal, social

what with the war on abstract concepts (war, terrorism, popularity) going so well, i suppose it was time for bush to start another... bush considers military role for flu fight:

At the time the order was signed, a spokeswoman for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the Public Health Service would probably recommend home quarantines when possible, but said they would be voluntary. It's unclear whether the federal takeover of state and local quarantine powers that Bush discussed Tuesday would be limited just to travel or involve broader home quarantines as well.

interesting. doesn't cuba do that, too, to fight their AIDS epidemic?

Labels: well being