BIO BLOG.

Technologic @ Friday, May 27, 2011

In the past, innovators have worked hard to fight pain and suffering, combat disease and for a long time to create new medical technologies. The technology that we now have became ordinary to us. I would be pretty weird not seeing a doctor without a stethoscope because the world we live in today is in such influence with various technologies. Today, we can find sphygmomanometers in every drug store. We sometimes can always take technologies for granted, such as x-rays and microscope because we encounter them constantly. These technologies are important in understanding a variety of internal body system. Without it, the health professionals wouldn’t be able to do their job, essential for the health of all patients.

Before the 19th century, doctors would use manual techniques to diagnose their patients. The invention of the Hutchinson’s device or the spirometer kicked the new wave of health care into gear. The spirometer was used to measure the amount of air passing through the lungs. It all seemed so simple but it can provide a lot of information of a patient’s condition and help diagnose respiratory diseases. After this, physicals had spent time on improving technologies, so they wouldn’t perform surgery. This was the time were thermometer, stethoscopes, ophthalmoscopes, and x-ray were created. With these creations, doctors were able to see and hear internal body parts such as the lungs and heart. Since the early 20th century, new medical technologies had been coming out, changing health care forever.
A recent technological innovation in health care is the Cardiac Catheterization, a method of diagnosing coronary distress. Claude Bernard, in 1844 injected a needle using a thermometer into the heart of a horse to measure its temperature. For the next forty years he used similar techniques to find the horse’s blood and soon, people followed in Bernard’s footsteps to. In modern procedures, a small thin tube (catheter) is passed into a leg vein as a dye travels through the catheter and to the heart, shown by an x-ray. The dye reveals areas of blockage in the heart. A doctor who is using this procedure can get a better understanding of the patient’s problem.

Heart conditions can be diagnosed by an electrocardiographs (ECG), used to map electrical fields throughout the heart. ECGs are very common are commonly seen in television or in movies. Without ECG, a doctor would have difficulty to accurately calculating someone’s heartbeat. Canadian doctors have research the heart to try to create an artificial heart. Tofy Mussivand, an Ottawa doctor has been looking over different process of creating an artificial hearts for patients with heart disease. His dream can give a good idea of how much technology has changed.

Even though people have been criticising technology in the health care industry as they are the reason for rising medical cost, there no doubt that it has helped us more then expected. Technology no only has helped us understand the human anatomy, but also it had added more years to live for the entire population.

Reference
http://blog.ictforhealth.com/2009/10/evolution-of-medical-technology/
http://www.ehow.com/about_4672066_medical-technology.html
http://healthandkarma.blogspot.com/2010/12/evolution-of-medical-technology-glimpse.html
http://timerime.com/en/timeline/300535/Evolution+of+Medical+Technology/
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003337.htmhttp://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/cath/cath_what.html

Comments
Virginia

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Industrial Agriculture vs Sustainable Agriculture @ Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Today farmers can now produce crops and livestock efficiently due to the large amount of growth in the agricultural industry. A form of farming where human labour is substituted by machines is called industrial agriculture. The number of animals limited to an area is usually bigger than a regular farm as the goal of industrial farming is to receive more benefits for less labour.

Industrial agriculture can be fast but it can also affect out environment as it uses large amounts of water, fossil fuels, and pesticides. topsoil erosion, soil depletion, and reduction of diversity could be some of the events that may happen to our environment.

It has been said that industrial agriculture is one of the leading factors of water pollution in the United States. Water pollution is commonly found in these types of farms is the result of the unfair storage of animal waste. Waste tank are able to hold millions of gallons of manure and urine .
Though it seems that this is an easy method, the consequences of collecting wrongly can be bad. These waste tanks can be easily leak and storms can cause them to explode easily. Manure can be up to 160 times more toxic than municipal waste, so it could have a huge effect on waterways. Harmful bacteria could be part of water supplies which we use everyday

Not only does industrial agriculture affect us humans, but also animals. Livestock, mainly cows, pigs and chickens are placed in small areas which could be filthy and cause diseases such as mad cow. Farmers usually do not care about the health of their livestock but how much weight they have.
Artificial health methods are usually spread to maintain the health of the animals.

Unlike industrial, sustainable agriculture is healthy for both animals and consumers, benefits farmers, and respects animals and doesn't harm the environment. What is taken out of the environment is put back in through conservation and preservation. Water and soil can be replenished for the use of future generations. Sustainable agriculture also uses less pesticide and less chemicals. Not using sustainable agricultural methods would be a big mistake knowing what industrial agriculture can do to us, the animals and environment.
This method of farming can be the new normal for all developed countries, and this can end up benefiting the entire world.

Reference
http://www.sustainabletable.org/intro/comparison/
http://scienceblogs.com/worldsfair/2009/05/industrial_agriculture_v_susta.php
http://www.indigodev.com/Susagr.html
http://www.economywatch.com/agriculture/types/industrial.html

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Vanessa Lee

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Design-A-Baby @ Monday, January 17, 2011

My first question was what is a designer baby? My first thought was maybe parents dressing up their kids in all these different brands. As I research I found out what they are. My first reaction is that this is such a messed up situation. The parents get to choose what their kids can look like just as they were dolls, choosing their hair, eye colour and their gender and even how intelligent they are. I thought that was pretty crazy.

There are advanced reproductive technologies that allow doctors and parents to see the embryos. Many techniques could be involved with this process, InVitro Fertillsation (IVF) and Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD). How they would check the child to see if they have a genetic disorder would to fertilize eggs with sperm in a “test-tubes’ outside the mother’s body in a laboratory. That would be using the InVitro Fertillisation techniques. It is only legally possible to carry out two types of advanced reproductive technologies. One is choosing the type of sperm that will be fertilise and egg. This will determine which gender and genes the baby will have. The second would be involving Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis where they screen embryos for a genetic disease, they would choose the embryos that would return to the mother’s womb.

This is what I see designer baby as. Just like Mr. Potato Head, they get to choose what facial items they want.

As watching videos and reading article, Dr. Steinberg, who is the Director at the Fertility Institutes is known for gender selection. He had said that he performs about ten gender selection fertilization every week, for $18,400 fee. Those ten parents would have to be rich to afford this. If this continues, the world would just be a competition to perfection. As the rich family will have the “perfect” children as the “normal” children, would not have an image that they wanted.

While reading all these information I would be shaking my head and asking why? Why would you go through with this? I believe that this is wrong, for the fact that this is not how it is suppose to be like. In the religion view, God has made us with his image and people would just want to change it, just like that. I feel like it is just greedy because they should be happy to what child they have. It wouldn’t matter to what gender they are, what eye and hair colour they have and how tall they are. Not only do these parents care about their child appearance, they want them to have different abilities, like how athletic and intelligent they are. This should be earned not given. People, who live in this society now, had earned the intelligent by working hard and going to school. Even with athleticism, people work hard to do well in the sports and activity that they do.

REFRENCE:
http://www.bionetonline.org/english/content/db_cont1.htm
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,989987,00.html
http://singularityhub.com/2009/02/25/designer-babies-like-it-or-not-here-they-come/

COMMENTS:
BRIDGETTE
http://bridgettebioblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/is-there-such-thing-as-flawless-baby.html?showComment=1295288129236_AIe9_BG1MCyWWxSFFwTBHBp0bzOyCHCi-fU7Qaw0ggikTTYScCES1He5F7bdZRBTVBkFNlWGbruPliPh344t0SDXDEgn_3wLEbcKdXQI6e0xcXai0F07x8ycF37J5PSZ-UfoZ-tL1w95wvHH41ipQ-pZ_nRLj_EZNySDEZ_D075VJGE0xXUJr6uZz3hmIFuvkMenMmML1EypunyrIte2TvNtkX42qvAsl3zZDPpMzpsBXXqgyLoHgwHEMB4cJuDB9OArnhMBB8deKJlIyZycjCvCrn4IAHR4G33zviJkTjs0XiMEj2Zq0HTM8k_VQDgzkjwdAQgL6HNOc6gpLx9_bBvZvsV0Qcep8yGxYejFaAk8SNTzXvsKuzGza4M4BkezT1Jh5htrqcB6WUIuwfc4Q6eWLxd2fk9A9zIjQ8hiagxASqretYMKrGUFja7Of5wABVd64tkVZ1IgleKdRAASpft28ckZpT92Osw8X57QPbKGx-UPwCUq-CpgLWpkyMgy6S6t8t2prhNxw7GeAeTRIH9LP9Au1-B-8hFn8gHGja8OZPLCmorp-nioqnmya1NSOKqFTL4GmQQIvNRt9DuEQGVReSdYN-QrIrUor0zxX36fDQX3lWue70c-Uapl1Sq9MpRWe2TFchNU_lsOjMHEGZuCEfewjGxMHw#c1006910531454948783

MEL
http://catnippp.blogspot.com/2010/11/would-you-like-girl-or-boy-do-you-want.html?showComment=1295361391105_AIe9_BHo3bFJoX32gYBPLWYZ9JjslgdE5Qm0Wk3Ei2Fr2JdPbgGxrqo_-BRf8p_zslCJkBDXt_kg4aThI8yMts7ZnsVVIAsD0lKlpVHJvFW0MMuPgHqM0exIOHXuoSHED4qiTrJqzcagEE6wtr8699ZtXBZzGakMRWq-5J4mhfld_IJPyjeFI00eOhJIzfZ8XwYUDwDggA4jFd3lIjCKZ8gh0T3NzA8Gug5Z-HuuY-qgYaMZNyusPrnsYIfXkWUfzmbuTxwipnSLl7tYoOULx9_m3vPDr7n7ho-37Ebd_SRN_io3kWbXD9an9yCwq0W4LCGcd1o5g-A0Dp5owtUublFI9wsoyJLwj4b6Vu5mFha4601D11-vTD1PPioc2v_n-2N797D1hvKtpuhWhTMVJIRhPJDCdiS03rfcT4V3SqtwDmzXJWbfAXsHq0eimgoTKROHBp9Ehwg4XgqUvwvwyiJqDmbARVITa9zyUDS0vWgjZIRqUVIwW4iOgRvvYHjXojRUFbzMy_wHWEYL-whe7VLUFWvEt385eZtYaYrhTF9S6vlzo3DZUsKqDxY-IgPUTpxPbsOYoRX2Bd0iZXWpWEsKGWb1qUcF72t-_GPUkL1O1QhHhr-aXjrRVNsdK7Suvs66kA7OfOkjWJ9MzFzZr1W9bQhfFAI4Yg#c4039267031348913042

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GreenPEACE @ Tuesday, October 12, 2010

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVu9eawb1QY

When watching this video, what were your reaction and thought? I was kind of angry and upset watching this. I honestly did not know that some of these actions really occur. Why would people want to ruin our Earth by killing animals, creating population and cutting down our trees? When watching the ending of this video, I was relief that there are people that are trying to change all that. These people are part of a global organization called, Greenpeace.

Greenpeace is an internatinal organization that works to protect the environment. They challenge government and industry to stop harmful practices by finding solutions, conducting scientific research, finding different alternatives, and educating and engaging the public to make sure that we are in green and peaceful future. (Get it green, peace? Greenpeace) Greenpeace remains unique and successful because of there enthusiasm to bear witness to environmental injustices and to take peaceful direct.

Greenpeace works on multiple issues on helping our Earth. They want to stop climate change and they have solutions to help the world, so we won’t damage it. Greenpeace also want to save the forest, since it’s the home to about two- thirds of the world’s land-base species of plants and animals. They also keep the climate stable and maintain the balance of life on Earth. Greenpeace wants to eliminate toxic chemicals because in our environment they threaten our rivers and lakes, our air, land and ocean, and ultimately ourselves and our future. They also work ondefending the oceans, , agriculture, ending the nuclear age and so much more.

Greenpeace was created in 1971, when a group of activists sailed from Vancouver in an old fishing boat. They have sailed to Amchitka Island which is off to Alaska , when they heard that the United States had planned to explode a nuclear test bomb. Canadians opposed the idea for many reasons. One reason is that five megaton bombs would contaminate the island and harm the otters, bald eagles and peregrine falcons. And also the explosion had the potential to create a tidal wave. The group made plans to charter a boat, power it into the site’s forbidden zone and force the United Stated to stall the explosion. They flashed a peace sign and one member suggested that they “make it a green peace” That name stuck. These activists were the founders of Greenpeace. They believed a few individuals could make a difference in the world.

Since 1971, Greenpeace has been making a lot of positive environmental changes. They have set up a Climate Rescue Station to stop an open pit coal and stopped around 50 million tons of CO2. There was a Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement that was made, which Greenpeace and with other organization mad a truce with the logging industry. Till now, Greenpeace has been working hard to get people involve to make the world a better place :)

REFERENCE
http://www.dontalmostgive.org/Volunteer/Environment.asp?id=152
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/
http://tcktcktck.org/partners/greenpeace
http://money.howstuffworks.com/greenpeace2.htm

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Kaitlin Cruz

Erica Wright

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