Sally Ember's Blog, page 110
July 2, 2014
Guest Blog Post: “#Utopian #Sci-fi/#Speculative Fiction: Why it’s Intriguing and Necessary”
My Guest Blog Post on Tonya R. Moore’s Sci-Fi site yesterday!
“#Utopian #Sci-fi/#Speculative Fiction: Why it’s Intriguing and Necessary”
image from http://www.nypl.org (New York Public Library)
http://signalpositive.com/2014/07/02/...
Check it out! Thanks, Tonya, for the spot!
Filed under: Blogging and others' content, Science Fiction and Fantasy, Writing Tagged: authors, sci-fi, speculative fiction, The Spanners Series
July 1, 2014
Facts about #BPA, #Water Bottles, Shower Curtains, #Cans, More, and What to Do
I got mad the other day after reading yet another falsified story about plastics in food and beverages due to packaging and container use, riddled with untruths and misleading information about food and water safety. I have hereby gathered facts to post. Follow any of the links given for the infographics or articles if you want to know more.
SHARE, RT, Re-POST!
Are There ANY Plastics that are “Better” than Others?
This article claims that there are “Safe Plastics” which they describe as:
“Any plastic item marked with a 1, 2, 4, or 5 is not known to have carcinogenic tendencies or disrupt the endocrine system. Specifically, these plastics are called PET, PETE, HDPE, LDPE, and polypropylene. This generally includes items like drink bottles, containers that foods like margarine and yogurt might come in, and milk jugs.”
Personally, given the abysmal track record of the USA’s FDA (Food and Drug Administration), I wouldn’t trust ANY food or drink that is packaged in plastics. I hope they do away with plastic for food/beverage packaging all together very soon. Meanwhile, there are some plastics that are apparently not as awful as others. That’s the best we can say at this time.
image from “What Kind of Plastic Are You Eating Out of?” http://dailyhealthpost.com/what-kind-of-plastic-are-you-eating-out-of/
Growing Evidence of Links Between BPA and Autism, Cancer, Diabetes, Myriad Health Problems
I found that The Sleuth Journal is reliable. Below is an informative, well-researched article with this and other great infographics, a video, and more.
image from “Ban BPA From Your Life: 6 Small Steps That Will Help You Live Toxin-Free” http://www.thesleuthjournal.com/ban-bpa-from-your-life-6-small-steps-that-will-help-you-live-toxin-free/, “Page by T SJ – Almost 5 decades later, scientists began seeing disturbing correlations between exposure to BPA and obesity, impaired brain development, various types of cancer, [and other health problems.]“
BPA is Even Worse for Babies and Girls/Adult Females
Common Folk is another reliable source for information. Many European countries are so far ahead of the USA in understanding and refusing to tolerate chemical toxicity and GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) in their food, agriculture and beverages. We should all learn from and imitate what they’re doing. Avoiding/reducing endocrine disruptors, especially because of their adverse effects on babies and females, is just one of the many areas the EU folks are smarter about than the USA.
image from “LIVING WITHOUT PACKAGING | Common Folk,” http://commonfolk.eu/plasticfacts/, BPA is a estrogenic plastic by-product used in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastics. It can leach into food or drinks …”
What can we do NOW? Get Better Informed
NEVER Store Hot Food/Beverages or Heat Up Food/Beverages in Plastic or Cover with Plastic Wrap: BPA Gets Worse With Heat
Another good source of information is Renegade Health. This article, about the ways plastic gets into food more readily when the food is heated or already hot, should inspire you to throw out your plastic wrap and plastic containers forever (I hope).
image from “Your Health On Plastics: Endocrine Disruptors in Your Body…” http://renegadehealth.com/blog/2014/03/28/your-health-on-plastics-endocrine-disruptors-in-your-body-the-environment, “How much BPA leaches from these products into food and water depend on the temperature of the liquid or bottle, as when heated in a microwave oven.”
Get A Cloth Shower Curtain and Other Changes to Make to Avoid Exposure to Endocrine Disruptors
Some of this article’s claims, collected by a blogger, below, are not accurate. I checked Snopes.com and included rebuttals of the incorrect claims below it. But the rest of the article is factual and important. DO get rid of your PVC shower curtain!
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/is-your-shower-curtain-making-you-fat.html
For example, it’s not true that there are dioxins in plastic water bottles, so it is a myth that freezing the plastic water bottle makes it unsafe to drink because of dioxins. That water was unsafe to drink, anyway, because BPA is in the bottle at every temperature.
http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/plasticbottles.asp
How to Avoid BPA
Great info in the articles and their infographics for the sections, below, about what steps we can take right now and in the future to remove BPA from our lives.
image from http://desdaughter.wordpress.com/2014/04/16/how-to-avoid-bpa/
“Good” vs. “bad” cans:
image from “Eco-novice: Going Green Gradually: Eat Less Plastic,” http://www.eco-novice.com/2011/04/eat-less-plastic.html, “Fatty, salty and acidic foods are the most likely to experience plastic leaching. One study found the most significant amounts of BPA in canned chicken soup…”
image from “Bisphenol A (BPA) – Diabetes and the Environment,” http://www.diabetesandenvironment.org/home/contam/bpa “BPA is often found in the lining of cans, and can leach out into the food stored in these cans. It also can be absorbed through the skin…”
Buy/Put Beverages in Glass, Stainless Steel or other BPA-Free Containers:
There are safe, easy to find (now), and inexpensive alternatives, especially for carrying water, storing food, reheating it in microwaves, and all the rest. Check out these tips/hints, below, and get busy!
image from “Health – Part 4,” http://www.bottlesupglass.com/category/health-2/page/4/ “Safety and Quality of Glass for Food and Beverage”
image from “Cut the Crap Series – 10 Fast and Easy Ways to Clean Up…” https://hygeahealthnut.wordpress.com/category/cut-the-crap-series-10-fast-and-easy-ways-to-clean-up-your-lifestyle/, “The federal Food and Drug Administration barred Bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles and children’s cups in June 2012 but it is still prevalent [in other containers]…”
Get Politically Active!
Yes: the personal IS political! You want to make change, get involved. Some states and countries have been quite successful in eliminating BPA all together. What about where YOU live?
image from “Leading scientists urge Government to ban gender-bending chemicals …” http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1264400/Leading-scientists-urge-Government-ban-gender-bending-chemicals-baby-products.html
Filed under: Science Tagged: BPA, endocrine disruptors, health, plastics
June 28, 2014
Books You Should Read – The Definitive List
A great way to organize your “must-read” list, from Nicholas C. Rossis
Originally posted on Nicholas C. Rossis:
I’ve seen hundreds of book lists: Books you should read before you die; Books that should be on your book shelves (hopefully you’re still allowed to take them out and read them); The best books of the 20th century; Books that your children should read … you can see where this is going.
I have to admit that in terms of lists, I am not doing that well. In the “how many of the books you should have read by now. Yes, you!” quizzes popping daily on the Internet, I probably reach a score around 50%. I always imagine my highschool librarian scowling at me, as I’ve read a lot, but apparently not the ‘must-read’ types of books. And I have to confess, I have forgotten quite a lot from my earlier reading.
To be fair, school can do that to you: you read so much…
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Filed under: Writing
The SF Hub Wants Your Stories
Thanks, Tonya! Reposting!
Originally posted on Tonya R. Moore:
The Spec-Fiction Hub is currently accepting previously published works of science fiction, fantasy, horror and all the sub-genres in between for online publication in our curated digital library.
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Filed under: Writing
Shambhala Warrior Prophecy
#JoannaMacy: being inspired and inspiring for several decades.
Originally posted on Jessica Davidson:
A call to action from Joanna Macy…
Here’s an inspiring video about what it takes to be a Bodhisattva in these dangerous times. The world needs more Spiritual Warriors, and Joanna Macy shows us how.
Filed under: Writing
June 27, 2014
Why posting about fruit is insulting to women: DO NOT PARTICIPATE in this year’s “Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign”
A feminist’s analysis of this year’s “BREAST CANCER AWARENESS campaign”: the reasons that I’m not participating and I’m telling all.
Call me a “spoilsport,” if it makes you feel better. I am frustrated and unwilling to “go along” with this year’s “Breast Cancer Awareness” Facebook “campaign” (and anywhere else it’s trying to occur) for these reasons:
1) Men also get breast cancer. They usually die from it sooner and more often precisely because there is very little “awareness” about males’ getting breast cancer;
image from takboprintipe.wordpress.com
2) A “cuteness” factor of a zillion does NOTHING to help fence-sitters, if there even are any: how could there be, when 1 in 4 women gets breast cancer? Who could be “unaware” of it mystifies me;
from http://www.cancer.org, “Estimated New Cancer Cases* in the US in 2013. Estimated New Cancer Cases* in the US in 2013. Cancer Incidence Rates* by Sex, US, 1975-2009″
3) Waste of time, networking, and energy. I see nothing in any of these “campaign” solicitations that has a call to action, a place to donate for cure research, or ANYTHING but cuteness and “don’t tell the men.”
All this, for what?
image from gerson.org
4) BREAST CANCER IS NOT SEXY, just because it afflicts one’s breasts. This year, it’s fruits. Each fruit is supposed to signify the poster’s MARITAL or RELATIONSHIP status. As if the entire campaign weren’t insulting enough to the intelligence of adult women, THIS is the type of device it uses every year. One year, it was some lame statement that was supposed to indicate unusual places that we like to have sex, but really was about where we put our PURSES (I don’t even carry a purse 90% of the time; bad for my back and shoulder). Another year (see above), our bra color or underwear color or other such nonsense.
It’s all supposed to be pseudo-titillating and sexual, which is another gripe I have.
So, I’m blowing its cover, here. Tough rocks, cutesy women.
I’ve had too many friends and relatives DIE of this horrible disease to find it at all cute or funny, anyway.
Here is what “feminism” actually means.
With this information in front of you, how could you NOT be a feminist? You can have fun; some things can be cute. I have an excellent sense of humor. But some situations require serious ACTION.
Here is the disclosure/invitation post:
“Hi Ladies , so here it is that time of year again when we try to raise awareness of breast cancer through a game. It’s very easy and I would like all of you to participate. Two years ago we had to write the color of our underwear on our wall. Men wondered for days what was going on with the random colors on our walls. This year we make references to our love life status as a flavor. Do not answer this message, just post your word on your wall AND send this message privately to all the girls on your friends list. Blueberry is for single, Pineapple is for it’s complicated, Raspberry is for I don’t want to commit, Apple is engaged, Cherry is in a relationship, Banana is married, Avocado is I’m the better half, Strawberry is can’t find Mr.Right, Lemon is I want to be single, Raisin is I want to get married to my partner. Last time the underwear game was mentioned on TV, let’s see if we can get there with this one. Copy and paste this message into a new message and send it to your friends, then update your status with your answer. DON’T TELL THE GUYS.”
[I couldn't stand all the misspelled "it's," so those I fixed. The rest I left "as is." Pathetic, for a piece of writing; another gripe.]
HORRIBLE. Don’t do this inane “campaign.”
SPREAD THE WORD about breast cancer and give to fund the cures: http://www.bcrfcure.org/
Filed under: Life lessons, Opinions, Science, Statistics Tagged: breast cancer, Facebook, feminism, feminist
June 25, 2014
Missing Mouse
Thank you, again, Thich Nhat Hanh, and Anupadin.com for posting this poem about #impermanence, #rebirth, #death, #life. http://wp.me/p16gSN-1H7
Originally posted on The Search For Enlightenment:
The passing of my pet rat Mouse led me to think about a Buddhist poem about death, from the Buddhist viewpoint.
Though we may relinquish our body in this lifetime, we are not gone, nor will we ever be. Animals are no exception to this, they are simply closer to the start of their path than are humans.
We are all animals after all …
This body is not me.
I am not limited by this body.
I am life without boundaries.
I have never been born, and I have never died.
Look at the ocean and the sky filled with stars, manifestations from my wondrous true mind.
Since before time, I have been free.
Birth and death are only doors through which we pass, sacred thresholds on our journey.
Birth and death are a game of hide-and seek.
So laugh with me, hold my hand, let us say good-bye…
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Filed under: Writing
My first meeting with Oscar Wilde was an astonishment (W.B. Yeats)
Fascinating record of a meeting between WB Yeats and Oscar Wilde, from Yeats’ perspective.
Originally posted on Biblioklept:
My first meeting with Oscar Wilde was an astonishment. I never before heard a man talking with perfect sentences, as if he had written them all over night with labour and yet all spontaneous. There was present that night at Henley’s, by right of propinquity or of accident, a man full of the secret spite of dulness, who interrupted from time to time, and always to check or disorder thought; and I noticed with what mastery he was foiled and thrown. I noticed, too, that the impression of artificiality that I think all Wilde’s listeners have recorded came from the perfect rounding of the sentences and from the deliberation that made it possible. That very impression helped him, as the effect of metre, or of the antithetical prose of the seventeenth century, which is itself a true metre, helped its writers, for he could pass without incongruity from some unforeseen…
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Filed under: Writing
Japan unveils ‘world’s first’ android newscaster
Okay: where’s my personal jet pack, then? Android broadcasters? Not even new! I can name several…
Originally posted on This and That:
To read the article go to
http://www.sott.net/article/280878-Japan-unveils-worlds-first-android-newscaster
Filed under: Writing
The Latest Research on Traumatic Brain Injury (#TBI): Causes, Diagnostics, Treatments
While waiting at my neurologist’s office for my second appointment (at which I was cleared to return to regular activities, unrestricted, like WRITING MY BOOKS! YIPPEE!), I read a fascinating article, “Tracking Traumatic Brain Injury: What New Biomarkers May Reveal About Concussion Over the Short and Long Term,” by Gina Shaw, about the latest and greatest advances in Traumatic Brain Injury (#TBI).
Having suffered a “mild-to-moderate” #concussion myself on April 6, I have a keen interest in all of these topics.
The links and website for the article and magazine are below. First, my favorite parts are summarized or quoted, here. [There were no images with the article, so I went and found some (Thanks to Google images!).]
1. “Despite years of research into traumatic brain injury (TBI), the tests currently available to neurologists, emergency physicians, and other experts can’t reliably identify who has sustained a TBI after a blow to the head, and who has not.” [emphasis is mine]
2. “Damage to neurons occurring after a mild to moderate TBI–called axonal injury–is not revealed on these [CT] scans.” [emphasis is mine]
The image I found, below, is generated by one of the latest diagnostic tools, Diffuse Tensor Imaging, or DTI (see #6, below).
image from trialexhibitsinc.com, “Diffuse Axonal Injury (TBI)”
3. “‘Some studies indicate that having had even a “mild” TBI in early or midlife may increase the risk for dementia in late life, probably at least twofold.’” states Ramon Diaz-Arrastia, M.D., Ph.D., Fellow of the AAN [American Academy of Neurology], director of clinical research at the Center for Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine at the uniformed services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, MD. [emphasis is mine]
4. Even a mild to moderate TBI causes an Axonal Injury = one that disrupts the brain’s structure and chemistry on a cellular level. [emphasis is mine]
image from http://www.alzforum.org, “Amyloid plaques in a cross-section of TBI patients.”
5. 2013 research shows that the same plaque (made of amyloid, a brain protein) that is distributed widely in the brains of and that causes dementia in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is found at the site of a TBI, even a mild one. Some researchers are using the anti-amyloid drugs given to AD patients on TBI injuries to avoid or lessen the likelihood of later dementia.
6. There is a new type of MRI called Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) that is promising for seeing the neurological damage caused by TBIs in ways no other diagnostics are currently able to do. This will also aid in detecting where an injured person is in their recovery.
image from http://www.adlergiersch.com, “Advances in Neuroimaging in Detecting Brain Abnormality in ‘Mild’ Traumatic Brain Injury”
The article describes many other “in the field” (literally, athletic fields, for one) diagnostic tools about to become widely available to determine the extent or presence of a TBI in someone who was knocked on the head.
Read! Share!
Filed under: Blogging and others' content, Science Tagged: concussion, meditation, traumatic brain injury
