A succinct summary of my radiology day job: "applied anatomist".
Perhaps because of this, I have a special affinity for art well-depicting the endlessly fascinating human body. The sculpture of Ron Mueck is a notable example of this. The impact of his works comes from not only their breath-taking realism, but also from the creative way he uses scale to give fresh and unexpected views of our particular primate group.
Can't wait to get a real iPhone 3G? This week's edition of Grand Rounds will give you a reasonable fascimile to play with for the next 18 days, preloaded with the best in medical blogging. This iPhone App has been programmed by My Three Shrinks of the Shrink Rap Blog.
Every parent quickly learns this lesson about young kids: anything they can grab is going straight to their mouth.
My son taught this to us over and over when he was small. While we managed to keep most truly dangerous objects out of his grasp, we did have a few scares. One night a large but nonvenomous house spider (leg-to-leg span = 3 inches) ran across the living room floor and stopped right in front of our son. To our horror, he reached out and grabbed it.
Reacting quickly, the paternal unit did a stuntman dive across 10 feet of carpet and pinned his hand to the floor -- Dad's next conscious thought being "How the hell am I going to get something out of his hand that I'm afraid to touch?"
As this was happening, the maternal unit came really, really close to declaring an instant end to breast-feeding. Her exact words were something like "Lips that touch spider will not touch my..."
Somehow we solved this dilemma, and breast-feeding continued as before. However, this incident made us even more vigilant about the hand-to-mouth issue. Since my spouse is a pediatrician, we both deal with this problem professionally as well.
When a kid ingests a foreign object, the drill goes something like this:
a quick X-ray of their tummy is taken to document the presence/location of the item
parents undergo the character-building exercise of straining every stool specimen for the next few days
if everything does not come out all right (so to speak), another X-ray is done
repeat 2 & 3 for a while until the object is out
if no luck, move on to Plan B (endoscopy or surgery)
I would love to know what sick bastard at Kellogs came up with this genius idea. I just spent the first three years of my sons life trying to get him not to eat blocks, and now you're telling him they taste like fucking strawberries. Thanks a lot assholes. Seriously, how in the hell did this ever get past their legal department. You can't tell me that this isn't a lawsuit just waiting to happen. I can only assume that their next product is fruit flavored thumbtacks.
George Carlin, skeptic, atheist, and Jedi master of comedy and social commentary, died yesterday, June 22, at the age of 71.
He was known for many things, including the Seven Dirty Words you can never say on television. When his monologue on these words was aired in 1973, it set off a kerfuffle that led all the way to the U. S. Supreme Court, whose narrow ruling (5-4) formally established indecency regulation in American broadcasting.
Since then, American children who have grown up hearing these words from their parents and each other have been spared that special moral degradation that comes from also hearing them on the air. As Carlin told the Associated Press earlier this year:
So my name is a footnote in American legal history, which I'm perversely kind of proud of.
Rest in peace, friend. May your words ring on in the Internet forever.
With a name like The Amaz!ng Meeting, one expects a certain amount of hyperbole. However, in the words of Dizzy Dean, "It ain't bragging if you done it."
There have already been some truly amazing presentations, as I've described in my other posts on TAM6. One keeps wondering how any day can possibly top the last. I'm happy to report that Saturday provided a very satisfactory Big Finish™ to TAM6.
(Okay, okay, there were some fine papers on the schedule for Sunday morning, but I wasn't able to attend them.)
Saturday highlights follow:
Dr. Michael Shermer, executive director of the Skeptics Society, kicked things off with a fine talk on Why People Do Weird Things. He cited recent fMRI research suggesting that skeptical thought may actually require more effort and time than uncritical thought.
Sharon Begley, senior editor at Newsweek, is widely known for her ability to break down complex scientific theories and write about them in simple prose. She spoke on "Creationism and Other Weird Beliefs: The Role of the Press". If we were expecting the press to bail us out in the struggle against irrationality and scientific illiteracy, her suggestion is: "Don't get your hopes up."
Jeff Wagg, general manager for the JREF (James Randi Educational Foundation), gave some late-breaking news about TAM7. The contract has been signed, and TAM7 will take place in Las Vegas at the brand new South Point Casino from July 9 - 12. He also raised the possibility of a future edition of TAM in the UK (woot woot).
Dr. Phil Plait, astronomer, writer, skeptic and author of the Bad Astronomy Blog, was the first afternoon speaker. He was introduced by PZ Myers, who continued their daily game of conference badinage. Phil's rejoinder:
In a way that only a roomful of atheists can appreciate, PZ's writing is god-like.
Phil then treated us to a quick and breezy tour of our solar system. His skeptical conclusion:
The Universe is Cool Enough Without Making Up Crap About It!!
Adam Savage, movie special effects artist and co-host of Mythbusters, quickly proceeded to make everyone's list of speakers they never, ever want to follow on stage. He started by regaling us with his ongoing quest to build the perfect replica of the Maltese Falcon. I'll just say that compared to Adam, I'm a lot less anal than I thought I was.
He wrapped up his presentation with a short video clip of "explosion porn" from the show. At the next break he gave away 1000 ping pong balls (and autographed many of them) that were used in one Mythbusters episode to raise a boat off the bottom of Monterrey Bay.
Concepts that the Discovery Channel has not yet allowed them to develop for Mythbusters:
Matthew Chapman, author, journalist, director and great-great grandson of Charles Darwin told us what he loves about America. He has written widely on the creation-evolution controversy in the U.S. Among other things, he visited Dayton, TN, home of the original Scopes Monkey Trial, to see if the town had evolved appreciably since the 1925 trial. Alas, it hadn't.
Mr. Chapman is founder and president of Science Debate 2008, which calls for a public debate of science issues by the two U.S. presidential candidates. To date, 28 Nobel laureates, 102 university presidents and quite a few other large names in science have signed this initiative.
Dr. Richard Wiseman, magician, psychologist and author of Quirkology, gave the final talk of the session. It was immediately apparent why he drew this slot, because it would be hard for even the other stellar speakers at TAM6 to top him.
Dr. Wiseman is not your usual psychologist, as can be seen from a glance at some of his prior research topics:
why do incompetent politicians get elected?
does déjà vu actually exist?
what is the perfect pick-up line?
does déjà vu actually exist?
Do you consider yourself an observant person? Find out in the following Wiseman video:
Richard Wiseman definitely knows how to put the "grand" in grand finale -- in this case, by setting a new world record for simultaneous spoon-bending. His minions proceeded to pass out 800 metal spoons to this hall full of skeptics. But wait, there's more!
The next step: teaching 800 skeptics how to pull off (so to speak) this simple illusion. The key concept: "the more you stroke it, the softer it gets." Wiseman was quick to point out that this is one of the few contexts in which that happens to be good news.
Instead of teaching us spoon-bending himself, he delegated the task to someone else. In this case, that someone else happened to be one of the world's great magicians: Teller. After a quick post-graduate course in the theory, art and perils of spoon-bending by Teller, we were ready.
As the video camera rolled, we focused our skeptic energy fields on the spoons, and as one, bent and broke them all. Once the Quirkology SWAT team finishes editing all of their footage, keep an eye out for their final cut, coming soon to a YouTube theater near you.
Q & A Panel
At this point, there was no easy way to top Wiseman short of tactical nukes. Despite this, a blue-ribbon panel of skeptics stormed the stage for a brief Q & A session. My choice for most memorable quote is Adam Savage's:
Before you become a skeptic you might think the world is in color. But once you become a skeptic, it goes to HD!"
Dinner with Randi
About 60 of us then headed over to the Rio for dinner with Randi and other TAM6 faculty. After a fine evening of food and conversation, this group mitosed and half of the new organism headed for the Penn & Teller show at the Rio. In a word, awesome, in the original sense of awe. And, as an airport billboard promised, "Fewer audience injuries than last year!". (Extra tip: don't miss the 30 minute pre-show, and pay particular attention to the bassist...)
It's been a fun few days at TAM6, but I'm glad to be on my way home.
I have to say that McCarran International Airport (at least the D terminal) has some of the coolest (and most appropriate) airport art I've ever seen. These three desert creatures, partially buried in the floor, are especially swell.
I've had a great four days in Las Vegas at TAM6. However, when I'm not at the conference, I keep getting daily jolts of the alternative reality that is Las Vegas.
As I finished a solitary supper last night, my waitress said "Have a lucky evening!" I was momentarily nonplussed. The last person wishing me to "get lucky" was my college roommate as I headed out for a blind date. I felt like Lisa Simpson in the Bart vs. Australia episode where she sees a movie facade reading: "Yahoo Serious is Young Einstein". Her reaction: "I know those words, but that makes no sense!" It took me way too long to remember why other people come to Las Vegas, and finally mumble something like, "Uhhh.... thanks! You too."
My first walk through the casino floor gave me flashbacks to med school physiology class, where we learned about the complex lining of the intestines. This convoluted lining results in an extremely high surface area for maximal absorption of nutrients from the stuff passing through. Ever since this class, the bowel has remained my mental metaphor for every resort I've ever visited. The relentless absorptive area here is easily Disneyland class.
Gambling has never been much of an attraction to me, especially since Psych 101. My daily passage through the casino floor to the convention center takes me by hundreds of humans voluntarily spending the day in Skinner boxes. This is a very creepy place.
It is also a very hot place, getting up to 107° F today. Fortunately, it cools off at night. I had a nice breeze while walking back to my hotel after a show -- with the wind chill, it only felt like the low 90's.
My evening walk also took me by the Bellagio Hotel. It was nice to finally see the fountains that launched a 1000 Mentos.
Grand Rounds is a weekly collection of the best writing in the medical blogosphere. I was delighted to host Volume 5, no. 20 here on February 3rd, 2009.
What does a radiologist do? Who are these rarely glimpsed and mysterious figures that float through the background of medical care?
Why would someone want to spend all of that time in medical school learning to be a Real Doctor™, and then throw it all away by becoming a radiologist?
Welcome to Not Totally Rad.
As the masthead suggests, most, but not all, of the topics discussed here will have something to do with radiology, medical imaging and imagers. Hopefully light will be shed on these matters, even if it's invisible to the naked eye.
The Samurai Radiologist has spent more than 20 years as a diagnostic radiologist, most of them professing at various university medical centers.
The "samurai" part is a nod to the late, great John Belushi, whose samurai skits on Saturday Night Live featured a samurai with a day job in some other field, such as dry-cleaning or a delicatessen. The plot usually gave him some hilarious job-related excuse to use his sword.
Since much of medical imaging (e.g. CT and MR) involves digital "cuts" through the body in various planes, I always hoped to someday see him portray a "samurai radiologist". I guess I'll just have to play that role myself.
A succinct summary of my radiology day job: "applied anatomist".
Can't wait to get a real iPhone 3G? This week's edition of Grand Rounds will give you a reasonable fascimile to play with for the next 18 days, preloaded with the best in medical blogging. This iPhone App has been programmed by My Three Shrinks of the Shrink Rap Blog.
Every parent quickly learns this lesson about young kids: anything they can grab is going straight to their mouth.
With a name like The Amaz!ng Meeting, one expects a certain amount of hyperbole. However, in the words of Dizzy Dean, "It ain't bragging if you done it."
Adam Savage, movie special effects artist and co-host of Mythbusters, quickly proceeded to make everyone's list of speakers they never, ever want to follow on stage. He started by regaling us with his ongoing quest to build the perfect replica of the Maltese Falcon. I'll just say that compared to Adam, I'm a lot less anal than I thought I was.
Dr. Richard Wiseman, magician, psychologist and author of Quirkology, gave the final talk of the session. It was immediately apparent why he drew this slot, because it would be hard for even the other stellar speakers at TAM6 to top him.
Dinner with Randi
It's been a fun few days at TAM6, but I'm glad to be on my way home.
I've had a great four days in Las Vegas at TAM6. However, when I'm not at the conference, I keep getting daily jolts of the alternative reality that is Las Vegas.
