Where passion for animals, science, and medicine lives…
Together, my rounded, asymmetric face, flirtatiously irregular hairline, upturned nostrils, and small, almost beady, eyes create a visage that Chris Hemsworth and Keanu Reeves envy. Yet drugs, injected, oral, or topical, penetrate deeper into my being. Sure, it is easy to believe that propofol could quickly rob me of my awareness or fentanyl might lay […]
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Who of you can resist dipping your toes in an inviting lake or pond on a hot summer day? Even dogs appreciate the fun and relaxation that comes with swimming and wading in water. Hidden in that water are many toxins, some produced from harmful algal blooms. We will cover the most common ones here.
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Clean water is the key to maintaining any civilization. John Snow is credited with linking a cholera epidemic to contaminated drinking water in 1855. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), diarrheal diseases (such as cholera) kill more children than AIDS, malaria, and measles combined, making diarrheal disease the second leading cause […]
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If you prefer to listen to podcasts, feel free to play the audio version of this blog by clicking on the player above. Podcast: AnthraxLength: 4:22 minutesWritten and read by the author
Continue ReadingImagine a story. Earth’s population faces extinction from a predator that takes no prisoners. Every fortress invaded; the population dies… to the last individual. No survivors, no mercy, and no solution. Then an outsider steps forth from obscurity with a gift providing hope. Sounds like a great novel doesn’t it? In some ways, the story […]
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“Would you bathe with these people?” “Would you bathe with these people?” That is what you are doing. You are about to jump into chlorinated bathwater used by the people you see before you and those who came earlier. What do people do after they get out of a pool? Usually, shower off. For everyone’s […]
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While many people take St. John’s Wort as an herbal treatment for depression, the plant induces painful sunburns in goats when eaten. Sound crazy? Wondering if you heard that correctly? Yes, St. John Wort is a photodynamic plant. After eating, certain UV-light-absorbing compounds in the plant circulate in the blood of the goat. In white, […]
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Does Karenia Mean “Pure Evil?” The name Karen comes from the Greek word for “pure.” Pure what though, can be interpreted. In the case of Karenia brevis, the purity of wanton destruction applies. Like other dinoflagellates, Karenia bears attributes of both plants and animals within a compact single-cell. In the 1800’s dinoflagellates were described as […]
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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) works hard to prevent toxins from entering the American food and water supplies. We have seen this with CERCLA, radon, and the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act of 1947 (FIFRA) is no different. As with other Acts, FIFRA has […]
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All life depends on the hydrologic cycle. Life and death cycle, as does water. Today’s rain will be tomorrow’s groundwater.
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