“What do you feed your dog?” you perfunctorily inquire, while completing your examination. “Cooked chicken and rice,” the pet owner boasts. “Is that on top of the kibble?” “No. Just chicken and rice. I buy premium, cooked chickens at Costco. I make sure it is lean, white meat, no skin, no bones, no fat. […]
Continue ReadingWhat is Preventive Fraction?
Have you ever read a vaccine study and quickly tried to skip to the heart of the matter? Perhaps there is someone there, a teacher, a colleague or a vaccine representative. You ask, “What’s the bottom line here? How well does the vaccine work? What percentage of pets are protected?” The other person says, “The […]
Continue ReadingP-Value, the False Idol (revisited)
The most powerful woman in the world blinded her own son to uphold her beliefs Gorgeous, brilliant, and powerful, the Empress Irene perched upon her throne and contemplated her Eastern Roman Empire. She sought to reunite it with the West through marriage with none other than Charlemagne. Luckily for the great Carolingian king, pleuritis killed […]
Continue ReadingDo Vets Fat-Shame Pets?
“Comparison is the death of joy.” People have been shifting their concept of human beauty over the centuries, and with this, their view of an ideal weight. The change in perspective has not been subtle. Today, we desire teeth so white they sparkle and will employ lasers, daily strips, and overnight trays to accomplish it. […]
Continue ReadingI DO Give a Gram!
The Gram Stain differentiates gram-positive bacteria, which have one membrane, from gram-negative, which have two. We glean significant information from gram-typing, whether you are a healthcare provider or just an average mammal trying to get by in this world. By knowing the characteristics of gram-typing and applying them to common bacteria, we often deduce a […]
Continue ReadingAnaphylactoids, Stronger than a Breath Mint
Napalm vs Greek Fire When recalling the horrors of WW II, Vietnam, and the Korean war, we can hardly do so without including the haunting images of napalm. In a wonderful effort to destroy more life, the recipe has been improved over the years. Without going into the portmanteau for the acids that make up […]
Continue ReadingLife and Death, the Cytokine Impact
Like the ancient Roman army, cytokines are a formidable force When facing Carthaginian forces on the field of battle, Roman infantry proved devastating and impactful. When loitering within their own city walls, the Roman infantry also proved devastating and impactful, quickly leading the rule that the army must remain well outside their own city. A […]
Continue ReadingCytokine Storms, Stronger than World War I and Kublai Khan
Kamikaze or “Divine Winds” twice saved Japan from the Mongolian Fleet Long before the current use of the word kamikaze, Japanese used “divine wind,” the name translation, in a literal sense. In the thirteenth century, the largest contiguous empire the world has ever seen sailed its formidable armada and all its might towards the shores […]
Continue ReadingDo These Definitions Ring a Bell Curve?
The Ancient Roman Calendar Consisted of Ten Months If the words September, October, November, and December have ever triggered the numbers 7, 8, 9, and 10 in your head, they do so with good reason. The ancient Romans divided the year into ten months with a month-less winter period at the end where the astronomers […]
Continue ReadingWhen a Blue Dot or Line does not mean a Blue Dot or Line
A closer look at Predictive Values When waging war and winning battles, successful generals consider timing a critical factor. Shall we move at dawn or wait till their supplies run lower? Few empires have witnessed the consistent military success as Rome. For roughly one thousand years, they expanded their empire, obliterated their enemies, and reigned […]
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