Bacterial Infections, Shared By Humans and Animals, Are Becoming Less Treatable

Apparently, we are making viruses worse because of how we're treating animals. 

MRSA is pretty much the worst bacterial infection.  Antibiotics can treat it, but it usually returns and becomes less treatable over time. 

Humans and animals, like pigs, chickens and household pets, get MRSA.  We give antibiotics to animals that are bread for food, and now they are resistant to the antibiotics... so the MRSA mutates, goes back to humans, and gets us even sicker.

It's a bad cycle when humans and animals get the same infections and all become resistant to antibiotics.  They are saying there are several "SUPER BUGS" going between humans and animals that are contributing to a decline in overall health.  There isn't an easy answer for this and it's a little scary.

Crazy Guy Invents Cool Stuff

This guy named David Edwards, a doctor who works at Harvard, has been making some oddly cool things lately.  First, he invented breathable caffeine. That's right, you can just sniff and get a dose of caffeine.  He also made vitamins that work the same way.  Now, he's made a drinking container that you can eat.  These edible containers are called "WikiCells" and come in several flavors so far. 

I guess not having to wash cups or throw them away is good for the environment, but it's a little weird to think about drinking something and eating the container.  I guess this new WikiCell is like the tortilla of the drink world.  Hmmm.

You can read more here and here.

Live-r-Die

The word is that Hepatitis C is killing more Americans than HIV/AIDS now.  Hep C is spread mainly via shared needles, though some people get it from sexual contact.  Many people don't know they have it until blood tests show a failing liver.  Screening for Hep C isn't very common; however 3.2 million Americas are thought to be infected.  Drugs can help people with symptoms but there isn't a cure for Hep C at this time.

My thoughts are that it's very sad that with all of the risks out there, some people will still put used needles in their bodies.  Any disease that attacks your vital organs should be avoided at all costs.

Current Events Topics

You will get one of the following topics each week; please visit recommended websites first.

SPORTS

When you draw this card, you want to look for local and national news about athletes, game highlights, game scores, championship games and so on.

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://espn.go.com/

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/

http://news.yahoo.com/sports/

WEATHER/NATURAL DISASTERS

Find today’s local forecast.  You might also want to tell us about the weather somewhere else.  Any natural disasters are worth reporting.

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.weather.com/

http://www.pnsn.org/earthquakes/recent

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/

LOCAL EVENTS & LOCAL NEWS

Find out what’s going in Independence, Monmouth, Dallas and Salem.  Focus on things that may interest teenagers J

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.polkio.com/

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/

http://www.oregonlive.com/

BUSINESS and CORPORATE NEWS

Find out what’s going on in corporate America.  Are companies hiring, firing, moving, going out of business, expanding, inventing cool stuff, in trouble for violating laws?

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/subjects/c/corporations/index.html

http://www.businessweek.com/

http://www.forbes.com/

LAWS/ LEGAL NEWS/ CRIME

What new laws are coming into effect? Consider local, state and federal laws. Also, what court cases are getting attention- locally and around the country.  What crimes are making headlines and why?

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.law.com/jsp/law/index.jsp

http://crimedaily.com/

http://www.foxnews.com/us/crime/index.html

OPINIONS and EDITORIALS

Every newspaper and magazine has opinion pieces and people write on all kinds of topics.  Try searching several sites to find people’s opinions that grab your interest- either because you care about the issue or totally agree or disagree with the viewpoint that you read about.

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/

http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion

TECHNOLOGY

What are the latest and greatest gadgets?  What’s selling well and why?  What’s the future of technology looking like?  What inventions are changing the way we learn, work, help people and so on.

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.technewsworld.com/

http://www.wired.com/

http://www.technologyreview.com/

MONEY and ECONOMY

How’s the local and state economy?  What about the national trend?  What’s the dollar worth compared to other countries?  How are banks and money impacting people, businesses and government?

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://money.cnn.com/news/economy/

http://www.forbes.com/economy/

http://www.economynews.us/

WORLD EVENTS

What’s the big news around the world?  What’s happening outside of the US?  Who is at war? And why?  Where are people speaking out and about what?  What changes are going on around us?

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.bbc.com/

http://wn.com/

http://www.reuters.com/news/world

CELEBRITY NEWS

What famous people are making headlines and why?  What stars are getting media attention or who are the up and coming stars?

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.people.com/people/

http://www.eonline.com/

http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/

POLITICS & ELECTION NEWS

What candidates are in the news and why?  Who is running for what office and how are they doing?  How is the public reacting?  What’s going on in the senate and in congress?

Some sites your might want to search are:

http://uselectionnews.org/

http://www.nytimes.com/pages/politics/index.html

http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/

MEDICAL & SCIENCE NEWS

What’s new in medicine, medical technology, procedures, hospital care?  What scientific discoveries are coming to light?  What’s going in the medical and scientific communities?

Some sites you might want to search are:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/

http://www.sciencedaily.com/

http://www.popsci.com/

FREE TOPIC
What are the major headlines?
What stories grab your attention?
What topic(s) appeal to you?

Some sites you might want to search are:
http://news.google.com/
http://news.yahoo.com/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
http://abcnews.go.com/