Elliott C. Back: In Aere Aedificare

One of the most interesting things in the human body is the brain, the organ that seperates us from lower animals. The human brain contains more than 100,000,000,000 neurons, each of which is connected to thousands of others. The brain is responsible for “cognition, emotion, memory, and motor, and other forms of learning, … most sensory systems, movement, behavior, … heart rate, blood pressure, fluid balance, and body temperature.”

I just read an amazing story from New Scientist. Basically, a man whose brain had been severly damaged in a car accident woke up after 19 years in a coma. His brain had rewired and rerouted its functionality to undamaged portions of the brain, forming novel structures:

The team’s findings suggest that Wallis’s brain had, very gradually, developed new pathways and completely novel anatomical structures to re-establish functional connections, compensating for the brain pathways lost in the accident.

The idea that the brain can self-repair over the years challenges the idea that once a patient is diagnosed brain-dead, there’s no chance of recovery:

Krish Sathian, a neurologist and specialist in brain rehabilitation at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, US, describes it as an amazing finding. “The bounds on the possible extent of neural plasticity just keep on shifting,” he says. “Classical teaching would not have predicted any of these changes.”

Patients with brain damage should probably require continuous evaluation instead of the initial assessment they receive once. If there’s a way to measure the recovery rate of a damaged brain, a lot of lives could be saved.

I was browsing the Flickr set for Tattoo photos and decided to blog about the tattoos that I liked most and least. I’m most interested in the back, because that’s the easiest place to hide one, and the most likely place I would be to get one, if I were a girl. Guys generally put them more visibly on their arms, so I’m out of luck for now.

0) My least favorite of the batch. The fuzzy, perhaps self-done, tattoo. It looks out of place, because it’s overly large with wide lines, and lacks definition. here is an example of a sea horse that fits this description:

1) Then, there’s the full back. Instead of highlighting natural beauty, it seems to exists to cover it up. Here’s a great example, but it hides the person underneath too much:

2) Putting a large tattoo on the lower back is extremely popular. However, I feel that size is again an issue, because the tattoo doesn’t seem properly connected to the rest of the body:

3) Slightly smaller tattoos on the lower back are better than large ones:

4) While placed a bit too high, smaller is better when the lower back is concerned. Note the delicacy in simple lettering in a foreign script:

5) Here we being to see something I appreciate. The dragonfly is minimally drawn in looping radius, unfilled. In simplicity and placement on the lower back, art is created:

6) Finally, the best tattoo of the bunch. It is a butterfly in color, placed high on the back. It is delicate and blends with the skin:

Personally, none of these feel quite right. I think I’d want to see something more subtle, on the lower back. Something with extremely fine lines, stretched long across the back, but vertically very condensed. Perhaps Julie will have some suggestions for me, although #5 and #6 would look a hundred times better on her than me.

Not to try to sell a product, but I tried the Schick Quattro Men’s Razor this morning, and it worked beautifully. I had about a week of fuzzy beard from a trip to mexico and a sunburn that I was saving to shave off, and it cut through the hair without nicking, cutting, or irritating my skin. In less than five minutes, I was able to accomplish one of the fastest and closest shaves I’ve ever had. I’m quite impressed with this four-bladed razor, and eagerly await 7, 11, and 15 bladed models. Here are a few shaving pics:

After Shaving

Before Shaving

So, as you can see, this razor made my day. My skin is clean, young, and supple now.

Please not that this is not medical advice, and is not being given by a medical professional. I simply want to recount my experiences for your education and reading pleasure, and hopefully pass along a few tips.

The Background

Three days in Cancun is enough time to seriously screw your body up. The equatorial sun is hot and direct, and the reflection of the sun off and in water will fry you as well. The dark-skinned mexicans aren’t to be emulated, because their bodies naturally protect them better.

The first day, we arrived around noon, and went down to the beach. I was wearing a shirt for some of the time, not for some of the time. I didn’t feel anything, and it was cloudy, but when I went back to the hotel, I had a bad sunburn. The next two days I tried to avoid the sun, wear clothes, and wear sunscreen. It worked, but the damage was already done.

The Pain

Intensely painful to move or touch, my entire upper body was covered in red, burnt skin, as well as parts of my foot, and my calves, the back of which were particularily tender. The etremities and my chest began to slowly heal first, my face gently peeling with the rest of them. However, my upper arms and shoulders developed severly burned skin and blisters, and seeped clear fluid for many days.

The Treatment

Aloe Vera gel and topical anaesthetic and anti-microbial agents help. Taking an anti-inflammatory such as Advil (ibuprofen) or Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) works well. Tylenol may not be as effective in relieving swelling and pain. Avoid scratching, tearing, or irritating the skin. Avoid more exposure to sunlight. Avoid alcohol or other drying agents. Eat and sleep well, and drink lots of water.

All in all, I think I’ll be ok, but it’s not an experience I want again.

It’s the 20th year anniversary of the worst nuclear accident in the history of mankind. Pray the concrete sarcophagus holds, and the years of rain and animal infestation have not torn it completely away, as some speculate.