Surgeons’ Attire

            During his surgical residency, a surgeon was called out of a sound sleep to the emergency room. Unshaven and with tousled hair, he showed up with an equally un-presentable medical student. In the Emergency Room they encountered the on-call medical resident and his student, both neatly attired in clean white lab coats.

            The resident said to his student, “You can always tell the surgeons by their absolute disregard for appearance.”

            Two evenings later, the same surgeon was at a banquet when he was called to the ER to suture a minor laceration. He was stitching away, wearing a tuxedo, when he encountered that same medical resident.

            The resident looked at the surgeon, then said to his student, “Sure is sensitive to criticism, isn’t he?”

Getting Rid Of Mosquitoes Is A Breeze

The claim: To repel mosquitoes, use a house fan.

The Facts: The battle against mosquitoes is often fought with chemical repellents. Some of the popular choices are highly effective, but can be toxic, smelly and irritating.

For those who prefer a chemical-free repellent, a plain and simple house fan just might do the trick.

Studies have found that wind is an effective method to keep mosquitoes and other airborne pests at bay. The reason seems obvious: It prevents them from circling and landing on you, like a windstorm keeping a plane from its descent.

However, that is not entirely the case. A fan dilutes and disperses the carbon dioxide you exhale. Carbon dioxide is one of the major chemicals that attract mosquitoes, the wind form a fn also cools you. Sweat, lactic acid and body heat attract mosquitoes - factors that a fan can help minimize.

In one study in 2003, entommologists at Michigan State University used traps set up in a wetland by the United States Centers for Disease Control to attract mosquitoes. Releasing carbon dioxide attracted more pests to the trap. The more the carbon dioxide, the more mosquitoes were caught.

Using fan-generated wind of various speeds helped keep them away. But there was no link between wind velocity and mosquito body mass.

“We recommend that fan-generated wind should be pursued as a practical means of protecting humans or pets against mosquitoes in the backyard setting,” they wrote.

For an indoor setting, a fan on medium of high sped should do the job.

The Bottom Line: Using a fan can ward off mosquitoes.

- The New York Times 

What The Doctor Said

              A woman accompanied her husband to the doctor’s office. After his check up, the doctor called his wife into his office alone. 

              He said, “Your husband is suffering from a very serious disease, combined with horrible stress. If you don’t do the following, your husband can die. Each morning, fix him a healthy breakfast. Be pleasant and make sure he is in a good mood. For lunch, fix him a nutritious meal. For dinner, prepare an especially nice meal for him. Don’t burden him with chores. Don’t discuss your stress; this will probably make him feel worse. And most importantly, you must be intimate with your husband every day of the week. If you can do this for at least ten months to a year, I think your husband will regain his health completely.’’ 

              On the way home, the husband asked his wife, “What did the doctor say to you?” 

             “You’re going to die.”

Tides

Love

Cowboy’s Threat

              A cowboy rode into town and stopped at the saloon for a drink. Unfortunately, the locals always had a habit of picking on newcomers. When he finished, he found his horse had been stolen. 

              He comes back into the bar, handily flips his gun into the air, catches it above his head without even looking and fires a shot into the ceiling. “Who stole my horse?” he yelled with surprising forcefulness. 

              No one answered. 

              “I’m gonna have another beer and if my horse ain’t back outside by the time I’m finished, I’m gonna do what I dun back in Texas and I don’t want to have to do what I dun back in Texas!’’ 

              Some of the locals shifted restlessly. 

              He had another beer, walked outside, and his horse was back! He saddled up and started to ride out of town. 

              The bartender wandered out of the bar and asked, “Say partner, what happened in Texas?”

              The cowboy turned back and said, “I had to walk home!”

Jury’s Verdict

Judge: What possible reason could you have for acquitting that murderer?
Juryman: Temporary insanity.
Judge: All twelve of you?

Are Mosquitoes Gender Biased?

The Claim: Mosquitoes are attracted to women more than to men.

The Facts: Mosquitoes find some people tastier than others. But a widespread notion is that women, to mosquitoes at least, are the sweeter sex, supposedly because oestrogen is a strong attractant.

In reality, gender does play a role, but not in the way most people think. As one report in the Annals of Internal Medicine pointed out, men are more likely to be attacked, primarily because of their greater body size.

“Larger persons tend to attract more mosquitoes perhaps because they emit greater relative heat or carbon dioxide,” the study said.

A similar effect can be seen among women. When scientists compared pregnant women with their non-pregnant counterparts in a Lancet study in 2000, they found that the pregnant women attracted twice as many mosquitoes. The study noted that the pregnant women exhaled more carbon dioxide and had higher body temperatures, allowing mosquitoes to detect them more easily.

In addition to carbon dioxide, lactic acid is also a strong attractant, which is why people are attacked more when they are outdoors and sweating, said Dr. Clifford Bassett of Allergy and Asthma Care in New York. “Mosquitoes can sense these chemicals up to 30m away.” Dr Bassett said.

The bottom line: Research suggests that men are more likely than women to be attacked by mosquitoes.

- The New York Times