Gail D. Baura

Two worlds [Point of View]

The front page photographs of the New York Times last week were a striking study in contrasts. In the 12 August 2009 photograph, a man at a Lebanon, Pennsylvania, healthcare town-hall meeting was angrily shouting at his senator, Arlen Spector. According to the accompanying article, many of the attendees had been alerted of the meeting by e-mail from the Constitutional Organization of Liberty and the Berks County Tea Party. The primary concerns of those who spoke were abortion, euthanasia, coverage of immigrants, and privacy rather than health-care reform [1]. A link on the Berks County Tea Party Web site discusses Liberty Counsels analysis of the proposed health-care bill, HR 3,200. Some of the verbatim analysis points that do not match their cited HR 3,200 sections.

Corporate Considerations on Biomaterials and Medical Devices: Case Studies in Regulation and Reimbursement

This chapter discusses important issues focussing on case studies of design controls, which comprise the fundamental requirements for development of a new medical device. Case studies exemplifying the different considerations for an electrocardiogram (ECG) electrode, a tissue heart valve, and a permanent skin substitute material are highlighted.

Got jobs? [Point of View]

Discusses the lack of employment opportunities for U.S. engineers as many jobs have been offshored and new jobs are scarce.

The ice is broken [Point of View]

Alaska is a depressing place to visit in the summer. Although there are lush green landscapes and countless animals, there appears to be little ice. Or rather, the ice is melting at accelerated rates.

Time to debate? [Point of View]

The author advocates for a national dialogue on science.

The secret world of cutting [Point of View]

The pill cutter, according to a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) database, is a Class I medical device for tablet splitting. Various types of pill cutters or “tablet splitters” with different price are available in the market. Tablet splitting is commonly practiced to decrease costs because the price between various-sized tablets remains fixed.

Big Boys Do Cry [Point of View]

In this paper radiation exposure and absorbed dose assessment are done and the risks involved are analysed. From 1950 to 2002, 196 Leukemia deaths were attributable to radiation exposure >;= 0.0005 Gy for the case of Hiroshima atom bombing. On 12 April, Japan upgraded its classification of the Fukushima disaster from Level 5 (accident with wider consequences) to Level 7 (major accident), out of seven levels on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale.

The Incredile Inedible Egg [Point of View]

Yesterday, at my favorite breakfast place, I ordered soft-boiled eggs. I like four minute eggs, when the yolks have not significantly begun to harden. As I began to dip bread into a cracked egg shell, my husband, who had been reading the New York Times , warned, “Are you sure this is a good idea? An additional 170 million eggs were just recalled.”

Oil and Water Don't Mix [Point of View]

Imagine a land that was formerly pristine but has been contaminated with an estimated 19 billion gallons of waste produced from crude oil drilling. During oil production, an additional 16.8 million gallons of crude oil are spilled into the environment. The contamination seeps into the drinking water [1]. Women living near the oil fields have a 2.5 times higher risk of spontaneous abortions than those living further away [2]. Men and women living near the oil fields have significantly higher incidences of cancer [3], [4].

medical devices in cinema [Point of view]

Is it time to take a more sophisticated approach to the way we portray medical devices in American cinema?