Eye

What should I write about eyes? The medical technicalities? Better I leave that in the able hands of wikipedia editors with optic trainings. Should I get very romantic now, describe the beauty of eyes? Better I leave that in the hands of compulsive poets who could write an epic for each eye-lid of their beloved. Then what should I write on eye? The Journal of Nursing of USA (1)reports only two cents worth of eye-drop could save a child from blindness. Well, that's 1910's estimate of 2 cents, when a gallon of gasoline was probably a 25 cents in USA. Now it is May 2008, when a gallon of gasoline is hitting $ 5 fast. that's an inflation of 20 times compared to 1910 price level measured by gasoline price in USA in 1910. Today, may be not two cents, but 40 cents (i.e., 2 cents x 20)would be required to save a child from blindness by making right eye-drop available and applied on the new born on time. Well, that's still bellow 50 cents a child. There are millions of children in the world, specially in the developing countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America who are exposed to serious risk of child blindness due to lack of adequate post-natal care, and lack of critical eye-drops to supply vitamin A and other essential vitamins. If forty cents could save a child from blindness, diverting the budget of manufacturing a high-tech missile to mass production of eye drops containing vitamin A could save millions of childs from premature vision disorder. But will the warlords listen to us, ever?


reference:
(1) Ophthalmia Neonatorum as a Cause of Blindness
Carolyn Conant Van Blarcom
The American Journal of Nursing, Vol. 10, No. 10 (Jul., 1910), pp. 724-734 (article consists of 14 pages)
Published by: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Thoughts on World Women's Day 2008: Person vs. Posterity

Case 1:
A happy couple. During the delivery of a baby, the wife had some physical complicaitons which damaged her future reproductive capacity. She will not be able to give birth any more babies. Now the couples are very concerned about the health of their only child, if anything bad happens to the baby, who will carry forward the flagship of posterity? Sometimes the husband frowns upon the fact that his wife is not able to deliver anymore.

Case-2:
Few months into the marriage, a young couple found out to their dismay that the husband's semen count is too low to become a biological dad in a natural way or even in an artificial way. But three years after the marriage, they feel very lonely. They love each other, but the emptyness also creeps in sometimes.

Case-3:
A newly wed young girl is diagnosed with cancerous cells in a part of her body that is vital for conceiving and giving birth of babies. Doctors advised that in order to reduce of the risk of spreading cancer to other parts of the body, it is better to remove those infected cells from her body through surgery. The operation may save the life of the lady, but can it save the marriage?

In all the three cases mentioned above, the main question boils down to this: what is the main concern of the spouses? The persons they are married to? Or to be able to continue expanding the family tree for posterity?
These are tough situations specially for people from cultures where posterity is glorified over persons. But personally, I think we should care more about the person than for preseving somekind of geanological footprints for posterity.

Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing all of my friends, freinds' friends, their families, and colleagues a very happy valentine's day!

Happy New Year

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy, and peaceful new year 2008.

ABD......other letters are yet to be earned before I spell my first name

Yesterday, I have successfully defended my research proposal and, thanks God, become an A.B.D. (all but dissertation). I feel like I have just earned first three letters of my first name. Now, I am counting months to defend my dissertaion in the final oral examination, so that I can earn rest of the letters that I need to spell my name. Wishes to all.
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A Nostalgic Call From Japan, A Recall of 'Jonaki' (Firefly)

A Long lost friend of mine called recently from Japan. It took me on a nonstalgic ride down the memory lane. We talked for along time .. about our early days of school and college, we talked about our those golden carefree days...coffee house days that seem will never come back except in our memories and sighs. Then we talked about our current days...

He has been living in Japan for about two decades. Married to a japanese lady and have two kids.

These intercultural unions are great sources of undrestanding the diverse world we all live in which, I beleive, contribute to world peace. Wishing my friend and his family and friends in Japan a happy, healthy, productive life. Jonaki has always been a favorite icon in my friend's life. That's why I chose to upload this photo of a little girl playing with a jar full of 'Jonaki's- the nostalgic fireflies! Don't we all long for such glowing moments in our lives?!

Energy vs. Fatigue

"Energy cannot be created or destroyed, only changed from one form to another".-remember physics 101?

So, fatigue is not lack of energy, rather just a different form of it.