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(02/22/12 5:00am)
Recent research has reignited interest in the ketogenic diet, a nutritional course of treatment first used in the 1920s, to control the symptoms of epilepsy in children. In 1921, because of the lack of anticonvulsants available for children with juvenile refractory epilepsy, the ketogenic diet was created at the Mayo Clinic to treat the seizures characteristic of this disease. The diet focuses on increasing fat intake while lowering calories derived from carbohydrates, proteins and fluids. The fats are broken down to form compounds called ketone bodies, which can act as an energy source for the heart and brain. In the absence of glucose, which is the basic component of carbohydrates and also the body's preferred source of energy, the use of ketone bodies as an energy source in the brain can rise up to 70 percent. The diet was successful in treating epileptic seizures in approximately 50 percent of patients, but how it did so was, and still is, unknown. With the introduction of the antiepileptic phenytoin and other medications in 1938, interest in using the diet as a means of controlling the effects of epilepsy fell. Starting in 2005, however, new research has led to resurgence in the interest of ketogenic diet treatment, except with some alterations. The resulting three diets, MCT, LGIT and Modified Atkins, use lower levels of fat and higher levels of carbohydrates and proteins. All of these diet are less restrictive in terms of change in the levels of each food group. In the original ketogenic diet, the timing of changes in the diet was strictly regulated. The recent research has been coupled with investigation in decreasing the side effects of these dietary therapies, including hypercholesterolemia, mineral deficiencies, acidosis, constipation and weight loss. Much of the treatment involves the use of supplements like calcium, selenium, zinc and vitamin D. These studies have also sought to discover the nature by which ketogenic diets relieve seizures of epileptic patients. Since the diet basically applies the more beneficial effects of fasting, tests were done to identify the effect of fasts on seizures in mice. Moreover, investigations are underway to determine whether it is the lack of glucose, or the plethora of fats, that causes the relief from seizures. This involves determining the exact concentration of ketone bodies in the brain over the course of the diet. Finally, it is possible that the diet acts in an indirect way, either by altering the activation or repression of signal pathways in the brain, or by affecting neurotransmitters and the other proteins that facilitate their function. If these questions can be satisfactorily answered, it is possible that ketogenic diets can be used to treat other diseases of the brain. They have already been shown to have effects on migraines, autism, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, lateral sclerosis and brain injury caused by trauma.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
Soon, people may be able to carry their therapists around in their pocket in the form of a smartphone. Researchers at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine want to use technology to assist people with mental health problems by creating an app that will recognize when people are depressed and try to help them by sending them reminders to call or see friends. Smartphones are ideal for this goal because of their complexity. They already contain 35 to 40 sensors, which can help them determine their owners' mood. They are equipped with a GPS and an address book, which enable them to figure out their users' location at a certain time of day. They have accelerometers that record how often their owners generally move, and they can detect their owners' email volume and phone activity to see how social they usually are. Once the phones have determined their users' usual patterns of behavior, they can detect deviation from that behavior. If the phone thinks that you are becoming less social and potentially depressed, it can send you reminders or suggestions, such as telling you to take a walk, reminding you about plans with friends or suggesting that you call someone. The researchers refer to this as a positive feedback loop: someone is more likely to go see friends if encouraged to do so, and if the experience results in feelings of enjoyment, there is less of a chance that the individual will continue to exhibit anti-social behaviors. The program is called Mobilyze! and is available on phones and through an interactive website or email. Researchers believe that it will help improve the mood of all its users. Their goal is to significantly improve the lives of people with a major depressive disorder, which affects seven percent of the population each year. Additionally, Mobilyze! utilizes an innovative treatment option, which might be ideal for people who are uncomfortable or unable to see a psychiatrist. It also costs less than traditional ways of treating depression. There are electronic systems currently available that attempt to do the same thing as the Mobilyze! system. However, they require patients to log their own activities, mood, and level of social interaction, among other aspects. This is inconvenient and sometimes difficult for people to do. The scientists at Northwestern believe that the less work that the average person has to put into an intervention system, the more likely he or she is to use it. Thus, the scientists focused on developing systems that would be able to identify the moods of their users on their own, as well as recognize when their users are engaged in activities they are enjoying. Last year, researchers tested the device by performing a small, eight-week pilot study. Seven adults who had a history of depression utilized Mobilyze! by entering their mood, their location, activities in which they were engaged and the types of people they encountered. The system helped them recognize what activities or other aspects of their day were triggering negative moods. The researchers observed that the volunteers managed to reduce symptoms of depression over time. Also, all the volunteers stated that Mobilyze! had helped them figure out and change behaviors that depressed them. Although the study was encouraging, researchers want to continue modifying the system. They eventually plan to release a version of the app compatible with the Android mobile-device operating system. They are currently modifying the app and will begin testing it this year in the hopes of starting a field trial on it this summer.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
On Wednesday evening, the Spring Fair committee, the HOP and WJHU announced in an e-mail to the student body that Passion Pit will be performing at the 41st Spring Fair on April 20. Kingsfoil will also be performing.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
Hopkins hosted its annual Commemoration Day yesterday in honor of the 136th anniversary of Daniel Colt Gilman's inauguration as the University's first president. According to Susan Boswell, Dean of Student Life, this relatively new tradition was created as a way to recognize the founding of the university.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
Last month, four Hopkins students were awarded $5,000 in grant money to launch the Baltimore MicroFarming Project. Reflecting a growing national interest in community-based agriculture, the MicroFarming Project is aimed at providing opportunities for refugees living in Baltimore. While helping to integrate displaced persons into the larger Baltimore community, the Project will also afford refugees a chance to procure basic dietary and economic resources. This page supports the MicroFarming Project and commends the Hopkins students for their desire to effect change. We believe it is necessary, however, that Hopkins administrators and students act on a larger scale to support Baltimore refugees. In contrast to the other issues in which the Hopkins community has become engaged, the problems facing refugees are wholly unique. Unlike ordinary immigrants in Baltimore, they are nationless. Usually thrust from their homes to escape the ravages of war, religious and ethnic persecution or national disaster, these displaced persons are forced into a situation out of their control. Each year, it is estimated that around 900 refugees seek asylum in Baltimore. Unfortunately, the support system for these refugees is deficient and fails to adequately address basic human needs. Although the U.S. State Department provides $850 in cash assistance for each refugee, resettlement agencies often take up to half for administrative purposes, leaving most refugees with a mere $425. Most refugees in Baltimore receive only eight months of welfare support - including food, clothing and medical services - and only two months of rent support. After that, they are on their own in a city they know nothing about. This page feels that many individuals, upon reading these facts, would quickly desire to provide assistance. However, we believe that effective change cannot be achieved without a collective institution to bridge the divide between a sympathetic citizenry and an ill-fated group of refugees. To this end, we call on Hopkins to lead the charge. As a centerpiece of Baltimore society, education, and medicine, Hopkins can implement a number of specific policies to directly aid struggling refugees in Baltimore. First, the University can address the health concerns of the displaced families, which often live in dilapidated housing without access to basic healthcare. As a world-renowned medical institution, Hopkins can set up a clinic to administer healthcare and provide regular checkups for refugees. Hopkins can also focus on the institutional public health iniquities inherent in refugee neighborhoods. Poor sanitation, plumbing, electricity, and shelter all create a deadly combination. The Bloomberg School of Public Health, the largest institution of its kind in the United States, should focus on specific public health directives to address these urgent concerns. Additionally, Hopkins has at its disposal a unique tool to combat the cultural divide between Baltimore and the refugee neighborhoods: trained language professionals. Many refugees arrive in the U.S. without any basic knowledge of the English language. To compound this problem, any comprehensive attempt by the City of Baltimore to educate the refugees is futile; the city simply lacks the resources and personnel. In contrast, Hopkins has trained linguists who specialize in languages spoken most by the refugees. The Center for Language Education, for example, offers courses in Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Kiswahili, Russian and Persian. The Center, to this end, should take the initiative in focusing on teaching the English language to the refugee populations in Baltimore. On top of this, the University can provide general education to refugees. Because many displaced persons have come to Baltimore to flee persecution in the Middle East, education among the individuals, especially women, is lacking. Being that many of the hostile nations from which they have fled forbid women from attending schools, refugees lack the basic knowledge to make them marketable in the workplace. Hopkins, with its esteemed faculty and School of Education, can fill this gap. Furthermore, Hopkins students - many of whom already participate in educating Baltimore youth and incarcerated persons - can specifically focus on tutoring the refugee population. Hopkins also possesses something the City of Baltimore and other humanitarian aid organizations lack: access to mass transportation. Because refugees often do not have a steady income, it is difficult to pay for travel. This lack of immobility leads inevitably to unemployment and supply shortages. It is a vicious cycle that Baltimore refugees are trapped in. The JHMI Shuttle and other Hopkins buses can provide free and speedy transportation to medical and learning facilities, as well as to grocery stores, which are largely nonexistent in the "food deserts" to which many refugees are consigned. Finally, these goals are not hopelessly impractical. Although there are many refugees in Baltimore, they are a relatively fixed and delineated population. The aid which Hopkins administers can thus affect many individuals personally. In time, it might even be possible to achieve a largely healthy and educated refugee population. What's more, the Hopkins Freshman Book Read this year dealt directly with the issue of refugees in the United States. Strength in What Remains, a narrative by Tracy Kidder, depicts the plight of a man named Deo who comes to the U.S. to escape civil war in his native Burundi. It is a story that exposes the sacrifice and perseverance of refugees all across the world - triumph amidst the worst of human tragedy. This University, in essence, has an imperative to act. It singly possesses rare resources and a vital infrastructure which can positively affect thousands of lives. The Baltimore MicroFarming Project is a step in the right direction, but only with the full force of the Hopkins institution and community can real change come to Baltimore refugees.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
HopSecret is a new website that gives students the opportunity to anonymously submit their "secrets"- contemplations, personal confessions and random ideas.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
In honor of Black History Month, the Black Student Union (BSU) and the Hopkins Muslim Association (JHUMA) collaborated to host a dinner on Sunday, Feb. 19, and talk about Islamic history in Baltimore. Entitled Food and Fellowship, the program featured Diwan Al-Amin, a professor of Islamic studies at the Community College of Baltimore County, as the keynote speaker.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
For years, refugees have come to the United States seeking an escape from political repression and unsafe environments. In 2007, the U.S. government announced they would connect 60,000 refugees to new homes in the United States. Since then, nearly 700 refugees have settled in Baltimore, according to The Baltimore Sun.
(02/22/12 5:00am)
A new pledge class joined Alpha Kappa Psi (AKP), the professional business fraternity, and Alpha Phi Omega (APO), the co-ed national service fraternity, after recruitment events this spring. AKP gained 18 new pledges from their spring rush events, while APO gained 30 new undergraduate members.
(02/18/12 5:00am)
Amidst the slow crawl of life in Antarctica, from the strut of the Emperor Penguin to the waddle of the Weddell Seal out of water, there is a flurry of activity by scientists from Russia's Artic and Antarctic Research Institute, as they attempt to reach an ice-buried lake which sits two miles beneath the surface. But of the millions of lakes on Earth, what makes this one dubbed Lake Vostok so special? According to calculations by researchers, the lake may be up to 14 million years old with its waters reaching an age of one million years. Furthermore, underneath the frigid Antarctic atmosphere, Vostok has been sealed off from sunlight for over 1,000 years. Thus, the potential for unique life forms adapted to not only cold environments but also lightless ones is enough to make any biologist salivate. Work on Lake Vostok officially began in 1999; however, the story goes back as far as the early 1970's. At that time, Russia began drilling into the Antarctic ice searching for air bubbles caught in the ice, giving atmospheric freeze frames at different times of the planet's history. But when the team found evidence of a lake present beneath all that ice, and satellite detection confirmed their findings, researchers knew it was big. Vostok stretches up to 155 miles long and 50 miles wide in some spots and as deep as 1,600 feet. Of the 400-something below-ice lakes discovered on Antarctica, Lake Vostok is by far the largest. Teams from the United States and United Kingdom are now also working to reach the lake. Because the Russian drilling project was not originally designed for sampling water beneath the ice, the latest reports from the site say their work is progressing at only 5.7 feet per day. However, both the U.S. and U.K. have begun moving state-of-the-art drilling equipment to Antarctica and plan on drilling as soon as 2013. When the two teams do start working, they will be able to reach the ice in a matter of days with their hot-water drills and bring up water samples within 24 hours. One concern is that as temperatures drop lower and lower, aircraft will no longer be able to operate in the frigid environment. As a result, if researchers cannot withdraw samples soon, they will have to stop work for two whole years until the next time summer reaches the South Pole. And while the thought of workers stranded in the frozen tundra may remind some people of movies such as Shackleton in 2002 or The Thing in 1982 and 2011, the team has remained in close contact with headquarters in St. Petersburg and has given assurances that they are safe and sound. While the work has been long and difficult, the possibilities that lie under all that ice makes the effort worthwhile for scientists such as John Priscu, a microbiologist from the University of Montana. Priscu has been keeping in close contact with the Russian team, and, regardless of who gets the first sample, whether it be the Russians, the Brits or the Americans, he knows that what researchers find may blow the minds of scientists across the globe.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
Sorority recruitment had its highest turnout to date last week, with 238 women registering and 189 women receiving invitations. Only 197 women registered last year. Hopkins's four Panhellenic sororities, Alpha Phi, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Phi Mu and Pi Beta Phi participated in the recruitment process.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
Friday night saw Nolan's transformed into a competition scene, with students playing trivia, participating in eating contests and singing karaoke. The Diverse Sexuality and Gender Alliance (DSAGA) hosted an event to fundraise for Moveable Feast, a non-profit that provides meals to individuals bedridden with diseases such as HIV/AIDS and different forms of cancer.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
This Saturday marks the third annual Mardi Gras Festival at Power Plant Live near the Inner Harbor. Beginning from 9 p.m. and running through midnight, there will be fire breathers, stilt walkers and beads up and down the street.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
I'm a big fan of watching something before going to sleep. For some strange reason, consuming that form of entertainment is just that much easier than reading or listening to music. But recently, as I've been watching Breaking Bad — a show about a chemistry teacher that starts manufacturing meth in order to support his family — it keeps me up all night.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
Raise your hand if you agree with this statement: Pluto is a planet.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
At the 9:30 Club on Friday night, a frenzied sense of finality was palpable in the air. It was the second to last show of the People and Things tour that Jack's Mannequin headlined with Jukebox the Ghost and Allen Stone, and the near prospect to the end of what has evidently been a successful and exciting tour for the bands elicited some unexpected collaborations between members of different bands and some manic creative energy.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
Love Jones: Spoken Word took place for two hours at Nolan's, providing jazz music, poetry, and history, commemorating not only Black History Month, but also Valentine's Day.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
There are no cougars in Cougar Town. Because they're all in Philadelphia – at the Field House bar downtown – where ABC's Cougar Town happened to be holding one of multiple nationwide viewing parties last week.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
This Single of the Week, "Displacement Song," is from Liz Green's newest album, O, Devotion.
(02/16/12 5:00am)
Hopkins's improv group, the Buttered Niblets, have done it again! This past Friday's performance proved to be one of the most entertaining — and also most crowded — performances this academic year.
