Thursday 11 September 2014

THANK YOU

Hi girls,

I just want to say thank you for your time, your comments and your contribution to the blog. It has been a pleasure to read your comments. However, the new academic year is starting so we have to say good bye to the blog for the time being.

Thank you very much indeed.

Do take care Puy

© ACADEMIA ARALAR. Estella, Navarra.

Friday 15 August 2014

HOW NOT TO KILL YOUR READERS

THIS ENTRY IS FOR THE 15TH OF SEPTEMBER

Reporting Robin Williams’ suicide: how not to kill your readers

Mentally ill people are told to seek help, when in reality that help is often unavailable. What we get are front pages that make our illnesses worse

Young woman lying on couch, therapist leaning toward her with hands clasped, cropped — ‘The last time I needed serious therapy, it took 12 months for an appointment to become available – that was before the current crisis. We need a revolution in mental healthcare.’ Photograph: Alamy

Yesterday, as I went to work news broke that the actor Robin Williams had been found dead in his flat in a suspected suicide. Today, as I woke up, the newspaper front pages were being released on Twitter.

The Sun and the Metro decided to go with details of how Williams killed himself, while the Mail and the Mirror focused on the reasons why. (Mail Online goes into excruciating detail on the methods Williams used, but does so in the body copy of an article.) All four cheerfully ignore theSamaritan’s guidelines on media reporting of suicide, which cite evidence that “vulnerable individuals may be influenced to engage in imitative behaviours by reports of suicide, particularly if the coverage is extensive, prominent, sensationalist and/or explicitly describes the method of suicide”.

Let’s be clear, this is not a hypothetical danger: a review of almost 100 studies worldwide has found a strong, coherent and consistent association between certain types of media reporting and increased risk of suicide in vulnerable people. The Bridgend suicides in Wales should be known by every journalist as an example of how the media can make things worse.

The UK press seems to have taken its cue from the US coroner, who released a great deal of detailed information about Williams’ death – far more than we are likely to have had from a British coroner. But it still has a duty to its readers to filter as well as repeat the information it has, and the US media is creating exactly the same risks by reporting these details in full as the UK press has done.

In the UK funding is being stripped from already stretched mental health services at the same time as punitive welfare policies strip money from the poorest and force unwell people to attempt to work despite disabilities that make it impossible for them to do so safely. A population that is already vulnerable is being made more so by lack of access to treatment and to funds. The UK is in the grip of an acute mental health crisis. This context is important.

The reason the media isn’t supposed to talk about methods used is because that knowledge can turn someone who is passively suicidal into someone with an active plan. Knowing the distances dropped, the ligatures used, the medication taken, the blades employed can give a suicidal person the knowledge of how to do the deed; how to go about taking their thoughts from the realm of the hypothetical into the realm of the real.

Of course, they can just Google that information but that requires an act of will on their part; that’s a barrier that acts as another check, a moment where someone might look at what they are doing and consider other possibilities. Google also places helpline numbers prominently in search results, which is more than some media manage in their reporting. Plastering that knowledge all over newspapers that someone sees on their walk to work, in their local supermarket, in their train carriage, negates that barrier completely. It says: here is how you successfully kill yourself.

Even if they don’t contain step-by-step instructions on how to kill yourself, a wall of front pages tying suicide to a specific cause lends justification to a suicidal person’s internal logic that says suicide is a rational response. Suicidal thoughts are, for many people, a temporary problem; distracting yourself from them is a valid and sensible response, and sometimes the only way to stop yourself acting on them. It’s hard to maintain that distraction when a celebrity dies in this way; it’s harder still when the media seems to buy into the idea that money troubles, for example, are a reason for suicide.

There is, inevitably, a search for meaning and a desire to rationalise what’s happened, but reductionist and intrusive stories hurt the families of those who have died by telling them, in effect, that there might have been something they could have changed. They also tell suicidal readers that there are good reasons to die sometimes; they reinforce the grim logic of acute depression. You can do this even with the most gentle, well-meaning attempts to memorialise someone’s life.

The flip side of the media response is a slew of articles tying Williams’ comedic genius inextricably to his depression and struggles with addiction. But he was brilliant despite his mental illness, not because of it. In cases like this we search desperately for a spark of hope, a positive spin, and find it in the idea that his genius could only exist alongside his sadness. But without his brilliance, the madness would remain, and without his madness, the brilliance might have shone so much more brightly. You can be a genius without being depressed, and generally those without major chronic illnesses get a lot more done and have longer lives. There is a strange ambiguity about the “mad genius” narrative that feeds into anxieties about getting treatment. What if, without the depression, I am no longer me? What if I lose my creative spark? What if I lose the last of what makes life possible?

But the onus is still on us, the mentally ill, to seek treatment despite our (not always unfounded) fears that it might not work, and might even harm us. We are told to talk about depression more, when talking is the last thing a depressed person wants to or feels able to do, and when most people aren’t interested in listening. We’re told to seek help whenin reality that help is often unavailable.

The last time I needed serious therapy, it took 12 months for an appointment to become available – that was before the current crisis. I cannot imagine being able to negotiate the barriers to NHS assistance if I were suicidal in London this morning, even in my position of relative wealth, insight and access. But it’s plausible that Williams did manage to get the help he needed but it wasn’t enough. It isn’t enough for a lot of people. A lot of people die despite excellent care. We need more research, more treatment options; we need a revolution in mental healthcare. What we get are front pages that make our illnesses worse.

Fundamentally, the media doesn’t care about the guidelines. It doesn’t care about the people they are meant to protect. Mentally ill people who die come in two types: the talented and brilliant, for whom death is an inevitable part of their brilliance; and the poor and underprivileged whose deaths are irrelevant except where they interact with an existing story. The media doesn’t care about our deaths unless we’re famous, and then it will pore over every gruesome detail regardless of how that might affect those of us still living, still struggling, still reading the news and still fighting for hope every day. What does it matter, after all, if a few more people succeed in killing themselves in the next few weeks? They were depressed. There was nothing anyone could have done.

Tuesday 12 August 2014

BABIES' BRAINS

This entry is for the 12th of September

'Scans chart how quickly babies' brains grow'

By Smitha MundasadHealth reporter, BBC News

Scans showed babies brains reached more than half their adult size in the first 90 days of life

Human brains grow most rapidly just after birth and reach half their adult size within three months, according to a study in JAMA Neurology.

Using advanced scanning techniques, researchers found male brains grew more quickly than those of female infants.

Areas involved in movement developed at the fastest pace. Those associated with memory grew more slowly.

Scientists say collating this data may help them identify early signs of developmental disorders such as autism.

Sizing up development

For centuries doctors have estimated brain growth using measuring tape to chart a baby's head circumference over time.

Any changes to normal growth patterns are monitored closely as they can suggest problems with development.

But as head shapes vary, these tape measurements are not always accurate.

Led by scientists at the University of California, researchers scanned the brains of 87 healthy babies from birth to three months.

They saw the most rapid changes immediately after birth - newborn brains grew at an average rate of 1% a day. This slowed to 0.4% per day at the end of the 90-day period.

Researchers say recording the normal growth trajectory of individual parts of the brain might help them better understand how early disorders arise.

They found the cerebellum, an area of the brain involved in the control of movement, had the highest rate of growth - doubling in size over the 90-day period.

The slowest region measured was the hippocampus, a structure that plays an important part in how memories are made.

'Accurate data'

Scientists suggest this could mirror the relative significance of these skills as a young infant.

Dr Martin Ward Platt, a consultant paediatrician at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle, who was not involved in the research, told the BBC: "This is the first time anyone has published accurate data about how babies' brains grow that is not based on post-mortem studies or less effective scanning methods.

"The study should provide us with useful information as this is an important time in development.

"We know, for example, if there are difficulties around the time of birth, a baby's growth can fall away in the first few months."

Looking at babies who were born early, researchers noticed their brains were 4% smaller than the brains of babies born at full term.

And despite growing at a quicker rate than babies born on time, their brains were still 2% smaller at the end of three months.

Scientists will now investigate whether alcohol and drug consumption during pregnancy alters brain size at birth. is for the 12th of September

© ACADEMIA ARALAR. Estella, Navarra.

RUGBY

This entry is for the 11th of September

Women's Rugby World Cup 2014: Ireland and England name sides

Women's World Cup semi-final: England v Ireland
Venue: Stade Jean Bouin, Paris Date: 13 August Kick-off: 17:00 BST
Coverage: Live radio commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra and the BBC Sport website, live text commentary on BBC Sport website

Ireland have reverted to the same XV that upset holders New Zealand for their Women's World Cup semi-final against England in Paris on Wednesday.

Philip Doyle's side shocked the four-time champions 17-14 in the pool stage.

Captain Katy Mclean returns for England, who make six changes to the team that drew 13-13 with Canada.

Scrum-half La Toya Mason, wing Kay Wilson, hooker Victoria Fleetwood, lock Joanna McGilchrist and flanker Alexandra Matthews are also recalled.

Matthews, 21, who will win her 12th cap, is by far the least experienced of a starting side boasting 855 caps in all.

And with Marlie Packer filling the back row spot on the bench, there is no place for Heather Fisher in the 23-woman squad.

Fly-half Mclean reclaims her place from Ceri Large after being rested for the 45-5 win over Spain and only returning to the bench for the final Pool A match against Canada.

Sara Orchard, BBC women's rugby commentator
"Katy Mclean's return as captain and fly-half is no surprise. The biggest call is the selection of 21-year-old Alex Matthews at flanker, while Heather Fisher misses out as Marlie Packer gets the back-row seat on the bench. By their own standards, England did not play well against Canada and significant improvement will be required if they are to beat an in-form Ireland and make a fourth consecutive World Cup final."

Number eight Sarah Hunter, who captained the side in Mclean's absence, reverts to vice-captain.

England head coach Gary Street said: "Ceri Large has done a great job at fly-half for this tournament - but it is great to welcome back Katy, who is feeling fresh and ready to go."

Street's team advanced to the knockout stages as the winners of Pool A on points difference.

Ireland, meanwhile, won Pool B by beating Kazakhstan 40-5, a match in which they made 10 changes from the side that upset the Black Ferns.

Head coach Doyle said: "We've had a fantastic campaign so far and that has only come from hard work and dedication. We don't intend for it to end here."

The match at the Stade Jean Bouin, home of Stade Francais, is the first of the day's semi-finals, with hosts France facing Canada at the same venue at 19:45 BST.

SILVA

This entry is for the 10th of September

David Silva: Manchester City playmaker signs five-year deal

Spain playmaker David Silva has signed a new five-year deal with Premier League champions Manchester City.

The 28-year-old joined City for £24m from Valencia in July 2010.

"From the moment I joined the club four years ago it has felt like a second home to me," said Silva, who has 83 caps for Spain.

"On and off the pitch, I feel incredibly content and fulfilled, so why wouldn't I stay and keep winning trophies with a fantastic team?"

Silva scored eight goals in 40 appearances as he helped City to the title last season, when the club also claimed the Capital One Cup.

He was part of the team that won the Premier League crown in 2011-12, and also triumphed in the FA Cup with City in 2010-11 at the end of his first campaign in English football.

David Silva in the Premier League
In total, Silva has played 130 Premier League games, scoring 21 goals and providing 39 assists.

"Over the last four years, we have achieved so much together, establishing City as a dominating force in England," Silva told City's website.

"Now, when I look around this dressing room, I can see no reason why we won't become one of the top teams in the world.

"It was a straightforward decision to extend my stay here and spend my peak years at Manchester City, a club with unbelievable fans who have always supported me."

Silva started two of Spain's game at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and was a substitute in the other but could not prevent the reigning champions being eliminated at the group stage.

He is the third City player to sign a new deal this summer, joining wingerSamir Nasri and defender Aleksandar Kolarov in committing his future to the club.

HURRICANE BERTHA

This entry is for the 9th of September

Parts of Scotland affected by ex-hurricane Bertha

Retreating water left debris across the railway line at Kingussie

Parts of Scotland have been badly hit by high winds and heavy rain in the wake of what was Hurricane Bertha.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has almost 40 flood warnings in place, covering Aberdeenshire, Speyside, Moray, Caithness and Sutherland, and Tayside.

Moray Council said it was evacuating about 200 homes at risk of flooding in Elgin.

And ScotRail said train travel was being severely impacted by flooding.

Forecasters said more heavy rain and strong winds were likely overnight, affecting much of Scotland.

They warned of difficult driving conditions and the risk of further localised flooding, with gales around exposed northern coasts.

It advised commuters to avoid rail travel between Aberdeen and Inverness, and Perth and Inverness.

Elgin was one of the worst affected areas. Reader Alastair Mackie said the main rail line "looks more like a canal".

Roads in Moray and the Highlands were badly hit.

Jump media player

Media player help

Out of media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue.

Amateur footage shows a raging torrent in Kingussie

The Letters to Loggie road has been closed, eight miles south of Ullapool on Lochbroom

There was a dramatic scene in Nairn after the heavy rain

This road outside Tomintoul collapsed

Elgin was one of the areas badly hit

The rail line at Huntly was under water

Part of the A938 at Duthil near Carrbridge fell away

Among the worst affected routes were the A838 Durness to Tongue road, which was closed at the south end of Loch Eriboll.

The B873 Altnaharra to Syre road has been shut at Grumbeg Bridge, while fallen trees have closed the B827 Skiach to Evanton road.

The A835 was also shut by a landslip near Ullapool, disrupting travel between the town and Inverness. Part of the A938 at Duthil near Carrbridge fell away.

The Keith Show was cancelled due to the severe weather.

The Met Office's amber warning for rain - meaning "be prepared" - is for the Grampian and Highlands and Eilean Siar areas, and there is a wider yellow warning for the rest of eastern and northern Scotland.

By early Monday morning, Lossiemouth had recorded almost a month's rainfall in 12 hours, while gusts of 50mph swept through Aberdeenshire.

Dallas in Moray found itself under water

By Monday afternoon, large areas of countryside were under water - such as here near Kingussie

The River Dulnain in the Highlands was affected by heavy rain

This tree was blown down in the Kildrummy area of Aberdeenshire

A DESERT DOME THAT INSPIRES ROSK STARS

This entry is for the 8th of September

A desert dome that inspires rock stars and star-gazers

By Ashley Winchester

In August 1953, the Integratron’s creator, George Van Tassel, claimed to have received a message. The California test pilot and engineer said extra-terrestrials gave him plans for creating a “high-voltage electrostatic generator that would supply a broad range of frequencies to recharge the cell structure” – in other words, a structure that could heal through sound. Over the next 18 years, the masterpiece was built at a geomagnetic vortex near Landers, California, purportedly drawing from the powers of Giant Rock: an enormous, freestanding boulder thought by Van Tassel to be a centre of UFO activities. Think Sedona meets Stonehenge, about 20 miles north of Joshua Tree National Park. The generator was meant to be a machine of the mind, inspired by Nikola Tesla’s writings, Van Tassel’s telepathic communications and the design of Moses’ Tabernacle.

Related article: New Mexico’s alien nation

These days, the Integratron’s visitors are an eclectic mix of musicians, families, corporate think tanks, acrobats and artists who are all drawn to the structure’s otherworldly acoustics. But according to Joanne Karl, one of three sisters who purchased the space in 2000, 22 years after Van Tassel’s death, asking who visits the Integratron “is like saying who is the most average person at the Star Wars bar. … Erykah Badu was here the other day, and we usually have a VIP a week – they’re among our biggest visitors.”

: The exterior of the Integratron. (Ashley Winchester)

Other A-list visitors include Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age fame, the Arctic Monkeys and Jason Mraz, all of whom have played inside and revelled in the structure’s ability to naturally transfer and amplify sound, much as a cathedral does. Arcade Fire came to the dome to recharge and jam following this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, about 66 miles southeast of the Integratron.

“We’re not really a recording studio – you can hear it’s not a foam-padded room,” Karl said. “But musicians have recorded acoustic sets in here and got coyotes in the middle of the night and thought it was the raddest.”

: The lower level of the Integratron. (Ashley Winchester)

Beyond having exceptional acoustics, the Integratron resides in a place that’s ideal for stargazing. And while many will likely flock to Joshua Tree National Park – known for its absence of light pollution – to catch a glimpse of the upcoming Perseid meteor shower, the Integratron will provide a lesser-known viewing party about a half an hour north.

The annual shower is among the brightest and most reliable in the Northern Hemisphere, with up to 100 meteors visible per hour, according to NASA. The natural light show, caused by Earth passing through space debris from the Swift-Tuttle comet, is characterised by its blazing shooting stars.

The 8th annual “Star Party”, scheduled this year on 9 August around the meteor shower’s peak viewing time, includes live music; a screening of The Wizard of Oz, set to a soundtrack of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon; fire dancers; and overnight camping. Astronomers will offer lectures and telescope demonstrations outside the dome, where partygoers will be able to see the shower.

Inside the dome, the event will also include the Integratron’s signaturesound bath, in which participants – heads positioned toward the structure’s centre – lie on the floor and relax to the tune of quartz crystal “singing” bowls, the tones of which are said to affect specific energy points in the body. Because of the Integratron’s acoustics, the quietest whisper – or softest snore – reverberates throughout the dome. But as the Karl sisters slowly run a mallet around the bowls, the sounds produced travel in circles around listeners’ heads, inducing – if all goes according to plan – a meditative state.