Radio hasn't really changed much in the past 80 years or so. The last "big thing" was the widespread adoption of Frequency Modulation (FM) in the 1960s and 70s. Now a new radio format is set to add features to your radio listening experience: HD Radio. This new technology promises higher quality sound, more stations with the same amount of bandwidth and extra information beamed straight to your radio as a digital signal. HD Radio is not without its detractors, however, and it has a long way to go before it can be considered a success.
When most people first hear of HD Radio, they often assume it's like HDTV, but for radio. HD Radio is a very different technology, however. Unlike the "HD" in HDTV, the "HD" in HD Radio is not an abbreviation for "High Definition." Although some have said that it actually means "Hybrid Digital," according to iBiquity, "HD" is a trademarked brand name and doesn't actually stand for anything [Source: Crutchfield Advisor].
HD Radio won't replace traditional radio broadcasting -- it will be offered alongside it. So if you have no interest in what HD Radio has to offer, you don't have to worry that someday your trusty stereo receiver will stop picking up radio stations. However, the purchase of a receiver that can accept and interpret an HD Radio signal is necessary if you want to enjoy the extra features allowed by the new technology.
Just what are those new features? An increase in sound quality is immediately apparent. An FM radio frequency can only carry a certain amount of information, which is why FM sound quality is considered lower than CD quality. Amplitude Modulation (AM) frequencies carry even less information, which is why virtually all AM stations broadcast in mono. Their signal can't carry stereo information.
HD Radio sends more information over the same radio frequency by digitizing the signal. A digital signal can then be compressed by a computer, much like an MP3 is a compressed version of the much larger WAV file that is on a CD. Digitizing allows FM stations to broadcast with near-CD quality sound, and HD Radio AM stations will sound just as good as FM stations do now. An HD Radio receiver can also zero in directly on the digital transmission, eliminating interference and signal "reflections" off of buildings. The result is clear sound without any static, pop or hiss.
Another application of HD Radio is the ability to multicast multiple channels on the same signal. Multicasting also refers to a form of Internet routing architecture, so the multiple channel transmissions allowed by HD Radio might be more accurately described as multiplexing (iBiquity chose the term "multicasting").
The extra bandwidth of an HD Radio signal leaves room for completely separate channels operating on the same frequency. Here's how it works: Suppose your favorite radio station is 102.5 FM. When you tune in, you pick up the regular broadcast -- classic rock. Your HD Radio receiver indicates that the station is multicasting. You turn a dial to select the alternate channel, where they play nothing but blues. Or your favorite talk radio station might have separate, simultaneous broadcasts featuring news and weather, sports talk and political commentary.
Current HD technology allows the addition of one extra music channel and three extra talk channels before the sound quality begins to suffer. The extra stations are referred to as HD2 stations. If an HD Radio receiver loses the digital signal, it seamlessly fades back to analog FM until the digital signal returns.
An HD Radio receiver can display text data that is sent alongside the audio signal. This could take the form of artist and song information about the music being played or sports, weather or stock updates.
No radio stations are planning to go all-HD. They'll continue to broadcast regular analog signals along with the HD signals, so old radios will be able to pick up AM and FM stations with no problems in the foreseeable future.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Skype vs. Vonage
In a way, the Internet is a paradox. Getting access to it in your home almost always requires you to spend some money. But once you have that access, you can use the Internet to save money. You can shop around for lower prices on everything from electronics to airline tickets. You can also send e-mail messages, pictures, music and videos without paying for any type of postage. With Voice over IP (VoIP) services, you can make phone calls -- even long distance or international ones -- for free.
Currently, there are several VoIP services on the market. The two most well-known ones are Skype and Vonage. Although both of these services use VoIP technology, they're quite different from one another. In this article, we'll explore how each of these services works, and we'll give you the information you need to decide if one of them is right for you.
Skype and Vonage are similar in that they're both VoIP services. When you make a VoIP call, you use your computer's built-in microphone and speakers, a headset, an IP phone or a phone plugged into an analog telephone adapter in place of an ordinary phone. This equipment and your computer translate the analog signal of your voice into a digital signal. The digital signal travels over the Internet. Once it reaches its destination, the telephone or computer that answers the call translates it back into analog sound. Check out How Voice over IP Works to learn about this process and how it's different from plain old telephone service (POTS).
Skype and Vonage are also similar in that they can be significantly less expensive than traditional phone service. This is especially true if you make a lot of long-distance calls. Depending on how you use it, Skype can even be completely free. But the two services have more differences than similarities, starting with the steps you need to take to open an account.
Currently, there are several VoIP services on the market. The two most well-known ones are Skype and Vonage. Although both of these services use VoIP technology, they're quite different from one another. In this article, we'll explore how each of these services works, and we'll give you the information you need to decide if one of them is right for you.
Skype and Vonage are similar in that they're both VoIP services. When you make a VoIP call, you use your computer's built-in microphone and speakers, a headset, an IP phone or a phone plugged into an analog telephone adapter in place of an ordinary phone. This equipment and your computer translate the analog signal of your voice into a digital signal. The digital signal travels over the Internet. Once it reaches its destination, the telephone or computer that answers the call translates it back into analog sound. Check out How Voice over IP Works to learn about this process and how it's different from plain old telephone service (POTS).
Skype and Vonage are also similar in that they can be significantly less expensive than traditional phone service. This is especially true if you make a lot of long-distance calls. Depending on how you use it, Skype can even be completely free. But the two services have more differences than similarities, starting with the steps you need to take to open an account.
What is the Apple iPhone?
For several years, Apple enthusiasts have been asking each other the question, "Does it exist? Is Apple really making a cell phone?" Rumors came and went, but Apple, a company known for its secrecy about products in development, said nothing. In the last six months, those rumors began to take on a life of their own as industry analysts joined the blogosphere in predicting that Apple would produce a phone sometime in the first half of 2007. In mid-November, news broke that Apple had placed an order with Hon Hai Precision Industry, Co., a longtime Taiwanese manufacturing partner, for 12 million units of a new device believed to be the fabled "iPhone" [Forbes]. That news sent the rumor mill into overdrive, but Apple and Steve Jobs, the company's chief executive officer, again said nothing. Analysts began issuing predictions of cost, features and when the phone would be available, with many of them claiming to have inside information. Given Apple's extraordinary track record with the iPod and its recent innovations in desktop and laptop design, expectations were very high, perhaps impossibly so.
On January 9, at Apple's annual product showcase, Macworld Expo, Jobs finally revealed the already legendary phone, and it's beyond what anyone expected. Jobs briefly tricked his audience during his Macworld Expo keynote address, announcing three new Apple products: a widescreen iPod, a cell phone and an "Internet communicator." Each announcement drew thunderous applause from the crowd, but what Jobs then revealed was that these three products were actually all part of one device -- the Apple iPhone.
Touted as a "revolutionary mobile phone," the iPhone can make calls, play music, navigate the Web, edit photos, play movies and text message, among many other capabilities. Although many of the iPhone's functions can be found in other devices, the iPhone appears to be unique in that it seamlessly blends these abilities together, while also throwing a bevy of innovations into the mix.
Jobs demonstrated many of the iPhone's features for the audience. One sequence began with a call from Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. Jobs answered the call on his iPhone, added Schiller to his address book, and when Schiller asked for a photo, Jobs emailed it to him -- all while continuing the call. Later Jobs showed off the phone's ability to integrate multiple applications by using the integrated Google maps application, which knew his location, and typing in a search for Starbucks. Every Starbucks location in San Francisco showed up on screen. Jobs chose one and in a few minutes he was on the phone with Starbucks, ordering 4,000 lattes before abruptly hanging up.
In order to seamlessly integrate Web, phone, media and messaging features, the iPhone employs remarkable, groundbreaking technology. Unlike traditional smartphones that have small, finger-cramping keyboards, the iPhone has only one button for "home." Instead, its 3.5-inch high resolution, color screen, which occupies most of the phone's face, doubles as a "multi-touch" display. The display shows different controls based on what you're doing. If you're typing a text message or e-mail, a keyboard appears at the bottom of the screen, and you can easily type a message and send it to someone from your address book. The multi-touch technology also has an auto-corrective feature that accounts for unintentional taps and corrects misspellings. For music and video, volume and playback controls appear on the screen, and so on for other applications.
The iPhone's multi-touch interface also allows the opportunity for innovative uses of the touch display. When viewing a photo or surfing the Web, simply perform a pinching motion with two fingers, and the photo or Web page zooms in. Spread two fingers apart, and the display zooms out. Scrolling in any application is done by just brushing a finger up or down on the screen.
An intriguing innovation in the phone is what Apple calls visual voicemail. No longer will you have to listen to all of your voicemails if you don't want to. Instead, they will appear in a list, much like an e-mail inbox, and you can simply point to the voicemail you want to play.
Apple has also integrated three sensors into its phone. One is an accelerometer, and it senses when you turn the phone on its side, automatically shifting the display to a landscape mode. This feature is incredibly useful for viewing panoramic pictures, videos or shuffling through your albums, which you view by their cover art. A second sensor detects ambient light and adjusts the screen's brightness accordingly in order to save power. The third sensor deactivates the screen when you bring the phone towards your face, so you won't be dialing with your cheek while talking on the device.
Like many of Apple's products, iPhone syncs easily with a Mac or PC. The phone runs a version of Apple's reliable OSX operating system, and its programs and iPod connector (located on the bottom of the phone) will be familiar to many Mac users. Use the iPod connector or a docking station to connect the phone to your computer, the iPhone will automatically sync your address book, photos, movies, music and bookmarks between the computer and the phone.
Now, all of this may sound great, but there are a few catches. First, the iPhone isn't available until June -- Apple needs to get FCC approval before the iPhone can start using a radio band. Second, Apple has an exclusive contract with Cingular through 2009, so if you want a iPhone, you'll have to be a Cingular customer. And third, it's not cheap. A 4 GB iPhone will set you back $499 with a two year service plan, while an 8 GB iPhone will cost $599 with a two year plan. Still, when compared to other high end smartphones, you're getting a lot. This is essentially a small, powerful computer in the palm of your hand, and of course it has Apple's famous sleek, stylish, minimalist design.
Here's a quick rundown of some of the iPhone's other features:
* 802.11 b/g WiFi and Bluetooth 2.0 wireless capabilities
* Quad-band GSM and Cingular EDGE network
* 3.5-inch high resolution screen with 160 ppi (pixels per inch)
* 2.0 megapixel digital camera
* Battery life: 5 hours talk/video/browsing, 16 hours audio playback
* 11.6 mm thin, 4.8 ounces
* IMAP and POP email support, with integrated Yahoo! e-mail client
* Text messages are displayed like instant message conversations, making keeping track of many messages much easier
* Speaker and standard headphone jack
So will the iPhone change the cell phone industry forever? That depends on who you ask. Keep in mind that very few people have even used the iPhone. But given Jobs' impressive demonstration and Apple's recent track record -- over 100 million iPods and 3 billion songs sold -- it's difficult to doubt that this is an extraordinary and important product. Apple's stock surged 7 percent on the day of Jobs' announcement and appears headed for record prices.
In other news, Cisco has filed suit against Apple for infringing on Cisco's trademarked "iPhone" name. Apparently, Apple and Cisco were in talks to negotiate the licensing of the name "iPhone" for Apple's product, but they had not yet reached an agreement when Jobs announced the product at CES.
On January 9, at Apple's annual product showcase, Macworld Expo, Jobs finally revealed the already legendary phone, and it's beyond what anyone expected. Jobs briefly tricked his audience during his Macworld Expo keynote address, announcing three new Apple products: a widescreen iPod, a cell phone and an "Internet communicator." Each announcement drew thunderous applause from the crowd, but what Jobs then revealed was that these three products were actually all part of one device -- the Apple iPhone.
Touted as a "revolutionary mobile phone," the iPhone can make calls, play music, navigate the Web, edit photos, play movies and text message, among many other capabilities. Although many of the iPhone's functions can be found in other devices, the iPhone appears to be unique in that it seamlessly blends these abilities together, while also throwing a bevy of innovations into the mix.
Jobs demonstrated many of the iPhone's features for the audience. One sequence began with a call from Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. Jobs answered the call on his iPhone, added Schiller to his address book, and when Schiller asked for a photo, Jobs emailed it to him -- all while continuing the call. Later Jobs showed off the phone's ability to integrate multiple applications by using the integrated Google maps application, which knew his location, and typing in a search for Starbucks. Every Starbucks location in San Francisco showed up on screen. Jobs chose one and in a few minutes he was on the phone with Starbucks, ordering 4,000 lattes before abruptly hanging up.
In order to seamlessly integrate Web, phone, media and messaging features, the iPhone employs remarkable, groundbreaking technology. Unlike traditional smartphones that have small, finger-cramping keyboards, the iPhone has only one button for "home." Instead, its 3.5-inch high resolution, color screen, which occupies most of the phone's face, doubles as a "multi-touch" display. The display shows different controls based on what you're doing. If you're typing a text message or e-mail, a keyboard appears at the bottom of the screen, and you can easily type a message and send it to someone from your address book. The multi-touch technology also has an auto-corrective feature that accounts for unintentional taps and corrects misspellings. For music and video, volume and playback controls appear on the screen, and so on for other applications.
The iPhone's multi-touch interface also allows the opportunity for innovative uses of the touch display. When viewing a photo or surfing the Web, simply perform a pinching motion with two fingers, and the photo or Web page zooms in. Spread two fingers apart, and the display zooms out. Scrolling in any application is done by just brushing a finger up or down on the screen.
An intriguing innovation in the phone is what Apple calls visual voicemail. No longer will you have to listen to all of your voicemails if you don't want to. Instead, they will appear in a list, much like an e-mail inbox, and you can simply point to the voicemail you want to play.
Apple has also integrated three sensors into its phone. One is an accelerometer, and it senses when you turn the phone on its side, automatically shifting the display to a landscape mode. This feature is incredibly useful for viewing panoramic pictures, videos or shuffling through your albums, which you view by their cover art. A second sensor detects ambient light and adjusts the screen's brightness accordingly in order to save power. The third sensor deactivates the screen when you bring the phone towards your face, so you won't be dialing with your cheek while talking on the device.
Like many of Apple's products, iPhone syncs easily with a Mac or PC. The phone runs a version of Apple's reliable OSX operating system, and its programs and iPod connector (located on the bottom of the phone) will be familiar to many Mac users. Use the iPod connector or a docking station to connect the phone to your computer, the iPhone will automatically sync your address book, photos, movies, music and bookmarks between the computer and the phone.
Now, all of this may sound great, but there are a few catches. First, the iPhone isn't available until June -- Apple needs to get FCC approval before the iPhone can start using a radio band. Second, Apple has an exclusive contract with Cingular through 2009, so if you want a iPhone, you'll have to be a Cingular customer. And third, it's not cheap. A 4 GB iPhone will set you back $499 with a two year service plan, while an 8 GB iPhone will cost $599 with a two year plan. Still, when compared to other high end smartphones, you're getting a lot. This is essentially a small, powerful computer in the palm of your hand, and of course it has Apple's famous sleek, stylish, minimalist design.
Here's a quick rundown of some of the iPhone's other features:
* 802.11 b/g WiFi and Bluetooth 2.0 wireless capabilities
* Quad-band GSM and Cingular EDGE network
* 3.5-inch high resolution screen with 160 ppi (pixels per inch)
* 2.0 megapixel digital camera
* Battery life: 5 hours talk/video/browsing, 16 hours audio playback
* 11.6 mm thin, 4.8 ounces
* IMAP and POP email support, with integrated Yahoo! e-mail client
* Text messages are displayed like instant message conversations, making keeping track of many messages much easier
* Speaker and standard headphone jack
So will the iPhone change the cell phone industry forever? That depends on who you ask. Keep in mind that very few people have even used the iPhone. But given Jobs' impressive demonstration and Apple's recent track record -- over 100 million iPods and 3 billion songs sold -- it's difficult to doubt that this is an extraordinary and important product. Apple's stock surged 7 percent on the day of Jobs' announcement and appears headed for record prices.
In other news, Cisco has filed suit against Apple for infringing on Cisco's trademarked "iPhone" name. Apparently, Apple and Cisco were in talks to negotiate the licensing of the name "iPhone" for Apple's product, but they had not yet reached an agreement when Jobs announced the product at CES.
What's with China and lead poisoning?
Was 2007 the year of the Chinese product recall? It does seem that way, with numerous Chinese-made products being taken off the shelves in what may be a record year for toy recalls. U.S. regulatory agencies and companies instituted numerous recalls for defective, dangerous or toxic products, such as toothpaste, children's jewelry, toys, tools, dog food, baby bibs, tires and computer batteries. The common link between many of these products: They were made in China and contain lead paint.
To investigate what's going on here, let's look at a few of the dozens of recalls that have taken place. In July 2007, Mattel recalled some of its "Dora the Explorer" and "Sesame Street" toys due to concerns about lead paint. On Aug. 2, 2007, Fisher-Price, a subsidiary of Mattel, recalled 967,000 plastic toys with lead paint. On Aug. 14, Mattel recalled 19 million more toys: 436,000 toy cars with lead paint and 18 million other toys (63 different models) that contained magnets that are dangerous if swallowed [source: NY Times]. On Sept. 21, after the deaths of three children, the Consumer Products Safety Commission recalled one million Chinese-made Simplicity and Graco Cribs. In this case, and with some of the year's other product recalls, the problem was attributed to a design flaw -- not shoddy construction by a Chinese manufacturer.
If the dangers of lead paint are well known, then why do so many Chinese-made products still contain it? First, lead paint is inexpensive, and it produces vivid colors. It also goes on easily and resists corrosion.
In the United States, lead paint was outlawed in 1962 for use in children's toys and products, apartments, houses, hospitals and similar structures. (Lead paint is still legally used on street signs and in a variety of other areas where it doesn't pose a health hazard.) Government regulations state that children's products whose lead content exceeds 0.06 percent face a recall [source: Washington Post].
Pollution and lead poisoning are major problems across China. At least 10 percent of Chinese children suffer from lead poisoning due to lead found in paint, food, water and other sources [source: Press Interpreter]. Lead poisoning can cause numerous health problems, including kidney failure and brain damage.
Since many of these recalled products were made in China, are Chinese manufacturers to blame? What role do the corporations that design and sell the products play? On the next page, we'll investigate some of the reasons behind the spate of recalls.
To investigate what's going on here, let's look at a few of the dozens of recalls that have taken place. In July 2007, Mattel recalled some of its "Dora the Explorer" and "Sesame Street" toys due to concerns about lead paint. On Aug. 2, 2007, Fisher-Price, a subsidiary of Mattel, recalled 967,000 plastic toys with lead paint. On Aug. 14, Mattel recalled 19 million more toys: 436,000 toy cars with lead paint and 18 million other toys (63 different models) that contained magnets that are dangerous if swallowed [source: NY Times]. On Sept. 21, after the deaths of three children, the Consumer Products Safety Commission recalled one million Chinese-made Simplicity and Graco Cribs. In this case, and with some of the year's other product recalls, the problem was attributed to a design flaw -- not shoddy construction by a Chinese manufacturer.
If the dangers of lead paint are well known, then why do so many Chinese-made products still contain it? First, lead paint is inexpensive, and it produces vivid colors. It also goes on easily and resists corrosion.
In the United States, lead paint was outlawed in 1962 for use in children's toys and products, apartments, houses, hospitals and similar structures. (Lead paint is still legally used on street signs and in a variety of other areas where it doesn't pose a health hazard.) Government regulations state that children's products whose lead content exceeds 0.06 percent face a recall [source: Washington Post].
Pollution and lead poisoning are major problems across China. At least 10 percent of Chinese children suffer from lead poisoning due to lead found in paint, food, water and other sources [source: Press Interpreter]. Lead poisoning can cause numerous health problems, including kidney failure and brain damage.
Since many of these recalled products were made in China, are Chinese manufacturers to blame? What role do the corporations that design and sell the products play? On the next page, we'll investigate some of the reasons behind the spate of recalls.
How Tourette Syndrome Works
You may think you know what Tourette syndrome is. To many Americans, it is a rare condition in which a person constantly twitches and has outbursts filled with obscenities. These thoughts are not necessarily our fault -- most of us probably got our information on Tourette's from not-so-reliable sources like TV dramas or Lifetime movies. So to begin, throw out what you think you know.
First, Tourette syndrome isn't as rare as you might think. An estimated one in 100 people suffers from a mild form of the syndrome, and about 200,000 Americans have the most severe form. Second, patients suffering from Tourette syndrome are not constantly twitching. The twitches, referred to as motor tics, actually often occur in intermittent bouts. Some patients experience them daily, and others have them less frequently. Tics can include actions like eye-blinking, foot-stomping and grimaces.
Probably the biggest misconception about Tourette syndrome is that those suffering from the condition are frequently belting out obscenities, a symptom known as coprolalia. This symptom actually occurs in less than 15 percent of Tourette's sufferers. Tourette syndrome can be defined as a tic disorder in which the patient suffers from several motor tics and at least one vocal tic, both of which begin in childhood or adolescence.
Now that we've cleared that up, let's find out what Tourette's is actually about.
First, Tourette syndrome isn't as rare as you might think. An estimated one in 100 people suffers from a mild form of the syndrome, and about 200,000 Americans have the most severe form. Second, patients suffering from Tourette syndrome are not constantly twitching. The twitches, referred to as motor tics, actually often occur in intermittent bouts. Some patients experience them daily, and others have them less frequently. Tics can include actions like eye-blinking, foot-stomping and grimaces.
Probably the biggest misconception about Tourette syndrome is that those suffering from the condition are frequently belting out obscenities, a symptom known as coprolalia. This symptom actually occurs in less than 15 percent of Tourette's sufferers. Tourette syndrome can be defined as a tic disorder in which the patient suffers from several motor tics and at least one vocal tic, both of which begin in childhood or adolescence.
Now that we've cleared that up, let's find out what Tourette's is actually about.
Does the shape of my face show that I have a genetic disorder?
Parents who suspect that their child may have a genetic disorder have a new tool in their physician's diagnostic arsenal. One British physician has improved on an old practice of examining a person's face to look for traits that come from genetic disorders.
It's true. The shape of your face, along with certain facial characteristics, can be a sign that you suffer from a genetic disorder. As many as 17,000 genetic disorders have been diagnosed [source: Deccan Herald]. Around 700 of these diagnosed disorders display abnormal facial characteristics [source: Daily Mail]. A classic example is the genetic disorder Down syndrome. This condition occurs when children inherit an extra copy of chromosome 21, giving them 47 chromosomes, rather than the usual 46. Doctors can easily diagnose Down syndrome due to the unique facial and cranial characteristics associated with it. But what about rarer disorders?
Dr. Peter Hammond created a computer program to make diagnosing some of these rare disorders easier. The program provides an accurate diagnosis, which can help parents make better decisions about treatment and genetic counseling for their child.
Dr. Hammond spent the last seven years traveling the globe collecting images of people with genetic disorders and entering them into a database he compiled. The program takes photos of children who share a genetic disorder, usually a series of 30 to 50, and creates a three-dimensional composite image for that disorder. When a physician encounters a suspected genetic disorder that has him stumped, he can introduce a photo of his patient into Hammond's database. The program examines facial traits, like the distance between eyes and the width of the nose, and compares traits found in the patient's image to those of the composites and comes up with possible diagnoses. As a control, Hammond also fed into his database images of children without a genetic disorder, creating a composite of a "normal" child.
For 30 of the 700 facially characteristic disorders, Hammond's program offers around 90 percent accuracy in diagnosis. These are generally the most easily recognizable conditions, such as Williams syndrome. People who suffer from this genetic disorder have short, upturned noses and mouths, along with a small jaw and a large forehead.
Williams syndrome is pretty rare -- some studies say it occurs in one out of every 7,500 births, while others say it's one in 10,000 births [source: OMIM]. But other genetic disorders are even rarer. For a doctor faced with a baffling condition that he has not encountered before, Hammond's program offers a chance to narrow the field. Determining which genes are associated with the possible diagnoses cuts down on the number of tests required to pinpoint the disorder. This can be important for worried parents who want to know what their child suffers from, as genetic tests can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars each [source: Science Direct].
Hammond's database has already discovered a new characteristic in autistics that can be used to diagnose autism spectrum disorder. The program found a "lopsided" effect in autistic people -- the result of one side of the brain being larger than the other side. The inventor-physician says he plans to further hone his database to be able to include factors like race and gender [source: BBC].
While his work is definitely furthering the field of medical diagnosis of genetic disorders, Hammond is actually building on an old foundation. Read on to find out about dysmorphology, the study of physical characteristics to diagnose disorders, as well as genetic counseling.
It's true. The shape of your face, along with certain facial characteristics, can be a sign that you suffer from a genetic disorder. As many as 17,000 genetic disorders have been diagnosed [source: Deccan Herald]. Around 700 of these diagnosed disorders display abnormal facial characteristics [source: Daily Mail]. A classic example is the genetic disorder Down syndrome. This condition occurs when children inherit an extra copy of chromosome 21, giving them 47 chromosomes, rather than the usual 46. Doctors can easily diagnose Down syndrome due to the unique facial and cranial characteristics associated with it. But what about rarer disorders?
Dr. Peter Hammond created a computer program to make diagnosing some of these rare disorders easier. The program provides an accurate diagnosis, which can help parents make better decisions about treatment and genetic counseling for their child.
Dr. Hammond spent the last seven years traveling the globe collecting images of people with genetic disorders and entering them into a database he compiled. The program takes photos of children who share a genetic disorder, usually a series of 30 to 50, and creates a three-dimensional composite image for that disorder. When a physician encounters a suspected genetic disorder that has him stumped, he can introduce a photo of his patient into Hammond's database. The program examines facial traits, like the distance between eyes and the width of the nose, and compares traits found in the patient's image to those of the composites and comes up with possible diagnoses. As a control, Hammond also fed into his database images of children without a genetic disorder, creating a composite of a "normal" child.
For 30 of the 700 facially characteristic disorders, Hammond's program offers around 90 percent accuracy in diagnosis. These are generally the most easily recognizable conditions, such as Williams syndrome. People who suffer from this genetic disorder have short, upturned noses and mouths, along with a small jaw and a large forehead.
Williams syndrome is pretty rare -- some studies say it occurs in one out of every 7,500 births, while others say it's one in 10,000 births [source: OMIM]. But other genetic disorders are even rarer. For a doctor faced with a baffling condition that he has not encountered before, Hammond's program offers a chance to narrow the field. Determining which genes are associated with the possible diagnoses cuts down on the number of tests required to pinpoint the disorder. This can be important for worried parents who want to know what their child suffers from, as genetic tests can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars each [source: Science Direct].
Hammond's database has already discovered a new characteristic in autistics that can be used to diagnose autism spectrum disorder. The program found a "lopsided" effect in autistic people -- the result of one side of the brain being larger than the other side. The inventor-physician says he plans to further hone his database to be able to include factors like race and gender [source: BBC].
While his work is definitely furthering the field of medical diagnosis of genetic disorders, Hammond is actually building on an old foundation. Read on to find out about dysmorphology, the study of physical characteristics to diagnose disorders, as well as genetic counseling.
Can I take a drug to wipe out one particular memory?
Researchers at New York University's LeDoux Laboratory have successfully deleted a single, targeted fear memory using drug therapy in rats. Their results, published in Nature Neuroscience, show that the removal of one memory from a rat's brain did not affect other memories there, and that the overall memory system was unharmed. The possibility of picking a particular memory to erase holds tremendous potential in treating people who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorders and other fear-related mental illnesses.
When the brain forms a memory, part of the process involves physically moving that memory from a neural network that supports short-term memory to one that holds long-term memories. The researchers, led by Joseph LeDoux, aimed to interrupt the transfer of a fear memory with the overall goal of deleting it. The way the scientists went about deleting the targeting memory implies that the act of recalling a memory involves a physical transfer as well. They were able to erase a memory by recalling it while the rats were under the influence of a drug call U0126, which induces limited memory loss (humans can't get it -- it's only approved for use in other animals).
The process they used for the study is fascinating. The researchers began with classical fear conditioning to create fear memories in a group of rats. They played two different musical tones, each one accompanied by an electric shock. The rats all developed two separate fears, one for each tone, which showed up in brain scans as increased neural activity in the amygdala, a part of the brain directly related to fear. Each time they heard either tone, they became afraid (presumably expecting the shock to follow).
Next, they divided the rats into two groups. The control group was left alone. The experimental group was drugged with U0126. All of the rats were then exposed to just one of the fear-inducing tones.
Once the experimental-group rats got the amnesia drug out their system, all of the rats were tested again. The researchers played both tones. The rats in the control group still showed increased activity in the amygdala in response to both tones. The rats in the experimental group only had a fear response to one of the tones. They were no longer afraid of the tone they'd been exposed to while under the influence of the drug. It's as if the process of recalling it brought it out of long-term memory, and the drug prevented it from being transferred back once the tone stopped playing.
Pointing to the change in amygdala activity, which is central to the brain's system of storing and recalling fearful memories (see How Fear Works to learn about this process), the researchers say the memory was not simply disconnected from fear, but that it was actually erased in its entirety. In other words, it was not that the rats learned not to be afraid of the tone; it was as if the rats had never learned to be afraid of the tone in the first place. And the fear of the second tone -- the one they'd not recalled while under U0126 -- was still active. The rest of the rats' memories appeared to be unaffected by the process.
The implications for the field of psychiatry are pretty staggering. Someone with a phobia of snakes or heights or flying could potentially receive treatment that would erase the phobia by bringing it up under the influence of a certain drug. People with post-traumatic stress disorder, whose lives are severely impacted a terrifying memory, could be cured by removing that memory from their brain.
And of course, the rest of us could use the process to wipe that person who broke our heart out of existence.
When the brain forms a memory, part of the process involves physically moving that memory from a neural network that supports short-term memory to one that holds long-term memories. The researchers, led by Joseph LeDoux, aimed to interrupt the transfer of a fear memory with the overall goal of deleting it. The way the scientists went about deleting the targeting memory implies that the act of recalling a memory involves a physical transfer as well. They were able to erase a memory by recalling it while the rats were under the influence of a drug call U0126, which induces limited memory loss (humans can't get it -- it's only approved for use in other animals).
The process they used for the study is fascinating. The researchers began with classical fear conditioning to create fear memories in a group of rats. They played two different musical tones, each one accompanied by an electric shock. The rats all developed two separate fears, one for each tone, which showed up in brain scans as increased neural activity in the amygdala, a part of the brain directly related to fear. Each time they heard either tone, they became afraid (presumably expecting the shock to follow).
Next, they divided the rats into two groups. The control group was left alone. The experimental group was drugged with U0126. All of the rats were then exposed to just one of the fear-inducing tones.
Once the experimental-group rats got the amnesia drug out their system, all of the rats were tested again. The researchers played both tones. The rats in the control group still showed increased activity in the amygdala in response to both tones. The rats in the experimental group only had a fear response to one of the tones. They were no longer afraid of the tone they'd been exposed to while under the influence of the drug. It's as if the process of recalling it brought it out of long-term memory, and the drug prevented it from being transferred back once the tone stopped playing.
Pointing to the change in amygdala activity, which is central to the brain's system of storing and recalling fearful memories (see How Fear Works to learn about this process), the researchers say the memory was not simply disconnected from fear, but that it was actually erased in its entirety. In other words, it was not that the rats learned not to be afraid of the tone; it was as if the rats had never learned to be afraid of the tone in the first place. And the fear of the second tone -- the one they'd not recalled while under U0126 -- was still active. The rest of the rats' memories appeared to be unaffected by the process.
The implications for the field of psychiatry are pretty staggering. Someone with a phobia of snakes or heights or flying could potentially receive treatment that would erase the phobia by bringing it up under the influence of a certain drug. People with post-traumatic stress disorder, whose lives are severely impacted a terrifying memory, could be cured by removing that memory from their brain.
And of course, the rest of us could use the process to wipe that person who broke our heart out of existence.
Are we on the brink of an AIDS vaccine?
A research group in Atlanta has developed an AIDS vaccine that shows 96 percent effectiveness in non-human, pre-clinical trials. The GeoVax vaccine, developed on the campus of Emory University, is already in Phase I human trials and could be on the market within four years. It appears to address one of the biggest obstacles to fighting AIDS medically.
One of the challenges involved in preventing and curing any type of virus is the rate of mutation. You can find a way to kill a virus, but unless that method involves a whole bunch of attack angles at once, it's going to stop working pretty quickly. The virus is going escape the immune-system response triggered by the vaccine. HIV has a very high rate of mutation, so killing or deactivating it requires multiple, simultaneous attacks that can preempt or negate its ability to mutate.
In order to stop the virus from escaping, the GeoVax vaccine uses a two-step method to trigger and then boost the two primary immune responses in the human body. In the antibody response, anti-viral cells called antigens bind to the virus cells and deactivate them; and in the cellular response, blood cells called T-cells kill the cells already infected with the virus. The overall effect is to stop the virus from spreading. By focusing on both parts of the system, the vaccine can quickly and dramatically bombard the HIV cells and destroy them before they can really take hold of the body and destroy the immune system (see How AIDS Work to learn what HIV and AIDS do to the body).
First, a subject receives the DNA primer. This primer contains three main genes from the HIV genetic code. When these genes enter the body's cells, the cells respond by producing proteins designed to combat the alien DNA. This essentially primes the immune system for an HIV attack by teaching it exactly what HIV DNA looks like. In this way, the cells are already experienced at creating the specific proteins that will tell the T-cells what they're looking for if HIV cells invade the body.
The next stage is the live-virus injection. This is when a tiny, weakened sample of HIV enters the body. It's not enough to infect someone; it's only enough to trigger an immune-system response. In this case, the subject receives a genetically altered version of a weak smallpox vaccine called MVA. This particular form of MVA carries not only elements of the smallpox virus, but also the same three HIV genes that were included in the DNA primer. So in addition to triggering an immune response to smallpox, it also triggers a response to HIV. And the DNA-primed cells are already prepared to fight this exact type of HIV.
So as the immune system sends out antibodies to bind to the HIV cells and target them for destruction, T-cells are primed and ready to scale a massive attack on three different components of the virus. With both of these anti-infection mechanisms launching full-blown attacks at once, the virus can't escape. Even if one of the genes manages to mutate, the T-cells can still target and destroy the other two, leaving that one mutated gene powerless. And the chances that even a single gene will mutate in a way that lets it escape both a primed cellular response and a massive antibody response is slim to begin with.
In preclinical trials, 23 monkeys received the vaccine. Seven months later, they were injected with a highly powerful, simian version of HIV. Twenty-two out of 23 monkeys never developed any clinical symptoms of the virus -- after three and a half years, there was no immune-system damage, no clinical signs of AIDS. Five out of the six monkeys in the control group died of AIDS within eight months. In the experimental group, the virus was there, but it appeared to be deactivated. For a potential AIDS vaccine, a 96 percent success rate is unheard of. The one monkey in the experimental group that did develop and die of AIDS had been given only a partial dose of the vaccine.
The fact that the vaccine was so effective at warding off the progression of HIV to AIDS could mean the vaccine may also work as a kind of cure for people already infected with HIV. The virus would still be there, but it would basically go into indefinite remission. And the fact that it would also vaccinate people against smallpox is an added benefit, considering the widespread view that smallpox would be an effective and attainable biological weapon.
In Phase I human trials, which are intended to find out if the vaccine is safe, not if it protects against HIV, nine people received partial doses of the vaccine. It caused no side effects, and it resulted in the same type of boosted immune response as that seen in the monkeys. The vaccine is now in the final stages of Phase I, in which researchers inject subjects with full doses of the vaccine. Phase II human trials, using uninfected but high-risk volunteers, could begin at the end of 2007. If Phase II reveals that the vaccine is effective against HIV in humans, Phase III (which uses a larger number of volunteers -- in the thousands) could begin sometime in 2008, and the drug could be in distribution by 2011.
But that's if everything goes exactly as planned, which is seldom the case in vaccine development.
As of March 2007, there are more than two dozen potential AIDS vaccines in various stages of testing. Two of the vaccines in human trials are similar in structure to the GeoVax vaccine but use a genetically modified form of adenovirus for the live-virus injection instead of smallpox.
For more information on AIDS, potential vaccines and related topics, check out the following links:
One of the challenges involved in preventing and curing any type of virus is the rate of mutation. You can find a way to kill a virus, but unless that method involves a whole bunch of attack angles at once, it's going to stop working pretty quickly. The virus is going escape the immune-system response triggered by the vaccine. HIV has a very high rate of mutation, so killing or deactivating it requires multiple, simultaneous attacks that can preempt or negate its ability to mutate.
In order to stop the virus from escaping, the GeoVax vaccine uses a two-step method to trigger and then boost the two primary immune responses in the human body. In the antibody response, anti-viral cells called antigens bind to the virus cells and deactivate them; and in the cellular response, blood cells called T-cells kill the cells already infected with the virus. The overall effect is to stop the virus from spreading. By focusing on both parts of the system, the vaccine can quickly and dramatically bombard the HIV cells and destroy them before they can really take hold of the body and destroy the immune system (see How AIDS Work to learn what HIV and AIDS do to the body).
First, a subject receives the DNA primer. This primer contains three main genes from the HIV genetic code. When these genes enter the body's cells, the cells respond by producing proteins designed to combat the alien DNA. This essentially primes the immune system for an HIV attack by teaching it exactly what HIV DNA looks like. In this way, the cells are already experienced at creating the specific proteins that will tell the T-cells what they're looking for if HIV cells invade the body.
The next stage is the live-virus injection. This is when a tiny, weakened sample of HIV enters the body. It's not enough to infect someone; it's only enough to trigger an immune-system response. In this case, the subject receives a genetically altered version of a weak smallpox vaccine called MVA. This particular form of MVA carries not only elements of the smallpox virus, but also the same three HIV genes that were included in the DNA primer. So in addition to triggering an immune response to smallpox, it also triggers a response to HIV. And the DNA-primed cells are already prepared to fight this exact type of HIV.
So as the immune system sends out antibodies to bind to the HIV cells and target them for destruction, T-cells are primed and ready to scale a massive attack on three different components of the virus. With both of these anti-infection mechanisms launching full-blown attacks at once, the virus can't escape. Even if one of the genes manages to mutate, the T-cells can still target and destroy the other two, leaving that one mutated gene powerless. And the chances that even a single gene will mutate in a way that lets it escape both a primed cellular response and a massive antibody response is slim to begin with.
In preclinical trials, 23 monkeys received the vaccine. Seven months later, they were injected with a highly powerful, simian version of HIV. Twenty-two out of 23 monkeys never developed any clinical symptoms of the virus -- after three and a half years, there was no immune-system damage, no clinical signs of AIDS. Five out of the six monkeys in the control group died of AIDS within eight months. In the experimental group, the virus was there, but it appeared to be deactivated. For a potential AIDS vaccine, a 96 percent success rate is unheard of. The one monkey in the experimental group that did develop and die of AIDS had been given only a partial dose of the vaccine.
The fact that the vaccine was so effective at warding off the progression of HIV to AIDS could mean the vaccine may also work as a kind of cure for people already infected with HIV. The virus would still be there, but it would basically go into indefinite remission. And the fact that it would also vaccinate people against smallpox is an added benefit, considering the widespread view that smallpox would be an effective and attainable biological weapon.
In Phase I human trials, which are intended to find out if the vaccine is safe, not if it protects against HIV, nine people received partial doses of the vaccine. It caused no side effects, and it resulted in the same type of boosted immune response as that seen in the monkeys. The vaccine is now in the final stages of Phase I, in which researchers inject subjects with full doses of the vaccine. Phase II human trials, using uninfected but high-risk volunteers, could begin at the end of 2007. If Phase II reveals that the vaccine is effective against HIV in humans, Phase III (which uses a larger number of volunteers -- in the thousands) could begin sometime in 2008, and the drug could be in distribution by 2011.
But that's if everything goes exactly as planned, which is seldom the case in vaccine development.
As of March 2007, there are more than two dozen potential AIDS vaccines in various stages of testing. Two of the vaccines in human trials are similar in structure to the GeoVax vaccine but use a genetically modified form of adenovirus for the live-virus injection instead of smallpox.
For more information on AIDS, potential vaccines and related topics, check out the following links:
Is alcohol more dangerous than ecstasy?
Scientists in Britain are proposing a complete revamping of drug classifications in the wake of findings that reveal some major discrepancies between a drug's legality and its safeness. A study surveying health, crime and science professionals regarding the dangers of a set of 20 legal and illegal drugs, published in The Lancet in March 2007, found that alcohol and tobacco, which are legal in Britain and the United States, are considered by experts to be more dangerous than ecstasy and marijuana, which are illegal in both countries.
In Britain, under the Misuse of Drugs Act, illegal drugs (including prescription drugs sold on the street) are classified as A, B or C. Class A is supposed to be the most harmful, and Class C is supposed to be the least harmful. For instance, heroin is a class A drug, and marijuana is a class C drug. The study was intended to achieve harm rankings for 20 drugs, 15 illegal substances and five legal substances that have shown potential for harm, using a systematic, scientific approach. The researchers surveyed two separate groups of experts including medical doctors, mental health professionals, scientists and forensics experts. Each group returned similar ranking results for the 20 drugs based on three primary features:
* physical harm to the person using the drug
* the drug's potential for abuse and/or dependence
* the drug's ill effects on society
The results, shown below, revealed some apparent inconsistencies in Britain's drug-classification system.
Probably the most notable discrepancy is the position of alcohol, a legal drug, at 13 places above ecstasy, an illegal, class A drug. And LSD, also a class A drug, was ranked considerably less harmful than benzodiazepines, a class C group of drugs.
The results seem to call into question exactly which method the British government is using to determine the relative harmfulness of drugs. According to the authors of the study, "Tobacco and alcohol together account for about 90 percent of all drug-related deaths in the U.K." Yet both of those substances are legal. In the United States, a study published in the journal of the American Medical Association in 2000 shows that 95 percent of drug-related deaths in the United States are from alcohol and tobacco use.
With little documentation that attempts to explain the current governmental ranking criteria, the study proposes a method for classifying drugs that uses scientific assessment. The classifications would be based on the three indicators of harm as presented to experts in the study -- personal, physical harm; abuse/dependence potential; and social harm. In the study, the rankings for each of the criterion were combined, with the researchers taking the mean of the three scores, to obtain the overall rankings listed above.
Of course, the legal status of drugs like alcohol and tobacco skews the results. Their legal status makes them far more available, so an accurate side-by-side comparison with a drug like heroin on all three criteria is impossible. Availability will always affect social effects of any given drug. Drugs that are easily available, legal and non-stigmatized logically will result in more widespread use, more adverse reactions and more money spent on police assistance and/or hospital care as a result of those adverse reactions.
Still, availability most likely wouldn't skew the abuse potential or the personal, physical harm associated with a drug. So the study does at least reveal some possible inconsistencies in British (and U.S.) drug law. Ultimately, the researchers believe that the foundations of drug policy need to be more transparent, since those foundations effect everything from public education to criminal sentences to treatment programs to methods of control and enforcement. They point out that without a clear, scientific basis for determining a drug's legal status and harmfulness, it's hard to establish credibility in the policies that dictate how a "drug war" is carried out, and it's hard to determine how effective those policies really are.
For more information on drug classification and related topics, check out the following links:
* How Alcohol Works
* How Alcoholism Works
* How Cocaine Works
* How Marijuana Works
* How Nicotine Works
* BBC News: Scientists want new drug rankings - Mar. 23, 2007
* CNN.com: Alcohol, tobacco among worst drugs - Mar. 23, 2007
* The Lancet: Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs of potential misuse (free registration required)
Sources
* "Alcohol, tobacco among worst drugs." CNN.com. Mar. 23, 2007.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/03/23/drugs.report.ap/index.html
* "Annual Causes of Death in the United States." Drug War Facts.
http://www.drugwarfacts.org/causes.htm
* "New 'matrix of harm' for drugs of abuse." Bristol University. Mar. 23, 2007.
http://www.bris.ac.uk/news/2007/5367.html
* Nutt, David, et al. "Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs of potential misuse." The Lancet, 2007; 369:1047-1053.
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/ PIIS0140673607604644/fulltext
* "Scientists want new drug rankings." BBC News. Mar. 23, 2007.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6474053.stm?ls
In Britain, under the Misuse of Drugs Act, illegal drugs (including prescription drugs sold on the street) are classified as A, B or C. Class A is supposed to be the most harmful, and Class C is supposed to be the least harmful. For instance, heroin is a class A drug, and marijuana is a class C drug. The study was intended to achieve harm rankings for 20 drugs, 15 illegal substances and five legal substances that have shown potential for harm, using a systematic, scientific approach. The researchers surveyed two separate groups of experts including medical doctors, mental health professionals, scientists and forensics experts. Each group returned similar ranking results for the 20 drugs based on three primary features:
* physical harm to the person using the drug
* the drug's potential for abuse and/or dependence
* the drug's ill effects on society
The results, shown below, revealed some apparent inconsistencies in Britain's drug-classification system.
| Drug | ||
| Heroin | (most harmful) | |
| Cocaine | ||
| Barbiturates (sedatives) | ||
| Methadone (opioid) | ||
| Alcohol | ||
| Ketamine (anesthetic) | ||
| Benzodiazepines (sedatives) | ||
| Amphetamine ("speed") | ||
| Tobacco | ||
| Buprenorphine (opioid) | ||
| Cannabis | ||
| Solvents | ||
| 4-methylthioamphetamine (amphetamine derivative) | ||
| LSD | ||
| Methylphenidate (i.e. Ritalin®) | ||
| Anabolic steroids | ||
| Gamma 4-hydroxybutyric acid (depressant, "date-rape drug") | ||
| Ecstasy | ||
| Alkyl nitrites (nitrite inhalants, "poppers") | ||
| Khat (plant-derived stimulant) | (least harmful) |
The results seem to call into question exactly which method the British government is using to determine the relative harmfulness of drugs. According to the authors of the study, "Tobacco and alcohol together account for about 90 percent of all drug-related deaths in the U.K." Yet both of those substances are legal. In the United States, a study published in the journal of the American Medical Association in 2000 shows that 95 percent of drug-related deaths in the United States are from alcohol and tobacco use.
With little documentation that attempts to explain the current governmental ranking criteria, the study proposes a method for classifying drugs that uses scientific assessment. The classifications would be based on the three indicators of harm as presented to experts in the study -- personal, physical harm; abuse/dependence potential; and social harm. In the study, the rankings for each of the criterion were combined, with the researchers taking the mean of the three scores, to obtain the overall rankings listed above.
Of course, the legal status of drugs like alcohol and tobacco skews the results. Their legal status makes them far more available, so an accurate side-by-side comparison with a drug like heroin on all three criteria is impossible. Availability will always affect social effects of any given drug. Drugs that are easily available, legal and non-stigmatized logically will result in more widespread use, more adverse reactions and more money spent on police assistance and/or hospital care as a result of those adverse reactions.
Still, availability most likely wouldn't skew the abuse potential or the personal, physical harm associated with a drug. So the study does at least reveal some possible inconsistencies in British (and U.S.) drug law. Ultimately, the researchers believe that the foundations of drug policy need to be more transparent, since those foundations effect everything from public education to criminal sentences to treatment programs to methods of control and enforcement. They point out that without a clear, scientific basis for determining a drug's legal status and harmfulness, it's hard to establish credibility in the policies that dictate how a "drug war" is carried out, and it's hard to determine how effective those policies really are.
For more information on drug classification and related topics, check out the following links:
* How Alcohol Works
* How Alcoholism Works
* How Cocaine Works
* How Marijuana Works
* How Nicotine Works
* BBC News: Scientists want new drug rankings - Mar. 23, 2007
* CNN.com: Alcohol, tobacco among worst drugs - Mar. 23, 2007
* The Lancet: Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs of potential misuse (free registration required)
Sources
* "Alcohol, tobacco among worst drugs." CNN.com. Mar. 23, 2007.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/03/23/drugs.report.ap/index.html
* "Annual Causes of Death in the United States." Drug War Facts.
http://www.drugwarfacts.org/causes.htm
* "New 'matrix of harm' for drugs of abuse." Bristol University. Mar. 23, 2007.
http://www.bris.ac.uk/news/2007/5367.html
* Nutt, David, et al. "Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs of potential misuse." The Lancet, 2007; 369:1047-1053.
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/ PIIS0140673607604644/fulltext
* "Scientists want new drug rankings." BBC News. Mar. 23, 2007.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6474053.stm?ls
How Antidepressants Work
Antidepressants are the first line of treatment for depression. Annual sales of antidepressants are approximately $50 billion, making this class of drugs one of the leading prescription medications. Many pharmaceutical companies engage in direct-to-consumer marketing of antidepressants through television and print media. So, patients have a large influence on the prescribing patterns of health-care providers when it comes to antidepressants. Antidepressants are commonly prescribed, but what are they, exactly? How do they work? Are they effective?
antidepressants
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Antidepressants are among the most prescribed medications
in the United States.
In this article, we will examine depression, the types of antidepressant therapy, how antidepressants work, and their effectiveness and side effects. But to understand how antidepressants work, we first need to look at depression itself.
Medical Disclaimer
This article is intended for information purposes only and not as medical advice. Those seeking medical advice regarding the diagnosis and treatment of depression should consult with your primary care provider and/or pharmacist.
Depression or Major Depressive Disorder (MDD, also called unipolar depression or clinical depression) occurs in about 15 million Americans in any given year. It can occur at any age (including in children as young as 5), but it most commonly affects 25- to 44-year-olds. MDD affects approximately 20 percent of women and 10 percent of men [source: HealthyPlace.com]. MDD leads to loss of productivity in the workplace and at school. Most importantly, it is a leading cause of suicide.
MDD, in contrast to short periods of the "blues," is a persistent change in mood that can interfere with family, relationships and feelings of self-worth. Recurrent episodes can last for days, months or years. MDD has physical and mental symptoms, which include the following:
* Depressed mood (sadness)
* Loss of interest or pleasure
* Disruptions of sleep patterns
* Fatigue
* Feelings of worthlessness, discouragement,
hopelessness and helplessness
* Changes in appetite, weight loss or gain
* Loss of sexual interest
* Inability to think, concentrate or make decisions
For a clinical diagnosis of MDD, these symptoms must occur consistently for at least a two-week period.
You might notice that these symptoms can also be symptoms of other diseases (like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and epilepsy). So, it's possible that the depressive episode is a secondary symptom of another disease. Because there is no lab test for depression, doctors may run many tests to rule out these other possible diseases. If everything else can be ruled out, what remains is MDD.
antidepressants
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Antidepressants are among the most prescribed medications
in the United States.
In this article, we will examine depression, the types of antidepressant therapy, how antidepressants work, and their effectiveness and side effects. But to understand how antidepressants work, we first need to look at depression itself.
Medical Disclaimer
This article is intended for information purposes only and not as medical advice. Those seeking medical advice regarding the diagnosis and treatment of depression should consult with your primary care provider and/or pharmacist.
Depression or Major Depressive Disorder (MDD, also called unipolar depression or clinical depression) occurs in about 15 million Americans in any given year. It can occur at any age (including in children as young as 5), but it most commonly affects 25- to 44-year-olds. MDD affects approximately 20 percent of women and 10 percent of men [source: HealthyPlace.com]. MDD leads to loss of productivity in the workplace and at school. Most importantly, it is a leading cause of suicide.
MDD, in contrast to short periods of the "blues," is a persistent change in mood that can interfere with family, relationships and feelings of self-worth. Recurrent episodes can last for days, months or years. MDD has physical and mental symptoms, which include the following:
* Depressed mood (sadness)
* Loss of interest or pleasure
* Disruptions of sleep patterns
* Fatigue
* Feelings of worthlessness, discouragement,
hopelessness and helplessness
* Changes in appetite, weight loss or gain
* Loss of sexual interest
* Inability to think, concentrate or make decisions
For a clinical diagnosis of MDD, these symptoms must occur consistently for at least a two-week period.
You might notice that these symptoms can also be symptoms of other diseases (like hypertension, diabetes, heart disease and epilepsy). So, it's possible that the depressive episode is a secondary symptom of another disease. Because there is no lab test for depression, doctors may run many tests to rule out these other possible diseases. If everything else can be ruled out, what remains is MDD.
Will the "$100 laptop" help save the developing world?
By now, you've probably heard of the "$100 laptop," a product five years in the making. The XO laptop, as it's officially called, is produced by the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by Nicholas Negroponte, who also founded the MIT Media Lab. The OLPC Foundation aims to provide these laptops to millions of children throughout the developing world in order to improve their education and their quality of life. Let's take a look at the XO laptop to find why it's generating so much buzz.
The XO laptop was designed to be lightweight, cheap and adaptable to the conditions of the developing world. While a $100 laptop is the goal, as of September 2007, the laptop costs about $188. Originally the OLPC Foundation said that governments must buy the laptop in batches of 25,000 to distribute to their citizens, but a new program will soon allow private citizens to purchase an XO.
Starting Nov. 12, 2007, the Give 1 Get 1 (G1G1) program will allow U.S. residents to pay $399 to buy two XO laptops -- one for the purchaser and one for a child in need in a foreign country. The program's initial run will last two weeks. To start, laptops purchased through this program will be given to children in Afghanistan, Haiti, Rwanda and Cambodia. More laptops should be available for sale in the future, and more developing nations will be able to apply to join the G1G1 plan.
As of September 2007, about 7,000 laptops were being tested by children around the world. Many governments have expressed interest in the laptop or verbally committed to buying it, but Negroponte said that some haven't followed through on their promises. Still, enough computers were ordered -- observers estimated more than three million -- that full-scale production began in July 2007.
The OLPC Foundation faces some challenges and criticism besides getting governments to commit to buying the XO. A common question is: Why give a child a laptop when he might need food, water, electricity or other basic amenities? To that, the OLPC says that the XO laptop offers children a sense of ownership and ensures that they're no longer dependent on a corrupt or inept government to provide educational opportunities. The computer is a powerful tool for learning and collaboration, exposing children to a wealth of knowledge and providing opportunities that they would not normally have. It also replaces the need for textbooks, which are expensive, easily damaged and less interactive.
In many parts of the developing world, people live in large family groupings. The XO laptop allows children, parents, grandparents and cousins to teach each other. In some communities with limited electricity, children have used the laptop's bright screen as a light.
The OLPC Foundation faces some competitors, even among nonprofit organizations. Also, Michael Dell and Bill Gates have questioned aspects of the computer's design. Other companies have launched competing low-cost laptops, though none with the scale or publicity of the OLPC Foundation project. Intel initially criticized the device, then started selling its own low-cost laptop, and finally decided to join the OLPC project.
Next, we'll take a look at the remarkable technology behind the XO.
How Computer Addiction Works
Obsessively checking e-mail. Playing online games for 12 hours or more at a time. Placing more value on chat-room friends than real friends. Neglecting family, work and even personal health and hygiene. These are all symptoms of a new form of addiction that has surfaced only in recent years: computer addiction. In this article, we'll learn about computer addiction, why it's a problem -- and why some doctors disagree about whether it exists at all.
Creating a single definition for computer addiction is difficult because the term actually covers a wide spectrum of addictions. Few people are literally addicted to a computer as a physical object. They become addicted to activities performed on a computer, like instant messaging, viewing Internet pornography, playing video games, checking e-mail and reading news articles. These activities are collectively referred to as Computer Mediated Communication (CMC). Computer addiction focused on Internet use is often called Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD).
The various types of computer addicts have different reasons for their habits. Obsessive chat room use or e-mailing might fill a void of loneliness, while excessive viewing of pornography might stem from relationship problems or childhood abuse. The matter is further complicated by the fact that a computer is a useful tool. It's not like heroin, for example -- there are many legitimate reasons why someone might spend hours using a computer. Even if someone uses a computer extensively for purely recreational purposes, that doesn't necessarily represent a real addiction any more than someone who spends hours working on a model train set, making quilts or gardening is "addicted" to those activities. Even the agreed-upon definition of addiction itself has evolved over the decades and remains a matter of debate in the medical community. In fact, the American Medical Association and the American Psychiatric Association do not currently consider computer addiction a valid diagnosis, a controversy we'll discuss later.
As a result of all these complications, any single definition of computer addiction is necessarily broad and a little vague. If the computer use is so pervasive that it interferes with other life activities, and if the user seems unable to stop using the computer to excess despite negative consequences, the problem might be a computer addiction.
NASA sticking to scheduled launch for Discovery, despite wing concerns
NASA's senior managers cleared the space shuttle Discovery for liftoff Tuesday, overruling a safety group that called for further studies and wing repairs, if necessary, before next week's launch.
The potential problem is with the critical thermal shielding on Discovery's wings. A new inspection method uncovered possible cracking just beneath the protective coating on three of the 44 panels that line the wings.
Engineers were evenly split on whether Discovery's flight to the International Space Station should be delayed, shuttle program manager Wayne Hale said.
In the end, top managers concluded Tuesday night following an all-day meeting that repairs were not needed.
"There was a great deal of evidence presented today and the preponderance of evidence in my mind says that we have an acceptable risk to go fly. And let me make sure you understand that. I didn't say it's safe to go fly and I wouldn't say that. We have an acceptable risk to go fly," Hale said at a news conference.
The NASA Engineering and Safety Center — formed in the wake of the 2003 Columbia disaster — has been studying the issue since May and still does not understand why the protective coating on some of the wing panels is coming off.
It recommended additional testing, at the very least, before Discovery flies and favoured replacing the three reinforced carbon panels in question. That work would have set the launch back by at least two months.
Columbia was destroyed during re-entry because of a hole in its wing.
Hale said part of what gave him confidence to proceed with the launch was the fact that two similar cases in orbit ended up being benign and the astronauts will have a repair kit in orbit for mending small damage.
In addition, "It appears that there is good analysis that says we could survive even if the worst thing happens to us during entry," he said.
The worst that could happen, said Ralph Roe, the safety centre's director, is that some of the coating is lost off the front of a wing panel right before re-entry and the hot atmospheric gases burn through the entire panel.
Roe said his safety centre could not get comfortable with all the uncertainties about whether the coating problem might worsen in space. The three panels in question on Discovery do not appear to have worsened over the past three flights, despite indications of possible cracks to the coating.
Engineers will continue to work to understand what is going on.
"If the risk grows to an unacceptable level, we will take action," Hale said.
Unlike the sometimes brusque and hasty flight readiness reviews before the Columbia accident, "everybody got to ask questions, everybody got to give their understanding of it down to the working troop level," Hale said.
Pearson reducing landing fees
The Canadian Press
Toronto's Pearson airport, long criticized for being one of the world's most expensive to use, is reducing its landing fees and terminal charges in a bid to attract more passenger and airline traffic.
The Greater Toronto Airports Authority, which operates the airport, said Tuesday that landing fees charged to airlines will decrease by 3.1 per cent and terminal charges will drop by 4.7 as of Jan. 1.
"This is fantastic news for our airline partners," stated GTAA chief executive Lloyd McCoomb.
"By pricing Toronto Pearson more competitively, we are able to decrease the cost of doing business, which is good for airlines, good for passengers and good for the region."
The move was cheered by travel groups and airlines, who have long pushed for a reduction in fees and charges by both airports and the federal government, saying they affect the competitiveness of Canada's air carriers.
"Air Canada is pleased by today's announcement that the GTAA is cutting fees at Toronto airport and we commend the authority for finding savings and alternative revenue sources," said Montie Brewer, CEO of Pearson's largest tenant.
"(We) now ask the Federal Government to follow the GTAA's example by reducing the rents it charges airports each year.… Ultimately, this is a regressive tax that stifles economic growth."
Landing fees are charged to the airlines to operate at Toronto Pearson, the busiest airport in Canada, with 31 million passenger in 2006.
They are also passed on to travellers — raising their ire when they discover the ticket price skyrockets once taxes and airport fees are included. Some Canadians instead choose to drive to U.S. airports, such as Buffalo, to save on their flights.
Terminal charges, for their part, are set to cover the operating costs for the common areas in the passenger terminals.
Same Barone, CEO of the Air Transport Association of Canada, also highlighted the ongoing issues of airport rents, fuel surcharges and security costs — all constant sticking points between travel groups and the government.
"This year, Pearson will pay more than $150 million to Ottawa (in rent)," he said.
"Our passengers really are paying that additional tax back to Ottawa, which does nothing for stimulating traffic growth."
But, he added, ATAC is "always pleased to have the cost that gets passed through to our passengers reduced," saying the airport authority "does deserve quite a bit of credit for that achievement."
"We also encourage them to do more for travellers because we're in a very competitive environment."
The GTAA did say it would continue to work to make the airport competitive "through cost containment, revenue generation and by working with air carrier partners."
Violence on rise among residents in Ont. nursing homes
Biting, choking and even murder are some of the brutalities residents of Ontario nursing homes have inflicted on each other, according to government documents that show a tripling in such violent acts in the past few years.
A report by CBC-TV's consumer program Marketplace on Wednesday evening said Ontario is part of a trend of increasing violence among residents in nursing homes across the country.
In the span of three years, the number of violent incidents among residents reported in the province more than tripled, with 446 such incidents in 2003 compared to 1,416 incidents in 2006, according to government documents.
That rise to an average of four violent incidents per day has nurses struggling to keep up.
Nurse Marie Haas says she regularly breaks up fights, sometimes as many as one per hour, and recalls a recent incident where one resident ripped off the scalp of another.
"It's what I go to every day. It's what I live," Haas told Marketplace 's Erica Johnson.
She blames understaffing. Often, only one registered nurse on a shift looks after 100 or more residents.
Deadly attack
Penelope Petrie knows about such violence all too well. Her 85-year-old aunt, Ruth Smith, died in a nursing home in Hamilton after a floormate with severe dementia attacked her in 2005.
The roommate clubbed Smith on the shoulder. The stress of the surgery she needed as a result brought on an ulcer that eventually perforated and killed her.
The coroner ruled the death a homicide because of the attack that sparked Smith's final illness.
The home seemed idyllic to Petrie when her aunt moved in, and she was shocked when she learned of her death.
"I don't know how to describe the feeling," she said. "You just sort of feel sick."
The person who is alleged to have killed her aunt was eventually moved to a psychiatric ward after she attacked a nurse, Petrie said. She was never charged with any crime because of her dementia.
Hidden cameras captured attacks
Such brutal attacks were also documented by Marketplace 's hidden cameras.
In one Toronto-area nursing home, cameras capture a resident screaming as a floormate kicks him out of her room.
"You're lucky I didn't turn around and pack you one right in the face," the man screams.
The cameras also record a fight between two female residents. One woman takes off her shoe and begins hitting the other one, with the two fighting until the TV crew breaks them up.
Nursing beds cheaper
"The pushing and the shoving, when you're dealing with frail, elderly people, will often end up in serious injury or death," said Jane Meadus, a lawyer who has fought to keep violent residents out of nursing homes.
She says an increasing number of people with violent dementia and other illnesses are ending up in the residences because nursing beds are much cheaper and governments have shut down more expensive psychiatric beds.
"The nursing home beds are definitely the cheapest beds around. And they are what I would say is the dumping ground," Meadus said.
During the past 15 years, numerous Ontario coroner's reports have issued warnings that the provincial government should build special facilities to treat elderly people with severe aggression, a suggestion Meadus agrees with.
But Health Minister George Smitherman doesn't support the idea.
"I know that some people might be proponents for elderly jails, but that is not the model that we are building upon," he said.
Those who work with seniors warn that violence within the population is only going to continue climbing as the population ages and funding fails to rise.
Apple Cuts Price of DRM-Free Songs to 99 Cents
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Apple Inc. is lowering the prices of songs it sells online without copy-protection to 99 cents from $1.29, a company spokeswoman said Tuesday.
The reduction, which started appearing on songs Tuesday, puts Apple closer in line with rival offerings.
Amazon.com Inc., which opened its online music store in September, sells tracks without anti-copying software locks for 89 cents to 99 cents.
Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris said the price cut was not in response to competition. "It's been very popular with our customers and we're now making it available at an even more affordable price," Kerris said. Apple dominates the music download market and became the third-largest overall music retailer in the United States in units sold earlier this year. It began selling some songs in May without copy-protection software, known as digital rights management. The primary benefit of DRM-free music is that it can be played on any music player, not just Apple iPods.
Hitachi Foresees Huge Hard Drives in Near Future
The feat, which Hitachi presented Monday at the Perpendicular Magnetic Recording Conference in Tokyo, revisits a technology known as giant magnetoresistance, or GMR, that was the basis of the work of two European scientists who won the Nobel Prize in physics last week.
A hard drive has a metal disk inside that spins as an arm with an electromagnetic head at its tip hovers over it. The head reads bits of data by registering the magnetic bearing of the particles on the disk.
Capacities of hard drives have grown as researchers have crammed more bits of data closer together while also making the heads sensitive enough to read the data.
The industry looks to new technologies every time physical limitations kick in, and GMR — which allows for extremely thin layers of alternating metals to detect weak changes in magnetism — was one of the breakthroughs that led to the fastest growth rate in the early 2000s, allowing hard drives to double in capacity every year.
But GMR-based heads maxed out, and the industry replaced the technology in recent years with an entirely different kind of head.
Yet researchers are predicting that technology will soon run into capacity problems, and now GMR is making a comeback as the next-generation successor.
"We changed the direction of the current and adjusted the materials to get good properties," said John Best, chief technologist for Hitachi's data-storage unit.
By doing so, Hitachi said it has created the world's smallest disk drive heads in the 30-nanometer to 50-nanometer range, or about 2,000 times smaller than the width of an average human hair.
Other hard drive companies are working on similar technology as well, Rydning said.
He predicted the entire disk drive industry will begin migrating to this new type of GMR-based technology in 2009.
YouTube Installs Copyright-Protection Filters
SAN BRUNO, Calif. — Online video leader YouTube has rolled out long-awaited technology to automatically remove copyrighted clips, hoping to placate movie and television studios fed up with the Web site's persistent piracy problems.
The filtering tools are designed so the owners of copyrighted video can block their material from appearing on YouTube, which has become a pop culture phenomenon in its 2-year existence.
The tools also give the owners of copyrighted video the option to sell ads around their material if they want the clips to remain available on YouTube.
To find and remove copyrighted music, YouTube already uses separate filtering tools developed by Los Gatos-based Audible Magic Corp. YouTube's previous lack of copyright protections for video content prompted Viacom Inc. to sue it for $1 billion for showing thousands of clips that the New York-based company owned. As YouTube's traffic soared, movie and TV studios became increasingly frustrated with the rampant piracy fueling its popularity, though YouTube said it has followed copyright laws by removing protected video upon request. Studios' exasperation with YouTube escalated as other popular Web sites introduced filtering technology in recent months to prevent copyrighted material from being uploaded. YouTube's critics have argued that the site turned a blind eye to flagrant piracy so it could show more appealing material to build its audience and pump up its value. Google prized San Bruno-based YouTube so much it paid $1.76 billion to buy the site 11 months ago. YouTube has been working with Google engineers ever since to develop the tools needed to flag copyrighted video, said David King, a YouTube product manager. Google and YouTube executives began promising the new copyright protection technology six months ago. "It has taken until now to get it right," King said Monday. It's still too early to tell how YouTube's new filtering system will affect the 7-month-old Viacom suit, said Mike Fricklas, Viacom's general counsel. "We are delighted that Google appears to be stepping up to its responsibility and end the practice of infringement," he said Monday. Louis Solomon, a lawyer representing and English soccer league and music publisher Bourne Co. in another copyright infringement case against YouTube, criticized the new filtering system as "wholly inadequate. "It does nothing about the past and won't be enough to protect the future," Solomon said. YouTube now needs the cooperation of copyright owners for its filtering system to work because the technology requires copyright holders to provide copies of the video they want to protect so YouTube can compare those digital files to material being uploaded to its Web site. This means that movie and TV studios will have to provide decades of copyright material if they don't want it to appear on YouTube or spend even more time scanning the site for violations. "We really need the content community to work with us," King said. "We need them to help us help them." Without the help of copyright owners, YouTube has no way of knowing whether material has been legally or illegally posted to the site, King said, because copyrighted video is sometimes provided by the legal owner for promotional purposes. But YouTube's critics have long derided this defense, arguing that it doesn't take a legal expert to spot some of the pirated material cropping on the Web site. "If there has been a clip from 'American Idol' posted to the site by Joe Schmoe in Oklahoma instead of Fox, you can be pretty sure it's not supposed to be there," said Rob Gould, vice president of marketing for Broadcaster.com, a rival video site. YouTube said it has been encouraged by early tests of its filtering system with nine content providers. Only two of the test participants, Walt Disney Co. and Time Warner Inc., were willing to be identified. Messages left with Walt Disney and Time Warner weren't immediately returned Monday. YouTube's anti-piracy system found 18 copyright violations during a 10-day in a limited test involving one of the test participants, King said.
Consumers Place Computers at Top of Holiday Wish List
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Move over, peace and happiness. Computers are what Americans really want nowadays.
The machines that feed us infinite and instant information, store our digital memories, give us hours of fun with games, videos or music — and help us do our taxes — outrank peace, happiness and clothes this year as the most wished-for gifts, according to an annual U.S. survey by the consumer electronics industry's largest trade organization.
Last year, the most popular answer to the survey's open-ended query about respondents' holiday wishes was clothing, followed by peace and happiness, money and then computers.
This year, after computers, peace and happiness came in second, followed by a big-screen TV, clothes and then money.
Such enthusiasm for computers, TVs, as well as other electronics will help drive electronics sales up 7 percent to $48.1 billion in the fourth quarter from $44.8 billion the year-ago period, according to a forecast by the Consumer Electronics Association.
By comparison, the overall retail industry is expected to see holiday sales grow 4 percent, according to the National Retail Federation. "We're looking at a very solid season for consumer electronics, and it's certainly a bright spot for the economy," said Joe Bates, CEA's director of research. For all of 2007, electronics sales are expected to reach $160 billion, up 8 percent from $148 billion last year, according to the CEA forecast. The organization's annual consumer survey separately evaluated shopping intentions for the holidays. The random telephone survey of 1,003 U.S. adults was conducted in late September and had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points. "The fact that they want computers over clothing and peace and happiness is amazing," said Shawn DuBravac, the CEA's economist. "It's a testament to what the tech industry has done to empower the consumer." People are doing more with their computers, such as posting videos or writing blogs, Bates said. The demand for laptops is particularly strong, "and you can buy a more powerful one and at a lower price than what you paid for four years ago," he said. The survey also indicated consumers plan to spend bit more on gadget gifts this year: $358 per household versus $337 in 2006. Gifts will account for about 46 percent of electronics sales in the fourth quarter, while the rest will come from purchases people make for themselves — a typical shopping pattern during the holiday period, Bates said. As for specific gizmos people wanted to receive as gifts this holiday season, portable music players topped the list for the third year in a row. Laptops rose to second place from third and video game systems displaced digital cameras to come in third. Gaming will be hotter this year, Bates said, since all the next-generation consoles have been out for at least a year and have a larger library of games. A video game system was also the most popular item people planned to give as an electronics gift this year, according to the survey.
Testing of High-Tech 'Virtual Fence' Along U.S.-Mexico Border Set to Begin
TUCSON, Ariz. — The first section of a high-tech "virtual fence" along the U.S.-Mexico border will be tested this month after defense contractor Boeing Co. reported it solved most of the computer glitches that have delayed the program for months, a federal official said Wednesday.
Boeing personnel who briefed federal officials "sounded real optimistic" about the fixes, said Brad Benson, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman in Washington. "I have talked to Border Patrol personnel, and they weren't quite that optimistic."
Loaded with sensors, radar and sophisticated cameras, nine towers along a 28-mile section are designed to detect illegal immigrants and drug smugglers coming through the heavily trafficked area southwest of Tucson.
The $20 million virtual fence pilot project remains on hold because software designed to integrate the results of sensor hits, radar readings and camera sightings wasn't working correctly. A glitch in the programming has kept it from providing a common operating picture for agents, who plan to use it to spot and capture illegal entrants and smugglers.
Because of that, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told a congressional committee last month that he would withhold further payment to Boeing, the prime contractor, and declined to accept the system until he was satisfied.
That testing is now set for the last week in October, Benson said. Boeing did not return calls to The Associated Press seeking comment.
The virtual fence is being tested first in Arizona, the focal point for illegal crossings into the United States from Mexico. But plans call for installing 1,800 such towers along both the Mexican and Canadian borders.
Boeing shares fell 35 cents Wednesday to close at $95.59
Sprint Bringing Acclaimed Smartphone to U.S.
NEW YORK — It's official: touch screens are the big new thing in cell phones this holiday season.
Sprint Nextel Corp. announced Wednesday it is jumping on the bandwagon with the Touch by HTC.
Like Apple Inc.'s iPhone, this smart phone has only a few buttons and is designed to be controlled by touching the screen.
The Touch will go on sale Nov. 4 for $250 with a two-year contract.
The announcement makes Sprint the third of the three largest U.S. wireless carriers to introduce a cell phone with a large touch screen designed to be controlled with fingers rather than a stylus. The iPhone, which launched this summer, is exclusive to AT&T Inc. Verizon Wireless said two weeks ago that it would introduce the LG Voyager in time for Thanksgiving. The Voyager has a large touch screen, but differs from the iPhone in that it folds out to reveal a hardware keyboard. The HTC Touch lacks a keyboard, but it still has a stylus. A version has been on sale in Europe since this summer. The Touch runs Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Mobile 6 software, which exists in two versions: one that's controlled by a stylus, and another that's controlled by a keypad on a non-touch screen phone. HTC Corp., a Taiwanese company, has modified the stylus-oriented version of the software to make it more usable with fingers alone. Beyond the touch-screen interface, the Touch's similarities with the iPhone are not overwhelming. It doesn't have a large amount of built-in flash memory for music and movies, relying instead on expansion cards. It's smaller and lighter, with a screen measuring 2.8 inches diagonally compared with the iPhone's 3.5 inches. The Touch uses Sprint's relatively fast data network, rather than the iPhone's combination of a relatively slow AT&T network supplemented by Wi-Fi. The European Touch's Wi-Fi capability did not make it into Sprint's version. The name could cause some confusion among shoppers: Apple just introduced the iPod Touch, which is basically an iPhone without cell phone capabilities. HTC isn't well known in the U.S. — the acronym stands for "High Tech Computer" — but has actually been making smart phones and personal digital assistants for U.S. companies under their brands for many years. It only started putting its own name on its products this year.
Best Buy Pulls Analog TVs Off Shelves
MINNEAPOLIS — The nation's largest consumer electronics chain says it has pulled all analog televisions off store shelves. Flat panel and high-definition screens have taken their place.
Beginning in February 2009, broadcasters plan to stop transmitting analog signals, although people with older sets can still get programming via special converter boxes, set-top box or direct satellite.
The Minneapolis-based chain says it told its stores to stop selling the products at the beginning of the month.
More than 60 million U.S. households currently rely on an antennas or analog cable. Cable operators are required to guarantee their customers will receive broadcast channels until February 2012.
After the first of the year, the government will be making available coupons that can be used to buy converter boxes. Best Buy will sell coupon-eligible converter boxes starting early next year.
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