Do As Your Mother Told You

Wash your hands! Last week brought a Hepatitis A scare to campus. Hep. A, transmitted by hand-stool contact, leads to unpleasant, albeit short-term, symptoms of "jaundice, fatigue, abdomnal pain, loss of appetite, nausea, diarrhea, and fever."¹ The spread of Hep. A is best prevented through thorough handwashing. While a 2005 observational study indicates that the vast majority of Americans in major metropolitan areas, 83%, wash their hands after using a restroom, there still remains 17% who, in not doing so, contribute to the outbreaks of diseases like Hep. A. And if infectious diseases aren't motiviation enough for you, think of how proud of you your mother would be for washing your hands.

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¹Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Hepatitis A: Fact Sheet," Centers for Disease Control and Preventions, http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hepatitis/a/fact.htm (accessed February 18, 2007).

Breaking News: Suicide is Now Entertaining!

I have seen two ads in the past month that have featured suicide as a comic element. The first (to my knowledge) was a spot for GM that ran during Super Bowl XLI, which GM has since pulled. The other, advertising Volkwagen cars, is still airing. Forget about Prozac...you just haven't bought the right car yet. Since when has suicide become a topic treated so lightly?

ACUAH

I've started another blog on Blogger to address my academic interests. A City Upon a Hill will complement my academic work in American Studies and, perhaps, promote discussion about the specific topics listed there as well as the discipline in general.