ETC

Ah, a three-day weekend.  Monday is July 4th, our 246th birthday.  A Capitol Fourth from the Mall starts at 8PM EDT on your PBS station.  I started working for the U.S. Senate in 1979 and went to the very first of this annual show, before the event was televised.  Well, actually this performance was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of this pandemic.  But it's back this year. 

On this absolutely sparkling Honolulu day I thought I'd just toss out interesting stuff I've been accumulating.  First, Japan is just about opening up to tourists with only tours these days, but you get 136 yen to the dollar today.  

• Two years ago the exchange rate was at 105, or our buck can get 23% more value these days.

• 
  After World War II the rate was fixed at 360 yen to the dollar to stabilize the Japanese economy.
• In 1995 the dollar hit a low of 80, but zoomed up to 144 in 1998, but crashed in one week from 136 to 112.
• So get ready to go back to Japan as soon as it truly opens, for who knows when the rate will shift, and how swiftly.

On June 13 the FDA approved Olumiant (Baricitinib) oral tablets to treat adult patients with severe Alopecia areata, a disorder that causes patchy baldness to 300,000,000 in the U.S. each year.

• About a third of trial patients achieved adequate scalp hair coverage.
• 5% of placebo patients did the same.  Notice how a placebo regularly helps by around 5% no matter what the trial?  There were all kinds of side effects that would give you pause.
• 
  You wonder how two sources can be so different, but Smithsonian indicated that the FDA approved its first drug to treat hair loss caused by Alopecia, but this report said half of 1200 patients grew hair back after a year, and after effects were mild.  The first study above was said to have around 350 patients.
• Olumiant, from Eli Lilly, was approved in 2018 for treatment of some forms of rheumatoid arthritis.

• 
  You also see ads for minoxidil (Rogaine), HairOmega, other supplements and special shampoos.
• The FDA in 1988 did approve certain formulations for minoxidil.
• From Consumer Reports:
• Normal to lose 150 hairs/day.
• In men, hormones called androgens cause strands to fall out too early.
• Thyroid problems can cause hair loss.
• 
  Minoxidil seems to work, especially together with Finasteride (Propecia, etc.).  But Finasteride can cause erectile dysfunction and birth defects.
• Spironoplactone (Aldactone) is a blood pressure drug, and is worth trying for women.  But has caused tumors in lab animals and can affect blood pressure and kidney function.

• 
  Platelet-rich plasma injections?  Maybe.
• Dietary supplement with high levels of Vitamin B biotin is questioned.
• What about low-level laser or light therapy.  Maybe.

I don't have this problem, but, apparently tampons are having a supply chain problem.  Why?

• Has to do with the standard excuses:  staff shortage, Omicron variant, transportation bottlenecks, the Ukraine War and rising cost of key raw materials.
• Proctor and Gamble (leading supplier) makers of Tampax products, says they are working 24/7 to meet this demand.
• Women blame men, for they typically run supply companies and have other priorities.
• 
  There are stigmas and taboos around menstruation, making it difficult to garner national attention.
• Advise NOT to resort to unsafe methods.
• Don't sweat it, as supply apparently seems to be gaining, but you can expect to pay a lot more.
• Go to Amazon, which sells 84 for $0.37 each at a total cost of $31 with free delivery.

The largest bacterium ever was found.  50 times larger than the previous largest, Thiomargarita magnifica is up to 0.4 inches long (1 centimeter).  

• First discovered as far back as 2009 in the shallow mangroves of Guadeloupe in the Caribbean as a eukayote, they did not realize until last month that it was a bacterium.
•  Turns out this one is a single long cell.
• Contains three times more genes than most bacteria.
• Robert Wadlow at just about 9 feet is the tallest person ever.  50 times longer would then be 450 feet.
• The largest animal to ever live is the Blue Whale, at only 90 feet long.
• A giant sequoia is less than 300 feet tall.
• Much longer than the common fruit fly.

In 2019 a bacterium, Shewanella oneidensis, that eats and breathes electricity was found in pools of hot water up to 200 F, like in Heart Lake Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.  

• Could this bacterium be genetically engineered to eat pollution, converting toxic matter into useful electricity?
• This microorganism is also found in the deepest part of the ocean.

I can go on and on, but a good story to end with is that recent government UFO report that couldn't explain 143 of 144 sightings it examined.  The one they could identify was a deflating balloon.  Turns out the Chief Scientist for this congressionally-mandated study was astrophysicist and TV personality Travis Taylor.  The report is thus being discredited:

• Has previously made a bunch of extraordinary claims, like having seen more UFOs than I can count.

• 
  Taylor is associated with Ancient Aliens that promotes far-fetched UFO narratives.
• Mind you, he does have five degrees and published two academic textbooks and numerous peer-reviewed papers.
• However, a supernatural kook should not have taken such a role in that study, and the Federal government should not have released that report.

-