Skin Cancer

What is skin cancer and what causes it?

Skin cancer occurs when normal cells increase in size and start to multiply without normal controls. A mass called a tumor is formed as they multiply. Since these types of tumors are on the skin, they are called lesions. The tumor usually can be noticed in the early stages because it commonly develops in the outermost layer of skin, called the epidermis. This way the tumor may be treated before it even becomes cancerous. The main factor of skin cancer is excessive exposure to UV rays. It has been proven that from 10 AM until 4 PM, the sun is at its strongest and therefore most dangerous state. Not only is skin cancer a result of natural sun rays, but artificial ones too, such as tanning salons or sunbeds. Sunbeds in particular can lead to the most fatal type of skin cancer, malignant melanoma. Melanoma starts in melanocytes, a kind of skin cell. When these skin cells join together they can form a mole. If these moles change color, shape, elevation, or size, they can be a sign of malignant melanoma. Malignant melanoma alone affects more than 53,600 Americans each year. It is responsible for 75% of deaths caused by skin cancer.

How do you prevent skin cancer?

One way of reducing the risk of getting skin cancer is by diminishing exposure to UV rays and sunburn. Another way is by wearing protective clothing, such as long sleeves and hats, when outside. Using sunscreen of an SPF of about 50 that blocks UVA and UVB radiation is necessary also. Scientists say that you should reapply this sunscreen every two hours and after swimming. Recently, studies showed that sunscreen does not help prevent malignant melanoma.


How common is skin cancer?

Out of all types of cancer, skin cancer is the most common. More than 1 million Americans each year are diagnosed with this disease and at least 10,000 people die from it in just the United States alone. Studies say that this is 90% increased from the 1960s. Americans are paying more than half a billion dollars a year for medical treatment concerning skin cancer.


What treatment is offered for skin cancer:

Almost all skin cancers are treated by removing the lesion and then making sure all of the tumor cells are gone. This is done for early and high-risk types of skin cancer. Freezing off the cancer, otherwise known as cryotherapy is commonly used for low-risk disease. If the disease has spread, like melanoma can for example, surgery or even chemotherapy may be needed. Chemotherapy often shortened to "chemo", is when medical drugs are used to treat a disease. The great thing about this method is that it works on the entire body, unlike other treatments like radiation therapy or surgery that only remove cancer cells in a specific area.

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin_cancer

http://www.emedicinehealth.com/skin_cancer/article_em.htm

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/forum.asp?articlekey=4262

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ETO/content/ETO_1_7X_What_Is_Chemotherapy_And_How_Does_It_Work.asp

by Andrea

Cellulitis

Cellulitis is a common infection on the skin, and deep under it in the soft tissues. The bacteria enter the skin through open wounds or scrapes. It is more uncommon, but sometimes they enter through closed normal skin too. The bacteria cause infection and inflammation. The inflammation causes the skin to look very red, like it has been severely sunburned. It also causes swelling, warmth and pain. The inflammation itself causes the skin to be in a very uncomfortable state. Then comes the blisters, and when the blisters arrive, it is obvious that the cellulitis is extremely bad. If the infection gets bad enough, and treatment doesn't cure it. Amputation may be the last hope.
Cellulitis symptoms & treatment:
Cellulitis has many terrible symptoms such as, redness, major swelling, warmth, pain, large blisters or pus forming under the skin, tender or swollen lymph nodes near the infected area, and a fever may occur if the bacteria get into the blood stream. Caring for cellulitis infections is pretty simple. It can even be done at home. Just rest the area that is involved and elevate it as much as possible. The elevation will reduce swelling and make the area a bit more comfortable. Over the counter pain-relievers, such as Tylenol or Motrin, will help keep the fever down, reduce swelling, and decrease pain. If the cellulitis gets bad enough, hospital treatments would be the last resort.
Cellulitis Causes:
The bacteria that cause cellulitis enter the body through open wounds, other infections, breaks in the skin, punctures or other foreign objects that enter the skin, or infection of the bone underneath the skin. The best way to prevent this infection would be to keep the body healthy, and clean and cover up open wounds or any breakage in the skin as soon as possible.
Sources:
http://www.emedicinehealth.com/cellulitis

Posted by Lauren

Amniotic sacs not so helpful

An amniotic sac is a two layered sac that holds a baby inside of it. This sac includes fluid called amniotic fluid that surrounds the baby and protects it. Researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine have found that the amniotic fluid inside some of the sacs carry many bacteria that can cause the mother to have a premature baby. A premature baby is considered to be a baby born under 37 weeks and 12% of all pregnancies in the United States are considered premature. The scientists found fungi and bacteria in 25 of the 166 women in the study. This is 15% of the group of women and 50% higher than in the past studies that were done.

Amniotic sacs are what all of us have been in. They protect us from all the dangerous things inside our mother's stomach. If there was no amniotic sac formed during the birthing process a baby would not live. Having an infection inside the sac means the baby gets sick and wants to come out before it dies. This means you have a premature birth because the baby pushes out of the sac and when the baby comes out of the sac it has to come out of the mother.

"We only know the names of relatively a few of all the bacteria that exist, and a lot of them are difficult to culture or can't be cultured with our current technology," physician Robert Goldenberg tells us. Doctors think that in a woman's body the trigger for these bacteria are infection-causing microorganisms that live in the amniotic fluid. Even though all this information sounds like the bacteria and infections are linked to premature birth Dr. Daniel DiGiulio says that the studies have not yet confirmed that premature birth is linked to the infections and bacteria in the amniotic fluid.

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/35826/title/Amniotic_sac_not_so_sacrosanct

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/amniotic%20sac

by Mel

Smallest known snake

By Susan Milius
Science News: Web edition : Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

New miniature threadsnake discovered in Barbados

MICRO-SNAKE! A newly named species from Barbados could be the world’s smallest kind of snake. [Full Story] (If the full story in Science News is not available to you try Googling Leptotyphlops carlae.)

A newly named species from Barbados could be the world’s smallest kind of snake. Adults of the new threadsnake average only 100 millimeters long (not quite 4 inches), says evolutionary biologist Blair Hedges of Pennsylvania State University in University Park. Hedges is naming it Leptotyphlops carlae in honor of his wife, Carla Ann Hass, he says in the formal description published online in Zootaxa.

The snake’s eye-to-tail stripes, narrow head, scale pattern and some of its DNA segments mark it as a species new to science, Hedges says.

Islands are often homes for very large or very small species. Some lineages on continents never make it out to islands, so island dwellers have opportunities to fill niches they wouldn’t on the mainland. Hence, when searching for an unusual form of an animal, such as minis or giants, islands make good places to start looking.

Over his career, Hedges has codescribed other extreme herps: A frog smaller than a dime and the smallest known lizard. Each came from an island.

Additional research
1. Why would an island be a place where unusual species might be found?

2. What unique species are found on Madagascar?

3. What other islands are home to unique species of plants and animals?

4. What island chain did Darwin study while serving as Naturalist on the HMS Beagle from 1831- 1836. Why is this important to Biological Science?

Water Ice on Mars

They have teased and poked and finally managed to get some of Mars's ice into an instrument and melt it and evaporate it and YES - ICE! Water ice.

If the Science News links are unavailable try to search NASA.gov.

OK, so that doesn't seem like a big thrill to most of us after all we can just go to the fridge and we have ice so what's the big deal?

We (that's you and I and all of the scientists on earth) haven't been able to discover or even really imagine any living things that do not depend on water in some way so if there is water even in the phase of solid, cold, ice there may be (or may have been) something alive on Mars.

The alphageeks (and I use that team with great admiration) at Science News have been following this quite closely.

1. What did our favorite rocket scientists have to do to prove that there was water ice on Mars?

2. Earlier in July scientists saw evidence of ice. There was a solid, white substance that seemed to evaporate when exposed to heat. Why was this evidence NOT conclusive?

3. What other sources can you find about this amazing news story? (If online record links.)

4. Record a link to your favorite Mars photo(s) online.

be good,

Mr. Hazen

Glass: Solid or Liquid

After years and years panes of glass at an old farmhouse (or city house for that matter) are no longer the same thickness from top to bottom.

Those old windows are thicker on the bottom than at the top because glass flows down very, very slowly.

RIGHT? No, sorry.

Read the article, The Nature of Glass is anything but Clear by Kenneth Chang to understand the unique properties of glass.

In a related blog Mr. Chang admits to a mistake!

What!?? A science geek (an ALPHA GEEK no less) made a mistake?!

THEN he admits to it and encourages further discussion of his mistake. He even gives Phil Platt , the blogger who called him on it, credit. So scientists, unlike politicians, make mistakes and learn from them. Wow, that's odd. But lets get back to work.

Read Mr. Chang's article.

Be able to tell why glass is neither a solid or a liquid and what discoveries that might lead to.

Now click on the graphic in the article. There is a very clear picture of the difference between the structure of a crystalline solid and glass. Be able to describe that difference in words.

OK here are some questions that will prove to me that you understood the article.

1. What mistake did Mr. Chang make?

2. Explain why glass is neither a solid nor a liquid.

3. What is the difference between the structure of a crystalline solid and glass? (Yes, you may use a drawing to clarify your answer.)

4. What discoveries might deeper understanding of glass lead to.

5. Describe the difference between the structure of a crystalline solid and glass.

Page 2 refers to entropy and viscosity.

6. What is entropy?

7. What is viscosity?

extra

Who is Phil Platt?

be good,

Mr. Hazen

Solar Eclipse

Thanks for this photo to wikipedia

The mainstream media may not have noticed the recent solar eclipse because the totality was not visible in the USA. Parts of Canada, northern Greenland, the Arctic, central Russia, Mongolia and China got the best show but our friends at NASA didn't miss it. So here is video of the August 1, 2008 eclipse.


OK do you have it in your browser? Orient yourselves.

The RED-ORANGE is the sun and the advancing curve is the moon. The sun is going, going, GONE leaving a view of the solar corona. In the video check out the solar flair about where the 4 would be if the sun were the face of an analog clock. About a millions earths could fit in there. Pretty nice huh!


Change photographic filters and we see what romantics call the diamond ring. As the moon blocks more and more of the sun's a small bright "diamond" of sunlight remains. Who could say no to a proposal that includes that ring? (That's a rhetorical question so don't answer. The rest of the questions are not rhetorical so do answer them.)


Now we see the corona in all of its glory. In the past these fleeting seconds were used to study the makeup of the sun and the particles that are cast out toward the planets (Yes, including Earth) and the darkness was used to confirm that the gravity caused by a body as massive as the sun will to attract everything - even the light from distant stars.


What year did that experiment first happen?
What are they measuring these days?


Here comes the diamond ring on the other side... (Will she say "YES!"?)



So what exactly is a solar eclipse? A lunar eclipse? (and there are more names - annular, partial...)


When will the next one happen? When was the most recent one in the past?



Assignment:
1) Define:
a) Eclipse
b) Solar Eclipse
c) Lunar Eclipse


2) When will we see an eclipse in NJ? (Did you see the one earlier this year?)

3) Will it be solar or lunar?


extra: When did the famous experiment with the bending of starlight take place? What theory did scientists expect to support or refute?




be good,
Mr. Hazen