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Findings Waterlogged “The way the kidney works is to filter the blood, and it filters the blood almost unrelated to how much fluid is in the system,” Goldfarb said. There is no evidence that extra water clears the skin or staves off migraines, either. Desert trekkers need to hydrate more than the average homebody, of course, but in general, the only time you really need to drink is when you’re thirstyand just about any liquid will do. Now You See It As they reported in the New England Journal of Medicine in April, the scientists surgically implanted a genetically engineered virus carrying a normal version of the deficient gene into each patient’s right eye. All three began to show improved vision about two weeks later, reading letters from an eye chart they had previously failed to see. The researchers cited the need for continued clinical trials, expressing hope that the modest gains shown by the adult patients could indicate the potential for greater improvements when treatment is begun in childhood. Bargain Envy Bolton and two co-authors, one of whom teaches at Peking University, conducted a series of experiments that revealed distinct cultural differences in “perceived price fairness.” When presented with the scenario above, Americans tended to see the same level of unfairness at play regardless of whether the comparison shopper was a friend or a stranger. Chinese subjects, on the other hand, smarted more if the bargain went to a friend. In another experimental variation, Chinese customers also chafed more at being ripped off by a regularly frequented vendor as opposed to one they’d come to for the first time. Americans didn’t seem to care about that relationship, viewing fairness exclusively in dollar terms. Variable pricing schemes have become more common in recent years, the researchers say, yet customer loyalty still depends heavily on a sense of fair play. As U.S. companies seek new customers in China, and vice versa, it may pay to recognize how that sense varies across cultures. Wrongful Diagnosis “The clinical diagnosis often carries with it unintended cruel connotations in the lay language and a concomitant destructive potential,” the co-authors write in the May issue of Archives of Neurology. “At its unkindest, it is a word without hope, which is a crucial tool when faced with a devastating illness.” Trachtenberg and Trojanowski argue that the diagnosis of dementia may have a crippling effect on patients whose cognitive deficits are limited, potentially creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. They maintain that like such outmoded terms as mongoloid and idiot savant, dementia should be retired from the clinical lexicon as “a concern of morality and common humanity.” They advocate replacing it with a less pejorative general term, such as neurocognitive impairment. It is imperative, they conclude, “to help preserve dignity and to maintain a sense of self-worth as long as awareness remains. Should awareness depart, it is still uncivilized to dehumanize any human being.” T.P.
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