bookofjoe

BehindTheMedspeak: New autism website features video that 'can make you gasp'

If a picture is worth a thousand words, 24 frames/second of video translates to 24 x 60 x 1000 = 1,440,000 words per minute of startling viewing at autismspeaks.org.

Lindsey Tanner, in yesterday's Associated Press story appearing in the the Washington Post, wrote, "Dozens of video clips contrast the behavior of autistic kids with that of unaffected children. Some of the side-by-side differences can make you gasp."

Here's the article.

Web Site Shows Autism Videos

What's so unusual about a baby fascinated with spinning a cup, or a toddler flapping his hands, or a preschooler walking on her toes?

Parents and even doctors sometimes miss these red flags for autism, but a new online video "glossary" makes them startlingly clear.

A new Web site offers dozens of video clips of autistic kids contrasted with unaffected children's behavior. Some of the side-by-side differences can make you gasp. Others are more subtle.

The free site, debuting Monday, also defines and depicts "stimming," "echolalia" and other confusing-sounding terms that describe autistic behavior. Stimming refers to repetitive, self-stimulating or soothing behavior including hand-flapping and rocking that autistic children sometimes do in reaction to light, sounds or excitement. Echolalia is echoing or repeating someone else's words or phrases, sometimes out of context.

The new site is sponsored by two nonprofit advocacy groups: Autism Speaks and First Signs. They hope the site will promote early diagnosis and treatment, which can help young children with autism lead more normal lives.

Pediatrician Dr. Michael Wasserman cautioned that the site might lead some parents to needlessly fret about normal behavior variations, and said they shouldn't use it to try to diagnose their own kids.

"Just as there's a spectrum in autism... there's a spectrum in normal development," said Wasserman, with Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans. "Children don't necessarily develop in a straight line."

But Amy Wetherby, a Florida State University professor of communications disorders who helped create the site, noted that sometimes "parents are the first to be concerned and the doctors aren't necessarily worried. This will help give them terms to take to the doctor and say, 'I'm worried about it."

And while the children shown in the "Red Flags" video clips on the site have been diagnosed with some form of autism, the sponsors note that not all children who behave this way have something wrong. In fact, the behaviors in some of the short video clips — when viewed individually — look fairly normal.

The important thing is to seek medical help if a child does exhibit persistent unusual behavior, to either rule out autism or get an early diagnosis, said Alison Singer of Autism Speaks.

Added Wetherby, "We now know that one out of 150 children has autism, or one out of 94 boys. It's not a rare disability. We also know that early intervention is critical."

The site was to be available to the public starting Monday on the Autism Speaks Web site www.autismspeaks.org.

Several autism specialists who reviewed it at the request of The Associated Press called it an unusually helpful tool for parents and doctors.

"The moving pictures speak a million words," said Dr. Edwin Cook, an autism researcher and educator at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

"Not only do I see this as useful for the general public and for parents who might be wondering ... but I will frankly be using it for education" and training, Cook said. He has received research funding from Autism Speaks but has no connection to the new site.

Stefanie Voss of Tallahassee, Fla., said it will be a great tool "for parents who are in the situation that I was in three years ago, which is, 'I'm not sure if something's wrong with my child.'"

She said she asked her pediatrician about her son Nicholas when he was 14 months old and was told he didn't show "the classic signs" of autism.

"He did smile and have eye contact, but what I've learned since is those aren't the only red flags," Voss said.

Nicholas didn't point, wave, or demonstrate any other nonverbal communication. He'd also spend hours opening and closing cabinet doors or spinning plastic bowls on the floor.

She eventually took him to Florida State where he was diagnosed at age 17 months and intervention began. Nicholas is featured in a video clip on the site.

With speech lessons, physical therapy and behavior training several hours daily, he's now affectionate, social, talking, walking and in preschool.

"It shows you that all your hard work and early intervention pays off," Voss said.

Dr. Karen Ballaban-Gil, a pediatric neurology specialist at Montefiore Medical Center in New York, said the site "will be doing a real service."

The site will eventually feature a section on autism treatments and Ballaban-Gill said the only scientifically sound ones are intensive behavior training. Others, including special diets, are unproven and should not be included, she said.

Singer said there is no decision yet on which treatments will be added to the site.

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The final 35 seconds or so of the following video

are especially compelling.

Magnetic Wood Stove Thermometer

From the website:

Magnetic Stove Thermometer

An essential safety accessory for any wood stove!

Magnetic thermometer attaches to stove top, door or flue pipe to monitor stove temperature — indicating overheating (or more importantly) the lower combustion temperatures that promote hazardous creosote buildup and increase the risk of fire.

Dial shows the temperature in Fahrenheit and Celsius.

Baked enamel dial won't discolor.

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Just because you're living off the grid doesn't mean you can't have fun with technology.

The mention of creosote reminds me that it's been a couple years since I had my chimneys swept — better ring up Mirkwood soonest.

$16.99.

Remote Control Outdoor Light

From the website:

Remote Control Outdoor Light

Now you can have light at the touch of a button without getting up or manually flipping a switch.

Remote keychain automatically activates light from across the patio.

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Great way to feel safer coming home at night.

Features infrared activation or manual on/off.

Requires four AA batteries.

6-3/4" x 3" x 2".

Plastic.

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Plenty of applications outside the home space.

$14.98.

'Oil and gold prices seem to be correlated in the past two years' — John Authers, Financial Times Investment Editor

I just read it in his "The Short View" column in today's FT.

Huh.

In today's Wall Street Journal Peter A. McKay writes, "Oil prices shot to a new exchange-record high.... Crude futures jumped... to $86.13 a barrel...."

Back in today's FT, Javier Blas writes about gold's recent price surge "... to a fresh 28-year high of $759.90 a troy ounce."

Even a blind, anosmic pig finds an acorn every now and then.

Or as Bob Dylan put it so nicely, back in the day, "You don't need a weather man to know which way the wind blows."

Portable Instant Car Heater — Episode 2: Faster, Cheaper & Better Controlled

Episode 1 on January 21, 2006 promised more than it delivered.

At least that was the opinion of reader ed who commented, after buying and using it, "Sadly, compared to this heater, my computer would do a better job of heating the car."

Message received and understood.

Just in from out back in the portable car heater skunk works, a new and improved — or so we are led to believe — iteration from Coleman.

Note that the device is pictured from the front above, with a rear view toward the end of the post.

From websites:

Automobile Ceramic Heater

This powerful little heater defrosts and defogs windshields and windows instantly.

Fan can also be used without heat so you can enjoy a cool summer breeze.

Swivel base allows airflow to be directed to wherever you want it.

7 foot cord lets you use it anywhere, including the backseat.

Plugs into your car's 12V outlet.

Mounting tape included.

8"L x 3-1/2"W x 8-1/2"H.

High 550 BTU output.

Dual fan speeds.

Durable plastic.

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$16.99.

Experts' Expert: 'Always refrigerate apples'

Who knew?

I always thought — like you — that you just put them in a bowl on a table.

Bad idea, according to Catoctin Mountain Orchard co-owner Bob Black, as quoted by Stephanie Witt Sedgwick in an October 3, 2007 Washington Post Food section front page story about the search for the next great apple.

More from Black: "It really gets to me when I see a bowl of apples on someone's table. We store apples in cold, humidity-controlled storage areas to preserve their quality. You should do the same at home, unless you're planning to eat the apples right away."

Here's the Post article.

Take Your Pick

You'll Find More Heirloom Varieties Hanging Around

The scene at Catoctin Mountain Orchard last week was right out of a movie: apple trees marching up the side of the hill like columns of soldiers. So many kinds of apples maturing on the branches: Pink Lady, Jonathan, Golden Delicious and more. Pickers working their way along the rows, concentrating on the trees with the ripest fruit. Baskets filled over and over as the haul was emptied into large crates headed for grading and washing.

At the orchard's shop, apples filled baskets, crates and bags alongside all the apple butter, applesauces, apple dumplings and even ready-to-bake frozen pies anyone might crave.

It's the peak of apple-picking time, and Catoctin co-owner Bob Black is losing track of the number of varieties he has, but that's not a bad thing. The small orchard in Thurmont that he and his sister, Pat Runkles, own and operate has about 100 acres in cultivation. Black rattles off more than a dozen kinds of apples he is growing; then, walking through the orchard, he keeps pointing to more and more.

"People want choices, so we're always looking for the next great apple," he says. His latest addition is the Honeycrisp, a juicy fruit with a big flavor burst that was developed by researchers at the University of Minnesota in the 1960s. "It's a great apple," Black says, "but I'm working on getting it to grow here."

Honeycrisps have become so popular that "they sell faster than any other apple we grow," says Jim Frazee, co-owner of Twin Springs Fruit Farm in Orrtanna, Pa., which sells at 13 Washington area farmers markets including those in Arlington, Annandale, Dupont Circle and Takoma Park. He says his farm already has sold out of this season's supply because "they're so good, crisp and flavorful so early." Frazee recommends looking for the Jonagold, another high-flavor variety, if Honeycrisps can't be found.

At Vintage Virginia Apples, a business devoted to preserving American apple traditions that operates at Rural Ridge Orchard in North Garden, Va., more than 200 varieties are cultivated. The orchard, owned and operated by the Shelton family, produces some apples for retail sale in and around Charlottesville, but most of their business is selling unusual or hard-to-find apple trees. "About two-thirds of our varieties are heirloom and one-third are newer varieties," Charlotte Shelton says.

Driven by the family's interest in preserving lesser-known apples and by tasting heirloom varieties at Monticello, the project grew from 10 trees to 50, then to 100 and ultimately into a nursery selling trees to populate a back yard or fill a small orchard.

"We look for apples with high flavor, a counterpoint to the blander apples grown for their suitability for shipping and storage," Shelton says. "The apples we cultivate provide a more interesting taste experience." At Rural Ridge Orchard you'll find the Harrison, a hard variety. It was one of the premier cider apples in New England in the late 1700s and early 1800s, according to apple expert and historian Tom Burford, who lives outside Charlottesville. The variety had all but disappeared.

Burford holds tastings to introduce people to varieties he thinks have merit, both for preserving history and for enjoyment. He recommends holding your own tasting: "Tasting apples side by side and taking the time to appreciate the apple will change the way you see it." Eat apples with "deliberate consideration," he advises, taking time to appreciate their characteristics.

Burford has devoted his life to preserving and promoting the diversity of the apple. Part of his mission is helping people discover heirloom varieties -- such as the Black Twig, a large, green apple with red stripes and a rich, winey flavor, and the Harrison, which produces a sweet, smooth, full-bodied cider — or even newer, more commercially available types. Call it apple appreciation.

If your appreciation can handle a pared-down apple history lesson, it would start with the first settlers at Jamestown, who found some native crab-apple varieties, albeit unsuitable for consumption. They planted the apple seeds they had brought with them to ensure a ready supply of fruit to make hard cider, their drink of choice, Burford says.

"The apple was cultivated for drinking, not for eating," he says. Large orchards were planted to get apples for pressing; the variety, size and appearance of the fruit were of little concern.

The discovery of apples that were good enough to eat was a happy surprise. Before the techniques of propagating and grafting became widely used, it was hard to predict what kind of apple a tree would bear. The seeds of one apple can produce many types of apple trees, Burford says. For cider making, it didn't matter; the apples were blended together. Ancient grafting methods allowed early Americans to cultivate varieties they discovered. Among the many fans of the "eating apple" was Thomas Jefferson, who cultivated apples in the orchards at Monticello. One of his favorites was the Esopus Spitzenberg, Burford says, a variety of the Jonathan apple that is popular today.

The classic American varieties appearing spontaneously in orchards were prized for eating out of hand. "Grafting techniques made it possible to graft a section of the tree you liked onto the rootstock of another tree to reproduce a wanted variety in an orchard, more for a dessert use or out-of-hand eating," Burford says. Old European varieties were cultivated here using the same technique. "Think of it as cloning," Burford says.

For the next 200 years, hundreds of varieties could be found growing commercially. Estimates of the number of varieties worldwide vary tremendously and rise into the thousands.

Over time, here in the United States, the demands of cold storage and long-distance shipping made a few varieties more desirable — think Red Delicious — and those came to dominate the market. The number of available varieties seemed to dwindle.

With the growing popularity of farmers markets and the eat-local movement, that trend is reversing.

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Below, a sidebar to the Post article with more tips from apple expert Black.

Apple Expertise

How complicated is learning how to use and store apples? Not very, but a few tips from the experts can't hurt.

• Always refrigerate apples, says Catoctin Mountain Orchard co-owner Bob Black. "It really gets to me when I see a bowl of apples on someone's table," he says. "We store apples in cold, humidity-controlled storage areas to preserve their quality. You should do the same at home, unless you're planning to eat the apples right away." The fruit bin of your refrigerator is perfect for this, especially when it is set for high humidity. Black also advises refrigerating the apples in an open plastic bag to preserve their moisture.

• To make the best apple pies, mix varieties. "In pie making, you need a mix of sugar, acid, tannin and flavors," says Tom Burford, an orchard consultant, historian and author of several books on growing fruit. "Very few apples have it all." Two combinations he recommends are Golden Delicious-Jonathan and Golden Delicious-Granny Smith.

• For the best applesauce, use Stayman apples. Renowned Southern cooking expert Edna Lewis swore by them, according to Burford. Another great choice is Braeburn, which makes a sweet applesauce.

• For the best-tasting apples, buy locally or grow your own. Commercially distributed apples are grown for durability and appearance, so Chuck Shelton of Vintage Virginia Apples in North Garden, Va., recommends buying from nearby orchards that sell only locally; they didn't select their crop on the basis of durability, he says. And he's a big fan of the homegrown variety: "It won't look pretty, but the best-tasting fruit will come off your own trees."

Mixed Numbers Clock

A 2006 design by J. P. Meulendijks.

50cm diameter; injection molded plastic.

White or Silver: $85.50.

Black: £58.

Red: £59