In Contact - December 2008

Best of the Web ?08

Being the eighth edition of my annual ?Best of the Web? feature, I'm sure that by now most of you know the drill. For those who don't, simply save the URL to your desktop or favourites. Use the link thus created as a quick and easy reference from which to source a myriad of useful eye sites. It's also worth visiting the previous seven editions for thousands more relevant eye sites and sometimes amazing links. I may repeat a few over time that are noteworthy. Surf to the archives for the best of 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002 and 2001.

State of Damnation

As usual I've included some irreverent sites that have zip to do with eyes, for the more mischievous and adventurous among us. Anally retentive eye nerds can skip the naughty bits. All work and no play make Jack & Jill rather dull. It is after all the end of a hard [yet interesting] year. Having Helen and her cronies removed from direct control of the country and its purse strings, was a breath of fresh air in an otherwise rather negative year. Obama?s amazing victory shows just how far Americans have come. In comparison our elections were a bit of a fizzer, although fortunately saner(?) and shorter. Can you imagine twenty two months of Helen, John and Winston? It's all changed. It's all Blue. Democrats, National, Mercedes Benz & VW among others.

IT?

I also like to take stock of the state of the Internet and computer hardware and software offerings. Put diplomatically I'd have to say that Windows Vista Sucks. I waited for Service Pack 1 and also paid extra for the 64-bit version that boasts faster speed and better management of large amounts of RAM. I bought the very latest HP dv6700 series laptop with a top of the line 2.5GHz T9300 Intel core two duo chip and a whopping 4GB RAM and a Blu-ray DVD drive. What?
The net result? Well frankly after nigh on 5 months I'm disappointed. The tweaked GUI is nice but no big deal. The new menus in Office 2007 are a backward step. Access to items is slow. Apps are prone to hang. I've suffered buggy HP, Windows and other software. In many ways I regret not having done what we did with my daughter?s new Toshiba; taking the downgrade option and reverting to XP after we had setup issues with her version of Vista and Office 2003. She haughtily and sarcastically reminds me of my ?slow as? supposed ?dream machine?. No doubt I?ll also hear from the Apple brigade.
Ha ha.
If you need a new computer buy one with XP or wait for Windows 7. At the very least buy one that comes bundled with a downgrade option. Crazy but true.
Hackers and other assorted single-celled organisms continue to wreak havoc with the ideals of the Internet as does rampant commercialism and credit card fraud. Archive that data?

Reference sites

The Internet Public Library is a useful resource full of links to all manner of sites covering a diverse range of topics.
The South African Optometrist is one of many journals to jump on the online bandwagon. The current editor Allan Rubin invites you to subscribe or enjoy unrestricted access to some of the past few volumes, online. It's a long established, respected journal with a good rating. I served on the editorial board under former editors ?Flippie? Bruwer and Bill Harris in the ?80s and ?90s. I also have to thank Flippie for encouraging me to start my In Contact column, two decades ago in ?88. My grandfather, JL Saks was also editor for a few years during the late 60s and early 70s and my father Sid designed the cover that graced the journal for a few years. A range of interesting, research & clinical papers and columns are provided. It's worth checking out some of the Optometric Science Research Group?s groundbreaking papers. Their approach to optics and analysing issues like defocus, astigmatism and other aberrations using matrices, fancy analyses and their trademark stereoscopic pairs are worth checking out.
What with the increasing longevity of humans and the increasing levels of environmental toxins, stress, obesity and dietary issues, the aging eye is becoming an ever bigger problem. As more of us become old gits, sites such as this will have a greater interest to us and our patients. Granny always said ?take that cod liver oil? and eat your spinach and carrots. She was right. For a while we got too ?clever?.
Medscape continues to evolve and is becoming one of the best all round sites for matters medical with plenty of ophthalmology and eye care. Register free then try their world class CME, ?Today? and emedicine sites. Choosing a fundus lens is like choosing a car it seems. Anyone for some neuropharmacology?
Compliance is the trendy issue in contact lens care. J&J have developed Acuminder, a lens replacement reminder system to help. Facebook provides today?s egotistical netkids with their own linked version. However why not take the easy route, as many of my patients do: Set up a recurring reminder in Outlook or on a cell phone, or circle the respective dates on an old fashioned calendar.
The renowned Lancet Journal re-launched their online version with a new improved, super-site. Try this open access paper on sleep apnoea that has relevance to KC, floppy lids and so on. I use YouTube to demo OCT to patients to help explain PVD, macula holes, membranes and the like. PopSci is great and has been for decades. As is SciAm. ASCRS have their own newsmagazine. ICEE. My old man studied at Indiana in ?57 under the legendary Hank Hofstetter. Today, Gerry Lowther and co-workers at Indiana provide an excellent list of broad-spectrum optometric and eyecare links.
I've used drug references on a regular basis since I started practising. It's easier now and there are a number of good sites. Each has its own pros and cons. These guys not only have a drug database but also plenty more useful software and downloads for ECPs. The Merck manual is one of the great healthcare reference works. This Merc manual also helps users.
Here?s a link to help you calculate glaucoma risk. The OSNSuperSite reports LASIK volumes are down by as much as 60%. there's plenty more of interest too. Check out the Top Ten most beautiful eyes. Charlize was born in a town nor far from where I was. there's hope for me yet? Check out the hundreds of other top ten lists.
The AAO is worth a visit, as is the ORBIS Cyber-Sight Telemedicine site. This one has broad medical and consumer appeal. TVCI is worth looking into. What about emerging infectious diseases? OCT is worth looking into. ?Scuse the pun.
These guys also provide a ?Best of the Web? site. Amblyopia is one example of sites they link to. Get on axis with some astigmatism tips here. Everyone loves a toric. Microsaccades.

Seek and ye shall find

Sometimes you just find. A new search engine is always of interest. Try this one. When i first wrote about the web, search engines would find a few million sites. In its early years Google indexed around 5 billion pages. Cuill currently boasts having ?crawled? around 125 billion pages and counting. Pretty kewl eh? It works a little differently to some others and presents the results in a novel way. There are hundreds more search engines. Check out some of the top 100 and some of the new crop.
There are always fantastic images to be found on the Net and those that represent nature in all its glory rate among some of the very best. NASA & JPL are always on the go. Get out those red-green anaglyphs for some 3D images from afar. Check out Phoenix and Mars. Adaptive optics and nano silver combine to further enhance our view. Obama?s scientific side? Could this solve the greenhouse problem? This will help. Wall Street? Bought any Crocs? GM? FORD? How?s your Vision? The US debt clock has run out of digits?
The Exploratorium is interesting. Know your sky. PARC here.
CERN?s six billion dollar little Big Bang via the LHC is a mind blowing experiment that provided the first ray of what will likely come in 2009. Looking for the Higgs Boson? You can also check out this excellent video from the Beeb on YouTube. Love it or hate it you gotta give them credit. Google Earth too. Some amazing stuff we have these days. Check out your home planet. Our next space cadet? ECETI

Irreverence & other Relevant and Irrelevant sites

Stuff the hybrid brigade, this is more my style and a world-record breaker too. Not only is it frugal with fuel but it can, when called upon, sum up 540Nm of torque and propel two tons to 100km/h in 6.6 seconds Not bad. It averaged 140mph over three days in a non-stop 100,000km endurance race. When treated more gently it uses less fuel than an average Golf and will likely have less ecological impact than a hybrid. Hamilton also benefits from Mercedes power and he broke some records too. Full credit. It seems It's not just his engine that's hot. You may need this. My previous connection with Merc was the legendary W123 that I sold when I left ZA for NZ. I recently broke one of my own records in that I harvested my first ripe, red tomato on the 28th October. Not bad considering the weather. Enhancing tomato crops demands proper pruning and management. This site has video and tons more information on many aspects of gardening.
There are plenty of lunatics on the Net who will happily share their adrenaline fuelled moments of madness. Yeeeehah! This bunch lost it.
Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder? Tequila comes in many forms. It seems it can cost more than Dom or top single malts! Anyone for pool? Short? Hot? Tuck in.
Spicy? Chill. Sober up with this interpretation of our world?s clock. It's a bit of a worry when two of the top five largest dams in the world are tailings dams. The largest, the Three Gorges in China is itself not exactly environmentally friendly.
Fontophiles pull in here. Weak work jokes? Anagrams are good?
Time Magazine remains one of the best value reads on the market with diverse coverage. The NZ Herald also provides broad news. This particular link must have something to do with those tight underpants Dan Carter advertises and may explain why the ABs choked in the RWC, although NZ is once again top of the IRB ratings. A Saffer does Nandos. United-mutations. Tattoo Asylum.
RESPeRATE may be worth investigating. I've used ?bio-feedback? from a wrist-mounted blood pressure monitor to breathe and chill when stressed. Atlas correction and Advanced Allergy Elimination may also helps as will lowering cholesterol. EBM freaks note that some of this stuff has been proven in clinical trials so It's not all airy-fairy alternative nonsense.
Interested in property? This Auckland City Council site helps you look up CVs and plenty more regarding many aspects of Auckland. Check out Gearlog. Keen for some European skiing and getting educated at the same time? Baby Boomer? Make amazing music and kill ugly radio. Check out the Roarprawn. Who gives a fjuck?
We?ll be back in February ?09.
Have a great time.
Peace and goodwill to all.

 

 

For more information or any comments email Alan at incontact@optom.co.nz.