quote:

Nathan Cobb the nematologist, described the ubiquity of nematodes on Earth thus:

"In short, if all the matter in the universe except the nematodes were swept away, our world would still be dimly recognizable, and if, as disembodied spirits, we could then investigate it, we should find its mountains, hills, vales, rivers, lakes, and oceans represented by a film of nematodes. The location of towns would be decipherable, since for every massing of human beings there would be a corresponding massing of certain nematodes. Trees would still stand in ghostly rows representing our streets and highways. The location of the various plants and animals would still be decipherable, and, had we sufficient knowledge, in many cases even their species could be determined by an examination of their erstwhile nematode parasites."

Phyzzle posted:

I found this quote from Wikipedia eerie:




https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nematode

Serious Cephalopod posted:

Hey, guess who's wrong about this!

It's you!

http://www.snopes.com/horrors/mayhem/needles.asp

Wikipedia posted:

On September 8, 1943, Italy changed sides in World War II, the king having already issued an order for Mussolini's arrest. Rescued by the Germans, he became the head of the Republic of Salò, a puppet regime over northern Italy. The defense of Italy and the suppression of its insurgent population were left to the Wehrmacht. After the loss of Sicily, they successfully defended the Gustaf Line south of the marshes, necessitating an Allied landing at Anzio and Nettuno in an effort to outflank the Germans. Malaria had returned to the Agro Pontino: Quinine and other medicines were in short supply or withheld by the Germans, the food was bad, a shortage of metal prevented the screens from being repaired, and veterans returning from the Balkans brought back resistant strains of the disease.

The Germans stopped the pumps and opened the dikes, refilling the marsh with brackish water. They were being advised by the German malariologists Erich Martini and Ernst Rodenwaldt that the return of the salt water would encourage the return of Anopheles labranchiae, which thrives in salty environments. The water would also destroy agriculture, removing the essential supplies of food and fresh water from the vicinity, an act that had minimal military effect, but devastated the population. Although it is true that the bog impeded the movement of heavy equipment, the Germans did not flood the marsh for that reason; the equipment under the heavy shelling from some of the largest artillery pieces the Germans had was going nowhere, anyway. The flooding was an act of biological warfare and was opposed by former Italian colleagues of the Germans in malariology, but someone on Kesselring's staff - unknown to this day - issued the order.

The allies and the Germans equally, therefore, found themselves fighting in a mosquito-infested bog.

Kat R. Waulin posted:

You know how lovely it can be when you're enjoying a lovely weekend by doing chores around the yard, and meet up with the business end of a rusty pointy thing? Then have to drop everything, and go get a tetanus shot? Here's why.

Imagined posted:

Similar to tetanus -- just a normal bacteria chilling all around you that's fine most of the time until it suddenly gets shoved into your body, some tornado victims who survive the tornado end up dying of fungal infections from normally harmless soil fungi that get pushed into their bodies by flying debris. Terrible. As if you don't have enough problems at the point, but you've got to feel like, wow, the worst is over, I survived. Nope. Fungus gonna eat you now.

The New Yorker posted:

In soil, C. immitis exists in chains of barrel-shaped units called arthroconidia; airborne, these fragment easily into lightweight spores. C. immitis is adapted to lodge deep: its spores are small enough to reach the end of the bronchioles at the bottom of the lungs. We can breathe them in, but we can’t breathe them out. Once in the lung, the spore circles up into a spherule, defined by a chitinous cell wall and filled with a hundred or so baby endospores. When the spherule is sufficiently full, it ruptures, releasing the endospores and stimulating an acute inflammatory response that disrupts blood flow to the tissue and can lead to necrosis. The endospores, each of which will become a new spherule, travel through the blood and lymph systems, allowing the cocci to spread, as one specialist told me, “anywhere it wants.” In people with weakened immune systems, cocci can take over.

Every year, there are some hundred and fifty thousand cases. Only forty per cent of people infected are symptomatic, and the signs—fever, cough, exhaustion—can be hard to distinguish from the flu. A small subset of patients will suffer long-term health problems; in fewer still, cocci will disseminate from the lungs into other tissue—skin, bones, and, often fatally, the meninges of the brain. For those with cocci meningitis, the treatment can be brutal. Three times a week, in the hospital, patients are administered an anti-fungal called amphotericin B—“amphoterrible” is how doctors refer to it—with a needle to the base of the skull. To prevent headaches, patients sometimes rest for several hours with their feet elevated above their heads. One patient, a twenty-six-year-old white woman who caught valley fever four years ago, told me that the medicine made her vomit non-stop on a negative incline. She was temporarily paralyzed, underwent three brain surgeries, and has had twenty-two spinal taps. Not long after her diagnosis, the doctors told her mother to make funeral arrangements. Now they tell her she will be on anti-fungals, funnelled through a shunt in her brain, for the rest of her life.

eberbs posted:

Don't think this has been posted.

It has always unnerved me a little because one of the murderers lived in the house i am renting now and it all happened just a few blocks away. I remember the night she went missing, i probably drove by the house they had her in

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2011/10/world-of-warcraft-text-murder-201110

eberbs posted:

Don't think this has been posted.

It has always unnerved me a little because one of the murderers lived in the house i am renting now and it all happened just a few blocks away. I remember the night she went missing, i probably drove by the house they had her in

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2011/10/world-of-warcraft-text-murder-201110

Smelly Bohemian posted:

Is there a significant chunk missing from that article? It seems to jump abruptly from Kruse and Kim dating to Kruse and Cam luring her over to their house with no description of what happened in the interim.

Anoia posted:

Yeah, the text log mentioned a rabbit but there's no explanation about it.

quote:

Driscoll’s Hollywood career started at the age of five with a bit part opposite fellow child star Margaret O’Brien in the 1943 film Lost Angel (incidentally, the film also featured a brief appearance by Robert “Bobby” Blake, who would grow up to face troubles of his own). This led to small roles as precocious youngsters in several films over the next two years before Driscoll was “discovered” by Walt Disney in 1946.

Disney put Driscoll under a long-term contract–the first actor given this status by the studio–and cast him as Johnny, the young boy whose becomes entranced by Uncle Remus’ tales in the 1946 film Song of the South (based on the stories by Joel Chandler Harris). The relationship between Uncle Remus (James Baskett) and Johnny is the centerpiece of the film, and there is an easy camaraderie between the two that makes their budding friendship that much more believable on the screen. Baskett is the twinkling, appealing star of the film, to be sure, but Driscoll more than holds his own, and rather admirably, too, for a nine-year-old.

In the wake of that film, Driscoll’s popularity exploded. Along with South co-star Luana Patten, Disney built up Driscoll as a fresh new star, throwing the two of them together twice more: first, in a brief cameo during the Pecos Bill segment of the package film Melody Time (1948), followed by the animated/live-action combo film So Dear to My Heart later that year.

In between projects for Disney, Driscoll appeared in The Window, a minor 1949 noir based on a story by Cornell Woolrich (whose work was adapted into numerous films over the years, perhaps most notably the similarly-named Alfred Hitchcock classic Rear Window in 1954). Driscoll’s work in The Window demonstrates the breadth of the young actor’s talent; outside of the strictures of the wholesome Disneyfied persona that had been crafted for him, Driscoll proves himself to be a capable, intriguing dramatic presence–in fact, in its review of the film upon its release, the New York Times labeled Driscoll’s performance as “brilliant,” his character’s reactions “projected with remarkable verisimilitude.” His performance in The Window, combined with his appearance in So Dear, led to his winning a special “Juvenile” Oscar in 1950.

That year, Driscoll returned to the Disney fold for the live-action adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic adventure story Treasure Island, playing Jim Hawkins opposite Robert Newton’s memorable Long John Silver. The film was one of the biggest successes at the year’s box office, and marked a pinnacle in Driscoll’s career.

The young actor soon moved into voice acting for his home studio, providing the vocals for Goofy’s son, Goofy Jr., in a couple of shorts in the early 1950s. But his greatest voice-over performance came with his lead role in Disney’s 1953 adaptation of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. His playful take on the character, infused by turns with bravado and charm, results in a fantastic vocal performance opposite fellow Disney favorite Kathryn Beaumont (Wendy). In addition to voicing Peter, Driscoll also served as the model for the character, and he ended up performing some of Peter’s scenes on an empty soundstage so as to give the animators reference points for their work.

As Driscoll moved into puberty, his value to the Disney studio began to wane, and after the release of Peter Pan, his long-term contract was canceled, more than two years early. Reportedly, Driscoll was fired because he developed severe acne, and the studio claimed it would be difficult, if not impossible, to cover the offending marks with makeup. In the wake of leaving the studio, Driscoll found it hard to escape his Disneyfied past, and he moved from film to television acting, appearing in a number of anthologized series throughout the 1950s.

But by then, he had discovered drugs–heroin being his narcotic of choice–and he spent the next few years in a downward spiral. Attempts to revitalize his career, both in Hollywood and on Broadway, failed, and Driscoll eventually moved into the art world, becoming a regular presence at The Factory, Andy Warhol’s infamous art/film/writing/music studio in Manhattan.

Driscoll’s time as a “member” of The Factory didn’t last. After two years of immersing himself in his art, he disappeared from the scene. A couple of weeks after his thirty-first birthday, Driscoll’s body was discovered in an abandoned tenement in New York. But he was unidentified at the time, and he was buried in an unmarked grave in Potter’s Field. It wasn’t until his mother went looking for him, almost two years later, that the truth of his death was discovered. And even then, the details were not revealed to the public for another three years, until Song of the South was re-released in theaters in the early 1970s.

Nckdictator posted:

Nckdictator posted:

Related to Driscoll the story of his Song of the South co-star James Baskett is pretty sad too. Baskett played Uncle Remus in Song of the South, was hired on the spot by Walt Disney after auditing for a minor role,is banned from the movie's premiere in Atlanta due to segregation laws, but later becomes the first African-American to win a Oscar for his role in Song of the South and then dies from heart problems at the age of 44. Of course he's all but forgotten nowadays for somewhat obvious reasons.

Nckdictator posted:

James Baskett... later becomes the first African-American to win a Oscar for his role in Song of the South

RNG posted:

Goddamn, Disney's been chewing up child actors and spitting out corpses for close to a century, now.

benito posted:

Hattie McDaniel won an Oscar for Gone With The Wind in 1939. Baskett's Oscar was an honorary one, while the first regular Oscar won by an African American male was Sidney Poitier for 1963's Lilies of the Field.

Puseklepp posted:

Cracked has an article about creepy local news stories, and I found this one pretty cool/creepy/disturbing: Man discovers human hand, coins in attic

quote:

"Well, it certainly is a hand," said Rodney Kite Powell, curator at the Tampa Bay History Center.

Bobby Digital posted:

Nckdictator posted:

The story of child actor (and voice of Peter Pan Bobby Driscoll is seriously depressing

Aesop Poprock posted:

How the gently caress was this dude 40 when he was in Song of the South, he looks almost exactly like my grandpa who's 75. I know being black sucked real bad back then but jesus

quote:

"I think it still looks real. The weirdest thing is the hand," said Lopez.

quote:

New York Times
By ordering Rose to keep her legs closed and forcing the baby’s head to stay in the birth canal for two hours, the nurse took actions that resulted in a harmful loss of oxygen.

As a child, Rosemary suffered development delays, yet had enough mental acuity to be frustrated when she was unable to keep up with her bright and athletic siblings. Even with private tutors, she had difficulty mastering the basics of reading and writing. At age 11, she was sent to a Pennsylvania boarding school for intellectually challenged students. From then on, Rosemary changed schools every few years, either because the educators were unable to deal with her disabilities and mood swings or because her parents hoped a change of scene might prove beneficial.

quote:

Rosemary’s return to the family home in Bronxville was disastrous. She regressed, experiencing seizures and violent tantrums, hitting and hurting those in the vicinity. Her frantic parents sent her to a summer camp in western Massachusetts (she was kicked out after a few weeks), a Philadelphia boarding school (she lasted a few months) and then a convent school in Washington, D.C., where a rebellious Rosemary wandered off at night. Fearing that men might sexually prey on their vulnerable daughter, her parents worried that a scandal would diminish the family’s political prospects.

Deciding that something drastic needed to be done, Joseph Kennedy chose a surgical solution that the American Medical Association had already warned was risky: a prefrontal lobotomy. In November 1941, at George Washington University Hospital, a wide-awake Rosemary followed a doctor’s instructions to recite songs and stories as he drilled two holes in her head and cut nerve endings in her brain until she became incoherent, then silent.

IShallRiseAgain posted:

Man, the guy passed up a chance to go on a grand adventure to find buried treasure.

quote:

In November 1941, at George Washington University Hospital, a wide-awake Rosemary followed a doctor’s instructions to recite songs and stories as he drilled two holes in her head and cut nerve endings in her brain until she became incoherent, then silent

Rondette posted:

This bit gets me every time. Poor woman

"The Guardian posted:

Spurred on by his first-hand experience of the horrors of state-run mental institutions and determined to make his name as a medical pioneer, Freeman developed a version of Moniz's procedure that reached the frontal lobe tissue through the tear ducts. His transorbital lobotomy involved taking a kitchen ice pick, later refined into a more proficient instrument called a leucotome, and hammering it through the thin layer of skull in the corner of each eye socket. The pick would then be scrambled from side to side in order to damage the frontal lobe. The process took about 10 minutes and could be performed anywhere, without the assistance of a surgeon.

Yoshi Jjang posted:

I don't know if it has been discussed recently, but I remember following this thread years ago and one goon claimed that his/her grandfather may have been the Tylenol Killer or something like that, and they were going to find out. Did anything ever come of that?

Kenning posted:

This instructional video for professional divers got me a bit unsettled, especially the middle bit where they were describing the various fatalities attributable to differential pressure.


https://youtube.com/watch?v=AEtbFm_CjE0

RC and Moon Pie posted:

Rosemary Kennedy is the subject of a new book, "Rosemary: The Hidden Kennedy Daughter."

quote:

By ordering Rose to keep her legs closed and forcing the baby’s head to stay in the birth canal for two hours, the nurse took actions that resulted in a harmful loss of oxygen.

quote:

Neurologist Walter Freeman had diagnosed Dully as suffering from childhood schizophrenia since age 4, although numerous other medical and psychiatric professionals who had seen Dully did not detect a psychiatric disorder. In 1960, at 12 years of age, Dully was submitted by his father and stepmother for a trans-orbital lobotomy, performed by Dr. Freeman. During the procedure, a long, sharp instrument called an orbitoclast was inserted through each of Dully's eye sockets 7 cm (2.75 inches) into his brain.

Dully was institutionalized for years as a juvenile (in Agnews State Hospital as a minor), transferred to Rancho Linda School in San Jose, California, a school for children with behavior problems, incarcerated, and was eventually homeless and an alcoholic. After becoming sober and getting a college degree in computer information systems, he became a California state certified behind-the-wheel instructor for a school bus company in San Jose, California.

In his 50s, with the assistance of National Public Radio producer David Isay, Dully started to research what had happened to him as a child following his father's illness. By this time, both his stepmother and Dr. Freeman were dead, and due to the aftereffects of the surgery, he was unable to rely on his own memories. He traveled the country with Isay and Piya Kochhar, speaking with members of his family, relatives of other lobotomy patients, and relatives of Dr. Freeman, and also gaining access to Freeman's archives. Dully first related his story on a National Public Radio broadcast in 2005, prior to co-authoring a memoir published in 2007.[1]

quote:

Following his development of the icepick lobotomy, Freeman began traveling across the country visiting mental institutions in his personal van, which he called the "lobotomobile."[10] He toured around the nation performing lobotomies and spreading their use by educating and training staff to perform the operation. Freeman's name gained popularity despite the widespread criticism of his methods following a lobotomy on President John F. Kennedy's sister Rosemary Kennedy, which left her with severe mental and physical disability.[2] A memoir written by former patient Howard Dully, called My Lobotomy documented his experiences with Freeman and his long recovery after undergoing a lobotomy surgery at 12 years old.[11] Walter Freeman charged just $25 for each procedure that he performed.[9] After four decades Freeman had personally performed as many as 3,439[12] lobotomy surgeries in 23 states, of which 2,500 used his ice-pick procedure,[13] despite the fact that he had no formal surgical training.[2]

quote:

His patients often had to be retaught how to eat and use the bathroom. Relapses were common. Some never recovered and about fifteen percent[14] died from the procedure. In 1951, one patient at Iowa's Cherokee Mental Health Institute died when he stopped for a photo and the surgical instrument penetrated too far into the patient's brain.[15] Freeman wore neither glove nor mask during these procedures.[15] He lobotomized 19 minors including a 4 year old child.[16]