Nikola

Hello everyone:) I am not sure if anyone can help me, but I have a few questions that I thought I would throw out there since I have pretty much reached a dead end in my own research. My little sister has recently been diagnosed with Stage 4 Lupus. Don't ask me how it got as far as it did without being diagnosed. She simply slipped through the cracks of the medical system and was misdiagnosed for many years until I was browsing the internet one day and found the connection between Reynaud’s Syndrome (which she has had since she was a young child) and Lupus. After consulting her doctor on this he ran some tests and found that she indeed has Lupus and it was in an advanced stage where it was effecting her kidneys and heart. They immediately put her on a drug called Prednisone to remove a protein buildup around the heart, which in return relieved pressure and stress on the cardiovascular system. She is having side effects from the drug, but at least she can sleep now without feeling like someone is sitting on her chest. To control the Lupus they began IV treatments with a drug called Cyclophosphamide. Now I have researched this drug and found that it has some pretty nasty side effects, including liver failure and am concerned about this, but her doctor assures her that the need is sufficiently dire. I, however, have discovered that the standard treatment for advanced stages of Lupus changed to Mycophenolic Acid in 2005 and has shown better results and less side effects. Her doctor says that Cyclophosphamide works better and that the Mycophenolic Acid will show no results and just waste time. I am wondering if any of you have any experience with either of these drugs, or if perhaps you have some alternative treatments for Lupus that have shown positive results? Any help would be greatly appreciated and I will be checking in to see if you all have any input. Thank you...

Special effects were good and I liked Woody Harrelson's character, but other than that, it was like any other disaster movie.

Very good series, but I hate the ending.

Swan Song by Robert McCammon I have read it three times and I almost never reread books.

I was hoping for an acceleration in the space program by now. A moon base would be nice instead of a rickety old space station.

You have to define "space" before you can determine if it has a limit. I mean, how can u say something has a beginning or an end that you really don't understand in the first place? What defines the universe? If “space” does end somewhere, then who is to say that whatever is beyond that is not just another form of “space“? The human mind has nothing to compare such an idea with, therefore it cannot be proven or disproved. It is like asking, what happens when you die. Everyone has theories, but asking for a definitive answer is ridiculous.

Merry Christmas!

If you went outside at exactly the same time every day and took a picture that included the Sun, how would the Sun appear to move? With great planning and effort, such a series of images can be taken. The figure-8 path the Sun follows over the course of a year is called an analemma. This coming Tuesday, the Winter Solstice day in Earth's northern hemisphere, the Sun will be at the bottom of the analemma. Analemmas created from different latitudes would appear at least slightly different, as well as analemmas created at a different time each day. With even greater planning and effort, the series can include a total eclipse of the Sun as one of the images. Here is a picture of what you are looking for. It has already been posted, but just wanted to add a NASA sponsered site. http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap091220.html

Playing Dragon Age Origins for PC right now and have to say that it is top notch. Highly reccomend it if you like fantasy RPG's

Don't play games in a relationship unless their good fun for all (like Battleship). What you have to do is sit down and define your relationship. Ask her if she wants to be serious or just fool around. Then at least you know where you stand. If she wants to be serious, good, be serious. If she wants to fool around, I would usually say good about that too, but since she is your friends sister, I would probably call it off because there is a good chance it will get ugly eventually and you will loose both of them.

Your girlfriend works for a secret government organization and is messing with your head.

Don't forget about Micro Black Holes...that would suck

If you perceive that it has made a sound, or assume that it will make a sound, then yes, it will make a sound. If you can convince yourself 100% that it will not make a sound and believe that beyond a shadow of a doubt, then it will not make a sound. Just like you can move a mountain with a mustard seed worth of belief, you can also create your environment in any shape that you wish. The human brain is a tool that directs your eyes to see what you believe you should see and your ears to hear what you think you should hear. Everything is conditional and material form is only an illusion, solidified by belief. The real question is, does the tree continue to exist if no one is around to observe it?

Actually, according to some of the information I have read regarding Eintein Rosen Bridges (wormholes) I would have to disagree with the assumption that it is absolutly not possible. It is true that, unfortunately, worm holes are currently more science fiction than they are science fact. However, a wormhole is a theoretical opening in space-time that is the mathematical solution to general relativity and so does abide by the laws of physics. It has never been proven that worm holes exist, though, largely due to the fact that there is no experimental evidence for them (due to black holes being hard to detect), but just because no one has ever seen one, does not mean that it is not possible. It is only recently in human history that the exsistance of Black Holes has been proven. Here's a link for you if you want to read up on Einsein and Dr. Rosen's theories on the matter... http://www.krioma.net/articles/Bridge%20Theory/Einstein%20Rosen%20Bridge.htm