norbork

time: shortly before ww2 place: somewhere in the United States (not quite Real World, but functionally equivalent) search terms: depression era medical school, with and without appropriate quotes

Our Heroine is hired as an army surgeon (possibly technically a contract surgeon, depending on exact year, it hasn't been determined yet) some time in World War 2. (Yes, I know that female surgeons of that era would have been incredibly rare. She's atypical.) What I'm trying to figure out is:

1. How young could she plausibly be, if she started college at 17 and didn't have any delays in her education? (Money is Not an Issue, within reason, her family was very wealthy, and remained reasonably wealthy even during the Depression. Also, she's very smart and studied hard.)

2. How much actual poking around in live humans would she likely have done by that point? I assume (possibly incorrectly) that she would have to be a resident or something equivalent, or at least an intern, before she could go and be a fully fledged surgeon, even for the Army.

Answers, appropriate research sites, or better search terms all appreciated.
(edited for clarity)

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap091115.html

It looks like a ring on the sky.

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:POTD/2009-11-16

Picture of the day
	A female Oriental latrine fly (Chrysomya megacephala) feeding on feces. This blow-fly species is coprophagous and necrophagous and is found throughout the world. They are considered one of the most important species of fly to forensic entomology because they are one of the earliest to arrive on a corpse. Photo credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim Archive – More featured pictures...

Setting: A galaxy far far away, quite a way into the future with human colonists on a distant world.

Searches tried: Looked up various pages on Mescaline and the physical and mental effects and side effects. Cross referenced with a little of own knowledge.

The situation: A character has just taken a dose of a more potent derivative of Mescaline in order to induce a vision quest style thing (there's more to it than that, but I don't see this being relevant to the problem so I'll keep it short). His girlfriend is a qualified Doctor (she's a research medic but can still practise medicine) who administered the drug and is, of course, aware that things are going wrong. My question is: How will she react in order to attempt to save his life?

The technology level of this setting is a little more futuristic than the modern world. They have slightly better medical tech (such as the ability to synthesise drugs) a little more knowledge about drug interactions on the human body and how to manipulate chemical structure to improve effects or reduce side effects (but not eliminate them completely and in some cases not at all due to that reducing the wanted effects) and a little better knowledge of pathology. However, they do not have any fancy 'star trek style' insta-heals or hyposprays or anything like that - I want medicine to be gritty and bloody and still involve things like needles in the arms and breaking the ribcage doing CPR.

Looking at this issue I have found all the symptoms of mescaline use (tachycardia, raised or lowered blood glucose, perspiration and nausea and so on...) but I think I need to get a medic's opinion on what she would do to diagnose and treat all these symptoms. I am assuming the following:

- she is under the impression that his current physical state is life threatening and he will die if she does nothing. This may or may not be the case but her triage tells her it is the case and she has to act now.
- They are in the middle of a forest, miles from anywhere. She could get help summoned quickly but she still has to act to stop him from dying now. Besides, what they are doing is 'slightly illegal' so she would prefer to do it without involving anyone of authority but will do so if it is essential.
- She is prepared for this eventuality, knowing what the drug was and that he intended to take it. This is an experiment he is conducting and she has come along specifically to prevent his stupidity from killing him. So, she can have a doctor's bag with any drugs or equipment in it that she thinks she would need.

So, what would a modern doctor do in this situation? I ask this so I can extrapolate some sci fi treatments to fit the setting.

What would be the most likely of the physical symptoms that are life threatening? Is it the tachycardia? Is it the effects on blood glucose (I notice that the effect changes dependent on dose - raised if low dose, lowered if high - so I am assuming low in this case but does it get as seriously low or high as it can in a Type I Diabetic to the point of risking death?) Or is there another effect I have not mentioned which may be the one that risks death? Bear in mind these symptoms can be greatly exaggerated as the drug is an untested, modified version.

Thanks in advance for any help with anything to do with this situation.

Posting for a friend!

(Previous searches: Galton whistles, flute making and many variations thereof.)

The story is set in Europe in the middle ages, so something of the period would be awesome, but the story is flexible enough for a certain amount of handwaving to get the instrument I need.

My story requires a wind instrument that can play music both within and beyond human hearing. Does such an instrument exist? If not, would it be possible to modify or custom build some sort of flute or recorder that could do it? What would be the physical characteristics of the instrument? (I'm guessing longer and thinner than a regular flute.) Would it require special skill to play it? I know that if you blow hard enough into a regular flute or recorder, the sound will go up an octave. Perhaps a "Galton flute" could only be correctly played by somebody with immense lung-power? (This would actually be a major benefit, story-wise.)

Thank you in advance.

I have a character who is mid 30s/40s, male, Canadian. The story is set in 2100-2150 or so. So, not-so-distant-future. He's from Quebec and his first language is French. I am very torn about what to name him!

I'd like his name and last name to signal his French background, if possible. I've sort of been in love with the Jean-Something construction, but:
1. I don't know which Jean-X names are/aren't currently in fashion in Canada and which you'd expect to find in someone 100 years in the future (probably whichever names sound horridly old fashioned now).
2. Since he's going to be referred to by his first name by the other characters, whichever name I pick I'd also need to know how French speakers would shorten it (if at all) and how English speakers would shorten it, assuming non Francophone Canadians or Americans.

My research has turned up that men named Jean-Pierre or Jean-Francois sometimes go by J-P/J-F but in that case I'd also like to know how that's pronounced. Would they introduce themselves as "JP Lastname"? Would French speakers pronounce the letters in French and English speakers in English?

Finally, failing the Jean-X thing, my backup option is Mischel. I've known a few Mischels in my time but none of them were Canadian so I don't know how popular the name is in Canada.

googled: canada boy names common, french boy names, jean (wiki)

Thank you for your help!

Hi! I'm looking for common nicknames that could be tossed around in a contemporary British household, particularly between siblings. What would an older sister call her younger brother? Or perhaps there is no general nickname for a little brother? (I don't need a nickname that is a spin-off from the actual brother's name. I've got one already.)

Honestly, I haven't got the slightest clue. I've googled things like "British nicknames", "British nicknames for siblings", "British nicknames for younger brothers". I usually just keep getting British nicknames for people from a specific place in England or nicknames for British army units.

I know that, for instance, my little brother calls me Tata, which is obviously not my name. But, we're Cuban, and in our culture, generally, the older sister is called Tata. Just a nickname like saying "Mum" or "Dad". I was wondering if perhaps the same thing existed for the Brits.

Thank you!

THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR THEIR HELP!

What sort of medical care would there be in the Philippines in the late 1940s/early 1950s? The character is lower class, and I'm wondering if she would have her baby in a hospital or her home? If she was at a hospital, would a doctor or midwife deliver the baby? If she was at home, would there be a midwife? How would they care for the baby immediately after birth? The baby is a girl, and her mother doesn't keep her. I'm guessing that there weren't adoption agencies then; would she have left the baby in a public place or an orphanage or something? She didn't kill her child, but the child has to get to the U.S.

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap091114.html

What's 93 million miles away and still hurts your eyes when you look at it?

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:POTD/2009-11-15

Picture of the day

An ancient stone cross near Crazywell Pool in Dartmoor, an area of moorland in the centre of Devon, England. One of a series of Dartmoor crosses, many of them are old navigational aids, and others were erected as memorials, for prayer, as town or market crosses, in churchyards, and as boundary markers. They range in age from nearly 1,000 years ago to as recent as 20 years ago. Photo credit: Herbythyme Archive – More featured pictures...

Hello everybody,
I'm writing a story in which a 19-year-old girl recieves a lobotomy, during 1953. I know inhalational anaesthetics were in use during this time, but does anyone know if they were used in conjunction with intravenous anesthetics, as they are today?

In addition, whether anesthetic was given inhalationally or intravenously, would it be normal practice to have the patient count down from 20 or 10 or whatever number? I know that's what happens today but not sure about 1950s.

I've tried to research a lot of this on my own but most articles about 50's era anesthetic is way too medical for me and focuses on the drugs and their usage rather than these sort of little bits. Hope you guys can help me!

Does anyone have any information on magical beliefs with regard to language, specifically written language?  Preferably magical beliefs over religions beliefs; I'd rather know about a culture where, say, people believe a thing written in a certain way will come true than that a particular text is the word of God and therefor sacred or things like that.

I've asked elsewhere for information on both written language and tattoos, because in my mind their connected (a form of language related to body modification?), but everyone just gives me information on tattoos, which is fairly easy to find.  No one's managed to dig up information on linguistic mysticism itself.  Any suggestions?

Update: Thanks so much for all the wonderful responses! The stuff about people actually drinking the remains of text to imbibe its power or Egyptians writing scripts to banish illness, or those little Japanese spell-paper thingies and the Golem legend about inscribing the name of God is precisely the sort of stuff I was looking for. (The latter things I actually already knew, but my brain has not been behaving lately.)

Hello there C: I'm looking for some personal experiences related to the taste of things like pigeon eggs, pigeons, squirrels and maybe even lizards and snakes

The setting I'm working with is "post apocalyptic" America, the "apocalypse" having been a sun/gamma burst-caused shut-down of electronics and the chaos/riots/sickness/people failing at survival that caused the already-collapsing-under-their-own-weight megametropolis areas to be partially abandoned, in disrepair and partially reclaimed by nature. I'm trying to configure cuisine that would be found in an urban environment,and besides deer, turkey and other game wandering back in from wildernesses, and aside from game that can be raised in the city and gardens/farms that can be placed on rooftops... I figure pigeons, raccoons and squirrels are among the first meats to show up plentifully on crumbling city menus.

I already binged/looked up some stuff on various sites and found nothing relating to taste or comparison of taste,so a friend directed my question to this community.

I'd love any help or discussion involving this topic! Thanks much~

I have a really small and probably quite simple question. I want my high school character (10th or 11th grade) to write a paper/essay on 'diversity of modern literature' (and choose an HIV+ gay author). What course would it be appropriate for? Literature? Journal Writing? Something else?

Setting: modern (about 5 years ago), USA, Kansas.

I googled 'usa high school literature', 'usa high school literature curriculum', and looked up 'Education in the United States' in Wiki.

UPD The question is resolved, thanks everyone, you've all been great help (not to mention I've gathered a lot more info than I expected).
If anyone's interested, I've chosen Writing Workshop elective.

I think Flashforward and I have broken up. I don't know if it's the watching it one episode at a time, which is giving me lots of time to think about its flaws, or if it's the determinism implicit, or if it's the OMG Conspiracy!

It could be so much better than it is. It should be so much better than it is. *sigh*

And and and! Fido is a pit of fuckers. Customer disservice: it's the gift that keeps on giving, whether you want it to or not. Fuckers.

Cross-posted from http://ginny-t.dreamwidth.org/19930.html, where there are comments.

Still here. Still surviving. Oh, constit week, why'd you leave me? Fifteen committees next week. That's on top of House which has to be out by 2130 the same day. Yeah, that's gonna suck.

I bought my plane tickets for Halifax at Christmas! Porter had a computer glitch, and I pounced. (I didn't know it was a glitch; I just thought it was finally a reasonable price.) Yay, Porter!

I'm seriously fucking sick of the turn H1N1 coverage has taken. No more with the thrice-cursed "X got vaccine before Y," plzkthx.

On the other hand, at least French class has ended. That was sucking up a lot of extremely scarce resources. The downside is that this means it's test time. *whine*

In happier news, I haz a sunbeam. ^_^

Cross-posted from http://ginny-t.dreamwidth.org/19575.html, where there are comments.

So I'm in Toronto right now, as I seem to do every year during nanowrimo. It's been a fruitful trip so far! When I got on the plane Thursday morning, I was around 6000 words behind nano pace and I decided by the time I touched down in Winnipeg I'd be all caught up. So far, so far. I wrote around 2500 yesterday and 3000 today and I'm now at, well, see below!

As to non-nano events, I finally got to eat Vegetarian Haven's tofu drumsticks again. You see, since I moved to Winnipeg, whenever I'd tried to go, it was on a day when they were closed, or something would come up. I had a brief scare, because when I got there, there was a closed sign in the window, but it's just because they close between 3:00 and 5:00 each weekend. *whew*

Today I wandered around with brightling for many hours. My feet are a little sore; I didn't wear shoes that are good for lots and lots of walking. It was awesome seeing you Ruth :D It had been far too long.

After that, I nano-ed for several hours, and also ate yummy food at Spring Rolls.

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap091113.html

Cosmic dust clouds and embedded newborn stars glow

Title's not great, but I need to explain what I mean. I'm writing a (crack) fic where King Arthur is resurrected about once every hundred years up to the 2020's -ish. Assuming he starts off in England in about 1000AD speaking Old English, at what point will he stop being able to understand spoken English? Please note that each time he is resurrected he doesn't have time to pick up any of the language, as he invariably dies within about a day.

The fic is for the Merlin BBC series, if that makes a difference (let's face it, Arthurian legend is not generally great on historical accuracy).

I've been through the posts on this comm, but I don't really know how to search for the answer. Thanks in advance.

ETA: Thank you everyone! And while all the discussion of Welsh etc. is very interesting, I'm going with Arthur speaking English (KNIGHTS IN SAXON TIMES is all I'm saying...).

Believe it or not, this is a very hard thing to google for! I've tried all manner of combinations of "gay/homosexual"+"Japan/Japanese"+"school"+"bullying/harassment/teasing/etc." i.e. "Homosexuality in Japanese schools", "Gay bullying school japan", "harassment in Japanese school", etc. etc. but I keep turning up blanks (or links for yaoi manga, *sigh*).

Basically, I know that affectionate interaction between boys in high school is not unusual and there are plenty of common behaviors that in the US would raise red flags which don't even turn a head in Japan. But say someone started a malicious rumor or KNEW that a kid was gay. What sorts of things would bullies do to that kid? What would they say? How would they go about bullying a kid they knew was gay? Once it got out that a kid was gay, how would other students as a whole react to them? Avoidance? Would they just ignore it? Subtle teasing or non-so-subtle? What about teachers? Would they defend the gay kid, ignore it, join in?

I was hoping to find actual stories/accounts of personal experiences, but my google-fu has failed me. I looked back through the tags of the community too, but didn't find anything applicable.

(Just out of curiosity (as I haven't actually done the google research for this), what sorts of things have you seen/heard in/about other countries? UK? China? Italy? Anywhere else?)

Thanks so much! Love this comm. :)