SATURDAY SNIPPETS

If you can read this, you are lucky, illiteracy among people in the UK is the subject of a House of Commons Public Accounts Committee report.

Although the Gov spent £5 Billion on basic skills resources between 2001 and 2007, illiteracy and poor numeracy remain high.

In 2003, an estimated 75% of the adult population of working age had numeracy skills
below the level of a good pass at GCSE and 56% had literacy skills below this level. At that time, based on data collected in 1996

In 2006–07, around 8% of pupils (51,000) left school without Level 1 (GCSE grade D–G) mathematics and 6% (39,000) without Level 1 English. These young people are likely to require remedial action later in life to address these skills deficiencies.

Which goes to show that if you firk about with the education system enough, you can produce people who can’t read, write or add up.




Sneezing can be a sign of arousal.

Yet more expensive pointless research, Dr Mahmood Bhutta and Dr Harold Maxwell, investigated the phenomenon after reading of a middle-aged patient who had uncontrollable sneezing fits when he thought of sex. And also uncovered three people who claimed to sneeze after orgasm.
They unearthed evidence, via Internet chat rooms, of 17 others - of both sexes - with the same problem.

Dr Bhutta said, “that internet chat rooms could be a potential new tool for investigating the incidence of unusual or embarrassing symptoms that patients may not feel appropriate to discuss with their doctor.”

Two comments, if you sneeze AFTER orgasm then it is a bit too late to be aroused, and this isn’t research, it’s just an excuse to surf the web and talk to people in chat rooms.




Dementia patients are 'safe drivers'

Apparently patients with early dementia can drive safely, a survey has suggested.

The worrying bit is “The risk of crashes among Alzheimer's patients is "acceptably low" for up to three years after the disease becomes clinically apparent, they claim.”

Acceptable to whom?

I don’t believe in curtailing peoples’ rights but just one crash caused by a driver with dementia is one too many, dementia is a sad, cruel and extended illness and sufferers have my sympathy, but driving is controlling a two ton weapon among innocent people, shouldn’t licenses be revoked when the diagnosis is made?





A bit of goodish news for Doctors, the 48-hour week is not compulsory (ish), “Ministers said the European Working Time Directive limit would not have to apply to certain doctors working in emergency medicine, or in rural areas.
Instead, they will remain able to work up to 52-hours a week.”

Two thirds of doctors in the UK already work a 48-hour week.
The opt-out will apply to 20 to 30 units at trusts across the country, including services providing 24-hour care, extremely specialist teams and remote and rural units.

But a spokesman for the Royal College of Surgeons said: "Surgeons are clear that an impending crisis in quality patient care can only be headed off by working 65 hours a week including on call.
"The Department of Health announcement will do little to ease concerns.”

Will somebody PLEASE make their minds up?

Over thinking 'disrupts golf putt'

It seems that if you think too much about playing golf it affects your putt.
St Andrews University and US scientists said they had established that too much analysis made the golfer's game worse.

They said thinking too much about the previous shot can disrupt performance.
In total, 80 golfers were given shots to practise until they got it right. Those who discussed their putting between strokes took twice as long.

Again two comments, waste of research money and why does knocking a small white ball into a little hole cause people to think? (No I am not a golfer-waste of a good walk).

And finally.

Webber's fear for Eurovision act

Andrew Lloyd Webber has said he is worried that one of his Eurovision finalists may not cope well with representing the UK in Moscow.
The composer said that if the public voted for the wrong act he "might not go" to Russia in May, adding: "I really can't be a miracle worker."

Who cares? And who cares?

“Of what use is freedom of speech to those who fear to offend”? -Roger Ebert

Angus