Asperger's Syndrome

[Harmon Seaver]

On Wed, May 07, 2003 at 07:04:30PM -0700, Mike Rosing wrote:
> On Wed, 7 May 2003, Harmon Seaver wrote:
> 
> >    Speaking of DDT, I've always wondered what effect that had on my life,
> > especially my nervous system. When I was a kid in South Carolina in the 50's, we
> > used to ride our bikes behind the spray truck for blocks every time it came
> > by. It was like being in a very, very thick fog.
> 
> Hard to say because you were only exposed a few times.  If you don't have
> any genetic triggers, it may have no effect at all.  Not to mention all
> the other chemicals you've been exposed to that might couteract any
> effect, and lack of exposure to accelerants.  I've seen pictures of DDT
> fogs at beaches crowded with people.  At the time, it was considered
> harmless to humans.  It may actually be harmless to us, it's just not
> harmless to everything else.

   Or OTOH, it could have done some strange things to entire generations of
humans. Nerve agents being what they are, I wonder if there's ever been a
serious neurological study? 


> 
> A world without mosquitoes would be pretty bleak given how many other
> things eat them.  Better to wipe out the malaria and swat the mosquitos!
> 

   Yes, having lived for a long time in northern MN where there has never been
any spraying for bugs, and where they are far more numerous than in most of the
US, I've never been all that bothered by mosquitoes. Black flies are worse, but
for a shorter season. We also discovered that if you don't use scented soaps and
shampoos, perfumes, etc, you aren't bothered nearly so much. We also didn't use
repellent much at all, just a drop or two on the shirt collar and/or cap when
they were really bad, and, if you were working in the garden in the evening, a
bug headnet was great. It's also a matter of temperament, it was funny to notice
how tourists would start flapping around, attracting a cloud of bugs, while
you'd stand nearby unaffected, and using no repellent. 
   I doubt the indigs were bothered all that much. Of course, malaria and yellow
fever were a problem in the far south, but most of NA doesn't have that
problem. West Nile virus is now spreading around, but a large scale study of
dead birds on the East Coast determined that most were killed by ag chemicals,
not the virus. 



> Patience, persistence, truth,
> Dr. mike

-- 
Harmon Seaver	
CyberShamanix
http://www.cybershamanix.com