AIDS - Whats New Essays - HIVAIDS, HIV, , Term Papers

AIDS - What's new ? ------------------- Is the message getting through? We already know enough about AIDS to prevent its spread, but ignorance, complacency, fear and bigotry continue to stop many from taking adequate precautions. We know enough about how the infection is transmitted to protect ourselves from it without resorting to such extremes as mandatory testing, enforced quarantine or total celibacy. But too few people are heeding the AIDS message. Perhaps many simply don't like or want to believe what they hear, preferring to think that AIDS "can't happen to them." Experts repeatedly remind us that infective agents do not discriminate, but can infect any and everyone. Like other communicable diseases, AIDS can strike anyone. It is not necessarily confined to a few high-risk groups. We must all protect ourselves from this infection and teach our children about it in time to take effective precautions. Given the right measures, no one need get AIDS. The pandemic continues: ----------------------- Many of us have forgotten about the virulence of widespread epidemics, such as the 1917/18 influenza pandemic which killed over 21 million people, including 50,000 Canadians. Having been lulled into false security by modern antibiotics and vaccines about our ability to conquer infections, the Western world was ill prepared to cope with the advent of AIDS in 1981. (Retro- spective studies now put the first reported U.S. case of AIDS as far back as 1968.) The arrival of a new and lethal virus caught us off guard. Research suggests that the agent responsible for AIDS probably dates from the 1950s, with a chance infection of humans by a modified Simian virus found in African green monkeys. Whatever its origins, scientists surmise that the disease spread from Africa to the Caribbean and Europe, then to the U.S. Current estimates are that 1.5 to 2 million Americans are now probably HIV carriers, with higher numbers in Central Africa and parts of the Caribbean. Recapping AIDS - the facts: --------------------------- AIDS is an insidious, often fatal but less contagious disease than measles, chicken pox or hepatitis B. AIDS is thought to be caused primarily by a virus that invades white blood cells (lymphocytes) - especially T4-lymphocytes or T-helper cells - and certain other body cells, including the brain. In 1983 and 1984, French and U.S. researchers independently identified the virus believed to cause AIDS as an unusual type of slow-acting retrovirus now called "human immunodeficiency virus" or HIV. Like other viruses, HIV is basically a tiny package of genes. But being a retrovirus, it has the rare capacity to copy and insert its genes right into a human cell's own chromosomes (DNA). Once inside a human host cell the retrovirus uses its own enzyme, reverse transcriptase, to copy its genetic code into a DNA molecule which is then incorporated into the host's DNA. The virus becomes an integral part of the person's body, and is subject to control mechanisms by which it can be switched "on" or "off". But the viral DNA may sit hidden and inactive within human cells for years, until some trigger stimulates it to replicate. Thus HIV may not produce illness until its genes are "turned on" five, ten, fifteen or perhaps more years after the initial infection. During the latent period, HIV carriers who harbour the virus without any sign of illness can unknowingly infect others. On average, the dormant virus seems to be triggered into action three to six years after first invading human cells. When switched on, viral replication may speed along, producing new viruses that destroy fresh lymphocytes. As viral replication spreads, the lymphocyte destruction virtually sabotages the entire immune system. In essence, HIV viruses do not kill people, they merely render the immune system defenceless against other "opportunistic: infections, e.g. yeast invasions, toxoplasmosis, cytomegalovirus and Epstein Barr infections, massive herpes infections, special forms of pneumonia (Pneumocystis carinii - the killer in half of all AIDS patients), and otherwise rare malignant tumours (such as Kaposi's sarcoma.) Cofactors may play a crucial contributory role: ----------------------------------------------- What prompts the dormant viral genes suddenly to burst into action and start destroying the immune system is one os the central unsolved challenges about AIDS. Some scientists speculate that HIV replication may

President Theodore Roosevelt Fast Facts

President Theodore Roosevelt Fast Facts Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) served as Americas 26th  president. Nicknamed the Trust Buster for fighting corruption in the industry, and more affectionately known as  Teddy, Roosevelt was a larger-than-life personality. He is remembered not only as a statesman but also as an author, soldier, naturalist, and reformer.  Roosevelt was Vice President of William McKinley  and became President after McKinley was assassinated in 1901. Fast Facts Birth: October 27, 1858 Death: January 6, 1919 Term of Office: September 14, 1901–March 3, 1909 Number of Terms Elected: 1 term First Lady: Edith Kermit Carow Theodore Roosevelt Quote The first requisite of a good citizen in this Republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his weight. Major Events While In Office Panama Canal Rights Acquired (1904): The U.S. earned the right to occupy the Canal Zone in Panama, leading the way to the construction of the Panama Canal, which it would control until 1979.  Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine (1904-1905): The Monroe Doctrine declared that foreign encroachment into the Western Hemisphere would not be tolerated. As President, Roosevelt added that the U.S. was responsible for enforcing the Monroe Doctrine  in Latin America, with force if necessary.Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905): Japans campaign to claim Port Arthur on the coast of Manchuria from the Russians began a brief but devastating war. The heavy artillery and battle methods used foreshadowed the conditions of modern warfare that would come of age in World War I.  Nobel Peace Prize (1906): Roosevelt was one of a handful of presidents to win the Nobel Peace Prize. This award honored his efforts to resolve the Russo-Japanese War and his work for international arbitration.  Ã‚  San F rancisco Earthquake (1906): San Fransiscos massive earthquake destroyed almost 30,000 buildings and left many of the citizens homeless.   States Entering Union While in Office Oklahoma (1907) Related Theodore Roosevelt Resources These additional resources on Theodore Roosevelt can provide you with further information about the president and his times. Theodore Roosevelt Biography: An in-depth look at the 26th  president of the United States, including his childhood, family and early career, and the major events of his administration.Progressive Era: The Gilded Age, a term coined by Mark Twain, referred to the overt opulence exhibited by the wealthy in the industrial era. The Progressive Era was partly a response to the disparity between rich and poor. Individuals at this time were campaigning for economic, political, and social reform.Top 10 Influential Presidents: Theodore Roosevelt is considered one of the most influential presidents in American History.Bull Moose Party: When Theodore Roosevelt was not nominated by the Republican Party to run for president again in 1912, he broke away and created a new party which was nicknamed the Bull Moose Party. Other Presidential Fast Facts William McKinley: McKinley was assassinated shortly after winning re-election and beginning the second term of his presidency. During his time in office, American officially established itself as a world colonial power.  William Howard Taft: The president who succeeded Roosevelt may be best known for his policies of Dollar Diplomacy, aimed at promoting security and influence abroad in the interest of American commercial ventures.