Interesting Links for 29-07-2013

• This may be the best scientific paper abstract ever written
  (tags: funny viaSkreidle science )
• Warren Ellis on Plot
  (tags: WarrenEllis writing )
• Pronunciation YouTube channel turns into a spooky mystery
  (tags: weird )
• The Scariest Sex Toys We've Ever Seen
  (tags: sextoys )
• The shockingly short history of the history of technology
  (tags: history technology )
• Game of Brands: The Game of Thrones Houses as Modern Corporations
  (tags: gameofthrones business )
• Why it's important not to think too much about your fantasies (NSFW)
  (tags: fantasy nsfw comic funny )
• Ken MacLeod on Iain Bank's politics.
  (tags: politics IainBanks )
• Oktoberfest Traditional German Dancing to Du Hast
  (tags: music dancing video )
• They Finally Tested The 'Prisoner's Dilemma' On Actual Prisoners — And The Results Were Not What You Would Expect
  (tags: prison philosophy PrisonersDilemma logic )
• A magnet floating around a Möbius strip track.
  (tags: awesome magnets viaSkreidle video )
• Why YouTube buffers: The secret deals that make—and break—online video
  (tags: internet business )
• A petition against ISP Filtering in the UK
  (tags: uk censorship petition internet )
• Life with a wearable camera
  (tags: transparentsociety technology )
• How do values in the USA and Western Europe differ? (UK in the middle)
  (tags: uk europe society polls usa )
• Beerend - It's like a bookend for your beer (can't believe this wasn't successful!)
  (tags: beer alcohol )
• The Lake at the North Pole, How Bad Is It?
  (tags: globalwarming arctic )
• Researchers discover a flaw in weather prediction
  (tags: chaos technology weather )
• Heart Surgery in India for $1,583 Costs $106,385 in U.S.
  (tags: india usa healthcare )

It turns out that Julie has the best kind of cancer

I went to the hospital today with Julie, so that she could see her haematology expert, and get confirmation of a diagnosis of Chronic Myleoid Leukemia.

We got confirmation that she definitely has that.

We also got an explanation of why they only caught it recently when she's been having blood tests for about three years (her white blood cell count had been hovering just above the normal range (10-15) and then shot up to 65 in the last test).

And we got confirmation she can start taking the drugs she needs on Thursday, and that if she's responsive (the vast majority of people are) then her white blood cells should be back to normal in about a year. And if not then there are second and third line treatments available.

I'm really glad that we caught this early - and that this was the kind of cancer that she got hit by. Her consultant agreed that if he was going to be diagnosed with cancer then this is the one he'd go for...