AIDS and YOU (May 1987) Essays - Free Essays, Term Papers

AIDS and YOU (May 1987) Essays - Free Essays, Term Papers AIDS and YOU (May 1987) By Martin H. Goodman MD (this essay is in the public domain) Introduction: AIDS is a life and death issue. To have the AIDS disease is at present a sentence of slow but inevitable death. I've already lost one friend to AIDS. I may soon lose others. My own sexual behavior and that of many of my friends has been profoundly altered by it. In my part of the country, one man in 10 may already be carrying the AIDS virus. While the figures may currently be less in much of the rest of the country, this is changing rapidly. There currently is neither a cure, nor even an effective treatment, and no vaccine either. But there are things that have been PROVEN immensely effective in slowing the spread of this hideously lethal disease. In this essay I hope to present this information. History and Overview: AIDS stands for Acquired Immune Defficiency Disease. It is caused by a virus. The disease originated somewhere in Africa about 20 years ago. There it first appeared as a mysterious ailment afflicting primarily heterosexuals of both sexes. It probably was spread especially fast by primarily female prostitutes there. AIDS has already become a crisis of STAGGERING proportions in parts of Africa. In Zaire, it is estimated that over twenty percent of the adults currently carry the virus. That figure is increasing. And what occurred there will, if no cure is found, most likely occur here among heterosexual folks. AIDS was first seen as a disease of gay males in this country. This was a result of the fact that gay males in this culture in the days before AIDS had an average of 200 to 400 new sexual contacts per year. This figure was much higher than common practice among heterosexual (straight) men or women. In addition, it turned out that rectal sex was a particularly effective way to transmit the disease, and rectal sex is a common practice among gay males. For these reasons, the disease spread in the gay male population of this country immensely more quickly than in other populations. It became to be thought of as a "gay disease". Because the disease is spread primarily by exposure of ones blood to infected blood or semen, I.V. drug addicts who shared needles also soon were identified as an affected group. As the AIDS epidemic began to affect increasingly large fractions of those two populations (gay males and IV drug abusers), many of the rest of this society looked on smugly, for both populations tended to be despised by the "mainstream" of society here. But AIDS is also spread by heterosexual sex. In addition, it is spread by blood transfusions. New born babies can acquire the disease from infected mothers during pregnancy. Gradually more and more "mainstream" folks got the disease. Most recently, a member of congress died of the disease. Finally, even the national news media began to join in the task of educating the public to the notion that AIDS can affect everyone. Basic medical research began to provide a few bits of information, and some help. The virus causing the disease was isolated and identified. The AIDS virus turned out to be a very unusual sort of virus. Its genetic material was not DNA, but RNA. When it infected human cells, it had its RNA direct the synthesis of viral DNA. While RNA viruses are not that uncommon, very few RNA viruses reproduce by setting up the flow of information from RNA to DNA. Such reverse or "retro" flow of information does not occur at all in any DNA virus or any other living things. Hence, the virus was said to belong to the rare group of virues called "Retro Viruses". Research provided the means to test donated blood for the presence of the antibodies to the virus, astronomically reducing the chance of ones getting AIDS from a blood transfusion. This was one of the first real breakthroughs. The same discoveries that allowed us to make our blood bank blood supply far safer also allowed us to be able to tell (in most cases) whether one has been exposed to the AIDS virus using a

New England Generation essays

New England Generation essays The Great Migration offered religious freedom to the Puritans and an economic enhancement to the English settlers. Due to such prospects, New England was considered to be a land of opportunity for newcomers who have always desired of the dreamland. During seventeenth century, there was a great abruption in population and expansion of corrupted religions in England. In order to purify the corrupted Church of England, the Puritans were seeking after a new opportunity for religious freedom. They believed that New England was God ¡Ã‚ ¯s answer for them to serve the Lord, free from corruption. Their Puritan beliefs were the main motivation for the emigrants to abandon their homeland. Convincing themselves to be separated from their relatives and taking a life-risking journey could not have been ordinary. Anderson also narrates  ¡Ã‚ °I argue that religious factors predominated in making the difficult decision to leave England. ¡ (Pg 8, Anderson) Many began their journey to New England in attempt to create a society that would serve as an example for other cities to follow. New England turned out to be an opportunity for religious freedom for the Puritans. Since there was no government to regulate their spiritual life and no pre-existing social pattern to follow, the Puritans could practice their religion the way they wanted to. Also uncontrolled church services allowed the Puritans to keep a closer relationship with God. They did not have to worry about the persecution for the personal meetings they held amongst themselves. In achieving freedom, many believed that God played a vital role in their daily lives.  ¡Ã‚ °The Lord could punish them as swiftly as He did Winthrop ¡Ã‚ ¯s most profane fellow. Thus when storms or other threats to the passengers ¡Ã‚ ¯ well-being occurred, the emigrants concluded that they had done something wrong and that the Lord was showing His displeasure. ¡ (Pg 8 ...