======  Articles  ======

This is a list of news articles that I have found interesting and sometimes a brief comment about them. I typically archive these articles locally but because of copyright reasons I can't link the archived copies here.


===== Medical =====
  * [[http://www.medpagetoday.com/PrimaryCare/AlternativeMedicine/tb/6770 | Acupuncture tops Conventional Therapy for lower back pain ]] [[http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/167/17/1892?lookupType=volpage&vol=167&fp=1892&view=short | (original article) ]] - This is good information for back-pain sufferers (including myself, though mine is low-intensity and infrequent). It means that acupuncture is a valid, proven treatment alternative. Even more interesting is the fact that it really doesn't matter where the needles are placed. So in theory a drug addict (who presumably has some experience with needles ) will be just as effective as an experienced, trained practitioner assuming the same basic method and same equipment are used. This says something about traditional/alternative medical treatments; they may certainly be effective but without being exposed to the modern testing procedures there is no way to know exactly which part of the treatment is providing the efficacy.

  * [[ http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-blackmen24sep24,0,4092176.story?coll=la-default-underdog
| Racism's Physical Toll ]]

===== Politics and Current Events =====


===== Science =====

  * [[wp>Quantum computing]] is apparently one step closer after two groups came up with a quantum bus. The [[http://nist.gov/|National Institute of Standards and Technology]] apparently has a [[http://qubit.nist.gov/ | Quantum Information lab]] and the other group was the [[ http://www.eng.yale.edu/rslab/projects/cQED-layman.html | Schoelkopf Lab at Yale ]].[[http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn12696-quantum-chip-rides-on-superconducting-bus.html| Article here]].