-Julia Marie Teti
Cornell University
Despite the economic boom that increased American prosperity in the 1990s, people with disabilities have not been able to experience higher rates of income as the rest of us have. The reason for this seems to be due to the Americans with Disabilities Act “backfiring.” Employers have been less inclined to hire disabled persons. The ADA makes it mandatory for employers to provide employment for such persons, facing lawsuits if they do not in fact follow through. The other side to this problem is that people with disabilities do not want to risk taking a job that will not offer health coverage.
Harvard University
Immune Response, the sponsor for a team of AIDS researchers, warned them not to publish the article talking about the failures of an HIV vaccine. The researchers obviously did not take heed of this warning since the article was published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Immune Response filed a lawsuit for up to $10 million combined with the rejection of the study results. Patients who received the vaccine have not been doing any better than other patients who were chosen as a control group for this experiment.
Yale University
In a Yale study, researchers say that due to a chemical, Phenylpropanolamine or PPA, which can be found in cold medicine, people should refrain from using too much cold medicine because it could lead to a stroke. The chemical is used as a decongestant and is found in many over-the-counter medicines, including weight-control drugs. This risk has been cited in people of the ages 20-49. PPA is also being blamed as the cause of brain hemorrhaging, which may be due to a clogged or burst artery.
University California-Berkeley
Use of the dietary supplement, ephedrine, should be used with caution. Students have been using this drug to shed excess weight and to pull all-nighters studying. The Food and Drug Administration had found that even though the stimulant sometimes occurs in plants, it could mean high blood pressure, strokes, heart attacks and even death for humans. As a twist to the controversy, University of California at Berkeley students feel that ephedrine is a “safe and effective stimulant” for exercise and studying. The students think that putting control on the drug is unnecessary.
Boston University
All it takes is a credit card and a few clicks of the mouse for gamblers to find Casino Heaven. College students are the ones who are the most attracted to this convenience because of the variety in the online gambling venues. The problem with this is that gambling, especially online, creates isolation from one’s surroundings. Inexperienced gamblers find themselves as part of Gamblers Anonymous.
