Material for Spring Quarter Seminar:
(updated  5 May 10:40 AM). 
For Friday April 22:
(Thanks to Casey, David, and Doug in finding material!)
For background on the pharmacology of amines such methamphetamine, here is part of a review chapter (sorry, a couple of pages missing, I'll try and fix it.) There is a nice table providing the structural differences between the many drugs mentioned.

What is the basis for the assignment of drugs to differing schedules of enforcement?

At 11:00 AM we will have a speaker from the county health department.
(Gerald Tousley, Thurston County Public Health and Social Services, works on environmental impacts)
The Thurston County Health and Social Services Department Meth entry page.)
This has a nice up-to-date list of news articles from several newspapers as well.

Methamphetamines: an epidemic of clandestine labs and health risk (PDF: 121KB/22 pages). (presentation) Michelle R. Chesley, MD. Howard University Hospital Dept. of Emergency Medicine, Sep 1999.
This presentation Includes historical perspective; meth health effects and effects in users; manufacturing process, and extensive information on chemicals used.

Heavy Metal and Organic Contaminants Associated With Illicit Meth Production (PDF: 1343KB/8 pages). Brent T. Burton. 1991
Burton discusses injury and illness caused by accidents of the meth cooking process, including those caused by processing errors, chemical interactions, etc.

Overview of Medical Toxicology and Potential for Exposures to Clandestine Drug Laboratories in California (PDF: 24KB/4 pages). Thomas Ferguson, MD. 2000.
Ferguson focuses on health effects in children from lab environments.

Neurobiology of Methamphetamine Use

http://science.education.nih.gov/Customers.nsf/HSBrain?OpenForm
This is an NIH curriculum supplement designed for 9-12 grade, The Brain: Understanding Neurobiology Through the Study of Addiction.
Section 3 was recommended as a quick intro to the neurobiology.
For Friday April 29 GMOs
Safety of Genetically Engineered Foods: Approaches to Assessing Unintended Health Effects (2004)
(By National Academy of Sciences Press -free to read online PDF)

This is one of 3000 free online reports published by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine.
For Friday May 6   Direction of research with public funding-US and state research priorities, applied vs. basic research, funding for world health priorities, dissemination of research results-public access
The link to the National Academies Press above does provide a useful snapshot of current research and policy activities in US science

Institute for  OneWorld Health
(This is a San Francisco based non-profit pharmaceutical corporation. An example of one of their research projects is described here)

A debate on open access publishing (C and E news, free content)
with some interesting side links (Thanks to Chris T. for this link.)

Wanted: Social Entrepreneurs (Nature Editorial)

Africa 2005 (Nature editorial, how should aid money to Africa be directed?)
For Friday May 13   Emerging Diseases (also relates to research priorities, health priorities), public health aspects, TB, malaria, flu, SARS

US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
A couple of notable internal sites here:
World Health Organization

West Nile Surveillance plan from Washington State Department of Health

Vaccines: past, present and future Stanley Plotkin, Nature Medicine

Opinion
ARTHROPOD-BORNE DISEASES: VECTOR CONTROL IN THE GENOMICS ERA
Catherine A. Hill1, Fotis C. Kafatos2, Sally K. Stansfield3 & Frank H. Collins4

A Nature Outlook feature (19 August 2004) of several articles on Malaria in Africa begins with this intro

Plants and livestock issues are covered by USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). This link gives the April press reports which gives a sample of their coverage.

 



For Friday May 20  Toxic compounds: PBDE, Hg, environmental estrogens, agricultural pesticides, worker exposure, disposal of military waste/inventory removal, benzene

The CDC site from May 13 also has a number of environmental health and occupational health sections.

Washington State Office of Environmental Health and Safety Main Page

Articles on environmental estrogens (and the flower industry) (Savahn)

A look at possible bias in research on bisphenol-A (plasticizer, potential estrogen mimic) (Savahn)

Chemical communication threatened by endocrine-disrupting chemicals (from Mayumi)

A critique of the estrogen disrupter screening program (from Mayumi)

The ACS debate link in the May 6 section also leads to a debate about regulation of chlorine containing chemicals.
For Friday May 27 Science Carnival 
Final Topic Education and Public communication (intelligent design, secondary education, public understanding of science and technical topics      ?? Continue talking on education next week?

Friday June 3 LAST DAY OF PROGRAM  Student presentations/posters/ more talk on education?