Letter: Fax and fiction
Tim Hunkin’s excellent piece (‘Just give me the fax’, 13 February) concludes
with the comment ‘Perhaps the fax machine is more ‘intelligent’ than all
the expensive computer technology it is incompatible with’. Yet the technologies
are highly compatible. This letter was faxed direct from a computer word
processor, using the same modem which gives me electronic mail.
A modern fax is a computer, running built-in software which makes it
simple to use. E-mail could and should be equally simple – but seldom is,
as many Telecom Gold users will confirm.
Jock Hall Hadleigh, Essex
Letter: Fax and fiction
Sorry, but your Morse is faxed up. Dah-dah Dit-dah Dah-di-di-dah spells
MAX.
James Follett Godalming, Surrey
Letter: Survival of Darwin
Chris Farrell (‘Survival of the fittest technologies’, 6 February) mistakenly
ascribes the expression ‘survival of the fittest’ to Charles Darwin, who
never used anything else but the concept ‘natural selection’.
Instead, it was his contemporary Herbert Spencer who must be credited
with the doubtful honour of coining the phrase for the process of evolution,
‘survival of the fittest’.
Bob Maat Roskilde University Library Denmark
Letter: Foot in it
Robin Das, writing from Mohlin in Switzerland, seems to think that the
‘Athlete’s Foot’ chain of shops result from a failure in the ‘Strasbourgeois’
understanding of English (Letters, 13 February). Not at all. I first saw
one of this chain’s shops in Annapolis, the home of the United States
Navy.
Elizabeth Young London
Letter: More is less
With regard to ‘Domino dilemma’ (Letters, 6 February), if it’s the same
version of the game I know I may have a simple intuitive answer. Surely
the player with eight pieces is at a disadvantage having more pieces to
get rid of?
E. M. Rew Barking, Essex
Letter: Salty story
Your article on thirsty drinkers (This Week, 13 February) reminds me
of my early days behind the bar; here the landlord provided a large bowl
of free biscuits on the counter. I soon realised these biscuits were slightly
salted. Another pint please!
C. Parker Sherborne, Dorset
Letter: Correction
In the 20 February feature ‘Eternal life for light bulbs’, the payback
period for compact fluorescent bulbs was wrongly stated. Where such lamps
are used more than 12 hours a day, the payback compared to standard incandescent
lamps is not two years, but seven months.
Letter: Miner birds
Re ‘Leaking light stops methane build-up’ (Technology, 13 February).
Canaries were never used to ‘warn miners of a build-up of methane gas’.
They were used to detect the presence of highly lethal gases such as carbon
monoxide which occurred usually after an explosion, and were carried by
men wearing breathing apparatus. Small, fast-breathing birds are many times
more susceptible to CO than man and during rescue operations, if the canaries
showed any signs of distress, the rescuers (and the bird) could retreat.
William Edwards Oldham, Lancashire
Letter: Willing witnesses
Your report on forensic evidence (This Week, 13 February) states ‘researchers
say that there is a shortage of forensic scientists in private practice’.
Our consultancy does a considerable amount of independent forensic science
work, and we frequently find that defence solicitors have not sufficiently
recognised the benefit of getting a second opinion on forensic science or
are ignorant of where to look for an independent scientist. There are many
commercially produced lists of available expert witnesses.
One of these sources has 1440 separate entries for private expert witnesses.
Other sources include the Forensic Science Society who also maintain a
list of independent expert witnesses registered with them. The problem
would not seem to be the supply of expert witnesses but the difficulty lawyers
face in finding them.
J. E. Stephens Keith Borer Consultants Durham
Letter: False alarms
I was extremely worried by the article ‘Prizewinning monitor could cut
cot deaths’ (Technology, 13 February).
It is becoming widely accepted that apnoea (breathing) monitors do not
prevent sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and it is irresponsible to suggest
they do. They may have limited use in the care of SIDS siblings but only
for parents who have been trained in resuscitation techniques and only under
the care and supervision of paediatricians and health visitors.
The Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths (FSID), the main charitable
body for SIDS research, does not condone widespread use of such monitors
and the idea that a monitor will be commercialised and sold cheaply is appalling.
Detecting lack of movement for 15 seconds is too simplistic and is no safeguard.
Several babies have died while wearing these monitors.
Apnoea monitors have many drawbacks in the home environment. They may
even be counterproductive, as parents will sometimes become too reliant
on the monitor and may miss the ordinary signs of ill health which can
be a vital early warning.
Young babies will often have prolonged apnoeic pauses. These lead to
frequent false alarms which can raise the anxiety level of the parents substantially.
These monitors will also not work when a baby is moving, such as in
a car or buggy.
Since my own son died in the car from SIDS seven years ago, I have had
the good fortune to work closely on the design of monitoring equipment with
Professor David Southall at Stoke-on-Trent. His group monitors apnoea, but
only in addition to other signals such as ECG, oxygen saturation, pulse
waveform and nasal airflow. The monitors are also not for general sale.
We are acutely aware of the traumatic effects of losing a baby and realise
that parents will often seek the comfort of a monitor for siblings. Please
put the record straight and help to dispel the myth that breathing monitors
prevent cot deaths.
Andrew Holder Research Monitoring Systems Salisbury, Wiltshire
Letter: Expert advice
Both your editorial and Helen Saul’s feature on the availability of
nicotine patches (‘Chancing your arm on nicotine patches’, 13 February)
demonstrate that you are unaware of present developments in primary health
care in Britain and of the expanded role of the pharmacist in particular.
Stated simply, it is now recognised that the GP, albeit central to patient
care in the community setting, cannot in isolation provide for all primary
health care needs.
Pharmacists, as experts in all aspects of medicines and their use, are
now increasingly involved in advising the public on making the most of their
medicines, in promoting health and preventing illness. Every pharmacy in
the country has been issued with training and background material focusing
on breaking the cycle of cigarette dependence. The Pharmacists for Smoking
Cessation Group has now been formed to promote and develop the role of pharmacists
in helping smokers quit.
I agree that client counselling is an essential ingredient in successful,
long-term smoking cessation, but the fact is that few smokers are motivated
to enrol in the kind of support groups that are the ideal. The decision
to make nicotine patches available from pharmacies without a prescription
recognises that the pharmacist is a proper source of advice and help.
John Ferguson Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain London
Letter: Dune damage
The proposal by Richards Bay Minerals (RBM) to mine titanium from the
coastal dunes of the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park has become the largest
‘green’ issue in South Africa. A pivotal point in this issue is whether
coastal dunes, once mined, can be successfully rehabilitated or not. I was
therefore disappointed to read that Malcolm Coe, from the University of
Oxford, can so confidently make statements at a media conference held by
RBM which give credibility to the rehabilitation process (This Week, 23
January). Coe, on his own admission, has never visited the St Lucia site,
and made his observations after only a brief visit to the current RBM mine
site near Richards Bay which is south of St Lucia.
I believe it is a poor reflection on the science of ecology for a respected
British ecologist to allow himself to be caught up in this sort of public
relations hype.
Wally Menne KwaMbonambi, South Africa
Letter: Five-year plans
The news that only the Agricultural and Food Research Council among
the five research councils is ensuring that at least 85 per cent of research
students complete their PhDs within five years (In Brief, 13 February) highlights
a fundamental flaw in postgraduate training in this country.
Research studentships provide postgraduates with money for three years
of study. After the expiry of funding, the need to obtain employment usually
takes priority over the completion of a thesis. What is being neglected
under the present system is the role of the research student’s supervisor
as a manager who should monitor the student’s progress, provide guidance
and help to identify and solve problems at an early stage before they cause
serious damage to the student’s research.
It is hardly surprising that, without any formal training in management
skills, many supervisors do not properly fulfil their management responsibilities.
All too often a postgraduate is left to struggle for three years before
their department or research council makes any real attempt to find out
whether they can complete their project on time.
Bob Ward Manchester