Totally rare disease that you'll want to know about!!!

Sitosterolemia

I. Introduction:

Sitosterolemia is very different and unheard of disease. It causes the person that it is effecting to not be able to produce its own cholesterol, instead your body uses plants to produce the cholesterol for it and ends up producing too much and causes your body to do unhealthy things such as have a heart attack. The reason I chose to write about sitosterolemia is because two of my uncles have it. Although one has it less severe than the other they both have a problem with it and it makes their life harder. My uncle that has it more severe has had a very difficult life. The cholesterol problem caused him to have his many heart attacks and eventually had him retire a lot early than he expected to. This changed a lot for him financially and has struggled to keep food on his table for his family. As of 2000 there were only 40 worldwide diagnosis of this disease. William Connor and Ashim Bhattacharyya were the two doctors that found this disease in 1974. And further research has been done since.


II. Discovery:
There is not much information on the finding of this disease. The way Connor and Bhattacharyya found out about it is when two sisters came to them with a large amount of tendon xanthomas but after researching more they also had a regular plasma cholesterol level; but later they were found to have a very high plasma level of plant sterol. These plant sterols were formed in beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol, and campesterol. The doctors characterized the sitosterolemia by tendon, tuberous xanthomas, and a strong ability toward premature coronary atherosclerosis(Steiner, eMedicine).(emedicine.medscape.com)


III. Biography:
William Connor was a very intelligent doctor that not only loved medicine, but also was a very good teacher, and a very innovative biomedical investigator. William loved to challenge the already existing theories and prove them wrong. He graduated from the University of Iowa and went directly into the Army during World War II. After William finished the war he went back to college to get his MD degree and worked at the Iowa City Veterans Administration Medical Center and worked his way up to the top until he moved to Oregon and worked at the Oregon Health and Science University. That is where he kept his research on lipids and nutrition until he died. William’s first thing that found national interest was his work on human cholesterol metabolism. This happened when he started on dietary cholesterol, and with very careful control of plasma cholesterol concentration he was able to prove that dietary cholesterol was important. William really believed in cholesterol restriction and kept on a healthy diet. William really liked the outdoors and sports. He would encourage physical activity until the day that he couldn’t do it himself and that’s what probably lead him to prove the effects of dietary cholesterol.(Spector, William E. Connor, MD)


IV. Impact of the World/Humanity:
Although this disease does not affect the world greatly because as of 2000 only 40 patients were found worldwide, it still affects the world. People such as my Uncle have had to live with this disease and face its consequences for a long time. There is no age range and has been found in patients as young as 18 months old. This disease greatly affects your cholesterol and causes you to have to watch out for what you eat because of the fact that you are more prone to have things such as a heart attack. There is not much information about this out there and are even fewer patients. Although it is not as likely to get as aids or even cancer it still kills people and makes lives harder.


V. Journal Article Review:
The Journal Article is talking about a 31-year-old woman that has been recommended to the national institute of Health Lipid Clinic five years ago when she was 26. This has affected her for a long time and she will probably have to live with this for as long as she lives. The Journal Article also talks about when sitosterolemia was found. It says that Connor and Bhattacharyya talked about two sisters with a lipid storage disease; which had high concentrations of plant sterols that was located in red blood cells, skin, etc. There were other cases that happened with people not related to these two sisters such as the one before.(Shulman,www.nejm.org)


VI. Bibliography:
• Shulman, Richard. "Sitosterolemia and Xanthomatosis." NEJM. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2011. .


• Spector, Arthur. " William E. Connor, MD -- Spector 30 (4): e2 -- Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology." ahajournals. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2011.

• Steiner, Robert. "Sitosterolemia." eMedicine. N.p., 6 Mar. 2009. Web. 6 Mar. 2009. .

Pictures!!!!
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://geneticpeople.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/expert_olho5.jpg&imgrefurl=http://geneticpeople.com/%3Ftag%3Dsitosterolemia&usg=__4ccw1rQei1VVV63V4ktK6ZpGtBc=&h=370&w=463&sz=9&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=5hi-IsEfaTHxFM:&tbnh=141&tbnw=176&ei=UzpbTYHgO4T48AbohdmGDQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsitosterolemia%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1174%26bih%3D775%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=129&vpy=75&dur=982&hovh=201&hovw=251&tx=116&ty=123&oei=UzpbTYHgO4T48AbohdmGDQ&page=1&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0

Jack McVicker
12/9/10
Cell phone driving failures
I. Introduction
Cell phones have changed tremendously in this last decade, and their impact on the way we act has changed also. Cell phones have evolved and changed our everyday actions. Driving while talking on the phone has lead to twice as many accidents than people who do not talk on the phone while driving. They started to pay attention to this in 2003 when the University of Utah and the Warwick Department of Physiology did a field study of drivers that were using hands free phones.

II. Discovery
A group of drivers were asked to drive on a test course, some with a hands free phone, others with no distraction. The ones that were engaged with the phone carried on with a basic conversation talking about hobbies and interests. They found that the participants that were taking part in hands free conversation had a reaction time 212 milliseconds slower than those who did not participate in conversation. The participants distracted by phone conversation also made 84% more errors. This shows that using hands free phones does not eliminate the visual distractions of driving with cell phones. This study suggests that hands free phone conversations that require us to consider information we are being given and make complex cognitive choices based on that information have a very negative impact on a driver’s ability to process and act on the visual information given that is critical to their driving performance.


III. Biography
Melina Kunar:
I. Melina has put her entire career into studying visual distractions and attention. Dr. Kunar has tried to state that advancements in technology mean that people are able to do more tasks concurrently. But just because they can multi-task does not mean they should. Take the example of driving and talking on a mobile phone. Many daily tasks involve visual search, making it an important focus of research. Melina Kunar stated that, “My research investigates how people visually attend and search different types of scenes. In particular I am interested in Visual Marking, Contextual Cueing and understanding and improving search performance when the target only appears rarely. I am also interested in when performing two tasks concurrently helps attentional performance and when it hinders it.” “
“Kunar, Melina. "Visual Attention Lab: Research Interests." The University of Warwick. The University of Warwick, 14 Jan. 2007. Web. 1 Dec. 2010. . “


IV. Impact on the World
The impact that these statistics and studies have made on the world is large, but not large enough. Some states have banned cell phones while driving, but permit hands free calling. And some states choose to ignore these facts about being on the phone while driving. The impact that researchers like Dr. Melina Kunar have made will continue to grow with time because everybody will soon start to realize the devastating effects of cell phones while driving. These studies on visual performance have been overlooked by too many and although they have the proof to stop cell phone use while driving people are choosing to ignore it.


V. Journal Article
This research from the article examined the effects of hands-free cell phone conversations on simulated drivers. David Strayer, Frank Drews, and William Johnston found that these conversations impaired driver’s reactions to vehicles braking in front of them. The authors of the article assessed whether this impairment could be attributed to a withdrawal of attention from the visual scene around them, giving way to a form of inattention blindness. Cell phone conversations impaired the drivers recognition memory for roadside billboards. Eye-tracking data indicated that this was due to reduced attention to foveal information.

VI. Resources
II. Strayer, David L., Frank A. Andrews, and William A. Johnston. "Cell Phone-Induced Failures of Visual Attention During Simulated Driving." Cell Phone-Induced Failures of Visual Attention During Simulated Driving. University of Utah, 12 Mar. 2003. Web. 1 Dec. 2010. .
III. Punitha, Hannah. "Talking On Mobile Phones While Driving Can Seriously Impair Drivers' Visual Attention ." Med India. Med India, 5 Dec. 2008. Web. 1 Dec. 2010. .
IV. Kunar, Melina. "Visual Attention Lab: Research Interests." The University of Warwick. The University of Warwick, 14 Jan. 2007. Web. 1 Dec. 2010. .

Stents

I. In the 1900’s, if a patient had a blocked artery in their heart there was little a doctor could do to open it back up to restore blood flow through the artery. The patient would often die of a heart attack without even showing signs of a problem with their heart. It was not until 1977 when doctors used mesh tubing called a stent to support the artery wall and eliminate the blockage so that blood could flow freely throughout the artery to the rest of the body.

II. In 1977, a method called balloon angioplasty was introduced to the world. The process involved a small balloon being inserted into the artery through a catheter device. The balloon was inflated for roughly 30 to 60 seconds. This would in turn open the artery back up to its normal capacity. There was one flaw with this method though, the blockage would partially return due to an affect called recoil when the channel would become smaller after having the balloon expansion.

III. In 1993, about fifteen years after the first types of stents were introduced, the stent we know today as the coronary stent was introduced. This stent was introduced to combat the effects of recoil by placing a stainless steel tube with slots mounted on a balloon catheter in a crimped state. When the balloon is inflated the stent expands and pushes itself against the coronary artery blockage. This would act like a pipe to stop the blockage from recoiling or starting again, even though this state of the art technology was sussposed to stop the blockage from reoccurring the blockage would grow through the holes and the patient would have a reoccurring blockage.

IV. It was not until 2003 that the FDA approved the first drug-eluting stent to open up and restore blood flow to the clogged artery. This new type of stent slowly releases a drug that helps combat a reoccurring blockage. The study’s on this new stent show that the patients that had the new type of stent had a signifanctly lower reoccurring blockage rate of (4.2% to 16.8%). These drug-coated stents also helped with reducing restenosis rate to 8.9% compared to 36.3% in the patients who received an un-coated stint.

V. The journal article I used in the writing of my blog helped me with key information and broad topics. I had detailed information on how a stent works and the recent advancements in stent technology. It also had a lot of information on case study’s from doctors around the world on stents and new scientific breakthroughs in heart technology.

Jack McVicker
12/9/10
Cell phone driving failures
I. Introduction
Cell phones have changed tremendously in this last decade, and their impact on the way we act has changed also. Cell phones have evolved and changed our everyday actions. Driving while talking on the phone has lead to twice as many accidents than people who do not talk on the phone while driving. They started to pay attention to this in 2003 when the University of Utah and the Warwick Department of Physiology did a field study of drivers that were using hands free phones.

II. Discovery
A group of drivers were asked to drive on a test course, some with a hands free phone, others with no distraction. The ones that were engaged with the phone carried on with a basic conversation talking about hobbies and interests. They found that the participants that were taking part in hands free conversation had a reaction time 212 milliseconds slower than those who did not participate in conversation. The participants distracted by phone conversation also made 84% more errors. This shows that using hands free phones does not eliminate the visual distractions of driving with cell phones. This study suggests that hands free phone conversations that require us to consider information we are being given and make complex cognitive choices based on that information have a very negative impact on a driver’s ability to process and act on the visual information given that is critical to their driving performance.


III. Biography
Melina Kunar:
Melina has put her entire career into studying visual distractions and attention. Dr. Kunar has tried to state that advancements in technology mean that people are able to do more tasks concurrently. But just because they can multi-task does not mean they should. Take the example of driving and talking on a mobile phone. Many daily tasks involve visual search, making it an important focus of research. Melina’s research investigates how people visually attend and search different types of scenes. In particular Dr. Kunar is interested in Visual Marking, Contextual Cueing and understanding and improving search performance when the target only appears rarely. She also researches in when performing two tasks concurrently helps attentional performance and when it hinders it.

IV. Impact on the World
The impact that these statistics and studies have made on the world is large, but not large enough. Some states have banned cell phones while driving, but permit hands free calling. And some states choose to ignore these facts about being on the phone while driving. The impact that researchers like Dr. Melina Kunar have made will continue to grow with time because everybody will soon start to realize the devastating effects of cell phones while driving. These studies on visual performance have been overlooked by too many and although they have the proof to stop cell phone use while driving people are choosing to ignore it.

V. Journal Article
This research from the article examined the effects of hands-free cell phone conversations on simulated drivers. David Strayer, Frank Drews, and William Johnston found that these conversations impaired driver’s reactions to vehicles braking in front of them. The authors of the article assessed whether this impairment could be attributed to a withdrawal of attention from the visual scene around them, giving way to a form of inattention blindness. Cell phone conversations impaired the drivers recognition memory for roadside billboards. Eye-tracking data indicated that this was due to reduced attention to foveal information.

VI. Resources
1. http://www.soc.hawaii.edu/leon/409as2006/wong/visualattention.pdf

2. http://www.medindia.net/news/Talking-on-Mobile-Phones-While-Driving-can-Seriously-Impair-Drivers-Visual-Attention-44807-1.htm

3. http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/

The Invention of the Car
By: Spencer Bello



I. Introduction:
There have been many inventions throughout the history of the earth. Ones that make you able to fly such as airplanes. Ones that make life simpler such as the ipad, but I believe the most important invention was the car. There have been many inventors that have tried to create a car and failed and some that invented a car but it was never able to be proven. When these inventors finally created a usable car it changed the world as we knew it to be.


II. Discovery:
Many Italians recorded their car like inventions; the first was Vigevano in 1335 where he invented a windmill type drive. Leonardo da Vinci worked on a clockwork driven tricycle that helped jumpstart the finding of the car we know today. The first vehicle recorded to move on its own power was designed by Nicholas Joseph Cugnot and was constructed by M. Brezin in 1769.(Bottorff, William, 2010)
Early steam powered cars were so heavy that they were only able to be used on perfectly flat surfaces that was a strong as iron. The Vehicles got large enough that they were able to pull a train on the back of them.(www.ausbcomp.com)
In the 1830’s many people in England were trying to build their own personal vehicle that didn’t need to be on a track. Many commercial vehicles were built but they were more on the lines of “trains without tracks” (Bottorff,1) than cars.(Bottorff, William, 2010)
When Henry Ford came along in 1896 he built his first car. He sold it for $200 which he used that money to begin to make another one. The 1895 Lutzmann had tiller steering, the engine under the floorboard, and a very high center of gravity; it was a dangerous car that would tip a lot.(Bottorff, William, 2010)


III. Investigator:

Henry Ford was born on July 30th, 1863 in Greenfield Township, Michigan. In 1879Henry Ford left his family farm to move to Detroit to work in machine shops. With his knowledge of mechanics Henry Ford secured his position as the engineer of the Edison Illuminating Company. After working as an engineer for 8 years Henry Ford built his first car cause the Quadricycle in 1899, he used this to ride around Detroit. That same year he was made the Chief engineer and partner in the recently formed Detroit Automobile Company. During 1903 the Ford Motor Company was officially incorporated and the Model A was introduced to market in Detroit. After this success Henry began to build the Model T in 1908. He introduced the first moving automobile assembly line in the Highland Park manufacturing facility in 1913. In 1927 the production of the Model T ends, and the Model A was introduced. In 1947 Henry Ford died at the age of 83. (ideafinder.com)

IV. The Impact on the World/Humanity:
In 1903 in Winfield, Kansas Mr. H. T. Trice was known for transporting customers from the railroads took them to his new developments. This would make traveling easier throughout the town. Steam powered was widely used during the 1880’s and 1890’s on the farms of America; but the smaller less expensive automobile, with an internal combustion engine provided a new avenue of interest that was much more personal than the steam engine. Eventually the automobile changed the face of small town America. "In Winfield , Kansas, Main Street went from a gathering place for people and horses to a parking place for the automobile."(Bottorff, William, 6) Brick streets were covered in asphalt to make a smoother ride for the cars. The spread of automobiles helped support a businesses; filling stations, auto dealers, battery stations, oil depots all grew and expanded to get rid of older technologies of the day. Half way through the century cars became a central feature for young people. It was a mobility, status, challenge, and social freedom. Nearly every aspect of our lives developed around this technology. (Bottorff, William, 2010)

V. Journal Article Review
The Article talks about how the Peugot family, who still controls the independent French motor manufacturer, began life as ironmonger. Before entering car manufacturing in 1876 the family produced a steam driven, three wheeler. In 1895 Sir David Salomons imported a 4 h.p. model which is how Britain first saw a Peugeot. In 1903 Robert Peugeot began making motorcycles in the old Beaulieu-valentigney factory, which the added cars in the line-up in 1906. Peugeot entered a race and won the first ever motor race and produced the new 10 hp legendary Ettore Bugatti. Peugeot continued to advance his cars and motorcycles one vehicle at a time. (Leous, Gus, 2010)


Pictures: copy and paste link to see pictures!!!
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/showroom/1896/quadbig.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.hfmgv.org/exhibits/showroom/1896/quad.html&usg=__haPU2s4LWjpten9R4Kgzv34I_bk=&h=345&w=504&sz=43&hl=en&start=0&sig2=6tDI8Je4bbEFfRgaX2p7lQ&zoom=1&tbnid=2BLIr1sh5Z6vAM:&tbnh=122&tbnw=163&ei=1YAFTdu5HsOC8gbvu-TtAg&prev=/images%3Fq%3DQuadricycle%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1659%26bih%3D806%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=131&oei=1YAFTdu5HsOC8gbvu-TtAg&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=33&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0&tx=88&ty=75

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.writedesignonline.com/history-culture/modelT.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.writedesignonline.com/history-culture/expressionism.htm&usg=__e73YB07B9aX2pd1FltkiKiSSEaI=&h=300&w=400&sz=50&hl=en&start=0&sig2=TwrtNHVlyj0wIh5YItp0OQ&zoom=1&tbnid=dg8lS26jgE-8qM:&tbnh=127&tbnw=157&ei=M4EFTcXMLcO78gbb_Z3pAg&prev=/images%3Fq%3DModel%2BT%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1659%26bih%3D806%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=556&oei=M4EFTcXMLcO78gbb_Z3pAg&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=35&ved=1t:429,r:6,s:0&tx=35&ty=82

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://blog.pennlive.com/thrive/2007/07/1929%2520Model%2520A%2520Ford.jpg&imgrefurl=http://blog.pennlive.com/thrive/2007/07/classic_wheels_july_29.html&usg=__beH92Ahw9hzDiRZBvqB_pbu4YOg=&h=468&w=768&sz=124&hl=en&start=0&sig2=gnIpL5C6id8_ZZ4zoe-xkw&zoom=1&tbnid=sFjL5W6A-G_sUM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=165&ei=UIEFTZqmMYT68AaFz624CA&prev=/images%3Fq%3DModel%2BA%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1659%26bih%3D806%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=109&oei=UIEFTZqmMYT68AaFz624CA&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=33&ved=1t:429,r:3,s:0&tx=166&ty=49


VI. Bibliography:

Bottorff, William W.. "The First Car - A History of the Automobile." Austin Business Computers, Inc. Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2010. .


"Inventor Henry Ford Biography." The Great Idea Finder - Celebrating the Spirit of Innovation . N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2010. .


Leous, Gus. "History of Automobiles Peugeot." Newsfinder e-magazine: A literary favour to world culture. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2010.

Figure 1

The Yo-Yo: An Everlasting Toy

1. Introduction

The yo-yo could possibly be the second oldest toy in the world, after the doll. Historians today argue the origin of the first yo-yo. Most believe it came from Greece, but others argue that the first yo-yo was born in China or India. Pedro Flores and Donald Duncan contributed to the popularity of the yo-yo in the United States by manufacturing and promoting them. Because of them, the yo-yo was the most popular toy in the late 1900’s. It was said that not one kid during that time period lived without a yo-yo.

1. Discovery

The yo-yo is a popular toy, consisting of a spool that is reeled up and down a string (as seen in figure 1). You play it by slipping your finger through a loop in the top of the string, and moving your hand in an upward downward motion. This causes the spool to ride up and down the string. Although, it is not as easy as it sounds. There are many techniques and tricks that make the yo-yo a very addicting and fun game for just about everyone. The “United States yo-yo” all started with a ma named Pedro Flores. He created his own yo-yo in his spare time and learned all sorts of tricks with it. He attracted many people which led him to begin his own small business in California. His business wasn’t a huge hit, but it caught the eye of Duncan Donald. In fact, Duncan bought out Flores and trademarked the yo-yo in 1932. Duncan distributed men and women all around the United States to promote the yo-yo. Duncan had advertisements everywhere; on billboards, on flyers, television commercials, and street performers. Because of the immense amount of advertisements and attractions around the 1950’s, the yo-yo was the most popular toy in the United States. It’s peak took a sharp turn downhill from there. Duncan became bankrupt because of many lawsuits against his trademarking, and no longer had the money to keep manufacturing the popular toy. The yo-yo’s quickly lost their popularity. Although, many other people have continued Duncan’s work, keeping the yo-yo alive. Today, many yo-yo skills competitions take place around the world. People come up with exotic new ways to play with the yo-yo, so the toy never gets old.

1. Bio of Investigators

Pedro Flores was born in Vinta, Ilocos Norte, Philippines. He came to the United States as an immigrant in 1915. Flores worked as a bellboy in San Francisco, when he made his first yo-yo. He trademark registered the name Flores Yo-Yo, on July 22, 1930. Later on, his yo-yo factories and the trademark were taken over by Donald Duncan.

Donald Duncan was born on June 6th, 1892. He was an American entrepreneur and an inventor. He was the founder of Duncan Toys Company, and is commonly recognized as being associated with the yo-yo. He took over Pedro Flores’s work and far extended it through advertisement and manufacturing. When his business was at it’s peak, he shortly became bankrupt and died in a tragic car accident on May 15th, 1971.

1. Impact on the world

During the late 19th century, the yo-yo was the most popular toy in the world. It brought joy to everyone, not necessarily just kids. Some people claim that the yo-yo could possible be the most addictive toy ever made. Billions of dollars have been made off of yo-yo’s, and still more to come. During the early 20th century, the British Association of Toy Retailers voted the yo-yo the “Craze of the Century” because of it’s immense amount of popularity. The love of the Yo-Yo has been spread throughout the world and is still popular to this day. Currently, several worldwide Yo-Yo competitions are held as people from all over the world show off their Yo-Yoing skills.

1. Journal Article and Conclusion

The article that I found by Mary Pilon is called “The Yo-Yo Has Had Ups and Downs, But It’s Far From End of Its String”. This article explains how the yo-yo is a never ending toy that excites people all around the world. She also describes how intense the sport is, and tells about injuries caused by yo-yoists. Pilon says “Hardcore yo-yoists now upload images of their battle wounds online: chipped teeth, calloused hands, bandaged brows, and ruined veins.” She describes how many people take yo-yoing seriously, and sometimes take it a bit too far. She tells how yo-yoing is a very competitive sport that can be dangerous, but very exciting. She believes that the yo-yo is not going anywhere; it will never be something of the past.

Many people stand behind her with that statement. The yo-yo has had some fall outs, but it always manages to have more and more comebacks each year. People all over the world never get tired of playing with a yo-yo, and some argue that it could be the best toy ever made.

1. References

Inventors About (2010) The History of the Yo-Yo. Retrieved on December 12th, 2010 from http://inventors.about.com/od/xyzstartinventions/a/yoyo.htm

Deutsch, Jeff (2010) Last 100 Years in the History of The Yo-Yo- How Did it Become a Marketing Blockbuster? Retrieved on December 12th, 2010 from http://ezinearticles.com/?Last-100-Years-in-the-History-of-The-Yo-Yo---How-Did-it-Become-a-Marketing-Blockbuster?&id=4692522

How Stuff Works (2010) Yo-Yo History. Retrieved on December 12th, 2010 from http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/yo-yo-basics1.htm

Wikipedia (2010) Donald Duncan. Retrieved on December 12th, 2010 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Duncan

Pilon, Mary (2010) The Yo-Yo Has Had Ups and Downs, But It’s Far From End of Its String. Retrieved on December 12th, 2010 from http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124778820675954809.html

Hair Iron

I. Introduction
Can you imagine what it would be like to go in a salon and not see a straighter, and curling iron or a crimper? Well, these objects have largely influenced the world around us for the better. They have dramatically improved over the years and have become a huge part of everyday life. Through the outrageous strategies that women came up with, the hair irons have changed the lives of every women today.

II. History
Back in the day, women came up with some pretty creative ideas to get “the look.” Jessica Levinson Young would style her hair with heated balls in 1882. In 1890, Adam Frisby was given the credit for the curling iron.
During the 1960’s, women would use clothing irons to get rid of the creases or waves in their hair. Simon Monroe, in 1906, patented a hair straightener with 7 teeth to act like a brush. Then, in 1909, Isaac K. Schero patented a different type of straightener that had two flat irons that were pressed together. The person that gets the main credit for the invention of the straightener goes to Scottish heiress Lady Jennifer Bell Schofield in 1912. She edited and combined the two models into a hinged, two-plated heating iron (Wikipedia).

III. Types
There are three types of hair irons:
• Straightener
• Curling iron
• Crimper
The straightener works by a breaking down the hydrogen bonds in hair. They are found in the cortex of the hair and this is the cause of hair bending and curling. The hydrogen bonds and be replenished only when moisture is present but until then, hair is refrained from going back to its natural form.
The more advanced hair straighteners have ceramic heating plates with a reduced heat-up time and constant heat. The plates are crucial to any flat iron because the better the plates, the less damage and much easier than the other plates. Although the prices may be less, the other plates are the worst for damage to your hair. They often use a coasting that makes them look ceramic and it will eventually wear off to expose more damage. To help prevent heat damage, use irons with higher temperatures and don’t heat the tips of hair. To avoid mechanical damage, like I have said, only use ceramic plates(Wikipedia).

Curling irons are used to make curls and waves in the hair. There are various different types of curling irons based on material, diameter, and shape of the barrel and the type of handle. These irons are usually made from Teflon, ceramic, tourmaline, metal or titanium. They all have their good and bad things about them. The diameter can range from .5 inches (1.3 cm) to 2 inches (5.1 cm). For spiral curls, you should use a curling iron with a smaller barrel. For shape and volume, you should use a larger barrel. The shape of the barrel can be either a cylinder, cone, or reverse cone. Some irons have double or triple barrels and brush attachments. There are multiple types of handles: spring-loaded, Marchel, or clipless. The most popular ones are the spring-loaded ones and have a spring controlling the clamp. The Marcel handle applies your own pressure to the clamp. That handle was named after Marcel Grateau. The clipless wands do not have a clamp and you just wrap your hair around the rod(Wikipedia).

Crimping irons make the hair have a sawtooth style. These look similar to when you take your hair out of the braid that you have had in all day. This iron was invented in 1972 by Geri Cusenza, one of the co-founders of Sebastian Professional. During the mid-1980’s in the United States was when crimping became popular(Wikipedia).

IV. Future Developments: Hot Combs
The improvements in hair irons led to the further development of the hot combs. It is a metal comb on the top and bottom burner up to 500OF. This is used as an alternative to a straightener by breaking down the biochemical bonds. Marcel Grateau was one of the first hairdressers to use a hot comb in 1872. Hot combs are still used today as a form of straightening without the harsh chemicals. The medical concerns for hot combs are that it may cause scarring and inflammation on the scalp(Austin).

V. Article Review
This article basically goes over the proper things you should do when using hair irons to avoid damage.
• If you are going to use a hair iron on a daily, then purchase one with ceramic plates.
• Be precise with the temperatures so get a hair iron with temperature control.
• Try to avoid hair irons with high temperatures daily.
• Proper temperatures:
• Drying Hair: 80 degrees
• Completely Damaged Hair: 100 degrees
• Partly Damaged Hair: 140 degrees
• Ordinary Curly Hair: 160 degrees
• Curly Hair: 180 degrees
• Very Think Curly Hair: 200 degrees
(Hockney)

VI. List of References
• Wikipedia. “Hair iron.” Web. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_iron.
• Austin, Bridgette. “The History of the Hot Comb.” N. pag. Web. 10 Dec 2010. http://www.ehow.com/about_5526769_history-hot-comb.html.
• Hockney, Paul. “Can Hair Straighteners Damage Your Hair?.” (2006):n. pag. Web. 10 Dec 2010. http://searchwarp.com/swa59731.htm.