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My dear fellow Halfbakers, I find myself in a tricky situation,
socially speaking. Bear
with me.
(I don't mean there's a bear with me - that would indeed be
tricky.)
A couple of weeks ago, I got a diagnosis of stage IV lung
cancer (stage V being
cremation). Clearly, they were serious
when they said
smoking can damage your
health. Being a geek and an optimist, I'd been counting on
science and luck to
ensure that I was one of the 2% of people who live for 5
years post-diagnosis.
Unfortunately, to paraphrase emperor Hirohito, there have
been developments not
entirely in my favour. My kidneys are somewhat buggered,
and I've got blood clots on
my one remaining "good" lung. Those factors mean that any
form of treatment for the
cancer itself would probably shorten rather than lengthen
my life. (I know, I'm
rambling, but bear with me a little longer.)
Upshot of all this is that, barring an almost-literal miracle,
I'll be around for an unknown
time between a week and a very few months. If it's "a very
few months", then clearly
this posting is embarrassingly premature. But if it's a week,
I don't want to miss my
chance to say goodbye.
So, I'll say goodbye now and then probably hang around for a
while.
I've spent more time here, by far, than anywhere else
online. In fact, I've spent more
time here than I've spent with any one person outside of my
immediate family over the
last decade-and-a-bit. (The observant amongst you may be
aware that I was here under
a different guise even before then.) Although I've never met
any of you physically, I've
always considered this place (and, by extension, all of you)
part of my "home". So,
thanks to all of you and, of course, to [jutta] herself for
building this asylum.
I've had various spats and tiffs with some of you over the
years, I know. My apologies -
life is too short for spats and tiffs.
I think that's about all I wanted to say for now. As
mentioned, I will probably be around
for 1-to-12 weeks or so (which will be embarrassing), but I
might leave unexpectedly
before then. If so, keep calm and carry on halfbaking.
bombs in the Pacific
Kiritimaticentrifugomobile
who could resist? [DenholmRicshaw, Feb 07 2020]
Cryonics
https://qz.com/8835...ney-to-immortality/
[Voice, Feb 08 2020]
Principles of cryopreservation
https://www.ncbi.nl...gov/pubmed/18080461
[Voice, Feb 08 2020]
Cryonics Institute
https://www.cryonics.org/
[Voice, Feb 08 2020]
Immune discovery 'may treat all cancer'
https://www.bbc.com/news/health-51182451
Wish there was time for you to try this [xaviergisz, Feb 08 2020]
'don't go'
https://www.youtube...watch?v=2FZNPxmTB4o
not sure if this is for [bliss] or [8th] [Skewed, Feb 09 2020]
High Hopes, Doris Day
https://www.youtube...watch?v=Xlti6Ydh1-k
Marginally inspiring. [DrBob, Feb 09 2020]
Doctor Paul H. Dear interviewed by Professor Heinz Wolff
https://www.youtube...watch?v=Dp4SkgJ2RSI
For proper, real inspiration. [DrBob, Feb 09 2020]
CRISPR and cancer
https://www.healthl...d-still-kill-cancer
A small matter of timing would be the problem. [RayfordSteele, Feb 09 2020]
Afterlife blockchain
Afterlife_20blockchain
Not any sort of an attempt at humour. [8th of 7, Feb 09 2020]
'Hail Mary' move?
https://wholehealthmedicineinstitute.com/
'Health Outliers' with Lissa Rankin MD and Jeffery Rediger MD [Sgt Teacup, Feb 09 2020]
One of my all time favs
Toroidal_20croissant
Fantasy Croissant [blissmiss, Feb 10 2020]
Non-small-cell lung carcinoma
https://en.wikipedi...cell_lung_carcinoma
According to the MWI every person who hears about [MaxwellBuchanan]'s disease come up with a cure and his life is saved. Wikipedia seems like one place to start, although the thoughful person might research curing his "atypical" cancer features first. [beanangel, Feb 11 2020]
spare parts for stunted babies' lungs
https://www.ncbi.nl...rticles/PMC2876978/
- under development as of 2011 [pertinax, Feb 11 2020]
S'town
https://stownpodcast.org/
totally brilliant in every way [xenzag, Feb 11 2020]
The healers assemble.
https://www.google....mgrc=hRpWTjfm3nM7wM
[pertinax, Feb 11 2020]
... or a whole spare lung
https://journals.lw...a_Compliant.20.aspx
"Fourteen Day In Vivo Testing of a Compliant Thoracic Artificial Lung" [pertinax, Feb 11 2020]
(?) ... or there's this ...
http://www.picsngig...g-extension-crobar/
[pertinax, Feb 11 2020]
Possible therapy
Kevlar_20massage_20vest
[whatrock, Feb 11 2020]
Breathe
https://www.myvideo.ge/v/2769367
Trygve Seim [xenzag, Feb 13 2020]
Always look on the bright side
https://www.youtube...watch?v=-ECUtkv2qV8
[Voice, Feb 13 2020]
'small card'
https://drinksfeed....rinks-in-the-world/
[Skewed, Feb 14 2020]
Most Expensive Drinks in the World
https://vocal.media...drinks-in-the-world
[Voice, Feb 14 2020]
p53 drugs
https://www.cancer....ontains=false&q=p53
It's better than peeing no drugs [4and20, Feb 14 2020]
apropos [DrBob]'s remarks
https://www.youtube...watch?v=gGkKFick8E8
[pertinax, Feb 14 2020]
Anthony Hopkins is the new Pope
https://en.wikipedi.../wiki/The_Two_Popes
He will replace bird cardinals, for a price [blissmiss, Feb 14 2020]
The history of [Max] & [Bp]
https://www.halfbak...f_20MaxwellBuchanan
[hippo, Feb 14 2020]
Apropos [4and20]'s anno.
https://xkcd.com/938/
[pertinax, Feb 15 2020]
Ketogenic diet and cancer
https://www.ncbi.nl...rticles/PMC6375425/
Hey, just something to read, not necessarily do. [doctorremulac3, Feb 17 2020]
The Survivor monologues
https://nymag.com/n...r/32123/index6.html
Rose Tisnado [xenzag, Feb 17 2020]
Sister-in-Law
https://www.med.unc.../natasha-snider-phd
[RayfordSteele, Feb 18 2020]
A journal article about senolytics that mention one, navitoclax that works on lung fibroblasts
https://www.ncbi.nl...rticles/PMC5641223/
[beanangel, Feb 19 2020]
Sounds medical, possibly commercial
https://www.targete...nsclc-drilon-case-1
Targetted testing of stage 4 lung cancer 2 case study videos [4and20, Feb 19 2020]
1 complete recovery
https://www.ncbi.nl...rticles/PMC3764732/
Time to see India [4and20, Feb 20 2020]
Anticancer P53 gene turned back on in [MB]'s exact kind of cancer
https://www.pnas.org/content/100/23/13303
This 9 met peptide can be synthesized cheaply online if you can get the sequence [beanangel, Feb 20 2020]
How to get that chili to Max.
Grandma_27s_20Chick...round_20The_20Globe
[doctorremulac3, Feb 20 2020]
IARC TP53 database
http://p53.iarc.fr/
all the hellz there is to report on the most common oncogene [reensure, Feb 22 2020]
Ron's Liquor
https://en.wikipedi...alk%3APitcher_plant
Ron is the keeper of our monkey sanctuary; and, he swears by drinking from pitcher plants because "Apes do it and they don't get cancer" [reensure, Feb 24 2020]
Max's oncologist addressing the staff to target the cancer.
https://www.youtube...watch?v=QB0mGGTID6M
[doctorremulac3, Feb 24 2020]
Max's chemo vs the cancer.
https://www.youtube...watch?v=gfpllwsw1pQ
Chemo's the Americans, cancer is the Nazis. [doctorremulac3, Feb 24 2020]
Where are they coming from!?
https://www.ncbi.nl...rticles/PMC4833664/
The chondriome is doubling. (mitochondrial dna polymerase gamma). If she keeps building trying to warp under this pressure the coils will never stand the strain! [reensure, Feb 25 2020]
COLLABORATIVE EDITING: "Strategies for Saving Max"
https://dynalist.io...dnRrgnHUKTY8_y7n5IG
Let's try collaborative editing? (it's autosaving, anonymously editable) [Mindey, Feb 25 2020]
Antiangiogenic therapies make sense, in longer term.
https://youtu.be/B9bDZ5-zPtY?t=615
Resveratrol inhibits angiogenesis by 60%... "What we eat, is really, our chemotherapy 3 times a day..." [Mindey, Feb 26 2020]
Evolutionary approach to cancer treatment.
https://stm.science...24/tab-figures-data
[Mindey, Mar 02 2020]
[Vernon] "Ordinary things, deadly-when-concentrated"
Cancer_20Treatment
"Take it with a grain of salt." [Mindey, Mar 04 2020]
Just give it a bath
https://jewishbusin...Ar2NObkJ4ESE3LOw6dE
Washing tumors off of a lung, and then replacing. [blissmiss, Mar 06 2020]
Marching Up & Down the Square
https://www.youtube...watch?v=ucgU2DJlBiw
from 'Monty Python's The Meaning of Life'. [DrBob, Mar 08 2020]
metformin at 29 cents a pill, in mice it reduces cognitive impariment from cisplatin and is a longevity drug
https://1001pills.com/search.htm?q=M
[beanangel, Mar 10 2020]
Time in days between Max annotations on this page.
https://wiki.mindey...f9c93b4c2c3dc5b.png
Max, do you hear us? [Mindey, Mar 12 2020]
(?) Infinity.Family: A hint from MB implying, go link my ideas, by all means.
https://infinity.fa...al-heart#1584243315
Also, in his site company site, he's: "Understanding the genome is not enough It's time to do something about it." [Mindey, Mar 15 2020]
(?) GNU Terry Pratchett
http://www.gnuterrypratchett.com/
An explanation of "Living in the Overhead" [8th of 7, Mar 26 2020]
obituary
https://www2.mrc-lm...aul-dear-1962-2020/
paul dear [xenzag, Mar 29 2020]
[fishty] I'm not sure you're aware of the palpable pride...
Marked-for-greatness
[bs0u0155, Mar 30 2020]
The Fifth Risk
https://en.wikipedi...wiki/The_Fifth_Risk
All about why the current administration was so ill-prepared from the beginning [RayfordSteele, Apr 06 2020]
(?) Buchanans' chunky cut marmalade!
https://twitter.com...38259037798400?s=20
[Skewed, May 21 2020]
A healthy addition to breakfast.
http://en.buchananswhisky.com/
[whatrock, May 22 2020]
JustGiving link
https://www.justgiv...0c8a631db48834ebc4b
[hippo, Feb 21 2021]
LinkedIn link (Denise Dear)
https://linkedin.co...ise-dear/45/76b/599
[hippo, Feb 21 2021]
Please log in.
If you're not logged in,
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Description (displayed with the short name and URL.)
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Shocked and very sorry to hear this [Max]. I have always enjoyed the wit and inventiveness you've bought to the Halfbakery. You will be greatly missed here.
:-( |
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Just to add a bit of ironic pathos: |
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Most of the recent and best cancer therapeutics are based
on
humanized antibodies. In order for these to work, the
patient needs to be (a) reasonably fit and (b) to have any
one of several mutations that give the cancer an 'Achilles'
heel'. |
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Not only am I not 'reasonably fit', but my cancer also lacks
every one of those genetic Achilles' heels. |
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Now for the kicker. About 35-odd years ago, a humble post-
graduate starting out on his scientific career and working as
a summer student/lab-tech for a brilliant scientist, built the
very first synthetic gene for the very first humanized
antibody. And guess who that humble (OK, probably not
that humble) post-grad was? Yep. |
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Fuck me, and fuck cancer! [MB] this is honestly devastating. |
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I'm sorry, that's vulgar. It's my way of covering pain. |
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Vulgarify away, [doc], you have my complete permission. |
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Thank you brother. For everything. |
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So my desire to volunteer to donate my body to
Max's experimental science project for when he
starts to try bold and crazy treatment things isn't
going to time out
well. |
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Bugger all. This was a rather extremely silly way to
do Brexit. |
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a good friend who is in the medical field has a pretty bitter
expression, acknowledging the maddeningly slow pace of
progress, and the never ending set of stories that talks
about hope. |
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May this be the last time I get to use it this way... |
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Bugger and bollocks. I'm going to the pub now. |
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There's something about the will we need to all
discuss: who inherits the misfortune of being
Sturton's emergency contact? |
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I volunteered [8th] for that. |
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We fear that will devolve on us. |
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We understand that, should the unthinkable happen, the Honour Party at Rentisham's are preparing the protocol for flying their trousers at half-mast for the appropriate period. |
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What [DenholmRicshaw] said. I would wish you godspeed, but neither of us believe in God, and anyway according to the bible one isn't supposed to do that. I'll personally re-read your ideas (please don't delete them) and drink quite a few in your honor. |
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Who's going to entertain me now?! That's as close as the Sgt gets to 'sorry for (y)our loss'. |
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Half-expected to see [2fries] chime in with a suitably homeopathic and/or nutbar suggestion.
Failing that, I propose an iteration of S.Hawking's 'future party' to dis/prove prognostication and/or time travel: |
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Max, whenhow your animating electrons reach 'the other side' (Tesla might've found a way), send us a message. How, you ask? Amongst us, we should be able to devise a suitable test. Begin now. |
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And I agree with [RayfordSteele]: silly way to 'Brexit'. |
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[Basepair]... it was you... |
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[...no - it's 42 seconds...] my favourite |
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// Who's going to entertain me now?! // |
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"Help! Our planet is run by stupid people!"
— wagster, Jul 03 2005 |
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I'll always fondly remember the time I sent you a broken wristwatch in the post. |
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Thank you for letting us know. |
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Can we cryogenically freeze him? Or maybe just
some of his DNA? There's likely a Chinese facility
somewhere where experimental cloning is likely to
happen for the right price... |
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You could also send a small bit up on Space-X if you
know the right folks, (and don't mention 8th or
Sturton or his sex-toy-on -the-ISS-incident...) |
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Thank you for the grounding guidance, there wil be a irreplaceble gap for sure. |
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And, as [Sgt Teacup] said, try to signal if you make the jump through space, time and form. If you make into the accessible past, name some streets. |
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I'll toss some money into the hat for cryo-preserving his head. In my opinion the vitriol people express for cryonics is born of sour grapes. |
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Bollox. I'm actually upset to the point of sending a
private message. |
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//the vitriol people express for cryonics is born of sour
grapes// |
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That doesn't sound right; vitriol is sulphuric acid, whereas
sour grapes would get you acetic acid, I think. |
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On the other hand, if you mixed some sulphite-based
preservatives into the whine, then you might be on to
something. |
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If the cryopreservation doesn't work, there's always
pickling. |
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Well shit. I've been playing my cards in a way that had a chance of us actually meeting face to face some day if you cared to. |
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You are one of my favorite teachers.
Damnit! Just let the big guy keep the five bucks already. |
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Hey, [2fries], thanks. We've had our run-ins, and I've been
pig-headed with the best of them. You are gracious. |
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(In the unlikely event that something miraculous happens and
I'm around for more than 12 weeks, I of course reserve the
right to resume pig-headedness.) |
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This is truly terrible. I hope your discomfort is very mild in the upcoming weeks. |
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It is no consolation, but I have been sitting on a notebook of halfbakery ideas I will try to put up two a week to keep the place lively should you be absent. |
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And, to put it mildly, you *shouldn't* be absent. |
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What kind of cancer is it so we can all have a go at curing it? |
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//What kind of cancer is it // It's non-small-cell lung
adenocarcinoma, which is the commonest type. However,
it's behaving "atypically" - causing all kinds of problems
which it shouldn't normally do. It's those problems that
make me too weak to survive any treatment designed to kill
the cancer cells. That includes both established
therapeutics and the latest things like Car-T (which is still
in early stages for solid tumours anyway), and also any new
targetted drugs. Anything that works will cause a lot of cell
death amongst the cancer cells (and, in most cases,
collateral damage in healthy cells), and the cell debris and
inflammation would kill me in my current state. |
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My cancer behaving atypically is just bloody typical. |
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There is a small window of possibility - if they can correct
the other problems (kidneys and blood clots), I might
improve enough to risk actual treatment. |
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It's basically a science problem, so at least it's an interesting
way to go! |
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Oh, and yes, my discomfort at present is mild, thanks. I'm stuck in
hospital, but not in any pain. My o2 sats are down to about 82%
without supplemental oxygen (90 with), but that's only a problem if
I do something reckless like walking. Other than that, I feel fine.
(Actually, I Googled and someone at Everest's summit might be
down to only 40%, which is awesome.) |
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I am going to miss your input more than you might realise :( |
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Oddly, I was on aspirin plus another thinner until my coronary
angiogram came back annoyingly clear. They then took me
off both thinners, and I've turned into black pudding. Bit of a
bugger indeed. |
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Have you considered trying homoeopathy? |
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Well this is just no goddammed good at all. |
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We agree. It's deeply unsatisfactory; there must be some individual or corporate entity who can be sued. |
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// Have you considered trying homoeopathy? // |
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Again ? Our understanding is that it had already been tried, and convicted of fraud, deception, and obtaining money under false pretences. |
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//fraud, deception, and obtaining money under false pretences// |
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And what's wrong with any of those things? |
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If you're a government, nothing at all- just Standard Operating Procedure... |
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//Have you considered trying homoeopathy?// No, I'm saving
the big guns until things get more serious. |
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Profanity cannot express... well, it can, just not near enough. |
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I find myself torn between asking if I can have your stuff, andor querying the going rate for trebuchet rental. j/k... well, mostly. |
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Max, you've been one of the few inspirational people/avatars on the Internet, and have enriched my life. I like to consider you a friend, though we've never met. Sorely missed. |
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[Link] not sure if that's for [bliss] or [8th], either way I echo
the sentiment. |
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This really isn't good enough you know. You've
helped brighten many a dark day for me (not your purpose
in
life of course but know you have), pointless or not I'll be
keeping my fingers crossed. |
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Best of luck, I'll be checking in for news. |
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Well, this is shit. I'll miss you. |
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Well this all sounds a bit grim. You make a huge contribution to the 'bakery Max. It would be a bit of a shame for it to come to an end.
//I'd been counting on science and luck//
Sometimes, when science, luck & even hope fails you, just obstinancy & sheer, bloody-minded refusal to accept reality can get you through. Sometimes. It's the British way, you know!
:)
And when mindless optimism in the face of grim facts is called for, there's always Doris Day to call on for inspiration (linky).
The very best of luck to you in the fight ahead sir & I look forward to many years of reading your grovelling apology for alarming everyone unneccessarily! |
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I think it would be really helpful, if you felt like it, to give us
a daily update on your status. |
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I want to know if you are in pain, so I could try and be funny,
or if you were sad, I could sit silently with you for a moment
and just be still. |
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I'm still not able to come to terms with this, not at all. |
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Yea brother, you feel like giving an update, we'd
certainly like to know how you're doing. If you
don't
that's all good too. However you want to handle it. |
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OK - I'm happy to update. Just a little embarrassed to be hanging
around like a fart in a phone-box. |
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So, I'm still stuck in hospital (9 days and counting this time).
Kidney's are semi-knackered but they're not sure why: probably
enlarged lymph nodes pressing on plumbing. Left lung is
surrounded by this weird, atypical cancer which works like a
straitjacket (so, not much air movement there). Right lung is fine
but has large blood clots in the arteries, because the cancer is
making my blood more clotty (this is fairly common, apparently),
so it's not doing much. I'm on tons of low molecular-weight heparin
to prevent any more clotting, and it's possible the existing clots
will slowly resolve. In the meantime, I'm on a low oxygen feed
(2l/min) and keeping my sats at around 90% (which is crap but
perfectly survivable). I'm fine as long as I'm lying down, and can
walk about 30 yards if I have to. |
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I'm also plumbed into various other tubes whose main purpose is to
siphon off any residual dignity. But hey. |
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If it weren't for the kidneys and the tiny lung function, they could
think about things like (a) possible surgery to remove the clots on
the lung and more usefully (b) chemo/immunotherapy which would
resolve a lot of the issues and get me back to good health for a
while. And then (c) who knows what might be round the corner? |
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But, as it is, I'm in Catch 22 where I can only lie here and hope. In
the meantime, it's actually very therapeutic to share the details, so
thanks for asking. |
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Well then, here's my "knock Knock" joke...hee hee, just
kidding. |
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You know, I'm seeing room for hope. I didn't see that
yesterday. Room for hope makes room for my prayers, and
that's just what I'll do. The Universe may still have some
plans for you, MB...let's just see how this goes then. |
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I just happened to log-in, which I very rarely do these
days, and clicked on one item....this one. Oh boy, I truly
hope that you get a miracle, and if not, you have as
much comfort as possible. I'm not sure if I should log in
again, if you are gonna be pulling these tricks. |
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Hey [blissy], thanks. I go through different phases in the
course of one day. At the moment I'm in my unrealistically-
hopeful phase, which is good. |
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Max - I'm packing up and posting the two pieces of
my work tomorrow. To where do you want them
sent? Email me if you have an address preference,
otherwise I will use your work place. They will
come as two separate packages, neither being a
large box. |
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[xen] you are a marvel. Work address will get to me (I'm in
the process of shutting down the company, but that'll take a
while). |
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Ha. It's the least I can do. |
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//I'm also plumbed into various other tubes
whose main purpose is to siphon off any residual
dignity. But hey.// |
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Made me smile again. Takes a special level of
stoicism to keep your sense of humor while going
through this shit. Respect. |
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Respect, and integrity, and substance and depth and a kind of
courage that I know I don't possess. |
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(We could try a World get-well card as we did for FarmerJohn
when he was given a really crummy diagnosis. He pulled out
of it and was around to build a shit load more clocks.) |
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//courage// Courage would be if I had a choice. Not having
a choice makes things easier, honestly. |
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Courage is being the only one who knows you're afraid. |
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Any last requests, Paul? Anything at all? If ever there were
a group of people to ask... |
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Regardless, you won't be forgotten. |
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If there was no other way, at least we tried. |
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Thanks for one of the best of "best ofs ... " ; and, tip of the
hat. |
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Well, this is a fine mess you find yourself in.
I'm sad that we never got to meet in person (me being on
the other side of the planet...), as I feel you are on a similar
wavelength to my brain. I will remember you always, and
the knowledge and silliness you brought/bring to this mad
place.
//Just a little embarrassed to be hanging around like a fart
in a phone-box//
You have definitely earned the right to hang around here. |
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// I'm fine as long as I'm lying down, and can walk about
30 yards if I have to. // |
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I think we would all like to see you walk 30 yards while
lying down. And miles further standing up. |
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[Max] this is very unsatisfactory and as you are the
mentor of the halfbakery you are hereby forbidden to
leave. Submit a proper request in triplicate two weeks
in advance so that it can be summarily shot down.
Besides, without you we would be left at the mercy of
an unsupervised alien. |
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This is deep crap news. You are a legend, Sir and I can
say no more. |
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I was SO sure we met, in a swanky London Venue a long (too long) while ago... Perhaps your posts were discussed?. Privilege and honour to have encountered you, here, in any event.
Godspeed.
Is there anything we can do to help/support you or your nearest dearest at all, in any way? |
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| |
It will be really sad to see you go. So sorry this is happening
to you. You've been amazing. And hopefully you last longer
if you can. Hugs to you always. |
|
| |
"left at the mercy of an unsupervised alien." |
|
| |
I'm still here and very supervised TYVM. |
|
| |
Just swinging by to say hello and goodbye. It was
good to have known you, if only via this silly text
box. |
|
| |
[MB], I've always wanted to sample your intriguing centrifuge-filtered coffee and genuinely
have, on opening tins of waxes, creams or polishes, for the last several years cast thoughts in
your direction, wistfully wondering what it must be like to experience the phenolic thrill of
popping-open a fresh new tin of Rentishams. |
|
| |
I'd genuinely also wondered on occasion what had ever happened to [Basepair] - that mystery
seems now solved (if I've been paying attention) - and over the years, I've regretted never
having got the chance to say goodbye to him, I guess that time is now too. |
|
| |
Goodbye Max, I really wish it could be au-revoir. |
|
| |
And to look for some positive spin for a moment, one (albeit slightly buggered) lung is plenty
if you're taking it easy. If you've been offered the palliative drugs-menu, you've got the
opportunity to enjoy developing an entirely new connoisseurship and, having a more clearly-
defined future-bound than previously, you can now order pretty much anything online (drugs,
exotic emollients, high-explosives) without fear of punitive repercussion. |
|
| |
Long may the embarrassing void between this page of goodbyes and fair-thee-well-wishes
stretch into the coming months and years. |
|
| |
Oh, blimey, mate! This is truly awfuk news. xx |
|
| |
There's not a lot one can say that really gets to grips with
this. |
|
| |
//the unlikely event that something miraculous happens// |
|
| |
For what it's worth, there are some people 8 000 miles away
praying for this event. |
|
| |
Well, I'm now here for another day, apparently. |
|
| |
Yay. That's pretty much what we all got too. We just don't
know why yet. This is very personal, but I'm hoping you have
family with you. |
|
| |
I know you have this family cheering you on, and that's a lot
of loonies in one place, but hoping you have folks surrounding
you in person, as well. Just tell me to mind my own if it's too
personal to answer. |
|
| |
/hanging around/
Please, continue to do so. |
|
| |
//Well, I'm now here for another day, apparently.// |
|
| |
We're all in a bizarre Schrödinger box, in every Internet
community, where we don't really know until the next
annotation collapses the probability function. May your
probability function beat the odds. |
|
| |
// very supervised TYVM. // |
|
| |
Verily, but the Borg behind you is not. |
|
| |
and [Max]... if and when you get to the great
beyond, please try to contact us. We will be here
waiting for you! All my love and peace dear Sir
xox |
|
| |
//Well, I'm now here for another day,
apparently.// |
|
| |
Good, I'll be around too. (as far as I know) |
|
| |
For whatever it's worth, I think that along with
mortality you do get a
pretty good consolation prize of living on in a way
via
your children. To me at least, it makes taking that
final
curtain call a bit more palatable. What a great
blessing
you've been given. It's a sort of immortality in the
form of
pure love. Children are the cure for death. |
|
| |
And if you do contact me in the afterlife, please
do so by
sending me a winning lottery ticket or something,
not
tapping on my window during a thunderstorm in
the
middle of the night. Well, unless you think it would
be
funny, in which case go for it. |
|
| |
//you do get a pretty good consolation prize of living on in a way via your children// - and, more importantly, living on via your Halfbakery ideas (or is that what you meant by "children"?) |
|
| |
I didn't know Paul Dear, PhD [MaxwellBuchanan] had children, that is wonderful news. Brightening the gene pool brightens my day. Thanks [MB]. |
|
| |
Well, this is an unpleasant shock. Still, I wasn't having a
particularly good Monday anyhow so rest assured that
there's no real damage done! |
|
| |
Important things first, time being of the essence and all.
It's been a fucking pleasure mate. Thank you. For
everything. I feel the same way as you about this place
and you were responsible for an unreasonably large
number of laughs, snorts and other enjoyable text-
induced spasms. I don't know anyone else like you and I'm
not looking forward to the noticeable lurch toward the
dull that the world will take in your absence. |
|
| |
Now, it's a good job this isn't an idea, lung cancer is a
WKTE and a terribly unoriginal way to go, dressing it up
with a couple of bells and whistles isn't hiding that.
Fortunately for me, I had lymphoma as a kid and as such
I'm operating on the assumption that it's out of the way,
like mumps. Either that or it really was mumps, and I was
given a rather enthusiastically over-engineered treatment
plan. |
|
| |
Perhaps you could use this opportunity to introduce some
of the more senior professionals to the untapped medical
applications of a really top-notch flenting wax? I hear
Rentisham's is flamboyantly anti-microbial while
conveying an enviable level of durability and lustre. Just
keep it away from any plastics/MRI patients who are
often a touch static-y. We don't need sources of ignition
now those oxygen tubes have started leaking. |
|
| |
[MB] according to the Many Worlds Interpretation of physics (MWI) some of you will live, and some of them will even come up with the idea that saves them. Of course, sometimes it will be [8th]'s idea so study up. Another thing you could do is come up with an affordable irrefutable test of the MWI. If they get it tested by 2030 you'll live to see that you just keep on living. |
|
| |
This moment’s thoughts from wikipedia [link] |
|
| |
[MB] can they do lots of dialysis and still operate to remove the cancer? |
|
| |
If you have enough money to tell doctors what to do (usually this is a bad idea), Wikipedia says they don’t usually laser away cancers bigger than 5cm, perhaps if you can tell doctors what to do you could get lots of dialysis and tell them to laser away the cancer on the exterior of the lung as well as some internal to the lung. |
|
| |
In epigenetics, which you’ve previously mentioned, FEN1, MLH1, and MSH2 are all usually disregulated in NSCLC, there may be some epigenetic drugs that restore these to a favorable epigenetic profile, you could take those. |
|
| |
Keyhole limpet proteins (immunosensitizers) attached to blood clot components to immunize you against things blood clots are made of possibly fibrinogen could be a nonstandard new drug option. They have keyhole limpet proteins on alibaba.com |
|
| |
As to palliative care that won't fog your brain, phenibut, a GABA activator, is sometimes on ebay and immediately available online. It is a Nootropic that does make me think of more/better ideas and makes people relaxed and sociable. It also is a mild anaesthetic, and I always feel healthier when I am on it. As a data point, if I have a rash or scratch these goe from red back to white when I take phenibut. 2 grams is the usual dose but I am sure you have plans in moderation for your kidneys. The main point is it is a nootropic that makes you feel better and is a mild body anesthetic. Wikipedia says one dose lasts about 24 hours. It also makes falling asleep easier and the sleep more restful. It has downsides, It might reregulate your GABA receptors towards less enjoyable if you use it more than two times a week, and you shouldn't drive on it. |
|
| |
Nice to see the HBrains swinging into action. Surgery is not
an option due to the fact that it's quite a diffuse cancer and
also in lymph nodes. Moreover, even if they can work
around the kidney problem, I just don't have enough lung
capacity at present - any inflammation (or infection) would
take me down to zero, which is not really an option. |
|
| |
Re the genetic markers: there are a handful of mutations
which, if present, can be targetted by some of the newer
therapeutics (though, again, I'd need to be in better shape
first). However, I have drawn a blank for all common and
targettable mutations except for a p53 mutation (which is
common, but doesn't give any clear therapeutic options). |
|
| |
And re epigenetic stuff, my cancer is low (almost zero)
expression of PD-L1, which is the commonest
immunotherapy target. |
|
| |
All in all, it does rather look as if this one has my name on
it. |
|
| |
Then trick it. Use an alias. Uhhh, John Wayne? Uh...Johnny
Depp? Uh...Paul Simon? Maybe Dear Paul? I'm running out of
ideas but you get the gest. Glad to see you today. Keep up
your spirits. That is so good for the soul. |
|
| |
Thanks, [blissy]. I might use W.C. Fields' strategy: "On the
whole, I'd rather be in Philadelphia". |
|
| |
Still here today. I hate to admit this, but I was quite proud to
have walked up a flight of stairs. |
|
| |
A crack squad of therapeutic nanobots enters the body
through the IV drip. They follow the venous blood flow to
the heart. After a brief quarrel in the left atrium about
how
to read the map, two of them peel off down the left
pulmonary artery, two more stay in the right lung and get
down to business and three push on down the right
pulmonary vein and, following an altercation with a
suspicious T-cell, make their way to the
kidneys. The last bot makes a wrong turn by the inferior
vena cava, and comes out in Mornington Crescent. |
|
| |
This inflammation you speak of, would that be, specifically,
inflammation of the alveoli (preventing lung function)? |
|
| |
//Then trick it. Use an alias.// |
|
| |
Maybe wear a pair of those glasses with the fake
nose and
eyebrows. If death comes to the door and says "Are
you
Paul?" say "Mmmnope. I'm Phil. Paul left with that
nurse a
couple of hours ago. Said he was feeling much
better. I
think he said he was going to Philadelphia, might
be able
to find him there." |
|
| |
As far as getting some physical accomplishments in
like
hitting those stairs, I think that's awesome! Stand
up and
fight until that final bell brother! I remember that
song my
dad would sing to me: |
|
| |
"Stand up and fight until you hear the bell.
Stand toe to toe, trade blow for blow.
Keep punching till you make your punches tell.
Show that crowd what you know!
Until you hear that final bell, stand up and fight
like
hell!" |
|
| |
We're all here in your corner rooting for you Max. |
|
| |
... because if those alveoli are the most likely immediate
point of failure, then the team in the link were, some years
ago, working on a substrate for growing extra, implantable
alveoli for premature babies. Now, I know we're not talking
about a premature baby here, but, if implantable alveoli are
a real thing ... |
|
| |
Soon you will be skipping up those stairs tossing flowers
behind you while singing your favorite dity, and playing the
bagpipes. I can see it now. That's my inspirational vision to
pray to. Why the hell not. I also like the fake mustache and
eyebrows option, just to fuck with people. |
|
| |
Max - I've emailed you at your Mote address. I note an interest in watchmaking and recommend this podcast most highly as a great and interesting distraction. (link) |
|
| |
//would that be, specifically, inflammation of the alveoli //
The oncologist was talking about pneumonitis, which I think is
a catchall for any type of lung inflammation. |
|
| |
//tossing flowers behind you while singing your favorite dity,
and playing the bagpipes// |
|
| |
But the bagpipes take two hands, what's he throwing flowers
around with, or shouldn't I ask? ;) |
|
| |
Next link: swap out one of your lungs for one of these new
artificial ones. Give your own lung a good clean, then keep
it on ice for a week or two while your body gets over the
shock, then swap it back in. Repeat for the other lung.
Then proceed to chemo the metastatic cancers in the
knowledge that at least your lungs won't pack up while
you're doing it. |
|
| |
Knowing next to nothing about the ailment at hand and
having waited while more experienced bakers spoke I
would like to make a suggestion that somehow seems to
make sense. Would hanging upside down for a period each
day help? Fluid and gunk that has collected in the lungs
would then be coaxed downhill and out the door. Granted
this would not be a cure-all but may improve lung
function, O2 levels and overall comfort. A pair of gravity
booties and a modified Kevlar Massage Vest (link) might
do the trick. You could claim that you'd always wanted to
beat gravity and become an inch taller, and whatever
accumulation that is coughed up is merely a by-product. |
|
| |
//swap out one of your lungs for one of these new artificial ones// - why stop at the lung? what's wrong with the wired-up 'brain in a jar' solution? Haven't you seen Futurama? |
|
| |
Seems excessive to stay tied to a biological brain. A computer simulation seems the obvious solution. There are plenty of AIs that no-one really knows how they work or what they do internally. I'm sure a few of them would be interested. Problem is, how to attract their attention? |
|
| |
Been looking into head transplants. Although it's
not
feasible currently, there's no "brick wall" problem
that
would make it impossible at any time in the
future. Much
less complicated procedures with other body parts
have
been successful, rejection issues dealt with etc
and it
would certainly be worthy of continued research.
Actually
I
should say "I don't see a brick wall impediment." If
people get queasy about the Frankenstein factor
tell
them to not let a stupid old horror story determine
the
best direction for medical research in the future.
We'd
probably drop the
bolts on the neck and the flat head. |
|
| |
Well, maybe just some very little bolts and a very
slightly
flat head. Hey, if my body gave out I'd want to do
it. My
first action after coming out of anesthesia would
be to
grab the surgeon's hand and say "Friend...good."
Then
we'd all have a good laugh. |
|
| |
//A computer simulation seems the obvious solution.// |
|
| |
There's an interesting philosophical problem with that.
Suppose it were possible to scan my brain and then create a
simulation that behaved exactly the same way. The original
"I" is still left behind and still has to undergo death at some
point. The fact that there's now an identical copy in silico
might not be much consolation to the original me. |
|
| |
//head transplants// Count me in. |
|
| |
OMG, pertinax, those lung extenders in your link are scary.
Someone could accidentally trip on them and break their neck
Then they would really be in trouble. Damn scary!!! |
|
| |
//not be much consolation to the original me// Well yes, but that's the original me's problem, not the new me's. |
|
| |
Actually, wouldn't the original me recognise the new me as an intrinsic and indivisible part of itself? Like how you don't consider your sense of hearing as a different thing or person to yourself. (OK not like that because your sense of hearing is not identical and complete. But you know what I mean (perhaps you don't, but I do (actually that might not even be true))). And so the shutting down of one of the two mes might not seem so traumatic after all? |
|
| |
I would love to think this letter finds you well but seriously,
me old china, you've made rather a mess of this, haven't
you? |
|
| |
We tried to warn you that breathing the fumes from that
bloody Flenting Wax was going to do you in but you chose
not to listen. |
|
| |
Anyway, I've popped a box of heavily modified anti-cancer
termites (they're a sort of uprated cousin of the ones your
man, What's-His-Name, found in that filing cabinet in
Borneo when he was trying to undiscover the Wallace Line)
in the post for you. We found these ones eating the
tumorous arse-end out of a beached whale on a remote
island in the
Arafura Sea, so they may or may not work. Worth a shot, in
the circumstances. |
|
| |
As for getting them into the country, they're in a lead-lined
box, clearly marked Rentisham's Farnarkling Curative, with
a
URGENT sticker on each of the twenty sides of the box.
The Express Courier Wallaby in whose pouch we have sent
them has clear instructions to act as coolly and as calmly
as possible, so as not to arouse the suspicions of your
local authorities. There's also a small flask of overproof
Bundaberg Rum in there, if things get a bit too much. |
|
| |
With a bit of luck, now that Britain's Customs Department
is in utter, fucking disarray after that Brexit nonsense, the
whole ensemble should slip through without a hitch. |
|
| |
Now, here's the tricky bit, son. You have to coax the
termites into
climbing in through your nose in twos, between midnight
and dawn. Not the very best plan, as you may have
noticed, and you'll have
to keep them out of the way of the nurses if you can
because they might eat a few of them if you're not looking,
but
this may be the only chance you get to participate in a
world-first trial to see if they work on a living subject. |
|
| |
I do hope they arrive in time, and that they don't tickle too
much on the way in. If they do actually work, you'll be the
first survivor on record. |
|
| |
All of the very best from all of us here in the antipodes, and
if it doesn't go so well with these little fellers, or they get
sidetracked by Customs, then we'll see you on the other
side, hmm? |
|
| |
P.S. I do hope things go as well as possible for you, mate.
Wishing you all of the best. |
|
| |
[Ubie]! Blimey, mate, I'm honoured and it's good to hear from
you. I'll let you know how I get on with the termites. |
|
| |
Please do. I hope they arrive in time to make a difference. |
|
| |
So sorry to hear your news at this time... Or any time, to be
honest. |
|
| |
I trust they're keeping you comfortable and I hope they
don't stint on the good drugs. |
|
| |
They are thanks. To be honest I'm in no physical discomfort
at all at the moment unless I try something reckless like
moving around. It'll work out somehow. |
|
| |
I never imagined, when I first joined the HB, that I'd end up
this age, so every day is a bit of a bonus. |
|
| |
I'm up early this morning (5:00am), and just had a cup of
coffee with my eldest before he headed off to work. |
|
| |
He's 19 now. He was the inspiration for my username, as
we had just the one baby at the time I joined. |
|
| |
Time flies, usually in a direction we didn't quite anticipate. |
|
| |
Fine, make the old lady cry. You two... |
|
| |
Oh I don't know. The direction is of no surprise to anyone.
The speed is more startling. For all of us. |
|
| |
The speed is (relatively) constant but the perception is |
|
| |
The sense of time speeding up as I get older suggests that in my
youth I must have been travelling at near the speed of light and
experiencing a relativistic time-dilation effect |
|
| |
It's not time dilation you have to worry about with
age, it's the dreaded Lorentz-FitzGerald
contraction! Ha |
|
| |
Honestly, as time moves on, I find most things about me are
expanding, rather than contracting. Most distressing. |
|
| |
Ha. "This is the year of the expanding man" Steely
Dan. |
|
| |
Yeah, time flies when you're not paying attention...
I can't believe it's the middle of February already. I'm not
sure where 2019 went, let alone January this year.
Keep up the good spirits, [MaxwellBuchanan]. |
|
| |
// I find most things about me are expanding, rather than
contracting// did you check the side-effects carefully, [UB]
:) |
|
| |
It said, on the packaging, [tc], "Your mileage may vary" |
|
| |
// I find most things about me are expanding, rather than
contracting// Oh, that's just things out of place; mind
them and soon the house and mind will be less cluttered. |
|
| |
I have a theory that the perception of time going
faster is driven by our mind's tendency over time to
ignore the daily pattern noise of rituals and habits as
automatic, time-consuming, but not terribly
interesting or novel activities, like driving to work,
coupled with an ever longer span of memory over
which we self-identify and serves to inform us of
who we are. I guess that brings up a question: when
you're at the edge of something like death, does that
perception of the acceleration of time still take
place, or does the sheer boredom of hospitalization
overcome it? 'The hours are too long, but the days
are too short..' |
|
| |
You're an incredibly awesome person and
it's been a pleasure and a privilege to
get to see you in action. |
|
| |
Potentially still too much incompatible tissue to set off the old
immune response, a full body brain transplant may be better. |
|
| |
Just let us know who's body (& face) you want & we'll instruct
Sturton for you if you don't feel up to it yourself. |
|
| |
All this contracting and expanding makes me think I've fallen
Into The Looking Glass, as Alice would have said, maybe.
(Just lead me to the mushrooms, and I'll be a happy girl.) |
|
| |
Yeah, what [blissy] said. Don't forget to stop and sniff the
mushrooms, people. |
|
| |
Are you in Addenbrooke's, [MB]? |
|
| |
(Or maybe that's an intrusive, too-much-real-world question,
in which case, feel free not to answer it) |
|
| |
You are a very difficult man to contact, Paul. |
|
| |
//Addenbrooke's// I am, for my sins. Hopefully home today
once all the oxygen and other crap gets delivered to home. |
|
| |
Nice to be going home I bet. |
|
| |
So glad you are going home. It's good medicine to surround
yourself with that which brings you joy. |
|
| |
//It's good medicine to surround yourself with that which brings you joy.// - and yet he's still on the Halfbakery surrounded by us...! |
|
| |
Incidentally - kudos to Addenbrooke's and the NHS. Care has
been flawless. Even their IT system seems to work, to the
extent that all tests, scans and appointments happen at the
right time and all the results come back promptly. Well
impressed. |
|
| |
Home is best. Well done nhs for looking after our buddy. |
|
| |
God, I wish we had an NHS. |
|
| |
The NHS is one the best things about life in the UK.
Unfortunately bonkers Boris looks set to be bullied
into handing over a large portion of it to the
greedy Trump moron in exchange for thousands of
tons of America's toxic muck, like their bleached
chickens, hormone and antibiotic laced beef, and
of course their Agent Orange, Monsanto
Frankenstein GM crops (imagines extra invigorated
blood coursing through Max's extremities!) |
|
| |
first of all, if we wanted to take on UK healthcare, we'd
start with dentistry. |
|
| |
second of all, you don't have to worry (we do), soon
Sanders will give us an NHS |
|
| |
third [score!] xenzag figured out a way to make this post
political before I did |
|
| |
Hope I got a smile out of you [MB] :) |
|
| |
Glad you're at home and relatively comfortable [MB]!
I was going to request that you vandalize something
for me before you leave facility but now that seems
... counterproductive? But then again, as Halfbakers
we've become accustomed to the definition of
"productivity" being very well pliable. |
|
| |
Alas, not at home after all. Breathing got worse this morning,
and apparently that's important enough for them to hang on
to me for a bit longer. |
|
| |
Oh no! Hope it's a small hurdle to getting you to
where you need to be. Hopefully medical science
gets to make a fool of you for a little while longer
with us! *pulls back corn stalk* |
|
| |
Breathing is just an in-efficient way of turning
carboxyhaemoglobin into oxyhaemoglobin. Shirley there's an
artificial way to do that externally? Catalytic surfaces or
something? |
|
| |
Boo for bad breathing days. But as our lovely Buddhist friends
would say, there is something, everywhere, to find joy in.
(Pretty young nurse perhaps?) |
|
| |
What was your Sats, do you know? |
|
| |
Well, just now I was on 81% sat with 4 l/min oxygen. They've
just bumped me to 10l/min and sats are back up to 90%,
which frankly I'd be happy with, were it not for the fact that
yesterday I was at 91% with only 2l/min. I'm thinking that all
the maths is sliding off the bottom of the page here. |
|
| |
Well, your two halfbaked items are well on their way, so I hope you get to unwrap them without getting entangled in all of those wires and tubes. Maybe they'll send you home? There's no where like home for enjoying setting up the soggy crisp drying apparatus and contemplating the perfect set of false teeth for the perfect man. |
|
| |
I shall look forward to returning home all the more, knowing
what awaits me. |
|
| |
xenzag, is that code for fish 'n chips or something? |
|
| |
MB, get those sats back up, and the Oxy down to 2l again. You
are scaring me. Were you up chasing orderlies down the hall
trying to nab their name badges so you could break out? |
|
| |
Hah! Would that I were... In any case, it's time for sleep
here now, so I will try and dream my sats higher. |
|
| |
//Sanders will give us an NHS// |
|
| |
I'm voting Sanders, but it would take a miracle for him to
win. Anyway Trump vs Sanders was my dream election, so
here's hoping they don't cheat him out of the primary again. |
|
| |
//head transplants//
////Count me in//// |
|
| |
You just need to clone yourself now sans higher brain-function while electrically stimulating the growing cloneular muscle tissue for buff-ness and in twenty years or so your frozen brain can be implanted into your own genetically scrubbed eighteen year or-so old body with no rejection issues and you get a brand new lease on life... |
|
| |
Now we just have to tackle telomerase degradation and we can all be immortal. |
|
| |
God but that would get boring after a while wouldn't it? |
|
| |
This whole reincarnation/amnesia thing we got now is a way better ride in my opinion...
...not that I wouldn't stick around for like 1500 years or so given my druthers. |
|
| |
Personally I think that the many-worlds interpretation will be found to be the big TOE in which case all possible 'you's' exist simultaneously fragmented and none of us ever get to experience completeness on the mortal-coil side of things... barring extenuating circumstances of course, (always gotta read the fine print) and when we die it's like; |
|
| |
"OH! Of course! <forehead smack> It all makes perfect sense now! Wow,... what a ride!... Awesome! Let's try... um... this one this time 'round!" |
|
| |
I can not think of a better way one might go about filling an infinity with consciousnesses. |
|
| |
...and if I'm wrong? How will any of us know?.. so the possibility exists until disproved. |
|
| |
Infinity
Double-stamped
No take-backsies
So there. |
|
| |
Hang in there, friend, and best wishes. I have
enjoyed your sane and erudite commentary on many
topics. |
|
| |
In other circumstances I would speculate about non-
mainstream possibilities such as long-term water
fasting, but I am not qualified to do so here. For
myself, I signed up for cryonic freezing a few years
ago, and I also hope that quantum immortality
works out somehow. Tell those doctors that the
halfbakery is watching their work with great interest. |
|
| |
Well, I'm here for another day. Breathing is better than
yesterday (which was worse than the day before). I really and
sincerely appreciate the good wishes. |
|
| |
// I am not qualified to do so here. // |
|
| |
Explain then why you are in the halfbakery. |
|
| |
Mere ignorance, lack of ability, a bizarre and controversial world view, downright stupidity and Voices In The Head don't disqualify any of the other halfbakers - what makes you so special, eh ? |
|
| |
You misunderstand, it is the lack of ignorance, inability, bizarre or controversial world-views, stupidity or Voices In The Head that disqualifies [sninctown] from speculating. |
|
| |
More deserving of pity than condemnation, then ... |
|
| |
If anyone here is short of voices in their head, I could lend some
of mine.
No you can't.
Yes he can.
Hush, they can hear us!
|
|
| |
It just occured to me that if MB leaves the bakery, which ain't
happening, but if it were to happen someday in the far off
future, 8th of 7 would be having lengthy conversations with
himself all day.
Those convos make me laugh, so very often. just like today's
"comeback" from him. This makes me sad and morose. |
|
| |
Quick, someone through me a donut or something. |
|
| |
I have a nice kennel ready for 8th, and there'll be
walkies every day to snuffle out good leg lifting
spots. |
|
| |
//Well, I'm here for another day. Breathing is better than yesterday// - that's really good to hear. I'm not a (medical) doctor, but keeping breathing sounds like a good idea. |
|
| |
<Gimli>Keep breathing - that's the key</Gimli> |
|
| |
(Actually, since the abbreviation for oxygenated hemoglobin is HbO2, I think we at the HB have to do our part by, along with sending good wishes, taking a few good deep breaths as well. Sympathetic inspiration, if you will.) |
|
| |
Deep breath.... Ommmm.... |
|
| |
(And Max - best wishes and positive thoughts to you. Please don't go telling your caregivers "I can fall asleep faster if my sats are around 80" or "Blue is my favorite color!" or... or... any of several other unprintable things I told mine) |
|
| |
[MaxwellBuchanan] - I always enjoy your quick wit and clever turn of phrase, noteworthy in this place where such things are uncommonly common. |
|
| |
Of course wishes are bullshit, nonetheless I offer you my best ones. |
|
| |
// that's important enough for them to hang on to me for a bit longer.//
Boo! for people who keep hanging on too long...wait...no. |
|
| |
Link - "Breathe" Trygve Seim |
|
| |
Hmph ... a clever attempt to fake your death ... I am not fooled. |
|
| |
I'll be watching for you. |
|
| |
Farewell, [Maxwell]. You have always been a light in
these parts, a spark of wit and erudition, of thoughtful
analysis and playful combativeness. You will be sorely
missed. |
|
| |
May your estate flourish in eternity. |
|
| |
[ deep sympathy breaths ] |
|
| |
That's an idea I can absolutely countenance! |
|
| |
//Sympathetic inspiration// |
|
| |
Can't believe you missed this one [lurch], must be a
trap to illicit precisely the response I'm about to offer? |
|
| |
[Considers the sharp pointy steel teeth] |
|
| |
Sympathetic 'aspiration' Shirley? |
|
| |
[Max] already mentioned "aspirational pneumonia" in another recent thread. (Which is something I had about a year ago, and my doc joked "Well, you can cross that off your bucket list" but I couldn't draw a deep enough breath to respond) |
|
| |
It was actually as close as I dared come to an "inspirometer" joke - I have several of those, and they're not as bad as the "Foley catheter" jokes, but they're all a lot funnier if you're not in the middle of suffering the damn things. |
|
| |
Yep, it's a hard call I'm struggling with here, what [Max] may
or may not find funny right now. |
|
| |
Can't even figure out if I should bun (sending support) or bone
(this is crappy & shouldn't happen) :( |
|
| |
Guys, over the last couple of weeks I've had so many tubes
inserted that my biggest health risk has now become
entanglement. Trust me - there's nothing you can say that I
won't find funny. |
|
| |
And, by way of update, I'm now back home with a portable
(and I use the term very loosely) oxygen generator purring
away, a G&T at hand, and a much rosier view of the world.
I've also discovered that I remain lucid* even with sats
below 60% (though I won't make a habit of it), which is good
to know. Psychology is half the battle. |
|
| |
(*if you can understand what I'm typing, that is) |
|
| |
chemon, joking is the best way to see anyone off this mortal coil. That which cannot be avoided must be embraced. Benign jokes are an excellent medicine. You're not being an insensitive clot, you're offering encouragement and a breath of fresh air. |
|
| |
//G&T// Nice! The quinine laced drink designed to
fight malaria (and sobriety) in the far reaches of the
British Empire. |
|
| |
Knew we were kindered sprits. |
|
| |
glad to hear you're home [MB]. |
|
| |
I'm sure the medical personnel were competent, but there's
some chance they didn't consider or completely rule out
malaria. In that context, it's irresponsible not to self-treat.
Just in case. |
|
| |
// my biggest health risk has now become entanglement. // |
|
| |
Is that quantum entanglement ? |
|
| |
If someone tugs on one of the tubes, will some unfortunate disease-stricken life-form across the other side of the Universe get a sudden, inexplicable twinge in a sensitive place... ? |
|
| |
Wow, what to say, I've been gone so long I feel like an interloper who walked into a wake, and I guess I did! I am so sad for the family of the Halfbakery. |
|
| |
I always enjoyed your immense imagination Max, I wish I had been able to understand half of half of it. Fair Winds dear Paul. |
|
| |
thank you Una for yet another laugh through the pain. |
|
| |
//will some unfortunate disease-stricken life-form across the
other side of the Universe get a sudden, inexplicable twinge
in a sensitive place... ?// I'm not sure - let me know. |
|
| |
I'm so glad someone translated for me..."G&T". I thought
might be a type of remote control for the Tele. Well look, it
was in his hand when he got home, and that's the first thing
that came to mind, thankfully. |
|
| |
What can be the harm in keeping hope? If anyone's in an intellectual position to survive this, it's you. |
|
| |
It may be helpful to add that people can live with 1 lung and 1 kidney. The lungs can also recover despite years of smoking. The answer may still exist. |
|
| |
//an interloper who walked into a wake// |
|
| |
Welcome back, [dentworth]. Lope in any time. |
|
| |
So many past bakers I've not seen around for a while. Thank
you for honoring one of the most prolific amongst us, and for
coming by to send your best wishes. |
|
| |
Wait!
I just realized I once told you that you'd give me credit for telling it like it is, but they haven't proven the existence of Bigfoot yet for you to be able to admit the possibility so you see you can't go anywhere until they do, and it will probably take them some time. Can't get out of it that easy Hoss... |
|
| |
[Slips a small card to [Max] with the name of the most
expensive
commercially available drink he can find with Google] |
|
| |
I'm sure this has already been thought about but ... in the
event of a less-than-positive outcome, will we have any way
of knowing for sure, other than watching a gradually
extending quiet period on this thread? |
|
| |
[pertinax] It's "Schrödinger's Max" - if you don't open this idea, you don't know what's happened |
|
| |
As you no doubt know, p53 mutations are so common in cancers that they are a regular focus of research. Perhaps a current clinical trial is in the offing? |
|
| |
Link above, not particularly in the theological sense. |
|
| |
We have been promised signs from the other planes of
existence. And MB won't go back on his word, I'm sure. I'm
fully expecting the male Cardinal to come and visit my
birdfeeder if the very worst outcome should come to pass. |
|
| |
Forget the cardinal. Send the pope hisself. |
|
| |
If I see the pope on my bird feeder I'll know it's a sign |
|
| |
Very funny you two. Must I draw a picture? Wait, a male
Cardinal from the local Diocese or even Anthony Hopkins
would be rather fun for my cat to watch from the window,
too. Bring it on. |
|
| |
Voice-That was a great clip. Can't go wrong when you are
"looking on the bright side of life". |
|
| |
// the pope on my bird feeder I'll know it's a sign // |
|
| |
No, the feeder will be a Papal Dispensation.... |
|
| |
How did you get out of your kennel? All of that incessant barking is disturbing my cats. |
|
| |
[MB] I read that fasting makes chemotherapy more effective and spares healthy tissue "several times". fortunately there are things online that support that statement [link]. If you get chemotherapy it could be something to ponder. |
|
| |
If I get as far as having chemo, I'll bear that in mind - thanks. |
|
| |
(Bean) He's currently undergoing G&T therapy. I'm
optimistic he'll be responsive to treatment. |
|
| |
//a trap to illicit precisely the response// |
|
| |
"Elicit" would be more licit. |
|
| |
("Listen, Licit Police; it's Ellis 'n' 'is licentious lice!") |
|
| |
// there's some chance they didn't consider or completely rule out malaria. In that context, it's irresponsible not to self-treat. // |
|
| |
One Nobel Prize winner from Germany who, incidentally, turned out to be a Nazi, happened to win the Nobel for giving syphilis patients doses of malaria. |
|
| |
<Tortuous iambic pentameter> |
|
| |
We know he's just pedantic and not rude, |
|
| |
He loves to take the piss out of our grammar, |
|
| |
It's we who have opinions that are skewed, |
|
| |
And he who has an educated manner. |
|
| |
He knows the way that many things are done, |
|
| |
In classics, science, space and DNA, |
|
| |
He makes us laugh a lot with silly fun, |
|
| |
He brightens up and educates our day. |
|
| |
The wisdom of the man is really great, |
|
| |
He tells us all the way he knows things are, |
|
| |
We marvel at the size of his estate, |
|
| |
Halfbakers know that he's a super star. |
|
| |
We really didn't want to hear this news, |
|
| |
although not all his thoughts deserve a bun, |
|
| |
we love his crazy, wise and thoughtful views, |
|
| |
and wish you all the best [MaxwellBuchanan] |
|
| |
</Tortuous iambic pentameter> |
|
| |
OK, I know, well you try and do better then... |
|
| |
Eww: what did the malaria do to the syphilis patients? |
|
| |
It killed 15% of patients. He later sterilized people deemed schizophrenic because of excessive masturbation. |
|
| |
Well, hello [maxwellbuchanan], it felt super
important to drop back into the HB after a few
years away. |
|
| |
When I first stopped by here in the early 2000s, I
was struck immediately by the sense of fun and
family here. I could intellectually understand the
geography of contributors, but it was so warming
to read the obvious camaraderie. |
|
| |
Like a family, there are disputes. Arguments.
About stuff that doesn’t matter, and about custard
too. |
|
| |
There’s growth, too. People I’ve met here have
married and had children in their halfbakery lives
and yes, we’ve lost some amazing contributors
such as [bristolz]. |
|
| |
People join, people meet, people collaborate, they
learn, they laugh but regardless, I feel I know —
more, “knew” — many here through their ideas. |
|
| |
You too [MB]. I’m so sorry to hear of your diagnosis
but while you’re in optimistic mode, you can be
doubly sure we all are. X |
|
| |
How are you faring, MB? Home, happy, relatively healthy?
Enquiring minds and all... |
|
| |
He's with me and 8 over in the "Custard Filled Sub Chaser"
lounge. Drop in and say hi. |
|
| |
I'm doing embarrassingly OK. Today, I went upstairs (first
time since home from hospital) without oxygen and without
passing out. Also took Mrs. Max out for a drive, so I can
confirm that 80% O2 sats are good enough for tackling the
A11. And have been off oxygen for most of the day. |
|
| |
Also (and this is the good bit) I found (online) an
experimental compound that is the ONLY drug tailored to
cancers that only have a p53 mutation (ie, that have none of
the other "targettable" mutations). It's been through some
clinical trials and a lot of in vitro testing. So, if all else fails
(which so far, it is)... |
|
| |
If anyone is an expert on (a) organic chemistry (b)
bioavailability of drugs vs prodrugs or (c) the effects of
massive apoptosis on the body, feel free to get in touch. |
|
| |
Have a fruity bun. Hope it helps. |
|
| |
Are we bunning this? Ok, sure. |
|
| |
Now this is a support bun, not a "this is good" bun. |
|
| |
Buns are complicated, they're an enigma. One does not
question or over analyze the bun. Ponder yes, but
celebrate the fact that they are a times mysterious and
inexplicable. |
|
| |
Sometimes a bun is just a bun. |
|
| |
I agree. And unless we hear of a backslide, we shall assume,
meaning me, that you are solidly improving. |
|
| |
//I'm doing embarrassingly OK.// Very good news.
Hope you continue to get strong enough for some
effective treatment to be delivered now. |
|
| |
Hey Max, would there be the downside to getting into
ketosis by eating a pure ketogenic diet for a few days just
to see how it made you feel? Not looking for a miracle
cure or anything, just to gauge if you might get some
benefit from it. I'm experimenting with keto and fasting
and find you get this weird electric feeling, I believe
because your body thinks you need to go hunt for food so
it kicks in some extra energy.
It's very weird and hard to describe. Not groggy at all,
energized would be the word. Maybe just cut out all
carbs, get satiated on healthy fats, plenty of water and
try to limit your eating window to 8 hours or so? |
|
| |
Is that totally crazy? Is this a wildly inappropriate time to
be messing around with dietary experiments? I totally
understand if it is. Not saying I know how you feel, but I
had very bad acne as a kid, a trillionth the problem you
have I know, but everybody not only had
stupid unwanted advice they'd give me, the next time
they saw me they'd see I still had acne and get pissed that
I didn't take their advice. Point is I know suggestions can
be sort of obnoxious. Still, understand where it
comes from, we're wanting to help you, right or wrong. |
|
| |
Anyway, put a link up. Might be an interesting read at
least. |
|
| |
Seeing as how it's likely that specialists can make
loads of bucks in the US in our weird healthcare
system as compared to what the state offers for the
NHS, have you considered reaching out to foreign
specialists such as what we might have in the
colonies, or over in Finland? I hear they're top notch.
I have no idea how the logistics would work; perhaps
Sturton or 8th could kidnap a cancer specialist and
lock him in the estate? |
|
| |
I agree, doc. I've been intermittent fasting for a year now,
and I've lost almost 50 lbs doing that and upping my exercise.
That comes easy because I have so much more energy in the
morning. I'm also vegan now, instead of vegetarian, and so
the cheese factor/calories are gone. I think everyone should
at least try it, and Keto as well. If you've not ever been in
ketosis before, you will be amazed at the energy level
created. |
|
| |
//After the 3rd day, food cravings vanish// |
|
| |
Can confirm from personal experience on more than one
occasion, definitely thereabouts, maybe after day
two / by day three sometimes. |
|
| |
Some number of years ago I met someone who was diagnosed with cancer so I did some research. At the time, a (peer-reviewed?) survey (in PubMed?) showed that the best country in Europe for oncology was Sweden. |
|
| |
The person has since recovered, using medical facilities in their slightly backward country, although adopting multiple cats seemed to be highly effective... |
|
| |
//the best country in Europe for oncology was Sweden// very few people die of cancer in Sweden, because so many people die by being brutally, but weirdly aesthetically pleasingly, murdered at the hands of a warped serial killer - followed by their death being investigated by a troubled detective with a cool Scandi fashion sense and a dark and mysterious back-story. |
|
| |
{embarrassing ragged cheer} |
|
| |
//getting into ketosis// Hmm - good question, and the
short answer is I don't know. I'll raise it with my oncologist
and see; anything's worth a shot. |
|
| |
//reaching out to foreign specialists// Possible. My feeling
so far is that, if something is likely to work, the NHS will
provide it. The only exception will be treatments that are
unlikely to help (but just might), or treatments that the
patient insists on even though the doc knows they'll do more
harm than good. |
|
| |
There are also clinical trials, of course, which are a
different kettle of tea: the problem there is that companies
generally want their trial patients to be as healthy as
possible aside from the disease, otherwise the results looks
bad. And thanks to the weirdness of my particular cancer,
I'm physically in much worse shape than I should be for
someone at this stage of the disease. Hence the need to
consider home-brew options. |
|
| |
Tough choice Max. Posting a final farewell only to survive cancer would be somewhat less embarrassing, I think, than fighting off cancer only to be killed by healing crystals. |
|
| |
Surely though, not as embarrassing as being cured by healing crystals? |
|
| |
I've tried the healing crystals. They scratch the throat
something awful. |
|
| |
Dying of embarrassment in those circumstances would be the ultimate irony. |
|
| |
You know Max, if you can get some information out of this
battle that will benefit others eventually, it'll be kind of
like the guy who rushes the pillbox to throw a grenade in
to save the rest of the guys. |
|
| |
Your call, I'm just here to ramble of lists of concepts for
your review. Consider it like the guy offering you a tray of
hors d'oeuvres. They're there if you want them but don't
feel bad about slapping the plate out of his hand and
telling him to fuck off if you're not hungry. LOL. <--- (I
have the uncanny ability to crack myself up) |
|
| |
Ses link - Rose Tisnado was one of my best friends.... you might find her story has some resonances especially the bit where she talks about fasting.... |
|
| |
I was at the library today, so I picked up a slightly strange Immunology textbook from 2013, albeit put together by a team of tenured Ph.D decorated immunology professors. Smack dab in the middle of some rather thick biochemical details was an aside about Willam Coley and "Coley's Toxins," which were an early attempt to jog the body's immune system by injecting bacterial mixes directly into tumors. The textbook implies that Coley was doing the right thing, then drops the subject just as quickly. |
|
| |
And here's a coincidence almost as strange: The Wikipedia warning against ever trying "Coley's Toxins," comes via Cancer Research UK, which reportedly had one of p53's original discoverers as an executive. |
|
| |
I've no real idea what your talking about [4and20]. |
|
| |
But I get a vague hint of. |
|
| |
'debunk & dismiss, realise there
might have been something there, wait long enough for
decencies sake, rebrand & patent' |
|
| |
All I can say is stay away from shark cartilage. Also from
sharks. |
|
| |
Embedded in my last anno are the possibilities of exploring two more options, including what will probably be greater sources of documentation for p53-related treatments from a well-known source. I can't offer real advice, since I'm little more than a self-preserving hobbyist, but there are worse hobbies than reading Immunology books. |
|
| |
//Also (and this is the good bit) I found (online) an
experimental compound that is
the ONLY drug tailored to cancers that only have a p53
mutation
(ie, that have none of the other "targettable" mutations).
It's been through some
clinical trials and a lot of in vitro testing. So, if all else
fails
(which so far, it is)...// |
|
| |
Is the compound available through Sigma-Aldrich?
If so, given your "Molecular Biologist - Heal Thyself"
proposal, I think you should put
your money where your mouth is. |
|
| |
Unless it's too much money of course - in which case I will
chip in, although if it
worked I'd want a funding credit on a Journal of
Irreproducible
Results paper for the n=1 trial.
Also, if the compound can form any sort of crystal I want
a reference to 'healing
crystals'. |
|
| |
//very few people die of cancer in Sweden, because so
many people die by being
brutally, but weirdly aesthetically pleasingly, murdered at
the
hands of a warped serial killer - followed by their death
being investigated by a
troubled detective with a cool Scandi fashion sense and a
dark and
mysterious back-story.// |
|
| |
Someone should make one of those interactive maps for
fictional murders, with
referenced crowdsourced data.
There'd essentially be no-go areas wherever a detective
lived for long enough - St.
Mary Mead, Jersey, the villages of Midsomer, Los Vegas,
New
York, Miami
... actually practically all of America. |
|
| |
//Is the compound available through Sigma-Aldrich// It is,
and I have an account. (Or at least my now-moribund
company does.). One snag is that it's about $15 per mg, and
daily dose in clinical trials was 5 grams. |
|
| |
But it gets more interesting. The drug used in the trials is
actually a pro-drug, meaning that the body metabolizes it
to create the active form. And the active form is also
available and is dirt cheap. So, what I'm trying to figure
out, is why can't you just administer the active (and
affordable) form directly? If the only reason is that the
active form isn't absorbed (it's given orally), then that's an
easy fix because I can just rig up an I/V bag and mainline it. |
|
| |
So, anyone who understands prodrug activation? |
|
| |
(BTW, I already had my diagnosis when I posted that "heal
thyself" idea - just wasn't quite up to sharing at that time. I
know this isn't what the HB is meant for, but it has meant a
lot to me to be able to tell you all and bounce ideas
around). |
|
| |
It would seem that you already have the academic juice to ask one of the study co-authors directly. |
|
| |
Yes, thinking about that, just don't want to ring any alarm
bells. |
|
| |
You're a respected molecular biologist, [MaxwellBuchanan].
Just make up a convincing-sounding study title, then go
knock on their door (or maybe phone or e-mail, given your
current state...). They don't need to know that YOU are the
test subject... |
|
| |
Sorry - the only prodrug I have any experience with was a case where the patent expired on it, so the pharma company took a patent on the metabolite and then conned the insurance companies into believing the generic of the original wasn't biosimilar. Ka-ching! |
|
| |
n_s is right. You don't have to name the designated
motivation behind the study, other than curiosity and a will
to heal. You've done that before, kind sir, and you are still
the same old Joe that did that, so to speak. |
|
| |
As for being not in the realm of the half bakery, if we can't all
come together to try and see another baker through the fight
of and for his life, well then, If that's not ok, I'm in the wrong
cage at the zoo. (Shush 8th.) |
|
| |
If IV is imposing, then consider enteric capsule or enteric paste from one of the things they make enteric pastes for rodents out of. |
|
| |
Also piperine makes rapamycin (a longevity drug/chemotherapuetic) 2.6-5.2 times better absorbed at the GI tract. |
|
| |
Mice given rapamycin in their food live 60% longer, so if you have the urge to live to 160 (or longer) that is a good one to know about. I took 72 mg of rapamycin with piperine a day for about 3 weeks and I think it gave me a rash (common side effect), now I am on about 10 mg a day, with 25 mg twice a week, with piperine and no rash. rapamycin is $40-80/gram at alibaba.com So it is like $1-2 a day. I take it in enteric capsules from ebay, the rash made me think it is doing something. |
|
| |
Rapamycin looks like interesting stuff, but it's got a laundry
list of adverse effects. |
|
| |
Well, if I can make it to 60 (which currently looks very, very
optimistic), I'll give serious consideration to rapamycin to add
another 100 years or so. |
|
| |
A thought - this would be a less than opportune time for a hb hard drive crash. Perhaps a contingency plan is in order. |
|
| |
The halfbakery is backed up daily. Sadly, backing up
halfbakers themselves is still in very early experimental
stages (cut to jar of blue-tinted fluid in which some sort of
creature halfway between a sea horse and a grilled cheese
sandwich is stirring slowly). |
|
| |
but surely there's sufficient data to create convincing
chatbots to carry indefinite debates :) |
|
| |
I've already created a couple of backups of myself. One is
about 6ft tall and finishing her PhD. The other is my genome
on a hard drive. But, as Woody Allen said about immortality
"No, I want to achieve it by not dying." |
|
| |
Also, thank you, [jutta] for your forbearance - I know all this
is way, way off the HB's trajectory. |
|
| |
Also also, does anyone here have access to the Beilstein
database? |
|
| |
My pharmacologist sister-in-law might. She runs the
lab at UNC Charlotte. |
|
| |
That's interesting. Would she be open to the possibility of
running a quick search? Beilstein lets you specify a compound
and find synthetic routes to it (or a compound and a
precursor, and find synthetic routes between the two). But I
don't know how much hassle is involved in doing this, since
I've never used Beilstein. |
|
| |
On a related topic, I'd just like to announce that I've been off
oxygen for two days now and my sats are back up to 93%. I
know it's a small triumph but... |
|
| |
I can check with her. Send along what you're looking
for to my email and I can see if she can do it. |
|
| |
Very good to hear. Re Beilstein database - this seems like something anyone could access without using a remote third party, especially via a University connection. |
|
| |
// seems like something anyone could access// Would that it
were so. It's now owned by Elsevier and requires a
subscription. It's possible that Cambridge has blanket access,
but alas I don't have a Cambridge login and don't know any
tame chemists. |
|
| |
Oops, not UNC Charlotte. UNC Chapel Hill. |
|
| |
Update: Natasha says that apparently UNC cut all
ties with Elsevier last
year so not likely. Sorry. |
|
| |
//I don't have a Cambridge login// A quick glance...... I think I saw Athens account log-in? Then there is the question: how much is a subscription measured against your needs and of course general curiousity? There's always a way....... |
|
| |
Perhaps they have a yearly subscription that could
be deferred for a bit...? |
|
| |
Anyone have a rich uncle? Mine died awhile ago and
left his money to my useless cousins. |
|
| |
Apparently a subscription to Reaxys (a portal into Beilstein)
runs at 7K/year, which isn't impossible but seems a shame to
spend it unless it gets me somewhere. I'm asking around a
few friends, though. |
|
| |
// Mine died awhile ago and left his money to my useless cousins // |
|
| |
<Hums theme from "Kind Hearts and Coronets" /> |
|
| |
Where there's a will, there's a way, as probate lawyers say. |
|
| |
MB, that is the best news, (sats at 93%), that I have heard in
a long while. Keep up the breathing buddy, or I'll cross that
ocean and kick the shit outta ya. Hahahaha |
|
| |
[MaxwellBuchanan]; a friend of mine is a pharmacologist at
a university down the road. I've asked if she can get access
to Beilstein; naturally, she's on holiday, so I'll get back with
an answer when I hear. |
|
| |
[xen] - I shall never again have to suffer the horrors of soggy
crisps. That alone makes the diagnosis almost worthwhile. |
|
| |
You're welcome! Hope you use wisely. The apparatus was also one of the prizes I made for the Self Improvement Quiz Show I run from time to time. |
|
| |
[MaxwellBuchanan] You have likely already heard about senolytics, they get rid of cytes secreting things that cause trouble to the material around them. A couple senolytics are chemotherapeutic agents. One of them is navitoclax which has some effects on the lungs. "nativoclax is senolytic in the culture-acclimated IMR-90 lung fibroblast-like cell strain, while it is less so in primary human lung fibroblasts isolated from patients
https:// www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov /pmc/ articles/PMC5641223/ ", also a [link] |
|
| |
The article is interesting to read even though I think it is a different part of your lungs. |
|
| |
It would have to be a very quiet piece of whistle-blowing,
alas. |
|
| |
[bigs], for God's sake put the soapbox away. As a
matter of fact, put the screen away. Go outside and
take a walk. |
|
| |
Hey Max, by the way, for years now this is how I dealt
with
confusing or badly described ideas posted here. Say for
instance I'd see a post: "Flying Watermelon Nuclear
Particle
Ghost Flavoring" or the like. I'd just go to your annotation
and read your summation which could be as simple as a
one
sentence synopsis to a "Hu?" at which time I'd say "If Max
doesn't get this I won't." and move on. Should be noted
that
I'd also check 8th's insult to the idea which could also be
helpful. |
|
| |
As far as the nutrition thing, it is worth noting that we've
been given very bad advice over the years. The US
Department of Agriculture for instance giving us the food
pyramid that suggests eating 20,000 to 8 million servings
of high carb agricultural products daily. |
|
| |
There's a very good book called "Big Fat Surprise" which,
even if you couldn't care less about dietary science is a
very interesting case study of how prevailing wisdom can
go wrong due to many factors such as bad logic,
corruption and outright deceit among self proclaimed
experts, politicians and industry. |
|
| |
//confusing or badly described ideas posted here// I don't believe such a thing exists. |
|
| |
Well, I should hate to be thought of as authoritative, but
thanks. Perhaps for the time being, I should post my O2 sats
alongside any comments, so that you can better decide if
they're the product of a switched-on brain or not. |
|
| |
//I should post my O2 sats alongside any comments// |
|
| |
Speaking of which, how those numbers lookin' today? |
|
| |
I hit 95% earlier, which is bloody amazing. Still plummets if I
stand up and move, but it's wayyy better than it has been. I
suspect the blood clots on my "good" lung are beginning to
resolve. |
|
| |
I'll call "awesome!" on that! |
|
| |
My FIL takes statins. Work bloody amazing in him. |
|
| |
Hellz. All I could suggest is a Foxtail Millet Pongal. Too
many medical approaches, no fun. |
|
| |
You really don't want to look up the most common definitions of FIL in the urbandictionary.com |
|
| |
Thankyou, on the basis of the authorship we will note the recommendation and avoid not only UD but using search engines in general on that TLA. |
|
| |
Max. That's bloody awful news. |
|
| |
I'm not going to waffle on about what an honour/pleasure it's been and how inspirational, informative and amusing your ideas and anno's are... That's all true, but this is not the time for eulogizing, because you're going to beat this. |
|
| |
Keep fighting. We're depending on you. |
|
| |
[MB] potentially valuable, very valuable information,
there is a 9 mer peptide that turns the anticancer
gene P53 back on in your exact kind of aden-cancer
you have, at only 9 amino acids long you can get
this synthesized very cheaply online if you can get
them to tell you the sequence. Paper at [link] |
|
| |
//That's bloody awful news// I'm with you on that one.
However, the strange thing is that I feel almost OK,
mentally - I think you quickly develop a new baseline. |
|
| |
//potentially valuable, very valuable information//
Potentially, yes, and thanks, [beany]! From a first look at
the paper, it seems that the peptide does restore function
in mutant p53, but only causes a modest restoration of
apoptosis (cell death). BUT, it may well synergise with
chemotherapeutic agents (which damage DNA and trigger
apoptosis). Plus, as you noted, getting a peptide made is
cheap and simple. So, seriously mate, thanks. |
|
| |
Coincidentally, one of the authors of that paper, and co-
inventor on the patent, Alan Fersht, is a mate. I'll drop him
a line. |
|
| |
Meanwhile, I'm pressing ahead with APR-246 (which does
something similar, but has been through some clinical trials
already) and am getting a batch manufactured in China. |
|
| |
I am feeling more optimistic by the day, and I will beat this
f****r if it's the last thing I do (which is quite likely). On the
plus side, if I go down, the cancer's going down with me. |
|
| |
Hell yes! Fight Max!! Hit this damn thing with everything
you've got!! |
|
| |
//and I will beat this f****r if it's the last thing I do//
Best HB anno ever. Well, apart from the famous oneoffdave comment in which he revealed that he was a unidexter. |
|
| |
Damn. Well, I'm prepared to have one leg off if you think it'll
help. |
|
| |
We could clone it and run some DNA checks against common
risk factors vis a vis chemo, but a pound of flesh would be
more than enough. Are you on antibiotics yet? Apparently if
you start chemo there's a high risk of superbugs. |
|
| |
No antibiotics at present, but maybe if they get to the point
where they can start me on chemo. Am about to start on
steroids (to improve appetite), which also compromise the
immune system, but will come back off them before any
chemo. |
|
| |
How about some chili? I make the best chili in the world |
|
| |
//How about some chili? I make the best chili in the world// |
|
| |
That gives me an idea. (link) |
|
| |
[xen] - I am now in possession of my second parcel, and its
contents. I can only say that it is the most wonderful and
unexpected item that could possibly exist. It is an absolute.
Not to mention the craftsmanship that has gone into its
construction. Are they modelled on your own masticatory
apparati? (Not topologically, obviously, but dentally)? |
|
| |
//Well, I'm prepared to have one leg off if you think it'll help.//
How much worse could it make things? At least you'll still have your one good eye & that hump. |
|
| |
I prefer the term 'hunch', personally. |
|
| |
hahaha. yes. Health still improving? |
|
| |
Yep - blood clots on lungs are definitely clearing. I've
consistently got O2 sats in the low 90's now (without
supplementary oxygen). Legs are
knackered though - but that's partly a matter of regaining
muscle and I hope that'll be easier now I can breathe a bit.
Other issue is that I can't eat much at a time - left-sided
cancer is squishing my stomach. Little and often. I'm
beginning to think there's a real chance they'll let me start
chemo. |
|
| |
[link] to http://p53.iarc.fr/. The p53 mutation database.
If you please, be a little more specific about your
mutation. It makes a difference if looking for pilot
studies or treatment specifics. |
|
| |
Some substances proposed to mitigate cancer:
N-acetyl cysteine; Sulforaphane (from cruciferous
vegetables) GSH/GST protection to prevent protein
breakdown |
|
| |
Bowman-Birk protease inhibitors (from barley) -- increase
fidelity of DNA repair |
|
| |
Selective estrogen receptor modulators, called SERMs for
short; Retinoids; NSAIDs (from soy) (also prescription
fenretinide) -- antiproliferation, modulate hormone or
growth factors. |
|
| |
Inhibitors of oncogene activity. Perillyl alcohol and its
precursor limonene (essential oils like lavender,
lemongrass, sage, and peppermint); DHEA, and
prescription FTI 276 |
|
| |
That's about it for general (and one specific to TP52 -- FTI
276) |
|
| |
Beyond that, you'd have to fit a basic economics of
treatment model, ie, chemo and monitoring. |
|
| |
[reensure] I'll dig out the molecular data on my cancer,
including the specific p53 mutation. It's a miss-sense
mutation that probably leads to protein misfolding, and
apparently misfolded p53 can hang around longer than good
p53, so it's a problem even if only one of the two gene
copies is mutated. APR-246 seems to help lots of different
p53 mutants to fold correctly, which is one reason why it's
so promising. |
|
| |
Re. FTI-276, I hadn't heard of it, so thanks. But my quick
initial reading suggests it's mainly for KRAS mutated cancers
(alas, my KRAS is normal; in fact everything tested is normal
apart from p53). |
|
| |
Re. economics - as far as I can tell, the NHS will do
whatever can be done, as long as it's predicted to lead to
net benefit. Where they can't help is applying not-fully-
tested drugs, or treatments where the risk of harm
outweighs the risk of benefit. In those cases, I figure it's up
to me to make the call and to pay for whatever I need. |
|
| |
OK, so my p53 mutation is Arg175His (at the DNA level, it's
524G>A). |
|
| |
G>A (and C>T) are among the commonest mutations in DNA.
It's just my luck that out of 3,000,000,000 bases, that single
one got changed by just a few atoms. (Of course there are
probably other mutations driving the cancer, but not in any of
the 50 or so genes they examined. And p53's a likely first
step.) |
|
| |
// I figure it's up to me to make the call and to pay
for whatever I need.// Crowd funding with an HB
link? I think plenty here would stump up some
loose change, or even dispatch some loose women
to hit the streets. (probably not allowed to say
that anymore) |
|
| |
Pah. I'd rather people saved their money and had a drink on
my behalf. And I'm sure there are better things for loose
women to be doing! |
|
| |
Incidentally, we're now a week beyond the doctors' most
pessimistic prognosis and I'm planning to embarrass them even
more than myself. |
|
| |
Yes, weren't you meant to be dead by now? |
|
| |
I've never been good on timekeeping. |
|
| |
Of course, it's possible that I am - it'd be just my luck to end
up in an afterlife consisting only of the HB. |
|
| |
Thank, Max. Neither I nor the wife has that particular
SNP (rs28934578). I had to look, no point, no foul. |
|
| |
Histidine immediately suggests an active site in your
protein, but to what end; a lot of histidine residues
coordinate as enzymes in protein folded pockets |
|
| |
Arginine has a sumoylation interaction of note and
suggests a structural protein role. |
|
| |
The protein seems amenable to acetylation, ie, research
places it inside the proteins' folds (but responsive) and
proteins may regain some function via post translational
modifiction when their odd histidine is occupied. I'll see
what is discoverable after a bit. Dinner calls. |
|
| |
Well, it's considered a pathogenic mutation, so good thing! As
far as I know, only my cancer has it. (I've got my baseline
genome on disc, but haven't sat down to analyse it properly.) |
|
| |
You understand proteins better than I do - biologist? |
|
| |
Yet another Twilight Zone-ish theme..."I died and went to
the halfbakery, forever". Hahahaha. |
|
| |
You might even be doomed to get stuck in the old
"Unrequited Love" idea that had more drama than a
Lifetime Channel binge. |
|
| |
Hahaha Oh hell no, that would make the devil himself look
rather attractive. |
|
| |
So glad you are better and that my hope scope is seemingly
even brighter than before. |
|
| |
Thanks. Mine too. The plan as of now is: get on
chemo+immuno to reduce cancer and alleviate some
symptoms; stay on chemo+immuno until the cancer becomes
resistant; use APR-246 to kill more cancer cells; persuade
them to try chemo again but this time with APR-246, killing
more cancer cells again; cross fingers and hope something
else has turned up by then. |
|
| |
Have also sourced carboplatin and cisplatin in case the real
medics won't start me on chemo. Oh the fun of DIY. |
|
| |
As someone who never studied this stuff, this all
sounds just as plausible as:
Roy: What about EMS recombination?
Tyrell: We've already tried it. Ethyl methane
sulfonate as an
alkylating agent and a potent mutagen. It created a
virus so lethal the subject was dead before he left
the table.
Roy: Then a repressor protein that blocks the
operating
cells.
Tyrell: Wouldn't obstruct replication, but it does give
rise to
an error in replication so that the newly formed DNA
strand carries a mutation |
|
| |
[Max], I have to admit that I don't check in on the Halfbakery all that often anymore,
but when I do you are—in all seriousness—one of the few Halfbakers I check on first to
see what they have come up with lately. Whenever I see one of your ideas in bold it
makes me happy to know that the Halfbakery is still alive and well in my protracted
absence. |
|
| |
It is therefore unacceptable for you to die. Beat the fuck out of this cancer, or else I'll
book a flight over to the UK and beat the fuck out of you. If that's not enough
motivation to live, I don't know what else to tell you. |
|
| |
Much love mate, from a guy you've never met, who lives half a world away, and who
thinks about you more than you probably ever realized or were entirely comfortable
with. |
|
| |
Cheers, [ytk], your offer to come over and beat the crap out
of me is touching. I shall indeed attempt to pre-empt that by
beating the crap out of this cancer. |
|
| |
hippo, as I recall Roy got quite unreasonably angry after that conversation. Although he made up for any psychotically violent murders he may have committed by having a lovely death scene at the end with a dove. |
|
| |
We would dispute that his anger was unreasonable, in the circumstances. |
|
| |
Afternoon Max! I hope that the machine that goes 'Ping' is still happily pinging away!
:) |
|
| |
Well, saw the oncology consultant this morning, and it looks
like I'll be well enough to start chemo+immuno within a week
or so. Expecting it'll make me feel like crap physically, but
will be a boost psychologically to be fighting back. |
|
| |
Also, finally got my order placed for custom-synthesis of my
miracle drug. Either that or I have just sent £12K to a Chinese
restaurant. |
|
| |
All machines are ping-nominal. |
|
| |
// Either that or I have just sent £12K to a Chinese restaurant. // |
|
| |
<Looks up from furtively counting thick wad of used Yuan notes/> |
|
| |
Yhor ordah leddy velly soon, sah ! Sendee chop-chop ! |
|
| |
You wan' plawn clackers wi' tha' ? |
|
| |
I found an actual clip of Max's oncologist targeting the
cancer and directing the staff to start the chemo. (link) |
|
| |
My message to you Max: Strength and honor brother! Fight
that cancer with everything you've got! |
|
| |
And here's my message to Max's cancer: "Get ready for
your
chemical nuking and oh yea... FUCK YOU CANCER!!!!" |
|
| |
(Here's another link to your chemo vs the cancer. Your
chemo is the Americans, the cancer is the Nazis.) |
|
| |
Great news, [Max]! - could you explain a bit more
about what your 'miracle drug' is and how it works? |
|
| |
I echo what the good [doctorremulac3] said. Word for word,
but I'm too much of a lady to say it. |
|
| |
Hey, [doc], good to see that Tom Hanks is on the case. |
|
| |
[hippo] re the wonderdrug. So, my cancer has none of the
genetic mutations that can be easily targetted by current
"tailored" therapies. However, it has a mutation in the p53
tumour-supressor gene (which is very common in many
cancers). |
|
| |
There are very few drugs that can work on this p53
mutation, and none are in routine use yet. But there is one
(APR-246, also called PRIMA-1) which looks really good. It
covalantly binds to mutant p53, and forces it to fold
correctly (despite its mutation), thereby re-activating it.
So, this alone kills cancer cells because they finally get the
"die!!" message that's relayed via p53. |
|
| |
What's more (and by a truly fantastic coincidence), the
same compound _also_ makes cancer cells more susceptible
to platinum-based chemotherapy. Usually, chemo only
works for a few months or a year; then the cancer cells
adapt by making more glutathione, which protects them
against the chemotherapy agent. But APR-246 screws up
glutathione. So, you can restore chemo-sensitivity to
chemo-resistant tumours. |
|
| |
APR-246 has gone through phase1 and phase2 trials for some
cancers with p53 mutations (especially ovarian). It's a well-
tolerated drug and performs well, alone or in combination
with chemo. Trials against lung cancer don't start until
later this year (and I'm in the wrong country anyway), but
the drug does work against lung cancer cells in vitro, so it's
worth a shot. |
|
| |
You can buy APR-246 for research purposes, but a 3-day
course would cost about £150,000. But I've ordered a
bespoke synthesis from a Chinese biotech firm - £1M worth
of the stuff (100 grams!) for £12,000. That's not insane,
because it's an easy synthesis from a cheapish precursor.
Just hoping they can do it within 4 weeks and get it right! |
|
| |
That’s really interesting - so this is cutting edge cancer research? I
hope you manage to get a top journal paper out of it (and zap your
cancer). |
|
| |
Yep - it's pretty new. Alas, a single self-experiment won't get
published, but it'll be interesting. I'm assuming that I'm not
breaking any laws (since it's self-treatment and it's not a
banned substance) but, frankly, who cares? |
|
| |
What do you mean, won't get published? You'll write the results here, won't you? That counts as published. And we, your peers, will review what you have written. That counts as peer-reviewed. |
|
| |
And the Halfbakery counts as a prestigious journal of record by any sane reckoning. |
|
| |
// the Halfbakery counts as a prestigious journal of record by any sane reckoning // |
|
| |
Whoa, [poc] how come you never let on that you're an alien species too ? Good to meet you. Aren't these humans just hilarious ? |
|
| |
Have you come far ? What's the climate like on your home planet ? |
|
| |
Ignore him, everyone, that's just the meds talking... |
|
| |
Yep, the second paracetamol is always a bit chatty. |
|
| |
This sounds very promising. I may even have to
send you more Tayto Cheese and Onion crisps to
refill your soggy crisp drying apparatus! |
|
| |
//Halfbakery counts as a prestigious journal//
Given the calibre of the netizens here, halfbakery review is
probably a step or 2 ABOVE "ordinary" scientific journal peer
review.
Great news on the experimentation progress, too. I'm not a
biologist by any measure, so I won't pretend to understand
much of your description; but yay, science! |
|
| |
The first thing that you could try to do, is to define what you are (define
your self, to allow others re-run you within them.) I mean, everyone of
us is a bit different kind of random process. Think what's special to
being you? Well, for example, what does your search process look like?
What were you like as a kid? Oh, btw., I have a few questions before
you go -- http://curiosity.mindey.com . You may want to answer some of
them publicly here if you like. |
|
| |
Next, cancer prevention and treatment... I
have been collecting links about various novel ways of treatment "just in
case". I'll try to look up, and maybe using tool like http://dynalist.io (it's
way better than workflowy) we could organize a systematic
collaborative public editing (such editing is supported) process to distill
what could be useful to deal with this. |
|
| |
And a few more thoughts -- (1) organism is a set of interacting
processes, and as long as those processes fulfill their functions to
produce required material and information flows, we are alive, let's look
for bottlenecks in the organism's flows graph and ways to alleviate
them, (2) "A house is made of bricks
and beams. A
home is made of love and dreams." -- could we make HB community
into a kind of
home? |
|
| |
Finally, it's heart breaking to read this, [Max]. I don't want to see you in
that list along [bristolz]. So, all hopes in your recovery. And, not saying
farewell just yet. In
hopes that against all odds, you do recover and are well. |
|
| |
. Well said, Mindey. I hadn't thought of bristolz until now.
What they say is true, as long as your name is spoken you're
not really gone. |
|
| |
And [Max] - sorry, more questions - is there a test you can do on the
stuff from China to see if they’ve sent you the right thing, and is
there a before/after test you can do on yourself to see if it’s doing
anything? |
|
| |
// Given the calibre of the netizens here // |
|
| |
What's the average, though ? At the top end, yes, the 80cm "Schwerer Gustav", but at the bottom end a nerf gun with a broken spring ... |
|
| |
//What's the average, though?//
Mean or
median? - I suspect a very skewed data set... |
|
| |
//is there a test you can do on the stuff// Max dons his guinea pig suit, as he is the test! |
|
| |
It's certainly not going to be a Gaussian distribution. |
|
| |
Oh shit, I'm so sorry [MB]. |
|
| |
//it's heart breaking to read this// Nah, fuck that. This is
a fight. And everyone likes a good fight. |
|
| |
//a test you can do on the stuff from China // Yes, I'm
trying to line up someone to do NMR on a sample. I'll also
see what QC data the Chinese send (if I can trust it). |
|
| |
//before/after test// That's the tricky bit. Obviously,
there's whether I feel better or worse, but that's slow and
subjective. Really need PET scans before and after (or even
CT, at a pinch). I'll have "before" scans as part of my NHS
treatment; tricky thing will be to explain that I've tried
something radical and need "after" scans too. On the other
hand, I can always just pay for scans privately. |
|
| |
//Oh shit, I'm so sorry// You took the words right out of my
mouth, [19thly]. Thanks. |
|
| |
But, two pieces of news:
(1) I'm booked in for my first chemo session, a week this
Thursday if nothing goes wrong. I never thought I'd look
forward to being on chemo, but hey.
(2) I have a new and interesting lump in one armpit, which
can serve as a convenient indicator for the chemo's
effectiveness. |
|
| |
Oh and, (3) A team of trained wallabies delivered me a box full of
edibles and drinkables to nourish both body and soul. [Ubie], you are
a gent. |
|
| |
HB synchronised international crossed fingers (and toes) proposed for that day. |
|
| |
[Mindey], what sage advice and directions to explore. I am
of the school of Ayurvedic Medicine, and Reiki Healing. I
share their belief that long ago emotional trauma resides in
our bodies and is the culprit behind most diseases and
illnesses. |
|
| |
If indeed, people are open to that philosophy, there are
so many treatments and avenues we can offer up and
share with our dear MB. |
|
| |
My daughter is a Master's level teacher of Ayurvedic
Medicine. The well of her knowledge is endless. |
|
| |
But you, [Mindey], are the first to really mention an
alternative medical approach that is in fact more spiritual
healing than symptomatic efforts. |
|
| |
We always head immediately for the somatic option, when
the soul is going to do what the soul is destined to do, no
matter what we do. |
|
| |
Ok, end of thought dump number ninety here. We have
become a community of support for a baker that has given
so much of himself to this site. For that, I am grateful asl
always, to jutta. |
|
| |
Sync it for Thursday week. I think the first chemo is make or
break, since either it does nothing (OK) or it wipes out a huge
mass of cancer cells. In the latter case there's a flood of crap
into the system and, I guess, a chance of internal bleeds (not
sure about that last part, but you can't destroy a pound of
flesh without some consequences). |
|
| |
Added link COLLABORATIVE EDITING: "Strategies for Saving Max,"
because... Hierarchies are helpful to address issues systematically. |
|
| |
It is editable by anyone, so, there's a risk of loss of information by an
error,
but anyone is free to back it up or set up a cron job to do it periodically.
So, feel free to edit. |
|
| |
Prepending your username at the
line of editing may be helpful. Tab/Shift-Tab
conveniently idents/un-indents. I'll be back later today, to try to add
some
of the things from my notes. |
|
| |
[blissmiss], thanks for the kind words. Actually, I was intending my
suggestions to be practical, though, I do believe that a person who
knows oneself well enough, one can distill the essence of what he or
she is
in a definition. A practical definition, that's like those particular constants
of physics in our particular universe, that gives birth to particular kind of
life. |
|
| |
[Maxwell] it is not too late to take up the banjo if you have not already. It is endlessly rewarding, and the cheers of applause from your hospital bedmates will fill your soul with delight. |
|
| |
[tatterdemalion] - I am already highly proficient on the banjo.
I have been trying hard to lose, rather than enhance, this
unwanted gift. |
|
| |
[tat], were you a kamikaze pilot in a former exisance, or are you channeling Dr. Kevorkian ? Because playing the banjo in a room full of sick people is at best going to involve you in needing immediate surgical intervention to remove the banjo, and quite possibly leave you with a colostomy to add to your existing problems. |
|
| |
The cheers of applause come when you stop playing. No mountains without valleys and all that. But enough of being facetious, obviously the prime choice of instrument for health care facilities is the bassoon. |
|
| |
//playing the banjo in a room full of sick people is at
best going to involve you in needing // - quite right;
The only proper instrument to play in those
circumstances is the bagpipes, or maybe the
accordion. |
|
| |
At the Dignitas clinic, yes, undoubtedly. |
|
| |
// when you stop playing // |
|
| |
We wish to point out that while starting to play would be a volitional act, ceasing to play would most likely not be. |
|
| |
Still laughing from //.. I have just sent £12K to a Chinese
restaurant .. // |
|
| |
Now, to contend with the thought of a bassoon ensemble. |
|
| |
Still, possibly better than whale sounds. :-) |
|
| |
It's also notoriously difficult to organize a whale ensemble
around a hospital bed. |
|
| |
Speaking of which, _everybody_ should get a hospital bed. It's
awesome. It can go up. It can go down. It can tilt head-up.
It can tilt head-down. The head part can go up. The - well,
you get the idea. It's brilliant. |
|
| |
// contend with the thought of a bassoon ensemble // |
|
| |
Not much to contend with. There aren't many pieces scored just for bassoon, although woodwind quartets are WKTE. There are different ranges,{(A1) B♭1–C5 (D5–G5)} so although the pitch will be generally be low the span will be quite useable with some minor re-scoring. |
|
| |
We contend that one or more bassoonists playing their instruments are relatively unlikely to provoke immediate physical violence, at least not in the way that an accordion does. |
|
| |
I would like there to be a bassoon and banjo ensemble, playing whale-song inspired compositions |
|
| |
I tried very hard to get hold of Bundaberg Rum but your
backward heathen liquor vendors no longer stock it, it
would seem. Instead, you had to settle for some sort
of “premium” Filipino brew. |
|
| |
I hope it brings you some small joy, as there is precious
fucking little of that left in the world these days. |
|
| |
I am also very gratified to see the package made it to
you, despite being addressed to your alter-ego business
enterprise, Rentisham’s Wax Emporium. I rather
wondered how the delivery-wallah would handle that
one. |
|
| |
They were very perceptive wallabies. I hope they make the
return journey safely. |
|
| |
// contend with the thought of a bassoon ensemble // |
|
| |
Naturally, misread as "Baboon ensemble". Had to go back and
figure out where the apes came from. Duh. |
|
| |
Hmm... baboons playing bassoons. They've definitely got the
lips for it.
Not sure how to smuggle them (OR the bassoons) into a
hospital ward... |
|
| |
//you get the idea. It's brilliant.//
That is what I was like when I first used a stand-up workstation desk. Desk goes up. Desk goes down. Desk goes up. Desk goes down. Hours of endless fun. Then the button broke. :(
Scarey stuff with the chemo, Max. Stay strong mate. |
|
| |
//everybody_ should get a hospital bed. It's
awesome. It can go up. It can go down.// |
|
| |
I heard the modern adjustable hospital bed was
invented by Howard Hughes after he crashed a
prototype fighter plane he designed. |
|
| |
Should we take it from this that you're still an in-patient, or that
you've acquired a hospital bed for your home, [Max]? |
|
| |
No, I'm home - hospital bed provided courtesy of the NHS :-) |
|
| |
In Morocco at the mo, will try to see you.. |
|
| |
You'll need bloody good binoculars mate. |
|
| |
(and a low-Earth-orbit mirror) |
|
| |
This whole thread is why I love HB. |
|
| |
Friendship, sarcasm, love, science, engineering,
networking, thought-provoking. |
|
| |
Plus, [jonthegeologist], if it all goes bear-shaped I'll be
counting on you for advice on how best to be fossilised. |
|
| |
[MaxwellBuchanan]; I just got a reply from my friend; no go
I'm afraid. It was definitely worth a try, though. |
|
| |
Ah well, thanks for asking! |
|
| |
Today the word of the day on dictionary.com is intercalary.
Of course, we all knew what that meant already, but now
the rest of the world has no excuse either. |
|
| |
There was a difficult period just after the intercalary was
born, when we didn't know he was going to be intercalary.
During that time we just had to call him "him". |
|
| |
Well, that's better than "it" |
|
| |
He's still holding out for a name transplant; the last donor fell
through, but there's always a chance. I did say he could have
"Maxwell" if things went wrong, but he refuses to countenance
it. I suspect he's worried that the lawsuits would just
gravitate toward him. |
|
| |
Can he not just get a fake birth certificate on the black market? |
|
| |
He could, but he says he wants a real name that he can call
his own. |
|
| |
One of these days I'll take some time to get a better grasp of the expanded [MaxwellBuchanan] cinematic universe. |
|
| |
I meant a fake real one. I know he already collects real fakes and fake fakes. |
|
| |
And now for something completely different. I was watching a documentary about Monty Python and one Python member? vestige? mentioned the difference between the Cambridge and Oxford sense of humour. I wonder how much of Max's quickwittedness is Cambridge related? |
|
| |
It's funny, because the first Pilgrims to the U.S. were said to have hailed from the Cambridge area, and Bostonians are such inveterate crackers, it's almost addictive. |
|
| |
This all makes me think why the artificial blood isn't yet a thing with its
immune system. Could be a good alternative to cryonics, for a rather
lengthy time... If we could reverse engineer the effects of all those other
organs, that are required to recycle blood that is... Could we get certain
proteins needed in the blood be manufactured by bacteria instead of liver?
I bet we could, it's just time. |
|
| |
I think, Mindey, you'd be quite comfortable with artificial
organs. I believe with scaffolding and germ cells to build
upon, much is possible. |
|
| |
Well, on the plus side, today I got the go-ahead for
chemotherapy starting on Thursday. No immuno for me, alas
- not quite well enough for that. On the minus side I am
feeling pretty ropey generally. But back on the plus side, that
means that chemo won't seem so bad. |
|
| |
Positive vibes sent. That's the vague humming
sound you can hear if you rest your head against a
wooden telegraph pole. |
|
| |
That's odd. I always thought the humming sound was coming
from my head. |
|
| |
[Max] do hold on buddy -- at this point you AT LEAST need to
hang around to confirm if coronavirus will end civilization as
we know it |
|
| |
Civilization as we knew it, ended, roughly around
2001. This post-period era we're now in is known to
time-travelers simply as 'The Descent.' |
|
| |
Had they considered adaptive growth control when doing
chemotherapy? I.e.,
target those parts of cancer, that are creating bottlenecks first, don't
overload organism with huge doses. E.g., target first those places,
where
growth creates a risk of blocking info-metabolic pathways. |
|
| |
Also, there has been a paper, exploring evolutionary approach saying
"Can we learn to live with--rather than kill--cancer? A new study
suggests
that frequent, low-dose chemotherapy that keeps tumor growth under
control may be more effective than standard high-dose chemotherapy
that
seeks to eradicate cancer cells completely." (link) |
|
| |
Thanks for that paper, [mindey] - I can see the sense of it.
One snag is that it'll take a lot of clinical experience, over
years, to figure out the most effective "management
strategy"; in contrast, a "kill them all" approach at least has
clear-cut short-term objectives and observables. |
|
| |
Right now, I just want my cancer knocked back enough to
let me feel better for a while. I think the early issues I was
experiencing (like cancer-induced blood clots) are under
control now, but I'm now reaching the point where the
sheer bulk of cancer cells and their screwed-up metabolism
is making me feel like crap. Every system is degrading
slightly, with the possible exceptions of my teeth (hunky
dory) and fingernails. |
|
| |
// but I'm now reaching the point where the sheer bulk of cancer cells
and their screwed-up metabolism is making me feel like crap // |
|
| |
Hold on, Max. Suggest doctors be as targeted and smart as possible,
about management and targeting. When feeling better is just blocking a
few neural pathways and providing quality blood to the brain, it's
tempting to think of filters, that through smart filtering could make
animal blood usable as one's own. Heck, I wonder, how could we use
Zika
virus-like phenomena to grow brain-less clones of ourselves (not like in
the cases of Zika, where there is still brain left, but without forming any
higher functions at all), and stockpile bodies for quality blood... |
|
| |
Is there a binding site at the mutation of the cancer cells, that would make
them susceptible to a specific viral infection? Chemo is so indiscriminate. |
|
| |
Most of the newer treatments are indeed more targetted than
chemo. However, my cancer lacks most "targettable"
mutations. |
|
| |
You need a bit of a brain to control metabolism. |
|
| |
Hi Max. Just checking in. If you are starting the chemo tomorrow you will be feeling pretty crap soon (well, even more crap than you have been) but hang on in there guv. The mental battle is as important as the physical one. Just keep on keeping on! |
|
| |
Yep, chemo in T minus 20 hours and counting. To be realistic,
it'll probably be fine on the day (I hear it takes a day or two to
feel the effects) and I'm just being melodramatic. |
|
| |
Anyone here had chemo, or know anyone who has? I'm hoping
it'll make me feel better once the immediate side effects are
over, but I guess it's unlikely to make a big difference that
fast. |
|
| |
This is a slightly convoluted theory, but it may help to make certain you're getting enough sunlight and/or Vitamin D. A researcher at Harvard has been doing a multidecade observational study of Vitamin D and mentioned that scientists have known since the 70's that people around the equator get 30% fewer cases of some cancers. |
|
| |
One immunology book also mentions that 80% of cancers begin in the epithelium. Our skin is of course our largest organ. |
|
| |
There may also be some relationship between lower sunlight and Covid-19, in my decidedly nonscientific theorizing. Look at a map of where the virus has been most deadly and it's mostly restricted to a band of colder and/or more overcast climates... |
|
| |
My best friend had two doses of Cisplatin and he
had a rough time, but came out the other side. He
also had 42 radiation sessions (throat cancer) That
was 7 years ago and he's fine now. ie cancer free.
He has some teeth and jaw issues, but the cancer
is gone. Yours can be gone too Max. No matter how
bad it is and what stage it's at, people do get
better. Not everyone does, but a lot do. I believe
in those positive vibes. Get your head against that
pole.... :-) |
|
| |
// it's mostly restricted to a band of colder and/or more overcast climates... // |
|
| |
Scotchland ... but that's not because of virulence, it's because the inhabitants have lost the will to live. |
|
| |
Scotchland will do that to anyone ... or any thing. Quite a lot of the native species are migratory, because they can't stand the place all year round. |
|
| |
Hey, [xen], thanks. Yes, I do believe I can beat both the odds
and this cancer. Tomorrow will be the first step in actually
hitting the cancer rather than firefighting complications.
Once I turn the corner on this one there'll be no stopping me. |
|
| |
If it is now t <20 hours, look up that fasting reducing the side effects of chemotherapy, and making it more effective thing. It sounds annoying but not eating during that first day or two before the chemotherapy symptoms start could be a less crummy time to fast. |
|
| |
Well, you'll have to argue with Mrs. MaxwellBuchanan over
that one. She doesn't believe in fasting and, given that I can
only eat about two mouthsfull of anything, she has been
urging food upon me practically non-stop. |
|
| |
I understand chemo symptoms can be very varied and very odd. My father had chemo and his symptom was not being able to touch cold water. Couldn't be outside in the rain, couldn't drink tap water from a glass. Wore off after a day, but returned a week later with the next course. |
|
| |
Now that _is_ wierd. I hope I get something interesting like
that. |
|
| |
I know someone who could levitate rubber bath-
plugs by pointing at them with both index fingers
at once. Once the chemo wore off we could all
bath again without fear. |
|
| |
[Max], take care. What treatment protocol are you about to be subjected
to exactly? Pardon if you mentioned it already. Is it possible to take
large number of tiny samples of your cancer, and subject them to a
variety of substances to see how it fares in comparison to normal cells?
I wonder... |
|
| |
I'll be on two different chemos (I've got a note of them
somewhere...). It'd be nice to have "bespoke" drugs tested on
my very own cancer, but I don't think that's a noption. |
|
| |
// I've got a note of them somewhere... // |
|
| |
Share if you can, the very specific process is going to help us understand
better what you are going to be going through. |
|
| |
It's Permetrexed and Carboplatin. The Carboplatin means
that my scrap metal value ought to increase. |
|
| |
Carboplatin and Pemetrexed have no known interactions
with light drinking. Might be helpful. |
|
| |
High hopes & best wishes, [Max]. |
|
| |
(This chemotherapy thing has always seemed to me a most half-baked
idea. Find something that's deadly, but twice as deadly for the cancer as it
is for you, and then half-way kill you with it. |
|
| |
You'll probably feel like crap for a while, it's pretty much a given; just don't
give up. Desertion is *not* the better part of valor.) |
|
| |
I'm securing my bath plug down with waterproof
tape in case of a long range levitation episode. I'll
know it was you Max :-) |
|
| |
Are you combining chemo with your mystery Chinese drug? |
|
| |
Thinking of you today, and sending love and pretend flowers.
Hang in there and come see the loonies in the bin, as soon as
you are feeling up to it. We'll continue to play amongst our
elves while you re-coop. |
|
| |
Hang in there [MB]. I'll be broaching an imaginary bottle of
Mouton Rothschild '45 later. |
|
| |
If it's imaginary, how will you know if it's corked? |
|
| |
//Are you combining chemo with your mystery Chinese
drug?// Not yet - still 2-4 weeks for delivery. But I'll add it
later. It's got good synergy with the chemo drugs, so I'm
hoping for good things. Step 1, though, is to get through
enough of the chemo to start feeling a little better. |
|
| |
Thanks to everyone for the good wishes. Chemo will
probably turn out to be an anticlimax, in that (a) it
probably won't make me feel as lousy as I'm expecting and
(b) it'll probably take at least several days to have any
perceptible impact on the cancer. I expect I'll check in
tonight, but don't worry if I can't. |
|
| |
// my scrap metal value ought to increase.// |
|
| |
Will there be a bidding process or is it first come first served ? Group 10 metals, particularly noble metals, aren't usually retained by the body... the metabolites are ezcreted quite rapidly. |
|
| |
This may actually confer significant value on your excretions; no need, for example, to apply any gold leaf... |
|
| |
We'll just leave it there for now, while everyone else has a chance to consider the implications.... |
|
| |
Wait, is that your night or USA night, or hmmm, aren't you
usually up at all hours anyway? Will be watching for your
thumbs up. (Which it will be). |
|
| |
// it probably won't make me feel as lousy as I'm expecting//
Well that's disappointing. This isn't the show that I was promised! CanI have my money back please? |
|
| |
Well, I am now back from Chemo Round 1. I have to say it
was less dramatic than expected, with nobody shouting "Code
Red - get the paddles". Just three hours in a comfy chair
being plumbed into a succession of drips. Any immediate
feeling of crapness is just due to the steroids and other stuff
they pre-loaded me with, plus the fact that I've now got two
litres of additional fluid trying to find a place to go. |
|
| |
“feeling of crapness ... now got two litres of
additional fluid trying to find a place to go” - are
you sure you didn’t just spend the afternoon at the
pub? |
|
| |
Pretty sure, alas. I did ask if they could run an extra bag with
some gin in it, but no dice. |
|
| |
No booze, no gambling either ? Sounds like a Methodist meeting. Did you have to sing hymns ? |
|
| |
// "Code Red - get the paddles". // |
|
| |
That sounds like an excerpt from "A Few Good Men" where "Code Red" was shorthand for a "correctional" beating-up administered to the victim by fellow servicemen. |
|
| |
Oh, and what [DrBob] said. We didn't tune in for this disappointing anticlimax; we want our streaming subscription refunded, unless the second episode is rated PG at the very least. None of this "Mild violence, mild peril, some bad language" bollocks. |
|
| |
Some methods of raising your sats may be
contraindicated. In the meantime, if necessary,
we can send [8th] a YouTube playlist of strafing
gun-camera video, or some seal-clubbing
documentary footage, or something. You just
get comfortable, and... just a second, how do
you do sunshine therapy in the UK? Snuggle up
to the big screen and watch something filmed
in the Sahara? |
|
| |
The usual way is to go and sit close* to one of the older nuclear power plants ... |
|
| |
// "Code Red - get the paddles". // |
|
| |
No no no - it's code red - open the bottle of Chateau Palmer
1961. |
|
| |
I haven't checked that one yet. |
|
| |
//ask if they could run an extra bag with some gin in it,
but no dice// |
|
| |
Ha! that's because they can't prescribe gin. I know for a
fact* that they can prescribe Guinness and whiskey. I also
know for a fact that even senior oncologists can be worn
down by drawn out stubborn arguments with some
evidence. Demand whiskey, then refer to the large
whiteboard where you've helpfully drawn out the whole
of known metabolism.
Start with "Something something Warburg, something,
something, ethanol, acetaldehyde (uM concentrations,
less important than most thing) acetate, in mM
concentrations as a non-glycolytic substrate
disadvantageous to neoplasia, something, something,
acetate causes huge upregulation of acetylation,
somewhat combating the increases HDAC activity,
something, something". If that doesn't work, bribe a
porter. |
|
| |
*knowlege correct circa 2006 |
|
| |
One down, a few more to go. Good way to kick some chemo
ass, youngin. |
|
| |
// how do you do sunshine therapy in the UK?/ |
|
| |
In the C19th, many humane and forward-thinking judges
included prescriptions for sunshine therapy* when sentencing
a wide range of offenders, from cockney burglars to Irish
nationalists. Hence, Australia. |
|
| |
*Other therapies included penal servitude and flogging. |
|
| |
Dammit, I'm turning into [8th]. How did that happen? |
|
| |
// how do you do sunshine therapy in the UK?/ |
|
| |
Ultraviolet sun lamps exist. I've asked if people use them in Sweden, but it seems as if they're more focused on practicing oncology expertise. You have to turn them off or draw the shades for self-flogging anyway. |
|
| |
A possible breakthrough in therapies in this Jewish Mag. See
linky. Just give those lungs a little scrub and then replace
them into the body, all sparkling clean. |
|
| |
Hmmm. Well, one problem is that my cancer has decided to
grow weirdly and is sort of diffuse, rather than being in one
spot where it could be resected. It's also having a party in all
my lymph nodes. |
|
| |
Or at least it was until now. It is now (I hope) writhing in
agony as it dies under the onslaught of the finest
chemotherapeutic agents available to mankind. Kapow! Take
that! |
|
| |
//Ha! that's because they can't prescribe gin.// |
|
| |
Not quite so. Last time I was in hospital, nice old ladies
would come around with a trolley serving coffee, tea, hot
chocolate and fruit juice every few hours. |
|
| |
Once, a trolley came around pushed by a more cheerful and
younger lady. To my utter astonishment, it had gin, whisky,
vodka, wine... Once I'd established that I wasn't dreaming,
it turned out that this was completely legitimate, on the
grounds that a modicum of alcohol was good for the
appetite and mood. |
|
| |
Tragically, it turned out that I was on the no-fly list for
alcohol (kidneys not up to scratch). But almost... |
|
| |
// Dammit, I'm turning into [8th]. How did that happen? // |
|
| |
We are experimenting will a kinder, gentler, more subtle form of Assimilation. |
|
| |
Dammit, did we just say that ? |
|
| |
<Frantically reviews list of recently Assimilated drones/> |
|
| |
Ah, living dangerously, eh ? |
|
| |
Incidentally, after my chemo yesterday I was sent home with
a long list of new drugs to take. One of them was Dom
Perignon, which I was quite pleased about until I discovered
that it's actually an anti-nausea drug called Domperidone. |
|
| |
\\One of them was Dom Perignon\\ |
|
| |
We really do need to work on those drug names. |
|
| |
When I'm old, befuddled and hopefully, still solvent, I want
to be able to sign something that allows administration of
Chateau Margaux '61. |
|
| |
One of my drinking buddies admitted to ...manscaping... |
|
| |
[MB] - a few moments with a shaver; show those
carers/wives/significant others a thing or two... |
|
| |
Fortunately I've still got two. |
|
| |
OK, I can now state that chemo takes about 48 hours to kick
in. |
|
| |
Hoping you are ok. We knew it was going a little too good.
Feel better. |
|
| |
It's a pity entanglement isn't at the personal level. All halfbakers could feel a little worst so you [Max] can get through the chemo that little easier. |
|
| |
(For the milestone, not the feeling lousy.) |
|
| |
// All halfbakers could feel a little worst // |
|
| |
We are fully prepared to feel a little wurst* on [MB]'s behalf. |
|
| |
If [xen] can be made to feel a lot worse for the same good cause, that will be even better. |
|
| |
*A type of german sausage, and absolutely not a euphemism for anything else whatsoever. |
|
| |
Thanks, all of you, for the good wishes. And especially,
[CH] for pointing out that I've made it a month. I am, in all
honesty, feeling completely crap both physically and
mentally. But, fuck it. Tomorrow is another day. I'm going
to take a generous dose of oxycodone and head for bed. |
|
| |
Curious is "Wurst" a night or day sausage? To MB, have a sweet
albeit opiate-induced sleep. |
|
| |
"G'night Max. We'll be here for ya in the morning. |
|
| |
Morining Max, rise & shine, albeit slowly & reluctantly! It's time to continue living for another day!
If it helps, just imagine me a as a drill seargeant mercilessly bullying a reluctant national service recruit. Now then, it's time for some marching up & down the square! |
|
| |
//"Something something Warburg, something, something, ethanol, acetaldehyde (uM concentrations, less important than most thing) acetate, in mM concentrations as a non-glycolytic substrate disadvantageous to neoplasia, something, something, acetate causes huge upregulation of acetylation, somewhat combating the increases HDAC activity, something, something". If that doesn't work, bribe a porter. // |
|
| |
Is albeit not Kosher, Dr. B? I haven't heard it in a while. |
|
| |
It is for people wot like to speak proper English. |
|
| |
Any better today? Hope so. Good thoughts your way. |
|
| |
Be sure to hop over to the "Simple Answer Search Engine"
post.
Mirth and merriment a plenty. |
|
| |
Remember: "He who laughs laughs, laughs laughs." |
|
| |
// If that doesn't work, bribe a porter. // |
|
| |
[MaxwellBuchanan], how goes the chemo today? More
importantly (I suppose), how's the response to the chemo? |
|
| |
[MB] I just read that at mice administration of metformin reduces cognetive impariment caused by cisplatin in mice at 100 mg/Kg. I also read that to calculate a human dose from a mouse study you divide by 12.6, so a 70 Kg human would take 556 mg of metformin, that is much less than the 2000 mg per day human diabetics take, which is also a longevity increasing dose I read about once. If you look up "metformin without prescription" you can get some online in 3-5 days (1001pills.com [link]), or, although it takes longer it is only $75-80/Kg on alibaba.com |
|
| |
Is anybody deputized to go in and check on him when he stops... whatever? |
|
| |
He's undergoing chemo which I understand is pretty
challenging. I doubt he's feeling very social. |
|
| |
Yes, what doctorremulac3 said. Still, it doesn't hurt to let him know we are still thinking of him, so I would encourage people to keep posting on this thread. |
|
| |
Yes, I agree, Dr. B. When feeling better he'll be able to look
back and it will make his heart warm, and his brain will
release serotonin which is a natural healing agent. |
|
| |
Eeew! Sounds icky! I'm not sure I'd want a load of serotonin dribbling out of my ears. |
|
| |
But they do make a thing called a Seratonin Re-Uptake Inhibitor, which, I guess, would keep the serotonin from soaking into your pillow if you smear the stuff on properly. |
|
| |
Trouble is, you can always spot an SSRI user by their impromptu mohican. |
|
| |
Unless they shave all the hair off their head, of course. Then you can spot them by the patches of random stuff sticking to their scalp ... |
|
| |
//it doesn't hurt to let him know we are still thinking of
him, so I would encourage people to keep posting on this
thread.// |
|
| |
We're thinking of you Max. |
|
| |
//We're thinking of you Max.// |
|
| |
Yes... but not in any stalkerish kind of way. More of a wishing there was some way to help kind of way.
It's just not the same poker game without ya making sure I'm not bluffing [MB]. |
|
| |
Don't make me dredge up some of my less believable not-so-tall tales... |
|
| |
There is a gentle knock at the door. |
|
| |
[MB] looks up from his nest of tubes to see a bashful sasquatch
proffering a "Get Well Soon" card. |
|
| |
The other cryptids are waiting outside, making faint snuffling
noises. |
|
| |
What a serene visual, pert. Yes...It's a good day for stillness
and warmness to send kindness and get better wishes. Be
well, MB. |
|
| |
I'll cross reference chemotherapy, gluose starvation,
acetylation, and lactic acidosis, beanangel. Assuming we'd
like our patient to have a fully functioning sense of humor,
you may be on to something! :) |
|
| |
Already mentioned but might as well mention it again, if you have any .5b ideas in notebooks dust them off and post them, keeping the place lively might be something everybody, including [MB] likes |
|
| |
//to see a bashful sasquatch// |
|
| |
Sasquatch ain't the half of it.
Honestly, not only has every one of the not-so-tall tales I've told here been true... but I've only burdened you folks with the bits I figured you all might be able to deal with. |
|
| |
The true things I haven't told are far more out-there than the things I've disclosed.
S'truth. <shrugs> |
|
| |
Either way. Paul grilling me looking for inconsistencies in my little stories and holding me to task are things I have looked forward to, and plan to look forward to looking forward to again.
The man will give me credit for telling it like it is and there's no going anywhere til I get my due. |
|
| |
Sorry the chemo is going to suck so much. |
|
| |
Later...
Later when we meet, we can laugh about it over a pint. |
|
| |
Until then, stiff upper lip and all that. |
|
| |
May today be better and may your body heal. |
|
| |
Max, hope you are well. It's really concerning to see you not respond for
so long. |
|
| |
// I'm going to take a generous dose of oxycodone and head for bed. |
|
| |
In all of my heart I'm hoping you, despite the scary time gap (link), are all
well. Recommend to track your vitals at all times. I suppose, chemo procedure
involves taking preventative measures for all the risks, and we are not hearing
from
you just because of you being in the hospital, undergoing treatments, being well
taken care
of. |
|
| |
Thinking of you, Max. Sending positive vibes south. |
|
| |
We're all thinking of you and wishing you well Max. |
|
| |
//Sending positive vibes south// - just to point out that you could send them north too, but they'd take longer to get to him |
|
| |
You'll vibes the high road and I'll vibes the low road and I'll vibe in Max town afore ye |
|
| |
With apologies to, well, everyone |
|
| |
Hope you are sticking with us, Max. Good thoughts coming your way. |
|
| |
Hi all, I haven't seen many of you in quite some time and I
wish I was reappearing with better news. |
|
| |
Maxwell Buchanan AKA Dr Paul Dear passed away yesterday.
The news came via his solicitor and I don't have any more
detail than that. |
|
| |
Much as this saddens me, I can't help but feel that he truly
made the most of his life in every way, and that is as much
as any of us can do. I salute him for that. |
|
| |
Ah no. I'm so sorry to hear that. Sympathy for his
lovely family. This is a terrible loss. I really
believed he could make it somehow.... |
|
| |
Oh no. No. I was so hoping for a different way for this to go.
To his family, what can I say? You know how much he will be
missed here. And in his "real" life. |
|
| |
Tears don't do this sadness justice. I want to kick something
that resembles cancer right now. |
|
| |
Goodbye, dear friend. You are already missed. |
|
| |
I'm glad to have had the privilege of sharing this
space with Max. Of exchanging ideas; of winding
him up about GMs; of enjoying his very British
creative humour. Being rewarded with his approval
for any of the ideas I posted always meant the
most to me. I hope his ideas remain here as an
inspiration to us all and those who come along in
the future. Farewell Max. The best. |
|
| |
Just when things seemed to be looking up :-(
You will be missed, [MaxwellBuchanan]; both here and out
there in the real world. |
|
| |
//just when things seemed to be looking up// |
|
| |
Max would have appreciated the absurd irony of that
statement on a day like today. |
|
| |
What bothers me, is that information is not lost. Max has got encrypted
by
random motion of molecules, we just need to invent a way to decrypt
him... |
|
| |
He obviously didn't want to die, therefore, the universe deserves a fix.
The
question is how. |
|
| |
// I've already created a couple of backups of myself. One is about 6ft
tall and finishing her PhD.
The other is my genome on a hard drive. But, as Woody Allen said
about immortality "No, I want to
achieve it by not dying." // |
|
| |
Max, we know that we can make another body like yours, and train with
your history and thoughts
patterns here. But, as you said, we need a better solution. Now, the
challenge is N-orders of
magnitude greater. New N-Prize? |
|
| |
"Max has got encrypted by random motion of molecules, we just need to invent a way to decrypt him... |
|
| |
He obviously didn't want to die, therefore, the universe deserves a fix. The question is how" I support your efforts to bring the dead back to life. |
|
| |
Sigh. Max was a brilliant and notably kind man with
amazing talents and an incredible sense of humor. I'm
sure Max wouldn't mind my sharing a discussion we had
outside of the HB. I told him I was uncomfortable saying
goodby anonymously behind a pseudonym so I put up my
facebook page for a minute and he sent me his email
address so I wrote him this. (This is shortened, left some
stuff out.) |
|
| |
Hey Max, Doctorremulac3 here, |
|
| |
Just wanted to do a little post game review. One of the
great joys of posting things on the Halfbakery was
conversing with somebody not only on the other side of
the world, but as far on the other side of the tracks as
you can get. Someone who I deeply respected, skilled in
sciences that from my perspective might as well be
magic. So when I'd post an idea that would get the
occasional "This is brilliant!" from you, it meant a lot to
me. |
|
| |
(I'll leave most of the letter out) |
|
| |
Anyway, enjoy the accomplishments of your great life,
the legacy you've given to the world with your wonderful
daughter and know the world is a better place for your
having been there. |
|
| |
And if I'm wrong about the whole heaven thing, save me a
good seat eh? |
|
| |
It's really great to hear from you - I've always considered
the HB to full of friends, but breaking the fourth wall
makes them even friend-ier. And like you, one of the
things I've enjoyed most is meeting people (again, like
you) whose skills and talents are completely different to
mine. |
|
| |
Cancer is an absolute fucker, no two ways about it. I've
been researching it on and off for maybe 20 years, and it's
only now that it makes sense - the realities of beating it
are a little different from what you imagine as an
academic. On the plus side, I really believe that in 50
years all cancer will be curable; and in 100 years it'll be
curable with only a visit to your local physician. Just my
luck (and the the luck of everybody with cancer now) to
be here a few decades too early. |
|
| |
I'll save you a seat next to me if it turns out we're both
wrong. I'll be the guy with the really, really surprised
look on his face. |
|
| |
Cheers, and thanks,
Paul/Max |
|
| |
// I support your efforts to bring the dead back to life. |
|
| |
The best shot we have now, is probably cryonics, what [Voice] had
pointed out initially. Wondering if Max had been a subscriber for any of
cryonics services. |
|
| |
I'll be expecting my sign from the other side, by morning,
btw. |
|
| |
Clearly the answer is to inject his DNA, (preferably
edited to eliminate this particular threat), into a
suitable
donor stem cell or three with similar makeup.
Perhaps his daughter can spare one? |
|
| |
Or failing that, some neck bolts, a jolt of lightning, a
brain in a jar, and some creepy organ music. |
|
| |
To anybody who knew him "irl", my deepest sympathy for times present, and envy of times past. |
|
| |
Finally some relief but not the way you wanted. Rest in peace. |
|
| |
The way MaxCo website's looks visually, reminds me the words by Carl
Sagan - "a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam," and when you scroll,
the visual effect looks like it. |
|
| |
His loyalty and patience will be greatly missed. He had a special place for the insane. |
|
| |
The only silver lining I see here is the potential
return of the most excellent Wagster. Please come
back. Email me if you feel like it. |
|
| |
This web-page is a superb memorial / elegy / wake |
|
| |
Agreed [xenzag], and also for so many others who have taken
up other useless pastimes but have returned to pay respects
for those who are now permanently unable to continue
baking. |
|
| |
I've missed so many of you deeply. And the passing of MB and
csea just add to the list of reasons why staying in touch can
help those of us that remain, to exchange information of
passings, and to grieve together. (Or in private). |
|
| |
At the Rentisham's HQ, trousers are being flown at half-mast. |
|
| |
A suitable tribute (partly prepared, and predicated on the usual blatant plagiarism and inept versifying that only The Great McGonagall could aspire to emulate) will be posted in due course. |
|
| |
Sadly, repeated attempts to arrange an opportunity to scare him to death by means of notably imperfect amateur piloting technique in a correspondingly notably imperfect light aircraft never came to fruition. |
|
| |
Thank you [Xenzag], very kind of you. Good to see some
familiar names here - I may pop in a little more often. |
|
| |
All thoughts and feelings expressed. |
|
| |
Oh no. I wish I hadn't been away from the bakery through this.* Reading through everything on this page for the first time today, it was scary at first, and then it looked like everything would eventually be fine, and then… nope. If only that APR-246 arrived in time, maybe it would have gone differently. (I hope it still finds a useful purpose; I don't think Max would've wanted it to go to waste. If it can be tested for quality, maybe it could reduce the cost of that upcoming human lung cancer trial.) |
|
| |
The rest of us will go on (for a while at least), and this site will continue to be one of my favorites, but it sure won't be the same. |
|
| |
I'll help in whatever way I can with a reanimation project too, but we should bear in mind Max's concern about a recreated consciousness not being the same "me" (even though that new one will feel like it is the same one)—a concern I've long had as well. The idea of physically, locally counter-entropically "decrypting" the present state of the matter that once made up a living person is the first suggestion I've heard that seems like it might satisfy that. Philosophically, that seems like an extension of the temporary death that's used in some medical procedures now—I haven't heard anybody worrying that they'll come back from that as a copy instead of the same person. I agree that this would require cryonics to be even remotely possible, though. |
|
| |
If that doesn't end up being possible and/or his body is cremated, or if there's a part that's unnecessary for either reanimation or burial or whatever else (like a bit of toenail), then maybe a small portion of him could be launched on an N-Prize flight one day. |
|
| |
He obviously didn't want this to be the end of him. |
|
| |
*I did leave an annotation on one idea sometime in the past week or two, I think. I was trying to catch up from where I'd left off (and didn't get very far), without having even glanced at the more-recently-active stuff, which I now see was unwise, and that anno probably even looked very insensitive because I hadn't said anything here. (Edit: I see now that I also added an idea, which MB annotated, as well as two links on another idea of mine. My memory isn't good for this kind of thing.) |
|
| |
Has the little red bird turned up yet, [blissmiss]? |
|
| |
If not, he's probably just messing with you - try adding a
little Dom Perignon to the bird bath - or if that's not
available (because of recent panic buying), I can highly
recommend the imaginary Mouton Rothschild '45. |
|
| |
// I'll help in whatever way I can with a reanimation project too, but we
should bear in mind Max's concern about a recreated consciousness
not being the same "me" |
|
| |
I would put the reanimation of actual his process within the realm of
plausible with the technologies in the next 100 years, if his brain has
been put even to just a temperature of consumer-grade freezer, before
the information-theoretic death ( as defined in Wikipedia ) has occurred.
So, basically, if the neuron connections and states can be inferred from,
say crystals formed in the brain during freezing or vitrification. |
|
| |
On the other hand, when it comes to the feasibility of fixing the
universe, and local entropy, that may be not be in the realm of feasibility
for billions of years to come (even if we get really good with quantum
computers mining entropy from parallel universes) |
|
| |
If I could say something to Max before that, I'd repeat myself saying - 1) don't
take full
chemo, see
link on "Evolutionary approach to cancer treatment," taking full chemo
is gonna clog your system.. 2) Any cryonics is infinitely better than no
cryonics, even having brain in standard freezer stops liquids from
mixing, stops diffusion and chaos. |
|
| |
Pert, Glad you asked. The day after I became aware there
was a new Cardinal that wasn't the same as the one that
hangs around here. I stood and stared him down for a
moment, and tried to see some sign. Nothing, I turned to
walk back to the stove and then the really loud and almost
like shouting birdcall started. And it was staring directly at
me, not the other birds on the feeder. I just stood and
stared. I have not seen it again since. I was brewing tea so I
couldn't go out |
|
| |
He flew away and that is the God's honest truth. I swear on
my beautiful daughter's life. And I have never done that
before. |
|
| |
[blissmiss] that's really nice. Maybe the Bhuddists had it
right all along... |
|
| |
His widow emailed me the bad news. |
|
| |
It is with considerable sadness that I read Paul's obituary
this morning. I have been preparing both my elderly
mother and my equally elderly mother-in-law for the
"new normal" that is a potential 30-day lockdown in parts
of the country. |
|
| |
My mum lives 1500km away, alone, so my life got a little
busy for a while. |
|
| |
I noticed, and became concerned when a couple of my
emails to Paul went unanswered. It transpired that I had
reason to be concerned. |
|
| |
I had been in communication with Paul quite a bit through
February and early March, having indicated I would send
him a bottle of Australian rum by Wallaby Express Courier
Service, which I did... though the rum ended up being an
exclusive, small batch Filipino brand instead. |
|
| |
The one I wanted to send him could not be shipped by air
as it contains too much alcohol by volume. Instead, I
opted for a product already available in the UK, and had
it delivered to him, c/- Rentisham's Wax Emporium. |
|
| |
I am unsure what the delivery driver might have made of
that, or if it would even get to him. |
|
| |
It was a gesture that appeared to touch Paul deeply. He
remarked a number of times that it was very good to have
friends all over the world. |
|
| |
Paul also said he was very pleased to receive it;
especially the chocolate that came with it, and that he
had hopes it would prove to be "the very elixir of life
itself". |
|
| |
Sadly, it did not live up to that promise but it did lift his
spirits somewhat, in the last weeks of his life. |
|
| |
My relationship with Paul, in his persona as Maxwell
Buchanan, may have seemed unusual to the outside
observer, as we would often poke each other mercilessly
in public, on the 'bakery. It was all in jest. Two people,
separated by half a world, ribbing each other as they
would if they were sitting in the same room, sharing a
meal, a quiet drink and a similarly absurd sense of
humour. |
|
| |
My sincerest condolences to his wife, Denise, and his
daughter, Felicity, who must miss him terribly. Be proud
of your memories of him, He was one of the good ones. |
|
| |
I would also suggest you see if you can't find the rum, and
raise a glass to his global circle of friends. He will have
stashed it somewhere safe, I imagine, as it was not really
recommended with his chemo regime, as I recall. |
|
| |
Paul contributed more to the body of human knowledge
than most will ever do, and I hope that his work informs
and assists many more people over time. |
|
| |
I know that I will miss him greatly. |
|
| |
Now, I've got to be off. I'm expecting Sturton, with a
delivery from Rentisham's factory any time now... some
samples and the production formula for the famous
Flenting Wax itself. |
|
| |
Thank you for that UB, the kind gestures towards
Paul, the nice tribute to him and his family and the
moving note to all of his other friends here. |
|
| |
It's very much appreciated. |
|
| |
Max would've probably appreciated the odd fact that you
can agree with the statement "Well shit" by saying "Yea,
no shit". |
|
| |
Somebody unfamiliar with the lingo might say "Well is it
shit or no shit?" The answer of course being "It's total
shit." affirmed by the response: "Yea, no shit." |
|
| |
My name is Fish, and I'm Paul/Max's daughter. |
|
| |
I hope it's not weird hearing from me here, but I had known this was where my dad spent some of his time, and seeing
all your posts on this thread I couldn't not come and talk with you. |
|
| |
My dad led an amazing life. His science and achievements speak for themselves - I'm not sure anything I could write
would do justice to a mind like his. He was the best dad I could ever imagine having. I'm bound to say that, though,
since we're so similar that he always used to joke I was actually the result of an early cloning experiment. (Luckily there
is sufficient phenotypic evidence to confirm that he was, indeed, joking.) |
|
| |
From the moment I was born, he instilled in me the same sense of wonder and curiosity about the universe that gave
him such joy throughout his life. One of the earlier lessons I can remember involved meeting a previously
unencountered species in the back garden, after the stars had come out one evening. We were to approach the creature
with extreme caution and a four-pronged approach involving a fork and some cat food. This made it immediately clear
that the situation was serious, as we did not actually own a cat. Sadly the fork was deemed unsatisfactory by our
subject, so Dad suggested I put the cat food on my finger and offer it to the creature that way. The following moment
contained a very memorable combination of surprise and pain, and ever since then I have retained a healthy respect for
hedgehogs as expert predators. |
|
| |
A lot of my memories with Dad are of countless DIY projects around the house and the garden. I'd follow him around
passing him nails and screws, watching with fascination. Other adventures were less practical. One time we set off a
pile of thermite on the driveway, just for fun (and notionally also for educational purposes), and on another occasion
froze all sorts of different foods in liquid nitrogen. In case I can save anyone the displeasure of discovering it, ketchup is
not a dish best served cold. Sliced cucumber seemed to go mushy, also definitely not a winner*. Stick to ice cream. |
|
| |
Over the years as I grew up, he would teach me about anything and everything, while always letting me choose my own
path. I ended up leaning more towards physics and engineering than to biology, which entirely validated him feeding me
a new Feynman book for several birthdays. It's thanks to my dad's endless enthusiasm for how the world works that I'm
now finishing a metallurgy PhD (turns out playing with thermite did impart some sort of learning). Alongside that I've
been tearing apart and reconstituting an old house with Mr Fish, doing my best to remember how Dad did stuff. But if
there's something I don't know, that makes it twice as fun, because he always taught me to love the process of figuring
things out. |
|
| |
Knowing his humility and sense of humour, I'm sure Dad would be cracking some joke right now, feeling silly that
everybody has such nice things to say about him. So I wanted to tell you a couple of happy and entertaining memories I
have of him in the hope of making you smile despite the loss. All of these adventures made me who I am, and I'll make
sure I never forget what he taught me. I hope they're things all his friends will remember about him, too: fearlessness
with ideas, a sense of humour, and knowing the importance of doing things for fun. |
|
| |
I'm going to have a read through his HB ideas and see if there are any I could do something with! Who knows, maybe I
will even come up with some of my own. Thank you all for the sympathies you've expressed for me and my mum. And,
finally, thank you all for sharing with my dad in the unbeatable enjoyment of idea-having. |
|
| |
*On second thought, could be excellent in a G&T. May have to repeat and refine the experiment now that I'm old
enough to appreciate its results... |
|
| |
Can't think of anything else to say at the moment. |
|
| |
& thank you for popping by & sharing, it's much
appreciated, & nice to know there's something of him still
out there, even if the phenotypic evidence does indeed
confirm that it's a little diluted, somehow knowing that he'll
be missed by people that really knew him rather than just
the shadow of himself he presented to us in his Maxwell
Buchanan avatar makes it seem a little less bad, odd that, I
don't really know how to explain it, & a bit silly, he was
yours after all not ours, but nonetheless strange as it may
seem hearing from you has made me feel a little bit better
about his passing & I thank you for that, I wish he hadn't &
don't really know how to express my condolences to you in
a way that might help you & yours. |
|
| |
Know he'll be missed by
those who only knew the fraction of him that he shared
with us & that we know you must feel the loss more keenly
than us. |
|
| |
It was much to soon & it sucks. |
|
| |
"Do you not know that a man is not dead while his name is still spoken ?" |
|
| |
Except for the "Wow! I'm speechless." part. |
|
| |
Thank you for the assurance that Paul's love for science
and research will live on through you. You are truly the
rainbow on an otherwise cloudy day. |
|
| |
And needless to say, my most heartfelt condolences. As
the
father of a young daughter I can attest that there is no
greater love that a man can carry in his heart than for his
little girl. I'm quite sure you brought incredible joy to his
life. |
|
| |
OK, getting too emotional here. |
|
| |
Please disregard the real heavy last part, stick with the
middle bits. Those were pretty good. |
|
| |
Thank you for reaching out, and of course you're welcome
to join in these mostly silly discussions at any time. We'll
always be happy to hear from you. |
|
| |
Damn. I took one quick break from the halfbakery, and came back to find this. I am truly dismayed. |
|
| |
I honestly hoped to meet [Max] in person one day. Given that we worked in the same city, this shouldn't have been particularly challenging, but now the chance has passed for good. |
|
| |
Welcome, [fishty]. Looking forward to seeing your first idea. |
|
| |
Welcome. Thank you for sharing that. Your old man is missed by many. |
|
| |
My heart-felt condolences, [fishty], and thank you for
dropping in to this crazy corner of the internet and
sharing with us. The world is a lesser place without
[MaxwellBuchanan]. |
|
| |
My heart-felt condolences, [fishty], and thank you for
dropping in to this crazy corner of the internet and
sharing with us. The world is a lesser place without
[MaxwellBuchanan]. |
|
| |
[fishty] Welcome to this special place. You spoke
better than anyone else could of Max (as he will
always be known here) and from time to time he
also spoke of you, with great pride and of course
with typical humour. It was an honour and a
privilege to share ideas and comments with Max,
as we here have all pointed out. I had the
additional privelege of sharing some physical
pieces of work, that I thought would bring him
some cheer. |
|
| |
The aftermath of a full and creative life as your
dad's was will be more than his possessions, as its
the contribution he made to the body of
knowledge and research in his field that may in
time impact on us all. Others will come and build
on that work. I somehow feel at this time of
frenzied investigation into Covid-19, that your dad
would have had his sleeves rolled up, his lab
working 24/7 but still somehow would also find the
time to spark off some halfbakery gem. I miss Max
every time I post something here. We all do. You
have my sincere condolences, and I hope you may
be a frequent and always welcomed visitor here. |
|
| |
Oh [fishty] I feel so very honored that you have come here
and let us be touched by a personal and sacred glimpse into
the relationship you shared with your father. My daughter
and I are close, but her connection with her dad has always
been so much deeper and while unspoken, perhaps,
magical. I get it. I love it. |
|
| |
Each and every time I came to the bakery, for some witty
banter, creative motivation, or just to pass the time,
especially at work, the first thing I would see would be Max
and 8th going back and forth about something I had no
concept of but still, and more importantly, I saw
connection. I treasure the connections your father so easily
made and nourished here. We all felt like his friend. It
transcended the knowledge and went straight to the heart. |
|
| |
Kindness was his hallmark. I miss him everyday now that
I've started coming back more often. His illness brought
many of us back more frequently so that we could sit with
him during his final difficult days. What an honor that was,
and what a rare, and raw gift that was, that he allowed us
to virtually hold his hand while we wished for the disease
to die and for him to be spared, so he could live more years
to come with you and your mum. |
|
| |
Alas, cancer won. The bastard. |
|
| |
He will be missed by many, loved by all, and touched
forever by a whole host of faceless friends. |
|
| |
Terry Pratchett's quote on 8ths comment sums it up
perfectly. "Do you not know that a man is not dead while
his name is still spoken ?" |
|
| |
Please walk in the door of the asylum, and get to know
your dad, through the eyes of his halfbaked world. Genius. |
|
| |
Our email client is set to add "#include <GNU_TERRY_PRATCHETT.H>" to every outgoing item; we also embed that text in every webpage we build or edit (or get access to for editing, whether the owner likes it or not ... on Wikipedia, lots of other people have got there ahead of us). |
|
| |
We suggest that some may wish to add "#include <GNU_P_H_DEAR.H>" in a similar way; thus "Max" will "live in the Overhead" (as Pterry put it) for all time. |
|
| |
[fishty], thank you for the context. Your dad was smart and hilarious, and I miss him as much as I miss other clever, valuable people I never personally met: Robin Williams, Jim Henson, George Carlin and Terry Pratchett, in no particular order. |
|
| |
Side note: a little over a quarter century ago, my son arrived on the planet. His nickname is Fish. Coincidence? I think n... probably. |
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| |
Your father's mentioned you - with pride, no less - over the years. Glad, you've arrived at the HB shoreline, so the denizens can meet with the combination of Albert Einstein and Diana Riggs we've heard about. |
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| |
Words may be just words, but I/we will really miss Paul/Max's wit, his aplomb and friendship. Bluntly, so will the world, what with the N-Prize and bio-research and all. |
|
| |
And, of course, purveyors and consumers of Rentisham's. |
|
| |
Thank you fishty for posting. What wonderful memories to share. |
|
| |
I was really hoping not to come back and see this. [Max] will
be missed terribly. |
|
| |
[fishty], thanks for the touching memories of your father. I
hope that my kids can someday look back and say something
as wonderful about me. |
|
| |
[MaxwellBuchanan], you will be missed. So much. |
|
| |
Welcome to the halfbakery [fishty]. I wish it were
under better circumstances. |
|
| |
Hello and welcome, [fishty]!
I'd been hoping we'd get the chance to
hear from you ever since - well, I guess it would be about the time you
acquired Finnley. It seemed to me that a first daughter and her first horse
would be an excellent spot of dad-training.
You and I have in
common the experience of having been raised by geniuses. (I was
adopted, so I missed the genetic side of that; but I was still expected to
keep up.) That was one of the things I really liked about Paul: how much
he reminded me of my own dad. Interested in everything, and willing to
have a go at anything new. Particularly when you described his
experimental bent, it took me back to my own past.
We also share
having lost our dads too early. That loss is not easy to bear - both
emotionally, and practically. Don't forget, don't despair, and above all,
don't let it stop you. From anything. You know how much he's been your
cheerleader in the past - you are now his message to the future. More
than that - you are his vision and his hammer, sent forth into an unformed
and malleable world in dire need of all the good that can be beat into it.
Bear up. You are meant to have joy. |
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| |
... and preserve 50% of his genes. |
|
| |
Sorry ... but that would probably have made him laugh. |
|
| |
See link - obituary. There may be others, but this is the one I found. |
|
| |
Dear [fishty], thank you so much for your message to us. Max to
Halfbakery has been like one of its major neurons, and will be missed
greatly. |
|
| |
I had hopes that once he recovers, we could take on many realistic
projects to transcend our biological limitations, but... Due to the
irreversible changes that had occurred, some of those futures may
have become inaccessible. It is sad. |
|
| |
Looking forward to your ideas, [fishty], and it's great to have some part
of him, that is you, on Halfbakery. |
|
| |
Welcome! I only wish it were under better circumstances. As a
guide, I'd say that your experience with thermite may well
have been a targeted educational experience. If you feel like
writing any ideas, including ludicrously dangerous high-energy
metal shenanigans is likely to go down very well indeed. |
|
| |
Firstly, It's just too sad to see Maxwell drop into the bakery
bowels. I'm not ready. So...I'm churning... |
|
| |
Secondly, [pertinax], while meditating this morning,
someone banged on my Jambe drum. Just once. Pretty
lightly but very hearable. |
|
| |
No one else home. Cat can't play the drum, it's too tall. |
|
| |
A sudden thirdly came to me...Wait, where the hell is
[doctorremulac3] |
|
| |
He suggested too many sensible, rational solutions, and the Thought Police took him away to a Re-Education camp ... |
|
| |
Doctorremulacthree here, hello my friends at the Bakery
Half Talk. |
|
| |
I've changed my mind about governments using this
coronavirus situation to take away our rights and expand
their powers and enslave us by creating a permanent
indebted surf class. I've made now very happy that the
global
banks are lending us the money to make virus go away,
I'm happy to pay them. |
|
| |
So thanks to bakery halvers and remember to support
your globalist friends. |
|
| |
There's a good little prole. |
|
| |
And of course you love Big Brother too, don't you ? |
|
| |
Are you walking in sunlight, or walking down a white tiled corridor forever, with a guard at your back, waiting for a bullet in the brain that never comes ? |
|
| |
Mr. O'Brien says "Hi", by the way. |
|
| |
Books the doctor has readen like [AUTOMATICALLY REMOVED
DUE TO BREACH OF COMMUNICATIONS PROTOCOL] are
antithetical
to
the cause of citizen tranquility and happiness. They do
nothing to calm the troubled mind and the envious spirit. |
|
| |
He have now seen the errors of his ways and I am the Third
Doctor Remulac. |
|
| |
Congratulations. Your bright yellow Siva roadster will be delivered shortly. The frilly shirt and the velvet cloak are on the back seat, along with your UNIT ID card. Please keep the TARDIS clean inside as others will need to use it after you. |
|
| |
Jesus heavens, I haven't any idea what either of you is
speaking about. You've all gone wacky, methinks. |
|
| |
You've developed a meme deficiency, [bliss], is all. |
|
| |
Just take these DVD boxed sets three times a day, with food. After all, you've nothing else to do at the moment, have you ? |
|
| |
I'm still working part-time. We are a non-profit charitable org
that the homeless depend on. I still come in 4 days a week
and sanitize the shit outta everything I gotta touch. Bleh |
|
| |
Yes, but if you're working with the homeless, you'll just be carrying on as normal, shirley ? |
|
| |
Look at the bright side; you're not in a hospital, so there are no doctors around to make people really ill. |
|
| |
Ha, 8th. Very funny. Talk nice about those medical profs. |
|
| |
Shan't. Medics are a menace. They all have Messiah complexes, they're hypochondriacs, and they have nearly as much arrogance and nearly as little empathy as geography teachers. |
|
| |
Do you ever see a medic showing the slightest interest in anyone healthy ? No, of course you don't. They're all vultures, predators, ghouls... |
|
| |
^ And they - by definition - spend all their time around sick people. |
|
| |
My art teacher (pre options 11-13 age group) must have
been
a failed geography teacher then. |
|
| |
A classic chalk thrower &
screamer, one of those that firmly believed children aren't
people, noticeably improved year on year until by
the 5th form he actually treated you like you might be
human. |
|
| |
Often wondered what he was doing teaching when kids so
clearly annoyed & frustrated him ;) |
|
| |
^ gr4 French : wicked aim with a piece of chalk, or an eraser ; also liked to sneak up on idlers and smack the desk with a yardstick. I imagine he was mostly trying to distract us so's we wouldn't gang up on him. |
|
| |
Blissy, I am pleased that you too are working despite this
mess. May I suggest a pump-up insecticide sprayer filled
with 5 gallons of sanitizer (or perhaps just straight bleach).
Hose everything down, and don't forget the people. |
|
| |
^ Spinning shoulder & head mounted nozzles fed from a
joggers
hydration pack powered by whoopie cushions tied under your
shoes, pumps & sprays as you walk, the amusing fart noises
are an added bonus, keeps you surrounded in a perpetual
antiseptic (or bleach) mist of your choice. |
|
| |
// liked to sneak up on idlers and smack the desk with a yardstick. // |
|
| |
Geography teachers go for the fingers, or ears. Sounds like you both encountered sub-clinical cases - full-on examples are unmistakable, the flecks of spittle, the deranged screaming, the random irrational violence.... |
|
| |
They say Hitler was a frustrated architect; we say he was a frustrated geography teacher, that's why he invaded all those countries, just so he could control all the lines on the maps. All megalomaniac dictators start thast way, first it's The Principal Imports And Exports of Blankistania, next thing it's We Must Control Blankistatania and its Natural Resources to Secure Lebensraum for Form 4B and Secure its Destiny and the next bit is all about greasing the tracks of the Panzers and What To Do After Firing... |
|
| |
// Cat can't play the drum, it's too tall // |
|
| |
You should have taken its stilts off before you went to bed, poor
cat. |
|
| |
If the sound had happened in my house, I would probably have
ascribed it to an invertebrate. Bees lose their way and bump into
things audibly. Also, there are manic brown beetles that look as
though they shouldn't be able to fly, but somehow can, but
haven't mastered steering yet. And crickets - some of them
grow to a good size, so you can hear it when they land, even
when they don't land on a drum. |
|
| |
Maybe it's different where you live,[blissy], but those would be
my first thoughts. |
|
| |
//permanent indebted surf class// |
|
| |
Does indebted surf conceal loan sharks? |
|
| |
Try floating a company and find out. You'll know when you hold the first board meeting. |
|
| |
//permanent indebted surf class// |
|
| |
We prefer the term indentured servant thankyouverymuch... |
|
| |
Ah yes, a much more genteel form of exploitative oppression; polite, legitimized, middle-class slavery without the stigmata of visible whips and chains. |
|
| |
Geog. teacher; interesting observation.
Were you at my school perhaps [8th]? The preferred projectile of our Mr xxxx (Geog, & deputy head) was a chalk board rubber, but on one occasion it was a hard-backed hymn book lobbed with an impressive accuracy from the stage at a piss-taking second year's head during assembly. This stimulated both gasps from the crowd together with general cringing & cowering by all in the first six rows. |
|
| |
That's a horribly familiar scene you've described. Did the book make a whirring noise like a startled partridge as it scythed through the air? |
|
| |
Unless he had a terrifying ability to skip a board-duster off an unoccupied desk in true Guy-Gibson-617- Squadron-Moehne-dam style and strike his target in the throat as a punishment for attempted talking, it wasn't the same psychopath. |
|
| |
Doc3 here, I've been let out of my cell for a bit as
long as I don't talk about the glorious new world
order, the excellent financial institutions paving
the way towards mankind's glorious and well
managed future and of course, most of all, its
new Communist Party of China overlords. May they
be praised for
their excellence in ruling ability. (Phew, they make
you memorize a lot of stuff in here.) NOT THAT
THAT'S BAD! |
|
| |
I hope this becomes a de-facto general chat room
without the need to come up with an invention
premise. I think that's kind of a fitting memorial to
Maximus and I'm
going to honor it as such. |
|
| |
(What? That was never 5 minutes! OK OK! I'm getting back
in! Easy with the bayonet! Jeez!) |
|
| |
[pertinax], too loud to have been an insect. Nahhhh It
sounded like a good bang and just like you are supposed to hit
it. Which is different than most drums. Weird. And it would
have been a faster level if it had just been something landing,
I imagine. And no, we don't have bugs yet. Soon though... |
|
| |
//as long as I don't talk about the glorious new world order// Then whatever you do, don't mention the fact that Russia is flying in plane loads of humanitarian aid to help a leaderless America in their time of total desperation. |
|
| |
//too loud to have been an insect// |
|
| |
I can't rule out the possibility that God was speaking to you, but
it certainly wasn't the sasquatch: I told him quite particularly that
he wasn't to disturb you while you were meditating, and he's very
good about that sort of thing. |
|
| |
//as long as I don't talk about the glorious new
world order// Then whatever you do, don't mention the
fact that Russia is flying in plane loads of humanitarian
aid to help a leaderless America in their time of total
desperation.// |
|
| |
Somebody beat me to the punch on writing a book I had
an idea for called "Hate Incorporated" talking about how
the powerful divide and conquer for fun and profit. We're
told there are only two schools of thought for all the
complicated world problems, the "left" and the "right".
Republican or Democrat. Further we're told that one side
is 100% wrong all the time and the other is 100% right all
the time. Pick your side and echo the party line. "There's
only one real problem in the world, THOSE people. We
get rid of them there are no more problems, the world is
a very simple place, all our problems are very easy to
solve, but we can't because the planet is just infected by
"them". |
|
| |
I've decided to take a Venn diagram view of political
discourse, not to try to be peaceful of lovey dovey,
because I need to calibrate the person I'm trying to
communicate with. For starters, is there any point we
agree on? Leading to the second question: is there any
point to this
communication or is it just the equivalent of dogs barking
at each other? If it's dogs barking, OK, that's fine but
what's the point? |
|
| |
The alternative is to see if there are any points of
agreement so that solutions could be arrived at through
analysis and engineering practices rather than emotional
and political which just end up making a lot of noise. |
|
| |
Something to consider: Two presidents, Bill Clinton and
Donald Trump. Both dealt with their opposing party
impeaching them. What did we get for that? |
|
| |
When Trump read in the state of the union address on
February 4, he addressed the threat to America from the
coronavirus, asserting, “Protecting Americans’ health also
means fighting infectious diseases. We are coordinating
with the Chinese government and working closely
together on the coronavirus outbreak in China. My
administration will take all necessary steps to safeguard
our citizens from this threat.” |
|
| |
Nancy Peloci was given a copy of that statement. She
made a grand show of tearing it up. The previous month
two events occurred, Trump introduced a coronavirus task
force that the left decried as having the wrong color skin
showing that he was racist. That same month, to address
the coronavirus threat, Nanci Peloci had 30 pens, custom
printed with her name to sign the articles of
impeachment for opening an investigation into obvious
Democrat crimes of graft and corruption. She later also
visited Chinatown in her
district to encourage people to get out and mingle to
show they weren't racist. China town is incredibly
crowded. |
|
| |
Bill Clinton was impeached for a process crime, that is,
although what he did may have broken some employment
rules or civil codes, it wasn't a felony. Lying about it
during the process was, and he was impeached for it. |
|
| |
Nobody will ever be able to say for sure, but he was
tasked with killing a person who had declared war on the
united states. He had several opportunities to kill this
person, and at one point, even have him handed over to
us by a foreign government. This would be a controversial
move however, and he certainly had his hands full with
the impeachment. |
|
| |
That man was Osama Bin Laden. The actions of this
terrorist plunged the world into wars that have killed
hundreds of thousands of people and cost trillions of
dollars that could have been spent taking care of the
citizens of this and other countries. Did a partisan
impeachment cause a bloody war that's lasted almost two
decades? Maybe not, but in retrospect, what if it did? Was
it worth the risk that it might have? |
|
| |
So maybe we consider the cost of blind partisanship
before engaging in the adrenaline rush of hating our
fellow citizens. |
|
| |
Just skip straight to the biting contest, saves time, besides
he
who bites first often bites last .. can I interest you in this
quality reconditioned
kalashnikov? only two careful users, very little use, back
on the market because the previous owner didn't use it
enough. |
|
| |
Don't make his mistake, shoot first shoot often & think
later (never ask questions, the answers only lead to
premature
thinking & more questions). |
|
| |
[Thinks to self : '& that cuts into my bullet sales
turnover & profits'] |
|
| |
Bullets are extra of course,
how many do you want? |
|
| |
Doc, doc, don't listen to him, he's working for Them, look, we'll sell you this lovely pre-owned Kalashnikov, only 650 genuine rounds since new, belonged to a little old lady preacher who only ever used it on Sundays to off those who didn't put enough in the collection plate, not a mark on the stock, plus six magazines, plus a free RPG launcher and a special offer on rockets ... |
|
| |
This offer won't be around long, all the smart people are signing up ... |
|
| |
<Smiles, nods, proffers clipboard with contract, and pen/> |
|
| |
// shoot first shoot often & think later (never ask questions, the answers only lead to premature thinking & more questions). // |
|
| |
Well, at least he got that bit right. But you still shouldn't trust him. |
|
| |
As TP said, "The People tended to be small-minded and conservative and not very clever and were even distrustful of cleverness. And so the children of the revolution were faced with the age-old problem: it wasn't that you had the wrong kind of government, which was obvious, but that you had the wrong kind of people." |
|
| |
[Glances over [8th]'s shoulder at the small print] |
|
| |
Hmm.. 'firing pin not included', crafty! now why didn't I think
of that. |
|
| |
[Hastily adjusts his own contracts] |
|
| |
[Marks up spare firing pins on his price list] |
|
| |
I actually do like the concept of a barking contest. (don't
know about the biting) Just get
two people on stage with microphones, they start barking
for a minute, then the judge comes out... |
|
| |
Greatly looking forward to the inaugural First Annual Barking Olympiad. It can
only provide a more relaxing, soothing soundtrack than the current global rabble
about this virus thing... |
|
| |
Thank you for all your thoughts and memories about my dad. Each one of them
has cheered me up for a moment, even though it's all kind of sinking in now. It's
been amazing hearing about how he featured in people's lives in all sorts of
ways. And it's just like you remind us, [8th] - as long as we all think of him now
and then, we'll keep his influence in the world going. |
|
| |
[lurch], I'm sorry to hear you experienced this kind of loss too. Thank you for the
reminder that I'm a way for him to stick around in the world a little longer.
That's definitely something I feel and like you say, it's a great reason to work
hard and be happy. "Getting over" something like this has never seemed like a
sensible concept to me; I think we're designed to adapt to loss and build around
it instead. I'm curious to see how my path with this will evolve, and I hope you've
found a similar, positive one. |
|
| |
[bs0u0155], I just saw Dad's post that you linked to... Not sure what to say. I'm
sure I'll always be trying to do things that would make him happy and proud.
(Also, I can indeed confirm that he gave me a set of lock picks. Could provide an
excellent source of entertainment during this pandemic lockdown...) |
|
| |
[UnaBubba], the bottle of not-Bundaberg has been duly located (craftily hidden
behind a tin of Rentisham's, of course). Thank you for sending it to Dad. I know it
would have meant a huge amount to him that you and all his friends here were
doing everything to keep nudging him forwards. A glass will duly be raised to
toast all your efforts at the earliest opportunity. |
|
| |
Dad's funeral took place on Friday in beautiful sunshine. Due to the restrictions
in place because of the pandemic, it was a small family ceremony, but a lot of
people have expressed a wish to come and pay their respects together. We are
planning to hold a memorial service when circumstances permit, so if anyone
here would like to come along, please let me know. :) |
|
| |
fishty, so wish I could be there. |
|
| |
Linking to a book you might read to get some different
perspective, doc3. Consider how many HHS secretaries
we've had currently, and how hard it is to properly
transfer
information from one administration to another. From
the
very beginning Trump's planning was hobbled by his firing
of
the
planning and transition team. And the evidence of the
exponential curve speaks to the time we've lost due to
gross mismanagement from the top down. Not going to
respond on this
page. |
|
| |
That's a function of representative democracies in general, [Ray] - intrinsically, unfixably flawed. |
|
| |
// And it's just like you remind us, [8th] // |
|
| |
It is so wonderful to hear from you fishty! Thank
you for sharing with us at this solomn and trying
time. I lost my mom a couple of years ago and I
think you'll find that with time you'll get what I'll call
"The memory smiles" where you''ll find yourself
saying "Dad used to do this thing where...." or "Dad
used to hum this song." or "Dad made the craziest
joke once..." and you'll smile. |
|
| |
As hard to believe, the tears do eventually turn
into these memory
smiles. These are a different kind of smiles,
they're not
"Oh look! A monkey!" or "That guy just slipped on a
banana peel." smiles, they're.... different, but
they are smiles and you will cherish them. |
|
| |
P.S. You also inherit your dad's friendship and
goodwill on this site so again, and I'm sure we're all in
rare agreement on this, we'd love to hear from you
about whatever, whenever. |
|
| |
[fishty, I want to thank you so much for letting us know
about the small but sacred service for Paul/Max. |
|
| |
It's hard to dig up words to be a balm for you when all the
cliches run through my head. So I'll add a personal
perspective. |
|
| |
When my mother died 6 years ago, the first few weeks,
(funeral, greeting loved ones), was all a fluffy, surreal
cloud-like existence, I couldn't sleep, but during the day I
walked through everything that was expected of me in a
pink haze. I went back to work right after and jumped in. |
|
| |
Weeks later I looked up and saw that it was 10 am, the
time I used to call her every day. At that moment I felt her
absence and it kicked me in the gut. In one moment I felt a
lifetime of conflict, and resolution and finally acceptance
The "I wish I hads" were many, the sorrow achingly deep. |
|
| |
As everyone will allude to time will heal some pain, but it
never erases the sorrow. Hold on to what brings you joy,
and hold tight. |
|
| |
Please visit us. Whether you want to or not, you are now a
halfbaker forever. |
|
| |
It is Traditional for newbie halfbakers to be politely and courteously welcomed, and allowed a honeymoon period of two or three idea postings before the long-term inmates descend en masse and administer a merciless roasting for every slight misdemeanour, real or imagined*. Grammar, spelling, underlying concepts, bad science - no mercy is shown. |
|
| |
However, we consider it more than likely that you will be almost entirely spared such treatment, partly out of respect, but mostly out of fear (of poltergeist activity). |
|
| |
*No matter how careful you are, some pretext will be found. It's a bit like the Spanish Inquisition (but without the nice red uniforms). |
|
| |
In counterpoint, I was shown some mercy early on by a few,
and that's why I'm still here, and why we all still put up with
one-note actors. |
|
| |
// I was shown some mercy early on by a few // |
|
| |
It's a busy forum, with a lot of users; sadly, mistakes are made. You slipped through. |
|
| |
But you have been noted as A Clever One, and be assured you are being watched closely. Eventually, the opportunity will arise to put you in the Comfy Chair, and prod you with the Soft Cushions*. |
|
| |
If that doesn't work, there's always ... the Rack ! <Dah dah DAAAAA dramatic chord/> |
|
| |
*With all the stuffing up one end, too; particularly nasty. |
|
| |
Not a clever one, just an Old One. You may know me
as Hastur in some of your earthling works. |
|
| |
I just saw this now. Does halfbakery category show on
Recent? |
|
| |
[Fishty], my late condolences for your always early to
answer father who we all wished well. (What was the
meaning of his nick?) |
|
| |
For those of you who know someone who is at the end
with stage 4 cancer, my mother had recieved a gift of three
more years. |
|
| |
She passed 6 months ago from heart failure, but the cancer
was cured. She had catheterized chemoembolization and
catheterized thermal RF ablation, which is palative -
treating the symptoms, cleans the body of growths but does
not cure the cancer. Nevertheless, a single 20 minute
treatment gave her back her voice and 4 more treatments
once every 3 months were enough to clear it completely,
with it expected to show up nearby or in other parts of the
body, and repeatedly be treated likewise. |
|
| |
It is a well documented method of treatment "without
surgery" for liver cancer and has been tried with success in
Israel and Germany on patients with lung cancer of
different types. Again, a palative treatment but it seriously
helps the body (if you still have it). |
|
| |
Halfbakery category doesn't show up by default. You
have to edit your recent view to bring it up. |
|
| |
My condolences about your mom Pash. I lost mine a while
ago as well. Great that your mom got a little extension
though eh? |
|
| |
Yes, [pash], if I may call you that...my condolences
for your mother's trials and loss to cancer. There are
not many words that can make one feel better with
the loss of a parent. |
|
| |
My husband is struggling with losing both of his in
January. He keeps the pain in. Unlike I, who sat at the
window and sobbed for Max's post at that very same
time, someone I had not even met. Go figure. |
|
| |
Nothing odd about that Blissy, shows you have a heart. |
|
| |
Buchanans' chunky cut marmalade! |
|
| |
Why did no one tell me about this? |
|
| |
When did the estate
move into marmalade? |
|
| |
It's not rentishams in a jar with a
different label is it? |
|
| |
How did they get Hugh to front this for
them? |
|
| |
The Buchanan estate doesn't do wages so they must have
something on him. |
|
| |
Must be worse than that little trist in the colonies that time
or he wouldn't care. |
|
| |
Fascinated to know what it could possibly be. |
|
| |
The Estate of Buchanan, fabulously wealthy after selling
production rights of their legendary Scotch recipe to, well
the Scots has apparently moved into other culinary
enterprises. There is also a rumor of neckties that tie
themselves and a car door that opens inward. |
|
| |
I haven't been here for years, so only learnt about this
today. :( shocked. |
|
| |
//Jesus coffee ring// One of my favs. Don't stay gone so long.
And yes, we were all shocked, I believe. |
|
| |
"Know you what Earth shall lose tonight, what rich, uncounted
loans,
What heavy gold of tales untold you bury with my bones?"
-
Chesterton </Belated> |
|
| |
“I'm not afraid of death; I just don't want to be there when it happens.” -- Woody Allen |
|
| |
What [4and20] so eloquently muttered. |
|
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Just to say there is a bike ride for charity, I think
by one of Max's colleagues. More detail as I get
it
.Dear all,
I hope you are keeping well. This is to let you
know that a colleague of Paul's -
Dr Art Abelian
- is kindly planning a cycle ride in
memory of
Paul and their work on
developing a successful
test for meningitis
in the new born.
Here is the link for sponsorship
should you be
interested. All funds go to
support future
research in the area of Child Health.
Anyone can donate to
JustGiving page by
clicking here:
(See ‘JustGiving’ link).
Please browse
the page to find out
more about the ride.
Thank you |
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Denise Dear (see ‘LinkedIn’ link) |
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Love this. However when following the link I only find
"linkedin" links. |
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[nmrm] has put spaces in the link, you have to remove them. |
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thanks for bringing this back up...had a chance to
read more of it. I loved to see and hear from
[fishty]! |
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....been almost a year... |
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([nrm] Links moved to ‘Links’ section of this page) |
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Damn it! This just came back around, and made me cry a
little. |
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Hi to [fishty]. Welcome to the nuthouse. Enjoy the rum, as
necessary. I loved the hedgehog story. Awesome. |
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I have just learned of the untimely death of a school friend,
with whom I now wish I had maintained better
communication. |
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I miss him. He enjoyed arguing with me for some reason I never quite understood and I planned to make my way to his neck of the woods someday so we could argue in person. |
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I always pictured it as starting with Sasquatch and going off on tangents from there... |
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He lurks here, I just know it. You know he would if it was
possible. He would even probably alert 8th. I know he's here. |
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yeah, but where is [8th]? seems mia... |
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Last prolonged absence he was busy with other things*, off
on some mission or other that may have involved leather,
fair maidens, grog, jousting and blood (hopefully someone
else's). |
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He could just as easily be repainting the Cube. |
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*yes I know, what could be more important than being
here. |
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ty...i was getting worried [whatrock] |
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[8th] is probably getting the Covid anal swab test from China, but he's asking them to be extremely thorough. |
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//yeah, but where is [8th]? seems mia.// He's
gone to ground again, and may have to be smoked
out
once more. This has happened before, but with
suitable bait dangled, he emerges blinking in the
light like a naked mole rat caught in the midday
sun. |
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You mean, er, an analysis? |
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Administered by an assistant |
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I'm assuming the passage of gas while assisted will produce a more bass tone? |
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You guys are so funny. Too dern funny. I hope 8th is back for
this lovely month of March. The pandemic is getting much
better here, for now, and spring is right around the corner.
Time to come home, Mr. 8th. |
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i knew something was wrong when he hadn’t
showed up for so long..........heavy sigh |
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I guess he took me literally, and he did return Home, forever.
My God, I'm gonna miss him terribly. |
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[Max], it's been a year since we all started missing you. We've been
waiting for that sign that you're still around, like a tin of Rentishams
mysteriously appearing on the table (and then just as mysteriously
disappearing) but so far... |
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Probably understandable, as you got a new visitor some
weeks ago and have likely been talking ever since. A thousand
unfinished conversations and likely some new ones (why do we not
fall through the clouds? why does the Guinness not evaporate at
this altitude? why does the Ultimate Answer keep coming out as
41.99999?) |
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Make the new guy do the heavy lifting, [Max]. It's cool. |
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If I'm not back again this time tomorrow... |
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I know this is going to be unpopular, but in all the time I read and admired Max/Paul, I made a point of restricting my requests to grand scientific projects. It is entirely likely that Max/Paul had been miscast as a pure scientist and he had his own reasons for posting as often as he did on HB, though for someone like him, multitasking was not that challenging, but I just wish he'd spent slightly more time on curing cancer... |
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I'm not sure that scientists arn't still over-represented in the
halfbakery frequentists. Depending on how you define
scientist.
So I think it's more of an idiosyncrasy of a certain sort of
mind than a particular failing on Max's part. |
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I wish [Max] were here, so that we could tease him with the fact
that Oxford has produced an effective covid-19 vaccine and
Cambridge has not. It might just have provoked him to invent a
better one. |
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I realize that here west of the Pond it's not strictly the
27th yet but over on your side it is, so I'd like to say
Happy Birthday [Max]. |
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I am so sorry I was away from the bakery, and that I missed
my chance to say goodbye. We never met in person, but I
will miss you [MB}. |
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I poke my head in to look around and find Max is dead. And
8th. I felt like I was talking to those guys. |
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You are equally missed, though still here. |
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It's been a long while... A long read, and now a long face. |
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I've been away a long time and just now found this. |
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I just love how Max kept his cheer up and shared his last
journey with his 1/2b friends. That's so him. |
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Virtual hugs to everyone. |
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Yup, he left as he lived. Honest, out there, and brilliant.
Good to see you, custard. Bad at this occasion. |
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I have been absent for some time and missed this. I can't say I knew MB directly very well, but his brilliant ideas and hilarious comments on were one of the things I always looked forward to on the Halfbakery. |
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One of my favorite quotes (which Google tells me is attributed to Sylvester Stallone, but we'll just forget about that) is "you are what you leave behind". I see that MB had over 700 ideas posted here. And that was with his spare cycles! |
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What an amazing, unique person. |
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Since at least 2018, the American Cancer Society has been recommending annual low dose CT scans for recent smokers over 50. This appears to be based on a large 2014 study which showed 20% reduction in all cause mortality. |
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As of 2023, the NHS in the UK is still preparing itself to make a similar recommendation. |
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In fairness, Max was smart enough to fully know the risks of every substance with which he came in contact. Still missed by me everytime I post an idea here, many of which were calculated to wind up himself and 8th in particular, another huge loss. |
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I bet regular low-dose CT scans for non-smokers over 50 would also increase life spans |
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I don't know about this CT scan example but sometimes it's necessary to not just look at the sensitivity and specificity of a test but also to look the whole sum which includes wider harms. For example there are tests for prostate cancer which are good, but which are not regularly given to men as a general screening because of the risk that undergoing the test may cause impotence and incontinence. If a man has symptoms which suggest prostate cancer or a family history of prostate cancer then it's worth taking the risk of using this test, otherwise not.
In addition, if a test has a high false positive rate there is the impact of causing a lot of people to worry unnecessarily and undergo the cost and inconvenience of follow-up investigations. In short, mass screening is not always the best approach.
[Sensitivity (true positive rate) is the probability of a positive test result, conditioned on the individual truly being positive.
Specificity (true negative rate) is the probability of a negative test result, conditioned on the individual truly being negative.] |
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// a man has symptoms which suggest prostate cancer or a family history of prostate cancer then it's worth taking the risk of using this test, otherwise not.//
Thanks, I was looking for a way to say "no one fingers this bum. No one." |
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