Language Matters

Posted on February 8, 2009 by mlo

You may send this post to anyone you like. The condition? Properly attribute the story to me, MLO, at this web site, http://www.mloknitting.com/ .

I’m annoyed.

Believe it or not, I have been a professional technical writer as well as a librarian and an analyst. In all three professions, terminology mattered. It mattered a great deal.

As a technical writer in a manufacturing environment, using the wrong term for something could lead to death. I am not exaggerating. If you are describing a piece of machinery and use the wrong term for a machine part it can get someone killed.

As a business analyst describing business processes, if you use the wrong term you can end up in a great deal of legal trouble because of how things are implemented from your analysis. Using the wrong term is bad.

As a librarian, not having the right term can mean never finding what a patron needs. There is a reason that each specialty has its own controlled vocabulary. If I am looking for something in Medline I will use MeSH, I am not going to look for things using the Psych Abstracts thesaurus!

This is why I find it so appalling that the press is using the terms “implant” and “transfer” as if they are the same thing. They are not.

In IVF cycles, an embryo is transferred in hopes of implanting – hopefully in the uterus. Implantation is an event during reproduction. Reproductive Endocrinologists cannot implant an embryo. There is even an entire body of research around why transferred embryos do not implant.

Misusing the word implant is bad reporting and any reporter guilty of such is shirking his or her duty to properly inform the public. The same goes for editors who change “transfer” to “implant.” It is not, and never will be, the same thing.

Of course, reporting quality has gone so far downhill in the last 20 years, I’m not really surprised.

Edit Feb. 9, 2009: It seems that the physician has been outed and he is the one who uses “embryo glue” to “implant” an embryo. This is still the wrong language to use. The glue is only meant to keep the embryo from floating away from the uterine wall before burrowing into it. It is the burrowing that is implantation.

So, to all the bad science reporters and editors, you are still using the wrong language. (There are a small minority of good science writers and editors out there, but they get obscured by their fellows.)

I’m On An Exercise Quest

Posted on July 27, 2008 by mlo

I have found that I have packed on the pounds due to some medical issues. As hard as it might be to believe, I used to be in reasonable shape! I did Middle Eastern Dance, Pilates, weight lifting, some pretty sad swimming (I’m a piss poor swimmer – DH, is a very strong swimmer, however.)

Shoot, once upon a time I could do the whole original The Firm Volume 1 with Susan Harris. This is a workout that will kicks my butt – and it has helped me in the past. It really, really works. Many athletes that think they are in shape try to do this workout the first few times and find themselves being defeated! It is still a major classic in the workout world and I wish they would release it on DVD! (I know that a few DVDs were released, but those are now going for near to 70 USD on the second hand market!)

Susan Harris was a master instructor – and despite the many people who hate her voice (I don’t), I think this is the best of the original series. I know many video exercisers still use this – with some modifications. What modifications? Switch to a quick march instead of a run, slow down some of the reps to keep form, and some things any experienced exerciser should know. In truth, when I watch the floor work, it reminds me of the very advanced Pilates stuff I’ve seen (and despite having had a really strong abdomen in the past, could never do as well as Ms. Harris!).

Right now, however, I’m not in very good shape. I’m also older. I am, as a matter of fact, rather pathetic. If I were to try and do the Susan Harris workout I’d probably keel over. I do, however, have The Firm Basics – all three videos. (These also need to be released on DVD.) They ease you into it. This is interval training which helps fight off osteoporosis and burn fat faster.

These videos ease you into The Firm methods with use of a very tall step (14″ to 19″ inch high) and a dowel to help stabilize you while trying to do some very deep squats and lunges. Despite the help, it is still a very hard workout!

The instructors are excellent. They emphasize form – and go slow enough so that you can actually learn the form. (This is a very big deal to get the maximum results from any workout – and to just be safe when working out.) These are set up, largely, as interval training. You will get your heart rate up, then you will get to lifting weights. As with any new workout:

Don’t try and do the whole thing the first time through.
Don’t use weights – or use very light weights if you have been lifting – the first few times you do any of these workouts!

I admit, I have started with just an aerobic workout on the treadmill. I’ve been easing into it with 50 minutes on the treadmill – with lots of inclines and speed changes – every other day for the past week. Honestly, my glutes hurt (in the “they are actually doing something” way.)

So, I’m going to be boring you all with trying to blog about my newfound push to get somewhat back into shape. (Notice how I snuck in a review of The Firm: Volume 1 and The Firm: Basics?) I even (finally) bought a heart rate monitor that I have been wanting for a few years. I decided on the Mio Classic Select Petite Heart Rate Monitor Watch.

Just an FYI, some friends and I are toying with the idea of a podcast on crafts and other stuff. If we decide to go forward, well, I’ll let you all know.

Lucy Neatby April 2007 Class

Posted on May 7, 2007 by mlo

Overview

I had the distinct pleasure of taking 3 classes with Lucy Neatby (pictured right):

Fringes, Folderols, and Furbelows!
Seeing Double – Clearly!
Every Which Way But Loose! Multi-directional Knitting

The classes were sponsored by Heritage Spinning and Weaving in Lake Orion Michigan. This is one of the best knitting, weaving, and spinning stores in Michigan.

The classes are worth every penny! Lucy makes some seemingly complex techniques easy. One of the things that I really liked about her teaching method was her use of her DVDs (reviews to come) during the class. She would project – without sound – the up-close technique from her DVD while going over the technique.

This allows Lucy to use her time to give more individual attention to the knitters in the class. The student can just look up and see the technique whenever she forgets what she is doing.

Despite the brain fog I suffered from – there was a great deal I learned. The photograph to the above left displays some of my accomplishments. These included using beads, a Latvian Twist, and a number of other unusual finishing touches.

On my drive home, my brain finally remembered what a cast-on / cast-off was. I went home and watched some weird conglomeration of movie clips purporting that Fidel Castro was an alien invader while eating dinner. It’s called Tribulation 99. It was just very, very strange.

Saturday:

Saturday was the day of Seeing Double – Clearly! This is double-knitting. How it works is you knit in the round with just two needles. Now, I know I was successful at doing this, but I don’t remember exactly what was involved. From the picture, you can see that we cast on two different colored yarns – a pink and blue yarn in my case. The colors alternate and then you knit the pink yarn into the pink yarn and the blue yarn into the blue yarn.

This, of course, has all sorts of possibilities. You can create a pocket while knitting a sweater. You can create a bag when you can’t find your double-points or circular needles. Of course, you can even do stranded-type color work to create a double-sided blanket. It would be a really warm blanket.

Sunday:

Sunday was the third day of the marathon learning session. Lucy introduced a variety of multi-directional knitting. We created samples of entrelac, mitered knitting, diamond knitting, and short row shaping.

I almost forgot! We got to create mini log cabin type samples: