Word: tick
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CLOCK WATCHING Last week the board of directors at the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the hands of its Doomsday Clock ahead five minutes--to nine minutes before midnight. We asked Bulletin editor Mike Moore what makes this clock tick...
...disease. But a new weapon may be at hand. After a nationwide clinical trial involving some 11,000 people, an advisory panel last week urged the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to approve a novel vaccine developed by SmithKline Beecham under the name Lymerix. The vaccine works when the tick is sucking the victim's blood, launching antibodies against the bacteria even before they've left the tick's gut. Although it took three shots over 12 months to achieve it, the vaccine gave immunity to 90% of the test subjects ages 15 to 65 (it is somewhat less effective...
...panel recommend, pending further testing, use by pregnant women, people with chronic arthritis or youngsters under 18--a group with one of the highest risks of exposure. So even if the FDA gives Lymerix a quick O.K., it won't be of much help against this summer's tick onslaught...
Instead, if you're outdoor-bound in a tick-infested area this season, you would be well advised to take special precautions: dose yourself with a tick repellent, wear long sleeves and pants (with cuffs tucked stylishly under your socks) and avoid high grass. If a close examination of personal nooks and crannies afterward reveals any suspect pinhead-size specks, remove them gently with tweezers...
...nurse, fully clad in surgeon's scrubs and clogs, stares blankly at the tracks ahead of her, waiting for the train to take her from Harvard Square to Mass General Hospital for her shift. As the seconds tick away, she realizes that she's humming quietly and tapping her feet to a nearby rhythm. She can't help but turn her head to catch a glance at the musician sitting on the bench several feet to her left. He plays a familiar Stevie Wonder love ballad, one she's heard on the radio from time to time during the morning...