megalodon Louis J. Sheehan

The megalodon (pronounced /ˡmɛ.gə.ləˌdɒn/ or MEG-a-la-don; meaning "big tooth" or in Greek as μέγας 'οδόντος) was a giant shark that lived in prehistoric times, between about 18 million to 1.5 million years ago and was the apex predator of its time. The oldest C. megalodon teeth found are about 18 million years old.^[1] C. megalodon became extinct in the Pleistocene epoch probably about 1.5 million years ago.^[2] It is the largest carnivorous fish known to have existed,^[1] and quite possibly the largest shark ever to have lived.

Scientists suggest that C. megalodon could grow to more than 15 metres (49 ft) long. This species is a member of the Lamnidae family but its classification is in dispute and a new genus has been proposed. Fossil evidence has revealed that megalodon fed upon large animals, including the early whales.^[2]

Taxonomy

The Swiss naturalist, Louis Agassiz, gave this shark its scientific name, Carcharodon megalodon in 1835,^[3] in his research work Recherches sur les poissons fossiles^[4] (Research on fossil fish), which he completed in 1843. Due to the dental similarities of the teeth of the great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, and megalodon, Agassiz proposed Carcharodon as the genus.^[3] In-short, this shark is termed C. megalodon by shark researchers. However, it is often dubbed the "mega-tooth shark" or "giant white shark."http://louis_j_sheehan.today.com

[edit] Classification dispute

Cladogram of the "hastalis hypothesis" highlighting the position of C. megalodon Muizon et al. 1985[3] Lamniformes void void void I. hastalis void Sacaco Sp. C. carcharias void C. megalodon *Note: The hastalis hypothesis shows that C. carcharias is more closely related to I. hastalis than C. megalodon.[3]

There is a major disagreement among scientists as to how C. megalodon should be classified.^[1][2] The controversy is that whether C. megalodon is a close relative of the extant great white shark or whether the two species are distant relatives. The trend among shark researchers is to dismiss the statement that C. megalodon is a close relative of the great white shark, in favor of citing convergent evolution as the reason for the dental similarity.

[edit] Megalodon within Carcharodon

The traditional view is that C. megalodon should be classified within the genus Carcharodon along with the great white shark. The Carcharodon proponents suggest that C. megalodon and C. carcharias share a common ancestor known as Carcharodon orientalis.^[1][3][6]

[edit] Megalodon within Carcharocles

Around 1923, the genus, Carcharocles, was proposed by two shark researchers, D. S. Jordan and H. Hannibal, to classify a very similar shark C. auriculatus. Many marine biologists and paleontologists are now favoring the Carcharocles genus for C. megalodon.^{[1][2][3][7][8]} One reason for this shift is that the teeth of C. megalodon are also similar to the teeth of some sharks that belong to Carcharocles lineage. The Carcharocles proponents suggest that the direct ancestor of the sharks belonging to the Carcharocles genus, is an ancient shark called Otodus obliquus, which lived during the Paleocene and Eocene epochs.^[1][7] According to Carcharocles proponents, Otodus obliquus evolved in to Carcharocles aksuaticus,^[1][7] which evolved in to Carcharocles auriculatus,^[1][7] which evolved into Carcharocles augustidens,^[1][7] which evolved into Carcharocles chubutensis,^[1][7] which eventually evolved into megalodon.^[1][7] Hence, the immediate ancestor of C. megalodon is Carcharocles chubutensis,^[1][7] because it serves as the missing link between Carcharocles augustidens and C. megalodon and it bridges the loss of the "lateral cusps" that characterize C. megalodon.^[1][7]

Carcharocles proponents also point out that the great white shark is more closely related to an ancient shark Isurus hastalis, the "broad tooth mako," than C. megalodon. This suggestion is given credence by many scientists due to some convincing evidence.^[3][8][9] One reason is that the teeth of I. hastalis and C. carcharias are remarkably similar in shape, differing only in that the former lack the characteristic serrations of the latter.^[1][3][9]

[edit] Anatomy and appearance

Carcharodontosaurus tooth from the Sahara Desert with a C. megalodon tooth, and a 25 mm diameter coin (US quarter).

C. megalodon is known primarily from fossil teeth and a few fossilized vertebral centra.^[10] As with all other sharks, the megalodon skeleton was formed of cartilage and not bone, resulting in a poor skeletal fossil record.^[2] The teeth are in many ways similar to great white shark teeth but are much larger and can measure up to more than 18 cm in slant.^[1]

Nevertheless, it is extrapolations from the shape and size of the teeth of C. megalodon when compared with related modern sharks and studies of their physical characteristics, that provide us with our conceptions about what this ancient superpredator might have looked like in life. Thus far, the great white shark has been considered the favored model for the basis for the reconstruction of C. megalodon.^[6][10]

[edit] Size estimation

Megalodon with the great white shark and a human for scale

Estimating the maximum size of C. megalodon is a highly controversial subject. An early jaw reconstruction of this shark, developed by Professor Bashford Dean in 1909, indicates a length of more than 25 metres (82 ft), but that jaw reconstruction is now considered to be inaccurate.^[10] One reason is that the teeth used as posteriors in this jaw reconstruction were not true posterior teeth. However, several scientists have tried to solve this issue in later years.

In 1973, the ichthyiologist John E. Randall suggested a method to measure the size of the large sharks.^[11] According to Randall, the enamel height of the largest tooth in the upper jaw of the shark can be used to determine its total length. He concluded that C. megalodon could grow to 13 metres (43 ft).^[11]

However, in 1996, three shark experts, Michael D. Gottfried, Leonard J. V. Compagno and S. Curtis Bowman, questioned the reliability of Randall's method. According to them, shark's tooth enamel height does not necessarily increase in proportion with the animal's total length.^[6] Gottfried and his co-workers tried to solve this issue by means of conducting new research and analysis to create a method for measuring the size of large sharks (including C. megalodon) with much greater accuracy, which was published in 1996. The actual method to determine the size is: "Megatooth's" Total Length in meters = [− (0.22) + (0.096) × (Slant height of tooth in [mm])].^[6] This method has often been interpreted as: "Megatooth's" Total Length in meters = [(0.96) × (Slant height of tooth in [cm] − (0.22))], because it yields same results.^[12] Using this new method, the maximum size of megalodon was calculated to be 15.9 metres (52 ft) with a body mass of more than 50 short tons (45 MT).^[6] But this calculation was based on a 168 mm (6⅝ inch) long upper anterior tooth, which was the biggest tooth in the possession of this team at the time. Since then, even larger C. megalodon teeth have been excavated which indicate that the shark could grow to more than 17 metres (56 ft).^[1][12][13]

Shark researcher Cliff Jeremiah also has suggested a method to determine the size of the large sharks, including C. megalodon,^[1] and his method is considered to be among the most reliable.^[1] He suggested that the jaw perimeter of a shark is directly proportional to its total length, with the width of the roots of the largest teeth being a proxy for estimating jaw perimeter. For every centimeter of root width of the largest tooth, he asserts, there was approximately 4.5 feet of the shark. He concluded that C. megalodon could grow up to 18.2 metres (60 ft).^[1] Many scientists acknowledge this conclusion.^[1][14]

Hence, from the research of several scientists, it is clear that C. megalodon is the largest macropredatory shark that has ever lived and is among the largest fishes known to have existed.^[6]

[edit] Jaw dentition

Reconstructed Megalodon jaws on display at the National Aquarium, Napier, New Zealand. The man in the picture is 5'10"/1.78m

Some scientists including Applegate and Espinosa published an artificial dental formula for C. megalodon in 1996.^[10] Several modern C. megalodon jaw reconstructions are based on this dental formula. http://louis_j_sheehan.today.com

The dental formula of C. megalodon is:

2.1.7.4

3.0.8.4

As evident from the dental formula, the jaws of C. megalodon contained four different kinds of teeth.^[10]

• Anterior - A
• Intermediate - I (In the case of C. megalodon, this tooth appears to be upper anterior and is technically termed as "A3" because it is fairly symmetrical and does not points mesially, but this tooth is still designated as an intermediate tooth.^[3] However, in the case of the great white shark, the intermediate tooth does points mesially. This point has often been raised in the Carcharodon vs. Carcharocles debate regarding the megalodon and favors the case of Carcharocles proponents.)
• Lateral - L
• Posterior - P

Paleontologists suggest that C. megalodon had a total of about 250 teeth in its jaws.^[1]

[edit] Skeletal reconstruction

Aside from estimating the size of C. megalodon, Gottfried and his colleagues also have tried to determine what C. megalodon might have looked like in real life.^[6] After conducting a comprehensive analysis of the available evidence, they concluded that C. megalodon was a very robust shark and it was more massively proportioned than many modern large sharks including C. carcharias due to several reasons including:

• C. megalodon had a more massive, stouter and more strongly developed chondrocranium and jaws than those of modern macropredatory sharks, in order to functionally support a massive and very robust dentition.^[6]
• The fins of C. megalodon were significantly larger and thicker because they needed to be adapted for propulsion and control of movements of such a massive shark.^[6]
• It had a higher vertebral count than that of any large shark including C. carcharias.^[6]

Gottfried and his colleagues eventually developed a model of the entire skeleton of C. megalodon with the above mentioned characteristics, which has been put on display in Calvert Marine Museum at Solomons island, Maryland in USA.^[6][7][15]

[edit] Distribution, range and habitat

C. megalodon was a pelagic fish and it thrived in all the oceans of the world in its time, indicating dominance over the marine world. The teeth of this ancient shark have been excavated from many parts of the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Africa, Malta and India.^[1][10]

C. megalodon most likely inhabited warm water regions around the world.^[2] Its range would not have been constricted by its reliance on warm waters as the oceans were noticeably warmer during the Miocene and early Pliocene. This would have made it possible for this species to flourish around the world, as evident from the fossil records.

[edit] Paleoecology

[edit] Diet

It is believed that C. megalodon would have had a huge appetite, which would be necessary for sustenance of its enormous bulk.^[15] It was contemporaneous with a large variety of marine animals, including various species of whales. Several whale vertebrae and bones have been found with clear signs of large bite marks made by the teeth that match those of C. megalodon.^[1][6][10] The teeth of C. megalodon are serrated,^[1][3] which would have improved efficiency in slicing the flesh of prey items. Various excavations have revealed C. megalodon teeth lying close to the chewed remains of whales.^[6][7] This evidence suggests a predator-prey relationship between C. megalodon and large marine animals including whales ^[10] (e.g. sperm whales,^[1] Cetotherium,^[2] and Odobenocetops^[16]), sirenians,^[1] dolphins,^[1] and pinnipeds.^[2] Like other sharks, C. megalodon was certainly piscivorous as well.^[2][15]

[edit] Behavior

Most sharks are opportunistic predators and rely on a broad spectrum of prey coupled with scavenging. C. megalodon was unlikely to have been an exception to this rule.^[2] Some large sharks (including the great white shark) employ ambush strategies against their prey during hunting. A shark usually attacks its prey with great force in the first attempt to inflict maximum possible damage. Then it circles its prey and waits for it to weaken, before dispatching it without facing any resistance. Some paleontologists suggest that C. megalodon also may have employed a similar hunting strategy against large potential prey, like adult whales. Several fossilized flipper bones, and caudal vertebrae of whales have been found with bite marks that were caused by the attacks from C. megalodon.^[1][6] This evidence indicates that C. megalodon most likely injured and immobilized its prey by biting off its propulsive structures, before proceeding to feed on it.^[1][6]

However, remains of a large prehistoric baleen whale have been excavated from Chesapeake Bay, which provided the first opportunity to quantitatively analyse the feeding behavior of C. megalodon, and this specimen revealed that the attacking behavior of C. megalodon may have been more aggressive than that of the great white shark.^[13] One reason is that the shark apparently focused its attack on the bony portions of the prey, which great white sharks generally avoid.^[13]

From fossil evidence, juvenile C. megalodon individuals would mostly prefer to attack small-to-medium sized prey, such as porpoises, other sharks, pinnipeds and juvenile whales. Hence, through ontogeny C. megalodon proceeded to hunt larger animals.^[6] In addition, fossil evidence suggests that the preferred breeding grounds of C. megalodon were mostly warm coastal regions. http://louis_j_sheehan.today.com

[edit] Extinction hypotheses

Man sitting on Carcharodon megalodon jaws

There are several hypotheses as to how an apex predator like C. megalodon suddenly became extinct after millions of years of existence. However, the extinction of large-bodied marine predators, such as pliosaurs, mosasaurs, ichthyosaurs and Basilosaurus, are instructive as to the possible mechanism involved.

Scientists believe that C. megalodon disappeared due to a variety of reasons.^[2] The geological and climatic conditions of the world when C. megalodon existed, were considerably different from those now. It is possible that these major climatic changes may have been unfavorable for C. megalodon. Some notable climatic shifts are:

• During the late Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs there were significant ice ages,^[17][18] which cooled the oceans significantly.^[10]
• From the fossil record, whale migratory patterns from the end Pliocene have been reconstructed, suggesting that some species migrated to polar regions, effectively "getting out of the range" of C. megalodon.^[2][10]
• Prolonged disturbance of food chains can wipe out predators with massive metabolic requirements. During the Pliocene, some species of whales and dolphins (e.g. Odobenocetops and Cetotherium) became extinct. As these species would most likely have been among the potential prey of C. megalodon,^[2] sustaining the dietary requirements of such a large predator would have become increasingly difficult.
• In addition, wide-scale glaciation trapped much of the oceanic salt water during the late Pliocene and Pleistocene through-out the ice ages. At its height sea levels dropped significantly, restricting many shallow coastal areas, that have been thought to serve as breeding grounds for the C. megalodon pups.^[2]

Consequently, a hypothesis can be constructed, that at the end of the Pliocene, the polar seas became too cold for C. megalodon to survive. Several species of whales, including cetotheriids, became extinct during the late Pliocene, while some whale species showed a trend towards the cooler polar regions. Many of the shallow warm water regions dried out at that time, that may have been breeding grounds for C. megalodon. As such, these significant disturbances in the ecosystem would have caused major problems for C. megalodon. Being unable to follow the surviving whale species into the polar seas the food supply of C. megalodon lessened, which over time lead to the extinction of the species.^[2]

In fiction and popular culture

Ever since the remains of C. megalodon were discovered, it has been an object of fascination. It has been portrayed in several works of fiction, including films and novels, and continues to hold its place among the most popular subjects for fictional works involving sea monsters. It is interesting to note that many of these works of fiction posit that at least some C. megalodon actually survived extinction and lurk in the depths of the ocean. In such works, the megalodon is usually shown to surface from the vast depths of the oceans, either as a result of human intervention or through natural means.

way 0000190.99 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire

Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire Escherichia coli (E. coli) can give you a severe case of food poisoning or, with a little genetic engineering, a useful plastic. Scientists at San Diego–based Genomatica, Inc., have announced success in manipulating the bacteria to directly produce butanediol (BDO), a chemical compound used to make everything from spandex to car bumpers, thereby providing a more energy-efficient way of making it without oil or natural gas. http://Louis-J-Sheehan.de

"We have engineered the organism such that it has to secrete that product in order for it to grow," says bioengineer Christophe Schilling, president and co-founder of the company, launched in 2000 to develop such chemical-producing microbes. "The interests of the organism are aligned with our interests: It grows faster when it produces more."

The E. coli can be grown in large fermentation tanks, exactly like those used to brew ethanol from corn, and have also been genetically tweaked to tolerate high concentrations of BDO in their water. "Originally, BDO was toxic to E. coli at fairly low levels but we evolved the organism such that it now tolerates the concentration we need it to grow at," Schilling says. "We grow the bacteria in sugar and water to produce the product, then purify and separate that product out of that water."

Schilling and his colleagues are attempting to produce BDO first precisely because current methods of making it require are so energy-intensive. "You need some significant energy," says chemist Herbert Exner, an executive in charge of producing BDO and other chemicals in the U.S. at Germany-based chemical giant BASF, one of the largest BDO manufacturers in the world.

In addition, BDO itself is getting more expensive, rising from below $1 to around $1.22 per pound for bulk orders, Exner says. "Natural gas and oil peaked in the last 12 months and all processes are either gas or oil related," he says. "Therefore, by nature, the raw material costs went up, so also the prices for BDO went up."

Cost will be the ultimate factor in whether this someday becomes a widely used plastic-making process; Genomatica says it's not sure how much its E. coli–produced BDO will cost, noting that results thus far have been confined to the lab.

But the company calculates that their process (even including all the energy needed to gather and transport the raw feedstocks, ranging from sugar to cellulose) requires only 32,000 British thermal units (Btus) of energy, at least 30 percent less than traditional methods. CEO Christopher Gann says the company plans to use "inexpensive, readily available, nonfood-competing renewable feedstocks." Then the E. coli can turn these waste sugars into BDO at normal pressure and temperatures under 105 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius), unlike the petroleum alternatives.

"This isn't an aberration where we need $250 per barrel oil to be cost competitive," Gann adds. He says the researchers so far have produced less than two pounds (a kilogram) of BDO; he expects a pilot plant to be up and running next year.

"Natural gas or oil are materials that could one day be gone," BASF's Exner says. But "major industries, such as auto manufacturers are not willing to pay a significantly higher price just because you gave your product a bio-label."

Given that three billion pounds (1.4 billion kilograms) of BDO are produced annually relatively cheaply, Genomatica has a long way to go. But the company suggests that its genetically engineered E. coli may prove a more sustainable way of producing a range of necessary plastic compounds in the future.

"We selected BDO to start with because it's a product that is relatively sophisticated in the sense of the number of steps to make it starting from oil and gas," Gann says. "In our case, we start with land and water and sunshine to end up with sugar in water to produce BDO. The important competitive advantage is less energy and a much friendlier environmental footprint." Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire

older

Louis J. Sheehan

Children born to older fathers might have an increased risk of developing bipolar disorder, Swedish researchers report in the September Archives of General Psychiatry.

The finding is a statistical association drawn from a large population survey. But it falls in line with earlier studies suggesting that children sired by older men face a greater-than-average risk of being stillborn, miscarried or having schizophrenia, cancer or autism.

The theory linking paternal age with an offspring’s health rests on the genetics of aging sperm. Spontaneous mutations can accumulate in the genes of a man’s sperm cells as he ages. These cells divide as many as 660 times by the time a man reaches 40, by some estimates. Each division increases the risk of acquiring a harmful mutation from erroneous gene copying, the theory holds.

Women don’t face this risk since the number of eggs a woman carries is set at birth, each having divided 23 times at that point and no more. But older women do face a higher risk of having a child with Down syndrome.

In the new study, epidemiologist Emma Frans of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and her colleagues used a national registry to identify 13,428 people who had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder during at least two hospital admissions. For comparison purposes, each of these individuals was matched with five randomly selected people of the same gender and year of birth.

People fathered by men 55 or older had a 37 percent greater risk of being bipolar than those sired by men age 20 through 24. If the father was age 30 through 54, he imparted only a modestly increased risk. Being sired by a father age 25 through 29 did not add a risk. The researchers accounted for education level, age of the mother, family history of psychotic disorders and the number of children the mother had.

For people diagnosed with bipolar disorder before age 20, the late paternity effect was even more pronounced. Researchers found that people born to men over age 40 seemed to incur double the risk of being bipolar in youth as those fathered by men in their early 20s.

Other studies have suggested that having a close, personal relative with bipolar disorder increases a person’s risk of developing the condition. That association’s increase is much greater than any risk from merely having an older father, Frans says.

Bipolar disorder appears to have a clear genetic component, particularly when the condition shows up in youth, says epidemiologist Ronald Kessler of Harvard Medical School in Boston. But this study may not catch all men with bipolar disorder, and many bipolar men go through multiple marriages and often father children as they go along, he says.

http://www.thoughts.com/Zeta0Reticuli0Louis0J0Sheehan0/blog

“I wonder whether men who have more severe bipolar disorder are just more likely to have kids at 40 or 50?” he asks. If so, that would exaggerate any risk seemingly imparted by aging itself, he says. The explanation “may be a psychosocial one,” he says.

http://www.thoughts.com/Zeta0Reticuli0Louis0J0Sheehan0/blog

biomedicine 0000202 Louis J. Sheehan

Louis J. Sheehan

As people wait expectantly for answers from John McCain and Barack Obama to the Science Debate ’08 questions, some clues of what might be coming can be gleaned from the senators’ answers to a written questionnaire sent the candidates by Research! America. This group bills itself as the nation's largest not-for-profit public education and advocacy alliance. It should be noted, however, that the Alexandria, Va.-based group has a definite bias. It’s stated mission: “making research to improve health a higher national priority.”

Earlier this week, I spoke with Stacie M. Propst, the organization’s vice president for science policy and outreach about McCain and Obama. “There are some commonalities between the candidates that come through loud and clear,” she said. “Both would shift to a health-care system that addresses and preempts disease.” Both also value research as the foundation of innovation, back stem-cell research (though McCain with caveats), want to reform the H-1B visa program to allow in more non-immigrant foreign workers with specialty skills (that include but are not limited to engineering, mathematics, physical sciences and medicine), and favor digitizing medical records to streamline costs and limit medical errors.

“We do a lot of opinion research,” Propst says, “and we started to see a trend emerge from the public — that although Americans say they would back a candidate who supports greater funding for research, they don’t actually know that much about the positions on this by their elected officials and candidates.”

Obama sent in his responses to Research! America’s 17 questions late last year. McCain’s answers arrived much later — this summer. The group also has responses from Chuck O. Baldwin (the Constitution party candidate from Palmyra, N.Y.), Rep. Bob Barr (the Libertarian party candidate from Atlanta), Rep. Cynthia McKinney (the Green party candidate from Atlanta), and Ralph Nader (the Independent candidate from Washington, D.C.).

You can view the whole list of responses on the group’s website. Below, I’ve digested what seemed the salient elements of responses from Obama and McCain for people who are more generally interested in the research.

---

Research America’s Questions to Presidential Candidates
What’s your view of our current health care system?
Obama: He says the system is broken and needs a complete overhaul. “My plan will: (1) establish a new public insurance program, available to Americans who neither qualify for Medicaid or State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) nor have access to insurance through their employers, as well as to small businesses that want to offer insurance to their employees; (2) create a National Health Insurance Exchange to help Americans and businesses that want to purchase private health insurance directly; (3) require all employers to contribute towards health coverage for their employees or towards the cost of the public plan ; (4) mandate all children have health care coverage; (5) expand eligibility for the Medicaid and SCHIP programs; and (6) allow flexibility for state health reform plans.”	McCain: “The biggest problem with the American health care system is that it costs too much.” Would provide families with $5,000 refundable tax credit to purchase insurance of their choice; ensure insurance is portable — not linked to job; invest in research promoting new treatments and wellness strategies.
How would you increase a focus on prevention and wellness?
Obama: His program “commits to promoting healthier lifestyles in schools, the workplace, and the home, as well as preventive services, disease management, care coordination, and other efforts. Too many Americans go without high‐value preventive services, such as cancer screening and immunizations to protect against flu or pneumonia. Providers are not adequately reimbursed for helping patients manage chronic illnesses like diabetes or asthma. . . . Our health care system has become a disease care system, and the time for change is well overdue.” Initiating a focus on prevention and wellness “is a critical part of my health care plan.”	McCain: Insurance should “reward and encourage healthy behavior,” such as offering “reduced premiums for healthy lifestyle behavior as well as surcharges for individuals who continue to elect proven unhealthy lifestyle behaviors.” Would also support wider implementation of stop-smoking programs; fight childhood obesity through programs designed at the local level that might include “removing [school] vending machines, providing healthy, low fat menus in school cafeterias, and providing more physical education and recess opportunities.
What’s your opinion on current funding for the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Food and Drug Administration?
Obama: The U.S. must “increase” funding for NIH, CDC, AHRQ and FDA. In particular, “FDA is badly underfunded for its responsibilities. As our economy brings a rising tide of imported products, the FDA urgently needs expert staff and technology to more rigorously inspect imported food, drugs, and other products like pet food. The FDA must also be freed from the Bush Administration's ideological straightjacket to protect the public health on the basis of sound science. As president, I will end the delays in approving RU‐486, the pressures to silence internal drug safety critics, and the attempts to protect drug companies from product liability.”	McCain: “I strongly support funding” for NIH, CDC, AHRQ and FDA.
How important are U.S. efforts to improve health globally?
Obama: “America’s security is strengthened when we strengthen those weak states that are at risk of collapse, economic meltdown or public health crises. As president, I will double U.S. foreign aid assistance by 2012, and ensure that we work with other nations to improve international public health.”	McCain: “[By] helping provide medical care and public health interventions in areas of need, we will contribute to a more peaceful and stable world and foster a more positive view of the United States while safeguarding our nation’s health and strengthening our national security.
Do you support or oppose increased federal funding for state/local health departments and hospitals that are expected to prepare for and respond to threats to our health?
Obama: “Our public health departments’ workforce and finances are stretched too thin to carry out traditional public health functions, such as ensuring our water is safe to drink, the air is safe to breathe, and out food is safe eat. These traditional public health functions have evolved to include responsibility for disaster preparedness and responding to both natural and man-made disasters. Accordingly, I will champion a renewed focus and the necessary resources to improve public health and prevention.” Moreover, “the field of public health would benefit from greater research,” recruitment of more trained personnel, and “modernizing our physical structures, particularly our public health laboratories.”	McCain: As health departments and hospitals “are our first line of response against public health threats, both natural and man-made – everything from a flu outbreak to bioterrorism . . . [w]e need to ensure that there is an important focus on developing a strong regional and national strategic plan that focuses on better coordination, improved communication capabilities, and greater accountability.”
How would you characterize and prioritize the apparent shortages and/or poor distribution of certain health care professionals — physicians, nurses, and dentists?
Obama: Creating incentives to recruit well qualified people into these fields is “a top priority.”	McCain: “I will ensure that there are proper incentives in place to address the workforce shortage.” These might include: encouraging more scholarships and loan programs to ensure greater health-care staffing in areas (like primary care) with critical shortages through appropriate funding of programs like the National Health Service Corps, ensuring diverse practitioners are available “to provide culturally component care,” and offering more training internships and fellowships at centers such as NIH and CDC.
Do you support or oppose expanded federal funding for research using embryonic stem cells?
Obama: Stem cells hold the promise of treatments and cures for more than 70 major diseases — conditions affecting more than 100 million Americans. “As president, I would: promote embryonic stem cell research" (as he did when he introduced legislation as a member of the Illinois Senate "that specifically permitted embryonic stem cell research in Illinois”). He would also expand the number of stem cell lines available for research. He cosponsored the current Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act. "My plan would reverse the president’s policy that has allowed hundreds of thousands of frozen embryos, left over from in vitro fertilization, to simply be discarded.”	McCain: ““While I do support federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, I also believe that clear lines should be drawn to reflect a refusal to sacrifice moral values and ethical principles for the sake of scientific progress. Moreover, I believe that recent scientific breakthroughs raise the hope that one day this debate will be rendered academic. I also support funding for other research programs, including amniotic fluid and adult stem cell research which hold much scientific promise and do not involve the use of embryos. I strongly oppose the intentional creation of human embryos for research purposes. I voted to ban the practice of 'fetal farming,' making it a federal crime for researchers to use cells or fetal tissue from an embryo created for research purposes."
Should mental health services be part of all public and private health-care plans?
Obama: “I am a long-time supporter of mental health parity. I helped pass the Illinois mental health parity law. And my national public health plan will include coverage of all essential medical services, including preventive, maternity and mental health care.”	McCain: “I support mental health parity to ensure that mental health coverage is on par with medical and surgical benefits.”
Comparative-effectiveness research compares two alternative treatments to see which works better for the average patient. Many feel Medicare and private insurers should only cover the most effective treatment. Others feel that since comparative effectiveness only determines which treatment works best on average, the ultimate decision as to what treatment should be left to doctors. What’s your view?
Obama: “One of the keys to eliminating waste and missed opportunities in our health care system is to increase our investment in comparative effectiveness reviews and research.“	McCain: “Although comparative effectiveness research holds great promise in helping us [improve the value of health care spending] by better informing us about effectiveness of treatments, we need to ensure that this does not stifle the spirit of innovation in our medical sciences . . . and maintains patient choice.”
Is the U.S. in danger of losing its global competitive edge in science, technology and innovation?
Obama: “[T]he U.S. has the potential to lose its global competitive edge in science, technology and innovation unless we take steps to change the current trend.” He’d double federal funding for basic research in the physical sciences and engineering research; make the R&D tax credit permanent; produce more math and science graduates (especially women and minorities) and encourage more of them to do graduate work; reform the visa programs (including the H-1B program) to attract some of the world’s most talented people to America. Would also bring “true broadband” to every community in America through a combination of reform of the Universal Service Fund, and make better use of the nation’s wireless spectrum. http://louis-j-sheehan.com	McCain: ““I am committed to federal policies that ensure America’s competitive edge . . . Maintaining our tech edge requires robust basic research and sustained development efforts. I will support innovation by funding basic research and reforming and making permanent the R&D tax credit. We also need to keep the Internet tax-free.” He is also “a strong supporter of H-1B expansion”. H-1B “reforms should eliminate the artificial limits and allow the Department of Labor to set a level of visas appropriate for market conditions.”