WEDNESDAY 4th NOVEMBER 2015 06:57 GMT

Read my book - ENLIGHTENMENT FOR ORDINARY FOLK
 
Also available - EMOTIONAL MANAGEMENT FOR ORDINARY FOLK
 
WISDOM, HUMOUR, AND LOTS OF OTHER INTERESTING STUFF CAN BE FOUND ON MY PINTEREST PAGE and FACEBOOK PAGE
TO FIND OUT WHAT I DO, CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE

1. ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY
4th November 1847
The discovery of chloroform
Prior to chloroform, two anaesthetic substances had been discovered - nitrous oxide had been the first in 1799, but proved too weak on its own to fully prevent pain. In 1846, William T.G. Morton had discovered and used the first practical general anaesthetic, diethyl ether, though it had the disadvantage of being irritating to the lungs.

Dr James Young Simpson and two of his friends, Drs Keith and Duncan used to sit every evening in Dr Simpson's dining room to try new chemicals to see if they had any anaesthetic effect. On 4 November 1847 they decided to try a liquid material named chloroform that they had previously ignored. On inhaling the chemical they found that a general mood of cheer and humour had set in. But suddenly all of them collapsed only to regain consciousness the next morning. Simpson knew, as soon as he woke up, that he had found something that could be used as an anaesthetic.

This was followed, three days later, by the first use of chloroform on an actual patient, for a dental procedure, by Francis Brodie Imlach (1819-1891), also in Edinburgh.

However, though a powerful, useful and effective anaesthetic, it caused intense post-operative nausea and vomiting, and also subsequently proved toxic, an overdose causing rapid death. The potential of a fatal overdose prompted the invention of the anaesthetic vaporizer by physician John Snow in 1848, so that the dose could be controlled. Snow then used it filled with chloroform during the birth of Queen Victoria's last two children, which ended the religious taboo of pain relief during childbirth.


In the 1930's, with the gradual development of better vaporizers to deliver the safer ether and other safer anaesthetics with less side-effects (chloroform caused nausea and vomiting), chloroform was phased-out of medicine entirely, but continues to be a useful industrial solvent.

2. TODAY IN MY LIFE
Blogging
Shopping
Meditation
Me Time 
Missus Time

Twitter Followers = 2,027 (up 1)
Non-followed eliminated = 0
-
Unfollowers eliminated = 0
-
New Followers followed back = 1
@johnrampton
Spammers not followed back = 0
-

3. TODAY'S SELF-OBSERVATION

After the indulgence of Monday, Tuesday was somewhat more disciplined, and in the absence of external pressures, it's important to pursue my own internal discipline and structure. In addition, though I don't yet have a strategy, I need to revive creative thinking - if you want to grow you have to do new stuff and old stuff differently! The very fact I'm now thinking about it will begin to kick-start it.

I'm at a stage where I've finally fully mastered how to think and how this character relates to the world, I now need to move on and start to crystallize new goals for this character. As well as making a difference, they have to be things I actually want to do and be within the parameters of my circumstances. 

4. TODAY'S QUESTION FOR YOU
What does happiness mean to you?

5. TODAY'S WEATHER IN BRADFORD
Foggy throughout, though it may temporarily rise to low cloud in the afternoon
Wind negligible
Max Temp = 11 degC at 3pm
Min Temp = 9 degC at 7am
Sunrise at 07:12
Sunset at 16:28
Moon: 

Weathertrack: A weak weather front moving slowly north will bring cloudy, foggy and damp conditions

Air Pressure: 1013 millibars and static

6. TODAY'S ONELINER

If the new Steve Jobs movie is no good, Apple will blame the audience for not watching it properly :D 

7. NOW THAT'S FUNNY!

Ed Byrne on feminist posters

8. TRIVIA

8.5% of the world's billionaires are women

9. ZEN WISDOM

Along with instinctive desire, we have intelligence, conscience, the ability to love, and a sense of compassion. It is the ability to use these powers to satisfy our instinctive desires, while yet keeping them under control, that distinguishes us as human beings.