On the weekends after two Harry Potter books were released, young people’s emergency room visits were reduced by almost half!

J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books sell millions in the days following their releases.”The Order of the Phoenix” was released in summer 2003. “The Half-Blood Prince,” the final Harry Potter book, came out in summer 2005. A British researcher got the idea to study E.R. visits after the release of the last two Harry Potter books when he saw his children glued to the couch reading the books. The study was led by Dr. Stephen Gwilym at John Radcliffe Hospital.

The researchers looked at how many kids ages 7-15 went to the E.R. with musculoskeletal injuries on the weekend after the release date of the two books. Then, they compared the numbers with admissions in a three year period. On the weekends the Harry Potter books were released, E.R. admissions were down by almost half! The release weekends had great summer weather, too. They hypothesize that really good books will keep kids safe and reading instead of getting hurt outside.

Image: http://literarylunchbox.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/harry-potter-wallpaper-10241.jpg

Bruno Garcia

Source:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/03/health/03safe.html

Due to time and resource constraints, the German invasion of Norway was planned using a tourist map!

Nikolaus von Falkenhorst was a German General in World War II. Falkenhorst came from an ancient Silesian military and noble family. On February 20, 1940, Hitler approached Falkenhorst and informed him that he’d be the ground commander for the invasion of Norway. He gave Falkenhorst until 5 p.m. the same day to come up with a basic plan. Without any real time or resources to use, he grabbed a Baedeker tourist guide at a stationary store on his way to his hotel. In his room he came up with a basic plan using maps found in the tourist guide. Hitler approved of the plan and Operation Weserubung was set in motion.

Falkenhorst’s Operation was a success. The German Navy suffered heavy losses. The Allied forces tried to counter the German’s move, but Falkenhorst’s troops eventually drove them out. Falkenhorst remained in Norway after the invasion as commander of the German troops from 1940 to 1944. He ordered his troops to treat the Norwegians with courtesy, though.

Image: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c0/Falkenhorstnikolaus.jpg/220px-Falkenhorstnikolaus.jpg

Bruno Garcia

Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolaus_von_Falkenhorst#Life

Forty percent of pregnancies in the U.

S. are unplanned!

The highest unplanned pregnancy rates were found in the South and Southwest along with large urban populations. Mississippi was the highest with 69 unplanned pregnancies per 1,000. New Hampshire had the lowest rate with 36 per 1,000. The data came from surveys taken in 2006. The U.S. has the highest rate of unplanned pregnancies in most of the developed world. There doesn’t seem to be any real reason. Many of those surveyed said that the pregnancy was ill timed. However, 25% to 35% said the pregnancy was unwanted.

Surprisingly, in 29 states at least half of the pregnancies were unplanned. Unfortunately, we seem to plan vacations and nights out more thoroughly than how many kids we want to have and when. The analysis was based on women between the ages of 15-44.

Image: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/0d/TeenMomcard.jpg/250px-TeenMomcard.jpg

Bruno Garcia

Source:
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-05-unplanned-pregnancies-percent.html

The MMR vaccine is the cause of 30% of the 10,000 to 20,000 children diagnosed with autism in the U.

S. each year!

The MMR, or measles, mumps, and rubella, vaccine is recommended to be given to children at 12 months and between ages 4 and 6. Since the measles vaccine was introduced, the disease has become virtually obsolete. It has prevented 100 deaths per year. Instead, however, thousands of normally developing children are developing autism from the MMR shot. This form of autism is specifically termed “regressive autism.” Problematically, all 50 states require for children to receive the measles vaccine to enter public school, along with the diphtheria, hemophilus influenza type B, polio, and rubella vaccines. Parents can refuse for their children to receive vaccinations, though. They must obtain a religious exemption or a medical exemption if they want to send their child to public school.

Contracting measles actually strengthens a child’s immune system. Vaccinations don’t have the same effect on the body’s immune system as naturally acquiring the disease. It is rare that a healthy child who contracts the measles will not recover smoothly from it. After contracting the disease, one has life-long immunity. In contrast, adults who contract the measles after the vaccine has worn off are much more likely to have testicular, ovarian, and neurological complications.

Image: http://media.web.britannica.com/eb-media/10/93810-004-D4756670.jpg

Bruno Garcia

Source:
http://www.lewrockwell.com/miller/miller15.html

St Thomas Aquinas’ family locked him in a tower and sent in a prostitute to keep him from becoming a priest!

Most of Thomas’s brothers chose military careers, but his mother desired for him to become a Benedictine monk. Instead of joining the Benedictine's, he wanted to join the Dominican order. This didn't sit well with his mom.

To prevent his mother from interfering, the Dominican arranged for him to go to Rome. On his way to Rome, Thomas’s mother sent her other sons to kidnap Thomas while he was drinking from a spring. 

They took him back to their parents’ castle and held him there for two years. Due to political reasons, the Pope didn’t order for his release. During his home imprisonment, Thomas tutored his sisters and communicated with the Dominican Order. 

His mother was hoping that the detention would kill his aspirations. His brothers became desperate and sent a prostitute to seduce Thomas. He chased her away with a burning stick. 

Legend has it that two angels appeared to him that night and blessed him with more fortitude to remain celibate. Finally, his mother realized she’d lost the battle and he wouldn’t change his mind. 

To save face, instead of just releasing him and admitting defeat, she arranged for him to escape through his bedroom window to finally join the Dominican Order. 

(Source)