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Science and Medicine Briefs
marker for it,” said David J. Heeger, assistant professor of psychology. Researchers caution
that the study results are too preliminary to affect the diagnosis or
treatment of dyslexia, but do suggest a line of research that could
provide additional information about the relationship between visual
system impairments and dyslexia. If future research should confirm the
correlation between specific kinds of brain activity and dyslexia, it
could lead to methods for diagnosing dyslexia at an earlier age than is
now possible, the researchers said.
FULL HOUSE AT STANFORD HOSPITAL Empty
hospital beds may be the norm in much of the country, but not at
Stanford. The beds at Stanford University Hospital have been filled or
nearly filled since the end of October. The shortage is even more acute
at UCSF Medical Center. Although the statistics haven’t been fully
analyzed, managers say the space crunch results from a variety of
factors, including a healthy economy that has more people working and,
subsequently, covered by health insurance. Also, patients generally rush
at the end of the year to use their insurance benefits before the
deductibles expire. The shortage of beds, however, is not due to any
cost-saving measures. Stanford and UCSF have not closed any beds and
staffing ratios have remained roughly the same for the past four
years.
PRECISION AGRICULTURE Tractors soon may be
working the fields minus drivers. Stanford researchers equipped a
John Deere tractor with an automatic control system that guided the farm
vehicle more precisely than the best human drivers. Using the Global
Positioning System a constellation of 24 satellites operated by
the U.S. Department of Defense the researchers
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