Experts from around the globe
are being asked to place their bets on the avian flu through a so-called global avian flu market organized by economists and physicians at The University of Iowa. A Chicago Tribune article noted that the market’s existence does not mean anyone will collect a big payout but rather it will show if it is possible to forecast the spread of the influenza virus using the same market tools that predict the future prices of corn, soybeans, and pork bellies. Many specialists—including ornithologists, biochemists, epidemiologists, veterinarians, and community physicians who normally do not collaborate—have knowledge pertaining to the bird flu problem, said Philip Polgreen, MD, an assistant professor of medicine at UI Hospitals and Clinics. The trick is getting them to share information frequently and promptly. “Markets are very good at sharing information,” Polgreen said. “We've seen this in tracking seasonal flu in Iowa.”

Males and females with eating disorders
experience similar biological and psychological problems, experts say in a story published by the Wall Street Journal. But men and boys often manifest their symptoms differently. While females obsess over calories and weight, males typically focus on muscle and body fat. Mr. Huffaker, who is 6 feet, 7 inches tall and got down to 180 pounds, liked that he had defined muscles, taut skin, and just 5 percent body fat. Unlike females, males have a variety of body images they may be trying to obtain. “Some want to be wiry like Mick Jagger; some want to be lean like David Beckham, and some want to be really buff and bulked, like Arnold Schwarzenegger,” says Arnold Andersen, MD, a psychiatrist and director of the eating-disorders program at University of Iowa of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Police and federal law enforcement officials
are trying a new tactic in the war on performance-enhancing drug use, according to USA Today. Instead of pursuing and arresting the usual array of street smugglers, hangers-on and entourage-based dealers, the new plan targets Internet pharmacies that can guide buyers through the maze of compliant, prescription-writing physicians with a few clicks of a mouse. But Gary Gaffney, MD, an associate professor of child psychiatry and behavior at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and founder of the blog “Steroid Nation,” says focusing on suppliers rather than users won’t work: “The effects of knocking out an online pharmacy are only temporary; a new guy is going to pop up. We've seen that when players get caught, they go scot-free and the dealers get arrested. Someone just takes their place.”