Pfizer Drug Suit :: essays research papers

Pfizer and the Nigerian Trovan Suit   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There has been a controversy about the experimental testing of the drug Trovan (trovafloxacin), by Pfizer, a major pharmaceutical company. Pfizer held clinical trials of the drug in Kano, Nigeria, during the 1996 epidemic of bacterial meningitis. The experiments were conducted on 200 children and were said to be successful. Recently, 30 Nigerian families of the children used in the experiments filed a lawsuit against Pfizer claiming they had violated laws by not obtaining permission from the families. (Reliefweb) This lawsuit is unprecedented. I believe Pfizer handled this experiment with good intentions and the press, namely the Washington Post, has unfairly portrayed them.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently restricted the use of the antibiotic, Trovan, after it has been proven to cause liver failure and a small number of deaths when prescribed for many types of infections. Doctors were warned to reserve the use of Trovan for use only in the treatment of patients who meet very specific requirements. (Branch Law) Although it is harmful when used for certain ailments, Pfizer reports that Trovan has proven to be effective in treating meningococcal meningitis. This was determined during the experiments in Nigeria which were supervised by both American and Nigerian doctors. (Pfizer)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This experiment took place in Africa because of its recurring meningitis epidemic, which kills thousands of people. Pfizer took the opportunity to compare Trovan with ceftrixone, which was the commonly used drug at the time, to prove its effectiveness. One hundred patients were given Trovan and another 100 ceftrixone. In each group ninety-four percent of patients survived. â€Å"This mortality rate of 6% for both patient groups was lower than that seen in †¦patients with non-epidemic meningitis (range 6-10%), and lower than the overall fatality rate for this particular epidemic (10-30%).†(Pfizer) The incidence of side effects while using Trovan was not any higher than with ceftrixone. Oral Trovan proved to be a very safe, useful and promising treatment for this disease as compared to using other methods, which had to be given intravenously and could spread hepatitis or HIV. Pfizer states that, â€Å"The trial was designed and conducted in accordance with good medical practice and ethical norms.† They also said that both the Nigerian Ministry of Health and a local Nigerian ethics committee approved the experiment and a copy of this was sent to the FDA. â€Å"Prior to treatment, informed consent was obtained.

Interpretive vs. Escapist

Interpretive vs. Escapist As defined by Arp and Johnson, commercial fiction, or escapist literature, is â€Å"fiction written to meet the taste of a wide popular audience and relying usually on tested formulas for satisfying such taste† (Arp 744). Arp and Johnson also state that literary fiction, otherwise known as interpretive literature, is â€Å"fiction written with serious artistic intentions, providing an imagined experience yielding authentic insights into some significant aspect of life† (Arp 745). In â€Å"Once upon a Time†, Nadine Gordimer uses a unique combination of both interpretive and escapist literature styles to portray a message that there is no way to absolutely guarantee a person’s safety. Although Nadine Gordimer does use some elements of the escapist literature style to develop this piece of fiction, the story is primarily interpretive literature. Arp and Johnson state that â€Å"literary fiction plunges us, through the author’s imaginative vision and artistic ability, more deeply into the real world† (Arp 4). In â€Å"Once upon a Time†, Gordimer leaves the reader to his or her own insights as to what could have been done to avoid the particular outcome. She does not point out any particular moral to the story, but instead lets the reader absorb the family’s plight. The escapist style is recognized in the bedtime story that the narrator creates—the story within the story. In this story the emphasis is on plot rather than on character development, and the characters are obviously lacking the full dynamic quality that the reader identifies in the round character. Yet, again, unlike escapist literature, the conclusion of this story is far from the â€Å"happily ever after† endings of its type, and, being that there is no real moral to the story, in this way also, it is thus rendered more interpretive. The interpretive style is also apparent in the author’s choice of plot. The plot, unlike the typical escapist piece of literature, is non-linear; the ending, as opposed to the happy ending of an escapist literature piece, is indeterminate. In the beginning, the reader is introduced to a person who is experiencing anxiety, and this person then begins her own story. The reader is never brought back to the story of the narrator. As the narrator’s initial conflict remains unresolved at the closing of the story, the ending is indeterminate. In the bedtime story also, the problem is unsolved at the end. Instead, the narrator ends the story in a decidedly sardonic mocking of the traditional â€Å"They lived happily ever after† story. Due to both of these points, â€Å"Once upon a Time† would be described as a non-linear story. Though she is the most realistic character in the entire work of fiction, the character of the narrator is also more flat than round. Her situation is described to the reader in painful detail and in such a way that the reader will identify with her. However, her behavior is very typical of a person in her position. Awakened in the middle of the night as she was and hearing â€Å"a creaking of the kind made by the weight carried by one foot after another along a wooden floor† (Gordimer 183), the reader could not expect anything else but fear. Her roundness is shown in her slight internal conflict. She believes that she should not be scared, yet she cannot make her imagination—or mind—yield to her will. I couldn’t find a position in which my mind would let go of my body—release me to sleep again† (Gordimer 184). Although she is given an element of roundness, the narrator’s character remains more flat than round. The man, holding the role of a father, a husband, a son, and an employer in the story, is just what a reader would expect of an accommodating man in his positi on—in essence, the stereotypical man. This is shown in a number of ways. He played the role of supporting husband perfectly in always acknowledging his wife’s concerns. In order to calm her fears, â€Å"he had electronically controlled gates fitted† (Gordimer 185), to provide further control of any outsiders’ access to their property, as well as having the wall surrounding their property built higher. For the reason of pacifying the trusted housemaid, he had bars affixed â€Å"to the doors and windows of the house, and an alarm system installed† (Gordimer 185). Throughout the story, the man acquiesces to one after another requests, changing little from the unafraid, doting provider that the author first introduces to the reader. In the beginning of the story, the man is clearly unconcerned about his or his family’s safety from such people as the wife worries about. On more than one occasion, he assured his wife that â€Å"there was nothing to fear† (Gordimer 185). However, in the course of events, he attains some small quality of roundness in that his concern over his family’s security evolves into an obsession, perhaps due to his wife’s influence. During times that the family would go for walks, they would no longer pause â€Å"to admire this show of roses or that perfect lawn† (Gordimer 187); instead â€Å"the husband and ife found themselves comparing the possible effectiveness of each style [of each security system] against its appearance† (Gordimer 187). In changing his mind and/or in his allowance of the circumstances to change him, a slight element of roundness is added to the father’s relatively flat character. The man’s wife does not change by the end of this story, thereby showing her to be a flat character—predictable, stereotypical, static, and, in this case, easily defined as â€Å"good. † However, in the course of the story, the reader will also see a side of her that conflicts with her fears, which gives her some roundness. Women in general are typically more concerned than men with safety issues. Danger, whether real or perceived, is seen as a threat to their well-being, as well as to that of their loved ones. Be that as it may, the wife’s actions and fears are entirely understandable and predictable in â€Å"Once Upon A Time. † â€Å"She was afraid that some day†¦people might come up the street†¦and open the gates and stream in† (Gordimer 185). Perhaps not entirely logical, but such behavior is considered the norm for women, thus displaying her flatness as a character. However, at the same time, she also has a quality of roundness to her as well. Even though she advocates every extra security measure to protect herself and her family from â€Å"such people† (Gordimer 185), from the streets, those are the very ones that she feels compassion for. â€Å"The wife could never see anyone go hungry. She sent the trusted housemaid out with bread and tea† (Gordimer 186). The fact that she feels torn over the plight of these individuals and then her very attempts to isolate herself from them shows her internal conflict, thus giving a small element of roundness to her otherwise flat character. In the little boy, Gordimer paints the picture of endearing, playful innocence as well as naivete. His naivete and playfulness is demonstrated in his â€Å"[fascination] with the [intercom] device† (Gordimer 185), as well as in his tendency to imagine himself the hero in a fairytale story, which leads to his demise: â€Å"he pretended to be the Prince who braves the terrible thicket of thorns to enter the palace and kiss the Sleeping Beauty back to life† (Gordimer 188). Interestingly enough, the boy has the smallest role throughout the story and yet he becomes the character that the narrator uses to bring his/her point home. However, due to the fact that his character never undergoes any kind of change, he cannot be labeled as a round character. The trustworthy maid is also a stereotypical, flat character. This is suggested simply by her given name of â€Å"trusted housemaid† (Gordimer 185). Despite the circumstances of the times and the distrust that the wife feels towards people of her kind, the man and his wife trusted the housemaid enough to leave her â€Å"with responsibility for [their] possessions† (Gordimer 185). Also, not unlike the typical housemaid, she was an influence on her mistress. The housemaid fed the wife’s fears of these â€Å"people of another color† (Gordimer 185), telling the wife that â€Å"these were loafers and tsotsis† (Gordimer 186). In pointing out the â€Å"loafers’† shortcomings, perhaps because of her insecurities, she redirected the wife’s attentions away from caring for these people—typical behavior from an employee anxious to keep her job. On account of this stereotypical behavior, as well as the fact that she remains a static character throughout the story, the housemaid is a flat character. The last human character, the itinerant gardener, is also a flat character. The only thing that the author mentions concerning the gardener is that he was â€Å"highly recommended by the neighbors† (Gordimer 184). The gardener’s one purpose in the story was to aid in getting the little boy out of the security coil. â€Å"†¦the itinerant gardener, whose day it was, came running†¦and tore his hands trying to get at the little boy† (Gordimer 188). Typical of a man of service, he seemed willing to help in whatever way necessary. In the beginning of the story the narrator battles to control her own fears regarding physical security. The â€Å"bedtime story† created to alleviate his or her discomfort attempts to convince the hearer or the reader of the fact that one’s fate is out of one’s control. The author uses â€Å"Once upon a Time† to illustrate that there is no real way to guarantee anyone’s safety, no matter how hard the person tries.

Folsom Culture Ancient Bison Hunters in North American

Folsom is the name given to the archaeological sites and isolated finds that are associated with early Paleoindian hunter-gatherers of the Great Plains, Rocky Mountains and American Southwest in North America, between about 13,000-11,900 calendar years ago (cal BP). Folsom as a technology is believed to have developed out of Clovis mammoth hunting strategies in North America, which lasted dated between 13.3-12.8 cal BP. Folsom sites are differentiated from other Paleoindian hunter-gatherer groups such as Clovis by a specific and distinctive stone tool-making technology. Folsom technology refers to projectile points made with a channel flake down the center on one or both sides, and the lack of a robust blade technology. Clovis people were primarily, but not entirely mammoth hunters, an economy that was much more wide-spread than Folsom, and scholars argue that when the mammoth died off at the beginning of the Younger Dryas period, people in the southern Plains developed a new technology to exploit buffalo: Folsom. Folsom Technology A different technology was required because buffalo (or more properly, bison (Bison antiquus))  are faster and weigh much less than elephants (Mammuthus columbi. Extinct forms of adult buffalo weighed in at about 900 kilograms or 1,000 pounds, while elephants reached 8,000 kg (17,600 lbs). In general terms (Buchanan et al. 2011), the size of a projectile point is associated with the  size of the animal killed: points found at bison kill sites are smaller, lighter and a different shape than those found at mammoth kill sites. Like Clovis points, Folsom points are lanceolate or lozenge-shaped. Like Clovis points, Folsom were not arrow or spear points but were likely attached to darts and delivered by atlatl throwing sticks. But the main diagnostic feature of Folsom points is the channel flute, a technology that sends flintknappers and regular archaeologists alike (including me) into flights of rapturous admiration. Experimental archaeology indicates that Folsom projectile points were highly effective. Hunzicker (2008) ran experimental archaeology tests and found that nearly 75% of accurate shots penetrated deep into bovine carcasses despite rib impact. Point replicas used in these experiments sustained minor or no damage, surviving unimpaired for an average of 4.6 shots per point. Most of the  damage was restricted to the tip, where it could be resharpened: and the archaeological record shows that resharpening of Folsom points was practiced. Channel Flakes and Fluting Legions of archaeologists have investigated the making and sharpening of such tools, including blade length and width, selected source material (Edwards Chert and Knife River Flint) and how and why the points were manufactured and fluted. These legions conclude that the Folsom lanceolate formed points were incredibly well made to start with, but the flintknapper risked the entire project to remove a channel flake for the length of the point on both sides, resulting in a remarkably thin profile. A channel flake is removed by a single very carefully placed blow at the right location and if it misses, the point shatters. Some archaeologists, such as McDonald, believe that making the flute was such a dangerous and unnecessarily high-risk behavior that it must have had a socio-cultural role in the communities. Contemporaneous Goshen points are basically Folsom points without the fluting, and they seem to be just as successful at killing prey. Folsom Economies Folsom bison hunter-gatherers lived in small highly mobile groups, traveling large areas of land during their seasonal round. To be successful at living on bison, you have to follow the migration patterns of the herds throughout the plains. Evidence that they did that is the presence of lithic materials transported up to 900 kilometers (560 miles) from their source areas. Two models of mobility have been suggested for Folsom, but Folsom people probably practiced both in different places at different times of the year. The first is a very high degree of residential mobility, where the entire band moved following the bison. The second model is that of reduced mobility, in which the band would settle down near predictable resources (lithic raw materials, wood, potable water, small game, and plants) and just send out hunting groups. The Mountaineer Folsom site, located on a mesa-top in Colorado, contained the remains of a rare house associated with Folsom, built of upright poles made of aspen trees set in a tipi-fashion with plant material and daub used to fill the gaps. Slabs of rock were used to anchor the base and lower walls. Some Folsom Sites Texas: Chispa Creek, Debra L. Friedkin, Hot Tubb, Lake Theo, Lipscomb, Lubbock Lake, Scharbauer, Shifting SandsNew Mexico: Blackwater Draw, Folsom, Rio RanchoOklahoma: Cooper, Jake Bluff, WaughColorado: Barger Gulch, Stewarts Cattle Guard, Lindenmeier, Linger, Mountaineer, ReddinWyoming: Agate Basin, Carter/Kerr-McGee, Hanson, Hell Gap, Rattlesnake PassMontana: Indian CreekNorth Dakota: Big Black, Bobtail Wolf, Lake Ilo The Folsom type site is a bison kill site, in Wild Horse Arroyo near the town of the Folsom, New Mexico. It was famously discovered in 1908 by the African-American cowboy George McJunkins, although stories vary. Folsom was excavated in the 1920s by Jesse Figgins and reinvestigated in the 1990s by Southern Methodist University, led by David Meltzer. The site has evidence that 32 bison were trapped and killed at Folsom; radiocarbon dates on the bones indicated an average of 10,500 RCYBP. Sources Andrews BN, Labelle JM, and Seebach JD. 2008. Spatial Variability in the Folsom Archaeological Record: A Multi-Scalar Approach. American Antiquity 73(3):464-490. Ballenger JAM, Holliday VT, Kowler AL, Reitze WT, Prasciunas MM, Shane Miller D, and Windingstad JD. 2011. Evidence for Younger Dryas global climate oscillation and human response in the American Southwest. Quaternary International 242(2):502-519. Bamforth DB. 2011. Origin Stories, Archaeological Evidence, and Postclovis Paleoindian Bison Hunting on the Great Plains. American Antiquity 71(1):24-40. Bement L, and Carter B. 2010. Jake Bluff: Clovis Bison Hunting on the Southern Plains of North America. American Antiquity  75(4):907-933. Buchanan B. 2006. An analysis of Folsom projectile point resharpening using quantitative comparisons of form and allometry. Journal of Archaeological Science 33(2):185-199. Buchanan B, Collard M, Hamilton MJ, and O’Brien MJ. 2011. Points and prey: a quantitative test of the hypothesis that prey size influences early Paleoindian projectile point form. Journal of Archaeological Science 38(4):852-864. Hunzicker DA. 2008. Folsom Projectile Technology: An Experiment in Design, Effectiveness Plains Anthropologist 53(207):291-311.and Efficiency. Lyman RL. 2015. Location and Position in Archaeology: Revisiting the Original Association of a Folsom Point with Bison Ribs. American Antiquity 80(4):732-744. MacDonald DH. 2010. The Evolution of Folsom Fluting. Plains Anthropologist 55(213):39-54. Stiger M. 2006. A Folsom structure in the Colorado mountains. American Antiquity 71:321-352.