Letters.

Happiness, just an allusion?

I note with some incredulity that happiness (joy, elation) in some form is missing from the list of "basic" universal emotions ("Dancing with feeling," SN: 6/10/00, p. 376) and even from the extended list of 9 or 10. Is happiness not considered a basic emotion? Did ancient Hindus not experience joy and hence not express it in dance? Or is happiness considered so trivial it isn't worth classifying as an emotion--basic, depictable in dance, or otherwise?

K.A. Boriskin Bellingham, Mass.

The Hindu concept of humor encompasses feelings of joy. The researchers argue that the word happiness imprecisely designates a set of positive emotions that may vary from culture to culture.

--B. Bower

Be serious about B. cereus 

Bacillus cereus is not a "harmless" microorganism, as stated in "Viruses that slay bacteria draw new interest" (SN: 6/3/00, p. 358). It has been described in the ophthalmologic literature as one of the most destructive organisms if it gains access to the inside of the eye, and it is a relatively common cause of post-traumatic endophthalmitis. There is a high incidence of B. cereus endophthalmitis secondary to intraocular foreign bodies, but infection can also occur from blunt trauma or a lacerating injury. Such endophthalmitis can have a rapid onset and cause irreversible blindness, occasionally requiring removal of the eye. Researchers should take great care to protect their eyes from injury while working with this potentially dangerous bacterium.

David W. Richards Burton G. Goldstein James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital Tampa, Fla.

Letter imperfect

The letter "Go natural" (SN: 6/10/00, p. 371) contains important errors of fact that should be corrected. First, progestin is not medroxyprogesterone acetate. The term progestin refers to any of several progestational hormones. Second, medroxyprogesterone acetate is sold under the trade name Provera and doesn't come from equine urine. There exists a clinical preparation of conjugated estrogens that does come from pregnant mares' urine, Premarin.

Dale E. Hammerschmidt University of Minnesota Minneapolis, Minn.

The writer of the original letter, Phyllis Bronson, had caught her error about progestin and mares' urine. She wrote to SCIENCE NEWS that her sentence should have read, "Progestin is medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), often prescribed under the trade name Provera, the synthetic progestin." Unfortunately, her correction didn't catch up with her original letter before publication.

--The editors

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