Rhythmic ear growth....Medical journals aren't known for humor, as their editors will undoubtedly concede. Sometimes, however, a study may provide some amusement, even as the findings convey intriguing information. Three entertaining reports in the Dec. 21/28 British Medical Journal The British Medical Journal, or BMJ, is one of the most popular and widely-read peer-reviewed general medical journals in the world.[2] It is published by the BMJ Publishing Group Ltd (owned by the British Medical Association), whose other (BMJ BMJ n abbr (= British Medical Journal) → vom BMA herausgegebene Zeitschrift ) demonstrate that its editors are not immune to levity lev·i·ty n. pl. lev·i·ties 1. Lightness of manner or speech, especially when inappropriate; frivolity. 2. Inconstancy; changeableness. 3. The state or quality of being light; buoyancy. . First, there's an account of "Circaseptennial rhythm in ear growth." The journal's press summary offers this tantalizing tan·ta·lize tr.v. tan·ta·lized, tan·ta·liz·ing, tan·ta·liz·es To excite (another) by exposing something desirable while keeping it out of reach. peek at the article's content: "Last year's Christmas issue of BMJ showed that older men have bigger ears. This year's shows that men's ears grow in 7-year cycles." The authors of the new report, Jos Verhulst of the Louis Bolk Institute in the Netherlands and Patrick Onghena of the University of Leuven in Belgium, contend that the notion of a 7-year rhythm in human development dates back at least to ancient Greece. Their study shows that the Greeks were on target-at least as far as the ear is concerned. The researchers used as their starting point the raw data that produced last year's offering, "Why do old men have big ears?" by James A. Heathcote, a general practitioner general practitioner n. Abbr. GP A physician whose practice consists of providing ongoing care covering a variety of medical problems in patients of all ages, often including referral to appropriate specialists. at Southview Lodge in Bromley, England. After calculating the "mean ear length" of British men at each year of age from 30 to 83, they were able to assess "mean smoothed growth rates Growth Rates The compounded annualized rate of growth of a company's revenues, earnings, dividends, or other figures. Notes: Remember, historically high growth rates don't always mean a high rate of growth looking into the future. ." They found that ears reach their peak growth velocity every 7 years, then rest. The researchers concede that important questions remain: Do the findings apply to women? To other men? Do other anatomical structures, such as the nose, follow the same pattern? |
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