Comments on: New Excalibur #16: A Medical Review

By: John Nowak

John Nowak — Mon, 09 Apr 2007 00:38:00 +0000

It seems to me that a common response a doctor might have when dealing with a distinctly-nonhuman patient would be to order absolutely every non-invasive test possible, just to get a handle on what they’re dealing with. Besides, National Health is rumored to have a shortage of MRI equipment.

“Let’s start with an MRI.”

“The earliest we can get her to one is tomorrow. Let’s start with an X-Ray. At this point, I’m not absolutely sure her brain is even inside her skull.”

By: Nick

Nick — Sat, 17 Mar 2007 02:28:53 +0000

Also, some rapid fan of the show dissected the sound used in the episode and found this:

http://www.lostpedia.com/images/9/94/Lost-sonicbarrier-fft.png

Scale is natural log based, from zero to 24KHz. The frequency bands seen, from left to right: 93-99 Hz 134-140 Hz 181-187 Hz 240-246 Hz (Pulse) 275-281 Hz (Pulse) 322-328 Hz 369-386 Hz 416-421 Hz 462-468 Hz 556-562 Hz 703-708 Hz 744-750 Hz (Pulses) 837-843 Hz (Pulses) 972-978 Hz (Pulses) 1066-1072 Hz (Pulses) 1300-1406 Hz (Pulses) 1599-1605 Hz

According to NIMH, the human skull resonates at frequencies between 828Hz and 1417Hz.

By: Nick

Nick — Sat, 17 Mar 2007 02:16:59 +0000

Wanted your comments on a recent lost episode featuring (apparently) a stroke.

(Minor Spoilers)

The characters encounter a fence consisting of pylons topped by what look like inverted radar dishes. When the plane formed by any two adjacent pylons is broken (by a human, say) they emit an ultrasonic pulse. The symptoms present themselves rapidly: frothing at the mouth, what appear to be mild convulsions, and then some rather spectacular bleeding out the ears (this appears almost as if an artery was ruptured).

How realistic are these symptoms? Does anyone really know the effects of a directed high-intensity high-frequency blast of sound on the body?

Thanks
Nick

By: Parry Stiles

Parry Stiles — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 23:55:26 +0000

I know the intention behind your blogs is not to make superheroes/villians including doctors/nurses within the comic book world look like bufoons regarding medical situations, but they do after reading one of your blogs.

By: BitterCupOJoe

BitterCupOJoe — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 15:02:54 +0000

Could the x-ray have been to assess possible injuries caused during her fall when she passed out? Or to look for any odd structures in her body that might be there due to her being a mutant?

By: SpotWeld

SpotWeld — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 14:34:07 +0000

I might be reaching here, but could the x-ray also be necessary as a preliminary for possible surgery?
He’s already noticed different structure of the feet and hands. He might have to toss out any presumtions about the internal structure of her head?