doctors

UK man exterminates record for most Daleks

It's either the heartwarming tale of a man's passionate love for fantasy and adventure or a sad story of a lifetime's income terribly wasted. You get to decide.

Rob Hull of Doncaster, England, has been officially awarded the Guinness World Record for the largest collection of Dalek toys and models. As of this writing, he possesses 571 of the evil alien overlords after 20 years of collecting.

In a real head-scratcher, Hull isn't a fan of the TV series that gave birth to his beloved Daleks, "Doctor Who." According to Guinness, Hull just liked the design of Dalek toys as a child. When his mother refused to get him one, he evidently vowed to own his own plunger-waving army one day.

Hull reportedly torments his long-suffering wife, Dawn, with the collection as it slowly overtakes their home and exterminates any sense of interior design aesthetic.… Read more

Youngest old man returns in 'Doctor Who'

The world's longest-running sci-fi series, "Doctor Who," will return this weekend with the youngest actor yet continuing his portrayal of one of the oldest characters in modern fiction.

The BBC series will turn 48 this fall, while Matt Smith will soon celebrate 29. The Doctor himself is more than 900 years old

"A lot was made of me being the youngest actor in the part," said Smith, who started portraying The Doctor last year. "Actually, I think that's worked to my favor because I think there's a sort of interesting contradiction of having a young face and old soul."

During a recent event previewing the return of "Doctor Who" this Saturday on the BBC in the U.K. and BBC America in the U.S., Smith discussed how starring in one of the world's biggest nerd-centric cult shows affects his existence in time and space. … Read more

The 404 865: Where we don our bedtime spanx (podcast)

The Sleep Doctor Michael Breus is back on the show to answer your questions about how sleep affects everything from your weight to your memory, and even your mental health. We never get enough time to talk to Dr. Breus, but today we pick his brain about waking up sleepwalkers, how to get your kids back on a summer sleep schedule, and the best natural sleep aid.

The 404 Digest for Episode 865

Rocked to sleep-- not just for babies anymore. Check out Dr. Breus's book, " The Sleep Doctor's Diet Plan: Lose Weight through Better Sleep" For-hire Brooklyn woman reads you bedtime stories. Go the ***k to sleep! Add Dr. Breus on Twitter!

Episode 865 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Life-size pet Daleks roll and rotate

One thing had always perplexed me about Daleks. As a "Doctor Who"-watching kid, I contemplated the thorny issue of how they got up stairs. Now, I have the opportunity to do some testing on my very own life-size Dalek.

U.K. company Firebox.com is offering officially licensed Dalek replicas. Each one is more than 5 feet tall and is hand-built to order. A variety of classic colors are available.

Sci-fi fans love to obsess over prop accuracy. Firebox.com uses the original molds and specs from the BBC prop department, so that every nob, plunger-looking attachment, and laser shooter is dead on.

The Dalek replicas won't try to exterminate you, but can get some action out of them by playing with the rotating dome, extendable plunger arm, and casters. I'm imagining taking one of these for a stroll around the neighborhood on a leash.… Read more

The 404 817: Where we sleep great and lose weight (podcast)

The Sleep Doctor Michael Breus is back in the studio answering your questions and telling us about his new book, "The Sleep Doctor's Diet Plan: Lose Weight through Better Sleep." We also have two copies of the book to give away, so be sure to follow The Sleep Doctor and The 404 on Twitter, mention both of us in a tweet, and you'll be on your way boosting your metabolism, decreasing your hunger, and increasing your energy and willpower through a good night's rest!

We always have plenty of questions to ask the doctor while he's here, and the chatroom helps us out today with questions about what foods to eat before hitting the sack, the effects of alcohol and smoking on sleeping, the benefits of temperature-sensitive mattresses, and more! Wilson's also taking a sleep diet challenge as well, so look out for Dr. Breus on the show six weeks from now to check up on his performance!

The 404 Digest for Episode 817

The Sleep Doctor's Diet Plan: Lose Weight through Better Sleep." The Nap-a-latte works every time. How to sleep anywhere! Too much sleep may accelerate cognitive aging. Air traffic controllers sleeping on the job: is it really their fault? Dr. Breus recommends the Sleep Smoothie. Check out Dr. Breus's line of temperature-regulated mattresses at Sleepy's!

Episode 817 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Free iPhone app improves docs' emergency response

An app developed by the UK Resuscitation Council may help doctors in emergency cardiac arrest situations, according to a study in the April issue of the journal Anaesthesia.

Researchers recruited 31 doctors (average age 27.5 years) who had taken advanced life-support training in the past four years to investigate whether the free app, called iResus, can improve test scores in simulated cardiac emergencies.

The doctors were divided into two groups--those who used iResus during the simulation and those who did not. Their knowledge and skills were evaluated using the CASTest scoring system during the simulated cardiac arrest emergency.

Those … Read more

PC Tools Spyware Doctor with Antivirus 2011

The bottom line: PC Tools Spyware Doctor with Antivirus 2011 will give you strong security, but a not-insignificant performance hit. For a mid-range suite, though, its features are solid and it's a better bet than PC Tools' high-end Internet Security 2011.

Review: Editors' note: Portions of this review are based on CNET's review for PC Tools Internet Security 2011. The screenshots and slideshow also are taken from the similar PC Tools Internet Security 2011.

PC Tools Spyware Doctor with Antivirus 2011 competently juggles the competing requirements of an effective and usable security suite. Although we were disappointed by … Read more

AT&T launches health care business

AT&T is making a new foray into the health care market with a business geared toward improving patient care and trimming medical costs.

Announced today, the new AT&T ForHealth unit will deliver a range of wireless, networked, and cloud-based products to doctors, hospitals, insurers, and pharmaceutical companies. The goal is to push the adoption of new technologies to the industry as the country tries to switch over to electronic and digital health care management.

AT&T said it's looking to expand upon some of its current health care projects, which include medicine bottles that … Read more

Med students: Give us video games

They may have started with Atari or early Nintendo devices, but the majority of today's medical students grew up in a world with video games. "They are actually more comfortable in image-rich environments than with text," says Frederick Kron, a former medical educator and the president of Medical Cyberworlds.

And according to a survey of more than 200 medical students at the University of Michigan and University of Wisconsin at Madison, 77 percent say they would participate in a multiplayer online health care simulator if said simulator helped them accomplish an important goal.

Moreover, a whopping 98 … Read more