It is almost that time of year again; time to study risk from a festival known as Oktoberfest. Whether it is a solution for the “stink of stale beer” or understanding the societal cost from blood/alcohol ratios, scientists will be there.

Approximately 5,000 of 6 million annual visitors of the Oktoberfest in Munich [0.1%] have to undergo medical treatment. Patients with alcohol intoxication without trauma or further complications are all treated in a specialized medical camp. We studied these patients in order to identify risk factors and to assess the relevance of the Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) and of ethanol blood concentrations for patient management.

The numbers show young men, the highest percentage of attendees, are most at risk. Surprise, no?

I also note economists in attendance; inflation measures indicate the cost of Oktoberfest is rising faster than other areas of consumption.

In the last 25 years the German consumer price index rose by 58.1% but a visit to the world famous Oktoberfest costs you now 152.2% more than in 1985. The calculation is based on following expenses: local public transport, 1/2 grilled chicken and 2 litres of beer (IMHO a very frugal Oktoberfest visit;-)

Another note on economics…the BBC reports that waitresses who tie a knot on the left receive more tip money.

Impressive work by Brazilian scientists. They first noted that banana peels have elements useful in water filtration systems. So they made a filter from minced peel and measured the effect on river water, which showed a local solution from an abundant waste product can significantly reduce the risks from lead and copper.

Minced banana peel was applied in the preconcentration system and showed approximately 20-fold enrichment factor and the column was reused for 11 cycles without loss in the percentage of recovery. The proposed method was applied in the determination of Cu(II) and Pb(II) in a sample of raw river water and was validated by comparison with a standard reference material.

This reminds me of how an Ethiopian figured out how to wipe out the Rinderpest virus. Controls most successful are adaptable to human and environmental variation, not to mention inexpensive.

The method used to test and eliminate the virus had to be administered locally, which meant under uncontrolled environmental conditions by non-professionals.

This story can’t be real. It sounds like, at least for Mr. Wiener, the issue with being naked is about safety…

Public nudity, he explains, is legal in San Francisco and in recent years a group known informally as Naked Guys have shown unbridled enthusiasm for appearing in the nude.

“I see it pretty regularly, and unfortunately there are nudists who are not doing what they should,” Wiener told Reuters.

The nudists, who expose themselves most often in the city’s famous gay neighborhood, the Castro District, have got Wiener and others worrying about public health.

“I’m not a health expert, but I believe sitting nude in a public place is not sanitary,” he said. “Would you want to sit on a seat where someone had been sitting naked? I think most people would say, ‘No.'”

Wiener, who represents the Castro neighborhood, said he hears from merchants who fear the public displays may drive away customers, hurting the business’ bottom lines.

The argument that public displays in the Castro will drive away customers is like saying Disney should get rid of Mickey because some people are afraid of mice. Wiener must realize at least a little that “displays” are why the “famous gay neighborhood” has so many customers.

So let’s look instead at his argument on safety. Business is booming in other neighborhoods where safety is a very serious problem. I’m talking about three homicides in the Mission in just one week, including a cook. The last one was a block from the police station. And if Weiner is really worried just about seat cleanliness then maybe he should instead focus his worry on BART upholstery since it clearly brings many more dirty bottoms into the Castro:

Fecal and skin-borne bacteria resistant to antibiotics were found in a seat on a train headed from Daly City to Dublin/Pleasanton. Further testing on the skin-borne bacteria showed characteristics of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, the drug-resistant bacterium that causes potentially lethal infections, although Franklin cautioned that the MRSA findings were preliminary.

High concentrations of at least nine bacteria strains and several types of mold were found on the seat. Even after Franklin cleaned the cushion with an alcohol wipe, potentially harmful bacteria were found growing in the fabric.

If only they could get rid of that disgusting fabric…