I heart Wikipedia

It's the beginning of the year and that means a temporary boost in study motivation. I feel especially motivated this year, which is odd. My interests at any given time usually gravitate less towards academics and more towards Pogs, logger sports, and ophidians on a flying machine. Maybe it's because this semester will have a lot more clinical material and slightly less basic science material, making me happy.

Whatever the case, I'm not going to questions my newfound studiousness. Wouldn't want to jinx it, you know. Besides, it'll be gone soon enough - probably as soon as I see a butterfly or something sparkly.

So I am currently at Bentley's House of Coffee & Tea, my personal favourite* study spot. I'm pre-reading (gasp) for pathology, which has actually been a pretty fun class so far. I actually enjoy staring into a microscope, which is drastically different than my undergrad career. I don't think the rest of the crew are as enthusiastic as myself when it comes to looking at pathology slides. In D-Rock's case, it's understandable. He's probably sick of microscopes after all those years spent using one to try to find his penis. Zing!

Tomorrow's lecture/lab is on "Thrombosis, Embolism and Infarction," aka "The Trifecta of Bodily Destruction." At one point the notes make mention of the "air embolism." To illustrate this concept, think of all the times in fiction when a villain would inject air into somebody's vein to kill them. Cool, huh?

Anyway, I've always been curious about why air in the bloodstream would kill you. Unfortunately, the notes are not very detailed. So I turned to my usual source of knowledge, Wikipedia. I found an entry for "Air Embolism" and gave it a read. And boy what a read.

The entry is broken into sections. Sections like pathogenesis, symptoms, treatment, etc. Low and behold, the second section (before even symptoms or treatment) is a section entitled "Cunnilingus." Before my brain can even process that, my hand has forced me to click on the link to that section. Here it is in all its glory:

A woman should not allow her sexual partner to blow air into her vagina to induce vaginal flatulence during cunnilingus. Although this may be a fetishistic behavior, or simply amusing, it can cause an air embolism which can damage her health (or even be deadly to her fetus if she is pregnant).

Hilarious. Well not the potential for danger part, but the rest is classic. Who thinks of these things? And who thinks it is more important than symptoms and treatment? My favorite part is, "Although this may be a fetishistic behavior, or simply amusing..." Muahaha, it sure sounds amusing. If anything, I'm tempted to try it. Now I just need to find a woman willing to get within 50 feet of me.

All in all, I'm glad I went to Wikipedia. It's a wealth of useful information and comedy. I can't wait to share this knowledge with my patients. Which sounds extra creepy if you know I'm interested in pediatrics...


*By law I have to spell it the British way, since they sell tea here.