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Of Mice and Midbrains


It's just after 2 p.m., I've turned in my exam, but still have to wait around until 3:30 to do a 20 point section on neuroanatomy cross sections. I feel pretty good about the exam, I studied like crazy and I think it's all finally paid off.

I should be studying cross sections, but I decided killing time was far more worth my while. And it lets me find really interesting stuff, such as this MC Hammer music video online. Since I'm just finishing a block on neurology, my first thought when watching Master Hammer dance was that he had bilateral hemiballismus, which is a problem caused by a lesion to the subthalamic nucleus in the brainstem. People with hemibalism tend to have wild erratic flailing movements because they've lost a part of the brainstem that helps suppress random movements.

Is Hammer a medical case? You decide...

In other news, I am flying out of Kansas City to head to Guatemala, for a one week medical mission. I'll spend four days working in a clinic in the mountains with some other students, nurses, and a resident physician. I am so excited to go, but I'm even more excited to sleep all the way there.

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