The remaining 3 months of 2009 ...

Nine months into the year and we've experienced:

1. The stock markets crashed in March 2009 and we're moving to higher highs.
2. We've witnessed a nasty virus (H1N1) and it spread to level 6 pandemic levels.
3. Gold has rocketed to almost breaking 1038/oz.
4. The US dollar is close to breaking another low (Bloomberg).
5. We are at the brink of national healthcare reform.
6. Sell-in May and go away (did not happen, the markets rallied).
7. September crash month of 2008 did not occur (so far).
8. The infamous fear index (^VIX) is trending lower.

What do you think will be in store for the rest of 2009? Where do we go from here?

One thing for sure has happened is problems continue to worsen but the reaction has gotten less and less (even the media has stopped talking about the bad things).

We've printed lots of $ and the conclusion at the G20 was we need to continue supporting a recovering economy. Few are buying gold jewelry but for some strange reason, someone or something is parking lots of money into gold. Some guess it is could be China.

Yes, stability has occurred and it may be here to stay with a cost. The cost will be a weaker dollar. If the problems require even more printing, the dollar may further weaken and gold may break to higher levels despite lack of jewelry demand.

Only time will tell what 2009 holds in store for Christmas this year.

U.S. consumers have changed and showed that change is possible. Articles on being frugal (aka Financially Fit) is the new trend: story.

What do you see for the remaining 3 months?

One thing is for sure. Oil has remained expensive and increased demand could make it go higher. Less demand means less recovery (so we don't want that either). How about food? Will food get cheaper or more expensive? The only solution would be to mass produce more animals, more plants in confined conditions.

Here is some humor to pass the time:

Question: But wouldn't that create more H1N1 like viruses?

Answer: Yes, but let's put that off for now and worry about a financial recovery. By the way, those genetically modified crops could offer a way to lower food costs.

Question: But wouldn't we run the risk of single genetics that could get infected (i.e. the potato blight in Ireland)?

Answer: Anything is possible. Let's put that off for now and worry about feeding the family with lower cost foods. By the way, those genetically modified crops taste quite 'similar'. You'll get used to it and soon forget there was ever an issue.

Question: Those banks that were too big to fail have gotten stronger. This seems like creating a bigger bubble than before.

Answer: Nah, you're just being oversensitive. If there is another bubble, we'll take care of it just like we always do.

Question: The water doesn't taste so good. There are medical publications about acinetobacter being multi-drug resistant. Do you think the wastewater facilities are working?

Answer: What do you want? It is free. Low cost. How can you complain about free stuff. Now if we could start charging for it, we might improvise.

Propionibacterium acnes market

According to the Mayo Clinic, the pathogenesis of acne (diagram) is formed when the

1. pore is clogged (no oxygen)

2. Propionibacterium acnes a gram positive species which thrives under anaerobic conditions increases in numbers (this can be detected by measuring for endogenic porphyrin–coporphyrin III). Unlike most anaerobic bacteria, P. acnes is aerotolerant so it survives in the presence of oxygen.

3. When a pore is blocked, this anaerobic bacteria overgrows and secretes chemicals that breakdown the wall of the pore, spilling other bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus into the skin. Interestingly, Staph. aureus is a Gram positive, facultative anaerobe (it can exist in the presence and absence of oxygen).

Comparisons of Liquid Growth (this figure provides good insight)

4. the sebum/oils become infected with a mixture of bacteria

5. inflammation pathway is triggered, re-triggered and scars develop

Common typical solutions:

Usage of benzoyl peroxide, antibiotics (i.e. tetracyclin, Clindamycin, Azithromycin), tretinoin -for scarring, U.V. light

Common problems:

Treatment resistance getting intolerable, ineffective with side effects (dry skin, pigmentation), problems reappear in weeks/months, enviro-toxic, unnecessary chemo-induced aging.

Less common problems:

Photosensitivity increased, Redness, itching, hives, swelling and a burning sensation after topical application

Cautionary statements specific to tretinoin (i.e. Retin-A):

It is a teratogen, and therefore can cause birth defects and tests have shown increases in foetal skull abnormalities in rats. Women who are or may be pregnant, or who are seeking to become pregnant, are therefore warned against using it. This teratogenic effect is caused by the interference of the exogenous retinoic acid with endogenous retinoic acid signaling, which plays a role in patterning the developing embryo. However the risks of topical tretinoin to the unborn child seems to be 'limited'.

Research Objective:

To find an alternative, low cost method to non-invasively disrupt bacterial mixtures while impregnating them into a facial cleansing system.

Background:

The electric dipole moment for a pair of opposite charges of magnitude q is defined as the magnitude of the charge times the distance between them and the defined direction is toward the positive charge. It is a useful concept in atoms and molecules where the effects of charge separation are measurable, but the distances between the charges are too small to be easily measurable. It is also a useful concept in skincare applications (see documents).

Water molecules as a liquid state are attracted to each other by electrostatic forces, and these forces have been described as van der Waals forces or van der Waals bonds. Even though the water molecule as a whole is electrically neutral, the distribution of charge in the molecule is not symmetrical and leads to a dipole field - a microscopic separation of the positive and negative charge centers. This leads to a net attraction between such polar molecules which finds expression in the cohesion of water molecules and contributes to water's properties of viscosity and surface tension. Van der Waals forces are what holds water in the liquid state until thermal conditions are violent enough to break those van der Waal bonds at 100°C. With cooling, residual electrostatic forces between the molecules cause water to liquify and eventually solidfy into ice.

Advantages:

Chemical free, 100% eco-friendly. Upon dilution, the activated dipole will become normalized drinking water, low cost, non-invasive, hypoallergenic.

Conclusions:

By utilizing uniquely dipolarized water, a unique action known to water molecules, aerotolerant, facultative and obligate can be reduced, removed without creating an enviro-compromising solutions. Additionally, resistance can not occur since the methodology is using molecular weight 18.0 g/mol smaller than oxygen (32.0 g/mol) as a penetration force.

Market size:

According to the 2003 annual report of Johnson & Johnson, the global skincare market is worth $43 billion per year. In June 2002, an Italian magazine: Italia Imballagio estimated that there are more than 14,000 cosmetics producers worldwide."Through acquisitions and, more importantly, strong post-acquisition growth, we now hold a leading position in the highly-fragmented $43billion per year global skin care market."Johnson & Johnson: 2003

Here is the 2008 annual report from Johnson & Johnson for comparisons:

http://www.myvirtualpaper.com/doc/jnj/Johnson-And-Johnson/2009030501/

Acne treatments will account for $561 million, or 16.9% of the market by 2008. Topical germicidals and antiseptic sector accounted for $469 million in 2003, representing 15.3% of total market value. (Source: GY T.)