peregrinerose

Taking a psych med when you don't have a psych problem is blatantly stupid. Your 'belief' in psych meds is really irrelavent. When someone has an actual psych problem, the medications are there to get them back to normal brain biochemistry. For someone with normal brain biochem to take them of course is going to cause some side effects. Depression and anxiety disease are biochemical problems. Yes, in some cases they may be overdiagnosed, yes meds may be Rx'd in some instances for people that don't need them... but that's true of every med. With regard to the OP jumping on Xanax, that's really something to take up with the prescribing doctor. I personally wouldn't do it, but I only take 1/2 a Xanax occasionally at night (was Rx'd due to mild PTSD/depression) so I just don't have the tolerance or need for it that someone with more significant biochemical issues would have. Everyone's neurochemistry is different. Anecdotal information from other jumpers may or may not apply to your individual case. Talk to your doctor. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I won't let students jump with them, for the reasons you already outlined. If a student has an audible and wants it to log jumps, that's fine, it can go in a pocket. Your individual doesn't sound like a problem with regard to audibles, he sounds like a problem in general. Have you talked to the DZO? S&TA? AFFIs? How low is he pulling? Personally, I'd ensure that he gets grounded for a day the next time he pulls low, and grounded for even longer should the probelm persist (and I don't take groundings lightly... I've only pushed for a grounding once in 2 years of being an AFFI) Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I could not agree more with this statement. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I have done AFF at 2 different DZs... both had the same system in place for newbie AFFIs. New instructors were paired with seasoned/experienced instructors for a LOT of 2 JM AFF skydives. The experienced jumpers for the most part gave feedback to the newbie AFFI as much as the student, so it was a learning experience for all in those 'real life' situations that no AFF course could possibly cover. After a lot of double jump master jumps, the newer AFFI did a lot of single JM jumps with students known to be on the easier end of the spectrum, before being tossed to the wolves. I've had to 'prove' myself at two different DZs now before being tossed in with more challenging students on solo jumps, and that's the way it should be. Edited to add: While you're passing out skittles, I'll take a green one. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

LOL! FINALLY a rational post in this thread

Good catch, thanks!!

For those who may not get the KSC emails, Keystone Skydiving Center (formerly Kutztown Skydiving Center) is holding their safety day this Saturday, April 4 at Aerostore in Pottstown. Festivities will include Eastern Regional Director Randy Schroeder and Brian Germain both speaking. Of course they are merely the opening acts for Skydivingchad and I also lecturing Whether you are a regular at KSC or have never visited the DZ, come on out!! Edited due to poor geography skills Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Skydivingchad and I are both July 28 Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Ask questions. In the 'down time' on the DZ, hang out on the packing mat watching packers and learning gear. Actually LISTEN to what we have to say... we're not out to rain on your parade, we're here to keep you safe... respect the experience that your instructor brings to the table. Ask questions (yeah, I said that once, but that's the most important part!). And HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Show up at the different DZs and feel the vibe.... finding the 'right' DZ for you is like finding the 'right' spouse, it's just got to be a good fit. As an instructor, personally I'm infinitely happier at a smaller cessna DZ than a big one because I have more time to spend with students, the other jumpers are much closer friends even outside the DZ setting, and I feel safer there knowing that as an instructor, I have far more control over the safety atmosphere at a small DZ than a large one. But that's just what I look for in a place to work/play, what you look for might be different. And some things you can only tell to show up, introduce yourself as a potential student, and see what happens.

Chad and I look forward to meeting you both! If you're interested, our Safety Day is April 4 in Pottsville (Aerostore), you ought to come out... you'll meet all the fun jumpers and get a lot of good safety information. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

If you have an A license, you know how to pack, so I can't for the life of me figure out why you haven't jumped your own pack job yet. Hell, I was a paid packer before I had a license at all... 10ish jumps or so, maybe? Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

To humor Chad, I'm chiming in

Unfortunately a lot of the real 'safety' issues you can't see unless you are on staff.... you can only see the superficial safety things... you can't tell if tandem gear is being maintained, if the plane is being maintained, if a plane being down for the season is really due to the FAA grounding it or not, and those are the kinds of things that don't get talked about publicly and that some DZs will blatantly lie about. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Thank you so much!!!! Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

It's an absolutely gorgeous Remmington Model Seven CDL 7mm-08. Blued with a Walnut stock. I just got it, haven't even fired it yet. They run about $900 new. My husband lost his job Monday, so it needs to get sold and money in my bank account... as much as I'd love to keep it, my hunting plans are going to be on hold for a long time. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

How about advertising it? I haven't belonged to a gun club in 2 years (shoot out my own back door if I want to now

The subject says it all. I have a beautiful never used hunting rifle I need to sell, as my husband just lost his job and we need the cash. Any of you authorities on here know how to legally sell it private party in PA? Gun shop offered less than 1/2 what the gun is worth and flat out told us to sell it privately. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I'm not really afraid of death, only the fear/pain that may immediately precede it. I'm not ready to go yet, there are so many things I need to do here first. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

So it's possible that since the rate for rg color deficiency is higher than the 1% you stated in your other post was the cut off between fluke and possible advantage, there may be some minor asset to it? Considering that humans have been around a fairly short amount of time, the amount of evolution regarding the eye has had relatively little time to take place. Given our rather artificial environments, evolution is probably taking a different route than it did back in hunter/gatherer day as well. A more appropriate comparison would be incidence of color vision now compared to 1500+ years ago, data that's just not available at this time. With regard to your bird analogy, it doesn't really fly (yeah, bad pun) Bird vision is completely different than what either of us can truly comprehend. First, their needs are completely different than ours... flower and seed identification from large distances, mate selection regarding plume colors. Second, they have 3 types of photoreceptors (rod, cone, double cone), not just 2 (rod/cone) like ours. Third, they also can see in the UV light spectrum, so their rainbow and color vision is very different than ours. Not necessarily better or worse, just geared toward a totally different type of vision (seeds, for example, have a different UV signature than the surrounding flora, so the UV perception is important. Mate selection is also often UV impacted). Bird retinas do not have the network of blood vessels that we do, over top of the retina and blocking many photoreceptors. Their cones are more densely packed than ours. Nocturnal birds have more rods which allow for better night and motion vision, but poor detail vision. They also have a tapetum lucidum that improves the ability to see in the dark. A few nocturnal mammals have it as well. Even more importantly than retinal changes, birds have a completely different visual cortex than we do, they can percieve details without scanning and capture the 'whole picture differently than we can, while we are more able to focus on a particular detail than they are. Bird eyes give them a greater field of view than we have, however completely eliminates stereoscopic vision (with the exception of owls). Turtles, fish, and bees also have 4 types of cones too... again, they have different visual needs than we do, so it makes sense. Octopi have what we would think of as inverted retina from ours, but from a visual efficiency stance, in some ways developmentally, it makes more sense to have it structured in that way. Vision and visual perception and evolution thereof is far more complex than the rather simplistic facets that you're bringing up. As a result of this, you can't truly compare bird with human eyes, since structurally on a host of levels, not just cone numbers, they are very different entities with different functions. It's better to go with primate eyes alone, and the research shows that although trichromacy is better for fruit forraging and identification, dichromacy is much better for color-camoflauged stimuli (detecting predators, for example), which is likely why the incidence is so much higher in the human population than would be determined by mere 'fluke'. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

1. 1 in 8 men (12%) and anywhere from 1-5% of women (depending on which source you use) has color vision deficiency. Your numbers are very far off. 2. True that SOME forms of color vision issues are sex linked, but not all. There are something like 16 different genetic quirks that cause congenital color vision alteration, not even counting acquired vision loss. 3. Some populations DO have 100% color vision loss... check out the book I referenced above. They seem to do pretty well that way. 4. There's a difference between 'benefit' and 'strong benefit'... no one said that color vision deficiency was a strong benefit, only that in certain scenarios it could pose a slight advantage. A wavelength of light is still a wavelength, whether on camo or shrubbery. 5. Just because 'most people' use a certain terminology does not make it accurate.... if you want to come accross as knowledgeable in a field, you need to use accurate terms, not lay terms, especially when debating with someone with multiple advanced degrees in the field. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

I'm not sure why you disagreed with me in one paragraph, but then agreed at the end with regard to seeing through camo... that's the very trait that can be advantageous in some animal populations. But 'true' color blindness is NOT the removal of one photoreceptor type... it's the total lack of cones at all... achromatopsia, which has far more pressing complications than color descrimination. Color vision deficiency has many types... even in red-green deficiencies there are multiple types, protanopia is only one of them, deutanopia another. And even among those there are varying degrees and types. Then there's tritanopia or yellow-blue issues. And those are just the congenital forms. Acquired color vision deficiencies can stem from anything from macular disease, cone dytrophies, to optic nerve disorders. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Actually, it is possible that color vision issues could be beneficial. As colors are not seen the same, a figure/ground task (say spotting food, or a predator, hidden in the shadows or a bush) could be easier for someone with color vision problems, given the right coloring differences. On a Ishihara color vision test, there are plates that look like nothing to someone with 'normal' vision, but someone with red greed deficiency can easily see a number. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Color 'blindness' isn't really color blindness at all.... it's just a different way of identifying hues. Most color 'blindness' is the inability to differentiate some shades of red/green or yellow/blue, not a world of black and white. 1/8 guys has color vision issues, and 1/20 women. Even in the 7/8 guys with 'normal' color vision, they do not perceive as many shades or hues as 'normally' color visioned women. Total color vision loss, achromatopsia, is only possible through total loss of the cones of the eye. It also causes 20/400ish visual acuity (best corrected). Read "Island of the Colorblind" by Oliver Saacks for more information. 'Color' is a perception. The wavelength of light reflected by an object, however is something that can be objectively measured, not just subjectively determined. Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

Shameless bump. Many thanks to Lovestojump for buying my back-up rig yesterday... that covers 2 months of health insurance