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Ancient man used sophisticated drills to treat tooth decay, according to a French anthropologist who turned up evidence of fine dental work in ancient Pakistani cemeteries.

Writing in the respected British journal Nature, Roberto Macchiarelli of the University of Poitiers said Neolithic man used drills made of tiny pieces of flint up to 9,000 years ago.

The hole has been enlarged by another tool and shows smoothing, indicating it was drilled well before the death of the individual.

That means dentistry is at least 4,000 years older than first thought and far older than modern anesthesia.

Macchiarelli came to his conclusion after finding nearly perfect holes that had been drilled into the back teeth of nine skulls in a Pakistani graveyard. He carbon-dated the skulls and found the patients lived between 5500 BC and 7000 BC.

What surprised Macchiarelli was the sophistication of the dental work. The ancient dentists managed to drill holes into the large molars at the back of their patients’ mouths, a tricky job even with modern equipment.

Some holes were 3.5 millimetres deep.

“The holes were so perfect, so nice,” said David Frayer, an anthropology professor at the University of Kansas who co-authored the study. “I showed the pictures to my dentist and he thought they were amazing holes.”

Source: cbc.ca

Drilling holes 3.5mm depth. Impressive. If they can show the drilling tools, that will be awesome.

I think the tooth is a mandibular molar. There is a tiny hole prepared on buccal pit and another on distolingual cusp—the latter is almost like a Class VI restoration. Very nice.

The outline form of the cavity prep shown in the picture is amazing. Corners are rounded. Few places have sharp edges. It looks like there is medication or some sort placed in the center of the molar for pulpal protection. The prep doesn’t follow the pit & fissure, though. Rather, it is drilled directly under cusp tips, which is a no-no in nowadays dentistry, because you risk in pulpal exposure. There is sufficient enamel all the way round the prep to ensure the integrity of the tooth after the prep, lest tooth chipping occurs.

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Today we had our final exam in geriatrics. The format was MCQ (multiple choice question). Exam ran for 1 hour. Some questions were vague, but it was alright. Six more finals next week, then this winter term will be done.

Today also marks the last day of the clinic for this term.

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Nobody since Queen Victoria has held the British throne longer than Queen Elizabeth II. She marked 50 years as monarch in 2002 at the age of 76 and - with a recent clean bill of health and no urge to step down - looks like an even bet to surpass the 63 years of Victoria’s reign.

Elizabeth Alexandra Mary of York was born on April 21, 1926, at her maternal grandparents’ home in London, the first child for the Duke and Duchess of York.

While the Queen’s birthday falls in April, the country officially celebrates it in June. Britain has a long tradition of marking the monarch’s birthday on either the first, second or third Saturday in June. That helps avoid the risk of bad weather ruining outdoor celebrations.

Elizabeth’s accession to the throne was something of a fluke, the result of the dramatic abdication by her uncle, Edward VIII, to marry the American divorc ée Wallis Simpson. Her father became King George VI on Dec. 11, 1936, when Elizabeth was 10 years old.

Elizabeth gave her first radio address at 14, on Oct. 13, 1940. In her four-minute talk, she told the world that British children were “full of cheerfulness and courage” as bombs rained down on London during a Second World War air raid.

Five years later, she learned how to drive a car when she enlisted in the army.

Elizabeth married Philip Mountbatten, the Duke of Edinburgh, at Westminster Abbey on Nov. 20, 1947. On Feb. 6, 1952, her father died of cancer while she and Prince Philip were touring Africa, making the princess the Queen. Although the royal couple rushed home, Elizabeth’s coronation wasn’t held until more than a year later, on June 2, 1953. It was the first coronation of a British monarch shown on television.

Source: cbc.ca

Year 2006 marks the 80th birthday for QE II. Wow, that’s cool. I wonder if I can live that long still with good health.

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You think you know how an orange comes about? Check the follwoings!

Wow, that’s so realistic with the playdough clay.

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Oh, my, today is April 16, 2006, or Easter Sunday. Guess what we’re having heavy snowfall right now (2pm Mountain Time) in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada!!! Unbelievable!!! It’s like….uh…Christmas.

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