The gooey, golden stuff that builds up inside your ears should stay there, according to national guidelines on earwax removal released today.
"[Earwax] is not intrinsically evil stuff, and consequently does not have to be removed merely because it's present," said Peter Roland, an ear, nose and throat doctor at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. "In fact, it serves a function and so if you don't need to take it out, you should just leave it alone."
Roland chaired a panel of doctors in charge of the new guidelines for earwax removal issued by the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF). The guidelines are intended to serve two purposes: to determine under what circumstances earwax needs to be removed, and to give doctors the scoop on which removal methods work best.
They hope the guidelines won't fall on deaf ears: About 12 million people a year in the United States seek medical care for impacted or excessive earwax. Impaction, they say, can cause pain, pressure, itching, foul odor, ringing of the ears, ear discharge and, in extreme cases, hearing loss.
A weirdly wonderful sight appeared to astronauts aboard the International Space Station this summer — thin blue clouds hovering at the boundary between Earth's atmosphere and the void.
The noctilucent or "night-shining" clouds are at an altitude of 47 to 53 miles (76 to 85 km), where meteors and bright aurora lights are not uncommon and the atmosphere gives way to the blackness of space. The clouds remain a scientifically baffling phenomenon more than 120 years after their discovery.
"It's lovely," said Gary Thomas, an atmospheric scientist at the University of Colorado after looking at a photo taken from the space station. "And it shows just how high these clouds really are – at the very edge of space."
The clouds form at dizzying heights where the air is one hundred million times drier than the Sahara. By contrast, the common high-altitude cirrus clouds only reach heights of 11 miles (18 km) up.
"We have a fairly good idea that the water vapor from below gets transported upwards," Thomas told SPACE.com. "That is in essence the fuel."
Part of that water vapor comes from rising air in the tropics, where a few parts per million of water escape into farthest reaches of the upper atmosphere. Another likely source of water vapor is methane oxidation. Methane concentrations have more than doubled over the past 100 years, which could explain part of the changes in the high-flying clouds over the past decades.
People first spotted the noctilucent clouds a few years after the 1883 eruption of the Krakatoa super-volcano in Indonesia created spectacular sunsets from ash in the atmosphere. Robert Leslie of Southampton, England saw the clouds one evening in July 1885 and published the first observations in the journal Nature.
The clouds have since spread from the northern latitude regions such as Scandinavia, Scotland and Siberia to areas farther south. Sightings have cropped up in Washington and Oregon in the United States, as well as in Turkey and Iran.
Scientists can observe widespread instances of the clouds throughout the polar summer. Some clouds even formed after the fateful launch of the doomed space shuttle Columbia, when 400 tons of water from the shuttle exhaust drifted toward the South Pole.
The mystery only thickened after the launch of a satellite dubbed Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) in 2007, when AIM spotted a type of "stealth" noctilucent cloud made of smaller ice crystals less than 30 nanometers (a red blood cell is about 10,000 nanometers). Such clouds appear to stay in the upper atmosphere all the time.
"They're just so tiny that they don't scatter light efficiently," Thomas said.
AIM has also found a strong resemblance between the noctilucent clouds and tropospheric clouds that hover near Earth's surface, which suggests that the dynamics of near-space weather may not be incredibly strange after all.
Researchers speculate that the origin and spread of the clouds is linked to patterns of climate change associated with the modern era. But they are not ruling out a host of other possible factors, including methane, carbon dioxide, the number of meteors seeding the upper atmosphere, and even the 11-year sunspot cycle.
"I think the jury's still out on that," Thomas said. "We're just trying to understand now how clouds form and how they vary."
Phelan, a former United player who has worked his way up through the ranks of the backroom staff, has been working as a first team coach since 2001 when Steve McClaren left for Middlesbrough.
Dutchman Rene Meulensteen has also been promoted from technical skills development officer to take on Phelan's former role.
United boss Sir Alex Ferguson welcomed the two new appointments.
'I am delighted Mick and Rene have agreed to fill these important positions,' he said.
'Mick knows Manchester United inside out, having been associated with the club for the best part of 20 years.
'He is a very talented and professional coach, whose ability and contribution to the club's success has often been understated.'
Ferguson added: 'Rene brings different ideas and experience to the role of first team coach.
'I believe the two will provide an excellent team to continue the club's willingness to try new ideas and constantly drive for success in an increasingly competitive game.'
Berbatov finally completed a four-year deal to join from Tottenham just before the closure of the transfer window last night, bringing an end to one of the summer's major transfer sagas.
And while neighbours Manchester City might have sent shockwaves across the city with their own pursuit of Berbatov and eventual signing of Robinho, Ferguson is intent on ensuring United remain top of the pile in England.
'This is a key signing,' the United boss told www.manutd.com.
'Dimitar is one of the best and most exciting strikers in world football.
'His style and ability will give the team a different dimension and I am sure he will be a popular player with the fans.'
Berbatov was driven away from Old Trafford just before the announcement of his move was made public. But the Bulgarian was clearly happy as he was pictured inside the stadium and is looking forward to becoming a United legend.
'Joining Manchester United is a dream come true for me,' he said.
'I look forward to playing my part in helping this club win more honours in the years to come.'
After a breathless afternoon, in which Berbatov spent time at United's Carrington training complex and then Old Trafford, he was then taken to a south Manchester hospital for a medical.
With no problems reported, he returned to Old Trafford, where he was greeted warmly by Sir Alex Ferguson and chief executive David Gill to begin the long wait to see if a deal could be done that would eventually see Berbatov wear the number nine shirt vacated by Louis Saha, following the Frenchman's sale to Everton.
Forty minutes before the deadline expired, United submitted papers to the Premier League, hoping the registration would go through in time, with the deal, which will see Fraizer Campbell move in the other direction on a season-long loan, being confirmed at 12.40am.
While the fee is more than United ideally wanted to pay, they have gained agreement from Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy that he will not pursue his complaint against the Old Trafford outfit for approaching Berbatov in the first place.
Having agreed an amazing £35million deal with cash-rich Manchester City, Levy knew he might have pocketed even more cash. However, he was also aware Berbatov had his heart set on joining United having unloaded a player who clearly no longer wanted to be at White Hart Lane and was beginning to unsettle other members of Juande Ramos' squad.
For Ferguson, Berbatov's arrival was a matter of extreme urgency.
While United were always confident Manchester City would be seen off as potential bidders, the evidence of the past two weeks, when Darren Fletcher has been the only player to score in the Premier League and the Super Cup was lost to Zenit St Petersburg on Friday when Nemanja Vidic found the target, Ferguson knew he needed another senior striker.
The Scot has won the last two Premier League titles, and the Champions League a man light of his preferred four-pronged forward line.
And he knew this time around, there would be no surprise signing such as Henrik Larsson to help the Red Devils out, or an unexpected seam of goals from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, or, due to his current injury, 42 from Cristiano Ronaldo.
Campbell might have impressed in pre-season but Ferguson realised it was too much to expect the youngster to hold down a regular place should either Wayne Rooney or Carlos Tevez be ruled out for an extended period.
And, though other targets such as Michael Owen, Thierry Henry and David Villa were mentioned, Berbatov was the man Ferguson kept returning to.
At 27, Berbatov is slightly older than most of United's recent major purchases but Ferguson feels his silky touch - which the Scot first experienced when Bayer Leverkusen faced the Red Devils in Champions League combat five years ago.
Ferguson believes Berbatov has the quality to score goals himself and create chances for others.
Some may question the player's temperament in light of his recent behaviour but Ferguson has worked with plenty of highly-strung individuals, including Eric Cantona, and got the best out of them.
He will expect to do the same with Berbatov, starting when United travel to Anfield to face Liverpool on September 13.
Saha has signed a two-year deal with an option for a third year after passing a medical over the weekend.
The Toffees have also revealed a move for Inter Milan winger Victor Obinna has fallen through after an unsuccessful work permit application.
Saha, whose spell at Old Trafford was beset by injuries, has 18 international caps and scored 42 goals during his United spell.
The 30-year-old will not be joined at Goodison Park by 21-year-old Inter Milan winger Obinna, however.
The Toffees' application for a work permit for the Nigeria international was rejected by the Home Office despite manager David Moyes and chairman Bill Kenwright travelling to an appeal hearing in London today.
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