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I would like to begin this brief exposition with a bizarre fairy tale that was confected by two well known energy experts, Amory Lovins and Joseph Romm, and published in Foreign Affairs (1992-93), which is the prestigious journal of the (United States) Council on Foreign Relations. It goes like this:

“For example, the Swedish State Power Board found that doubling electric efficiency, switching generators to natural gas and biomass fuels and relying upon the cleanest power plants would support a 54 per cent increase in real GNP from l987 to 2010 - while phasing out all nuclear power. Additionally, the heat and power sector’s carbon dioxide output would fall by one-third, and the costs of electrical services by nearly $1 billion per year. Sweden is already among the world’s most energy-efficient countries, even though it is cold, cloudy and heavily industrialized. Other countries should be able to do better.

I called that statement completely wrong the first time I saw it, while in my new energy economics textbook (2007) I suggest that it and similar contributions are misleading bunkum. For example, there are a number of questions that must be answered in detail before biomass can unambiguously be classified a large- scale fuel of choice for the near or distant future. As for renewables such as solar and wind, and probably hydrogen, they will undoubtedly increase in quality and quantity, but it will not be at the expense of nuclear.

As David Schlageter pointed out in the important forum EnergyPulse (2008), “Renewable energy sources only supplement the electric grid with intermittent power that rarely matches the daily electrical demand.” He continues by saying that “In order for an electric system to remain stable, it needs large generators running 24/7 to create voltage stability. Wind and solar generation are not on-line when needed to meet energy demand, and therefore to help decrease system losses.” In the promised land of wind energy, Denmark, voltage stability is attained by drawing on the energy resources of Sweden and Germany (and perhaps Norway). The Danes pay for the imported electricity, but not for the stability.

Every member of the nuclear booster club, to include myself, should make it his or her business to memorize the quotations in the previous paragraph, because they provide an excellent contradiction to the tiresome delusion that it is economically feasible to largely supplant nuclear energy with ‘renewables’. They also suggest why - with electric demand on the verge of increasing faster than supply in many parts of the world - more nuclear capacity is now scheduled for introduction than at any time during the past 3 decades.

Deeper Meanings

For those readers who have been exposed to secondary school algebra, the above reference to things like voltage stability is superfluous. Sweden and Norway produce, on the average, the lowest cost electricity in the world. Norway, however, generates almost all its electricity with hydro, which is generally recognized as the lowest-cost power source, while Swedish electricity is produced in almost equal amounts by hydro and nuclear. As I show in a forthcoming paper (2008), with this as a background, elementary algebra indicates that the unit cost of Swedish nuclear power is equal to the unit cost of Norwegian (and Swedish) hydro. This is not a welcome conclusion for many pseudo-scholars.

But what about nuclear waste, which is repeatedly portrayed as a malicious and unavoidable cost of nuclear based electricity because, ostensibly, it will have to be locked up for hundreds of thousands of years? An argument that is sometimes presented however is that the costbenefit of no carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions from nuclear facilities. For instance, the International Energy Agency has calculated that for France - the country with the largest production of nuclear energy (as a per cent of the total output of electric power) - the average person is responsible for 6.3 tonnes of carbon dioxide, which e.g. is one-third of the U.S. average. of disposing of nuclear waste is balanced by the

The cost-benefit trade-off mentioned just above is probably worth remembering, however I prefer for students (and anybody else) to inform me that France intends to treat its ‘waste’ as a potential fuel, and to explain why. (A similar strategy has been proposed in the UK by their energy minister.) For that reason a law has been passed in France stipulating that toxic waste is to be stored in such a way that it can be comparatively easily accessed and recycled if, at some point in the future, “new” technologies appear which will allow it to be used as a satisfactory input in the nuclear fuel cycle.

The latter provision is, as the reader might guess, partially intended to appease or possibly bewilder nuclear sceptics, because technology is already available for recycling this ‘déchet’, and in the event that the price of newly mined and processed uranium escalates, it would almost certainly be utilized without further debate. Of course, as noted by many comments to EnergyPulse, few persons who work with or near uranium believe that there will be a shortage of this commodity in the foreseeable future, even if the forthcoming nuclear revival eventually assumed the dimensions of a Manhattan Project.

There are occasionally long discussions of the cost of nuclear relative to the cost of renewables in the technical literature. An item that frequently appears is the capacity factors of windmills and solar generators. In simple terms, the capacity factor gives the amount of energy (in e.g. kWh) that is actually obtained, as compared to that made available if maximum output (= ‘nameplate’ capacity x time) were realized. It appears that in the U.S. wind generation works at maximum efficiency about one-third of the time, but this is confusing. With capacity factors between 0.25 and 0.35, the energy actually obtained as a percentage of maximum energy is less than one-half for many long periods.

It might also be useful to cite some figures for the cost of nuclear relative to gas and coal. The Economist (July 9, 2005) presents estimates from several sources for average electricity costs. For German utilities the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) gives 1.5 cents/kwh for nuclear, 3.1-3.8 cents for gas, and 3.8-4.4 cents for coal. Similarly, they give 1.7 cents/kwh for nuclear in the US, 2 cents for coal, and 5.7 cents for gas. The International Energy Agency (IEA), employing a discount rate of 5%, argues that nuclear is $21-31/Mwh, while gas ranges from $37-60/Mwh. Other sources (e.g. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Britain’s Royal Institute of International Affairs) disagree, however I specifically make a practice of ignoring everything originating with the energy economists of MIT and the RIIA, especially the latter, and advise everyone reading this to do the same.

So much for cost, but what about price of nuclear electricity - especially to private enterprises and households? In the case of Sweden, the low cost of nuclear and hydro power, and fairly smart regulation, made it possible to provide electricity to the industrial sector at perhaps the lowest price in the world. This being the case, nothing is more offbeat than hearing about the “subsidies” paid the nuclear sector. Cheap electricity meant the establishment of new enterprises, and just as important the expansion of existing firms. The tax income generated by these activities, and used for things like health care and education, more than compensated taxpayers (in the aggregate) for any ’subsidies’ that might have been dispensed by the government.

An antithetical situation may prevail for wind and biofuels. In Germany the energy law guarantees operators of windmills and producers of solar energy an above-market price for power for as long as 20 years. This is an explicit subsidy, although it may be both economically and politically optimal due to the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. More important, inexpensive electricity for plug-in hybrids is made available.

A more complex subsidy involves the exploitation of biofuels. Research newly carried in the United States, and reported in the influential journal Science, claims that almost all biofuels used today result in more greenhouse gas emissions than conventional fuels if the pollution directly and indirectly caused by producing these ‘green’ fuels is taken into consideration. In addition, there would be a substantial loss of ‘consumer surplus’ throughout the world due to a likely increase in food costs. Some of the intricacies of this important issue have been examined on an elementary level by Clay Ogg (2008).

In these circumstances, it might be argued that France’s total acceptance of nuclear power makes a great deal of sense. As noted in the Financial Times (October 6, 2006), nuclear power has provided “an abundance of cheaply-produced electricity, made the country a leader in nuclear technology worldwide and reduced its vulnerability to the fluctuations of the turbulent oil and gas markets.” France can also supply some electricity to neighbouring countries, which helps counterbalance the short sighted and unthinking foolishness being promoted by the European Union’s directors and its Energy Directorate.

Strange Behaviour

I’m a social scientist, Michael. That means I can’t explain electricity, or anything like that, but if you want to know about people I’m your man.
–J.B. Handelsman in Cartoonbank.com (The New Yorker Collection, 1986)

My situation is somewhat different, Michael. I knew enough about electricity to work on power lines for the U.S. Army during a brief period, and later to design terminal installations for the U.S. Navy, but although I have taught social science (i.e. economics) in 14 universities, I am still unable to understand why so many people are willing to risk the economic futures of themselves and their families because of the drivel being put into circulation by persons with a psychotic hatred of technological excellence, although they are quite capable of enjoying its material advantages. Something to be aware of here is that the rich will never be without reliable and plentiful energy, regardless of its availability or lack thereof to the less fortunate. One of the reasons that they will never be without it is that they are fully aware of its importance.

Perhaps the clearest argument for nuclear power has been presented by Rhodes and Beller (2000), which is similar to the basic contention of this article. They say that “Because diversity and redundancy are important for safety and security, renewable energy sources ought to retain a place in the energy economy of the century to come.” The meaning here is clear, especially if you add that we probably will never possess what is known in intermediate economic theory as the optimal amount of nuclear power. But they do state that “nuclear power should be central….Nuclear power is environmentally safe, practical and affordable. It is not the problem - it is one of the solutions.”

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Whether your Labrador Retriever is out in the field working or just right beside you enjoying the dog show, chances of contracting parvovirus exist. Parvovirus is a contagious virus affecting dogs, more frequently puppies. Canine Parvovirus or CPV is a highly infectious disease and is spread from dog to dog with physical contact and contact with infected feces. The virus is not capable of reproducing on its own because of the fact that they contain only DNA or RNA. They invade the cell, reproduce inside it and kills the cells causing dogs and puppies not to be able to absorb nutrients or liquids.

CPV has two forms: intestinal and cardiac. The less common is the cardiac form in which the virus attacks the heart muscle and the dog dies suddenly because of heart failure. Some infected dogs will show no symptoms. But some infected dogs show symptoms such as lethargy, vomiting, high fever, diarrhea, depression and lack of appetite. In severe cases, stool can be very watery, foul smelling, yellow in color and usually bloody. Abdominal pain is also present as well as pain when eating. The possibility of dehydration exist because of severe dehydration and vomiting and the fact that he is not able to replace the nutrients and fluids lost.

To diagnose the presence of parvovirus, positive diagnostic test is done. Canine parvovirus disease requires aggressive or intense treatment. There is no specific cure for this disease. Your vet can only treat the symptoms to keep the pet alive. Measures should be taken to prevent diarrhea, loss of proteins and to replace fluids lost through vomiting and diarrhea. These measures include giving of fluids, regulating electrolyte levels, controlling body temperature and giving blood transfusions when needed. Antibiotic therapy may be needed to control secondary bacterial infections.

To ensure that you’re beloved Labrador Retriever will not suffer this kind of health problem, you should adhere to the required or recommended vaccination. Vaccine against parvovirus is usually administered to puppies six to eight weeks of age and should only be allowed to mingle with other dogs two weeks after their last vaccination. There is no use vaccinating new born puppies since they are still protected by maternal antibodies. However, these antibodies wear off before the puppy’s system became mature enough to fight parvovirus.

CPV cannot be treated at home so consult your vet immediately if you see signs of the existence of this disease.

At Quantum Learning Network we use some powerful tools for achieving clear, constructive communication and teach these tools in all our academic summer camps, SuperCamp and Quantum U, and our many school programs. Communication is the key to positive, meaningful relationships in all areas of our lives—home, school, college, and career. Wherever we are in life, the ability to relate to others and communicate clearly gives us an added advantage.

One of our most useful communication tools is called Open the Front Door, or OTFD, which stands for Observation, Thought, Feeling, and Desire. This positive approach to communicating in uneasy situations opens a path for discussing disagreements, clearing up miscommunication, and creating solutions.

It’s hard to communicate negative feelings without slipping into negative patterns such as laying blame, attacking, accusing, or insulting. But these approaches never accomplish anything positive. The only power they have is to damage, confuse, wound feelings, and inspire the other person to respond in a similar tone. But if we use a positive approach, even in a tense atmosphere, we have a chance to forge a bond of communication.

OTFD: Open the Front Door

OTFD is particularly good for communicating negative feelings, but it can be used in almost any situation, with almost anyone. This method communicates four vital pieces of information: Observation, Thought, Feeling, and Desire.

O - Observation is simply stating the facts of the situation, something you observed that anyone else could observe.

Example: I noticed that everyone left the meeting without helping to clean up and put the furniture back. (Not, I noticed you were inconsiderate.)

T - Thought is an opinion or thought about what you observed.

Example: I think that people are assuming I am responsible for cleaning up because I am the instructor.

F - Feeling is how you felt about what you observed.

Example: I feel frustrated because I have work to get back to just like everyone else.

D - Desire is what you want for the future.

Example: I would like us to take turns setting up and breaking down for the meetings.

Following these four steps tells the other person precisely what they need to know in order to understand the situation you’re speaking about. Often, you’ll find when you finish communicating this way, the person you’re talking to will agree: “Yes, I see why you feel this way.” Compare this to what happens when you try to express an upset through blame, shame, judgment, or ridicule, and you’ll see the power in this tool.

SuperCamp summer programs fill up fast. Parents, go to http://www.SuperCamp.com now to learn about enrolling your son or daughter while space remains. Age-specific programs are available for students in grades 4-12 and incoming college freshmen. At the website, you also can get a free eBook that gives you an inside look at what works with teens from a world leader in youth achievement, SuperCamp co-founder Bobbi DePorter.

So, how to search for a job which allows you to be working from home? There are many ways that allows you to be able to search for a job like that. But there are also many scam websites out there wanting to cheat you of your time and money. To prevent that from happening, I have come to warn you of the scam techniques used out there.

A website is usually the primary source for scammers.

If you happen to stumble upon a website that looks somewhat unprofessional but you are tempted into doing the job, think twice before you even agree to them. Remember to check by keying in the company name into search engines and see if you can find results about them. Usually, there would be some results coming from several forums and sites which have reviews about the company which you are searching for. So, look through the comments, and if none of them are negative about that company, go ahead and join them. If there are tons of negative comments, you might want to avoid being in contact with it anymore. If the searches give little or no search results, the company might still be new, but you better take a little precaution and step away from that site at the moment until there are some reviews about it.

If your friend happens to be working from home, you might want to consult him/her about it. Ask him/her to give you some advice and if he/she permits, ask them to let you in on what company they are working for. This way, you are surely a hundred and one percent safe from being conned.

Sometimes, companies would advertise on papers to look for people willing to work from home. You should get a copy of your daily newspapers and make an effort to scan through each and every advertisement so as to make sure you are not missing out on any offers that allows you to work from home. This might seem to be the safest way, but you must also be alert. If they do advertise their website together with the ad, go have a look at their website and decide for yourself whether it seems like a scam or not. If they want you to give them a call, go ahead. If the personnel attending to you sound somewhat unprofessional, do not hesitate and just hang up, they are just wasting their time trying to rip you off.

Pop music is a liberal and vague category of modern music not marked by artistic considerations but by its promising audience or future market. Pop is music composed with calculated objective to influence the majority of its contemporaries.

In contrast to music that calls for education or arrangement to appreciate, a significant characteristic of pop music is that anyone is able to enjoy it. Artistic concepts such as complex musical form and aesthetics are not a matter in the writing of pop songs, the key aim being audience satisfaction and commercial triumph. Although the aim of pop music is to sell records and do really well in the charts, it does not require wide acclaim or commercial success. There are bad or unsuccessful pop songs.

Originally the term was an abbreviation of, and synonymous to, popular music, but developed around 1954 to express a particular musical category. The stylistic origins of pop music is folk,jazz,R&B,rock and roll,traditional pop music.The typical instruments are electric guitar,bass guitar,drum kit and keyboard.The cultural origins date back to 1950’s in the United States.It is popular worldwide since 1960s.

The standard format of pop music is the song, usually less than five minutes in length. The instrumentation can range from an orchestra to a lone singer. In spite of this wide choice, a standard lineup in a pop band includes a lead guitarist, a bassist, a drummer (or an electronic drum machine), a keyboardist and one or more singers, generally not themselves instumentalists.

Pop songs are generally conspicuous by a heavy rhythmic element, a mainstream style and traditional structure. The most common modification is strophic in form and focuses on memorable melodies, catchy hooks and the appeal of the verse-chorus-verse arrangement, with the chorus sharply contrasting the verse melodically, rhythmically and harmonically.

Lyrics in pop compositions are usually simple and speak of universal experiences and feelings, moving away from incomprehensible or debatable issues.The international appeal of pop was evident in the new millennium, with artists from around the world influencing the genre and local variants merging with the mainstream. As of 2008, pop music is now currently the most popular style of music of youth culture, making competition with hip hop, dance and country.

As you may have noticed, there are thousands of Internet pharmacies where you can order and buy Viagra online. Allowing web users to order Viagra online from the privacy of their homes has been a great boon to both consumers and sellers, creating a cottage industry of Viagra vendors. Some actually deliver what they promise… but not all of them.

Order Viagra With Caution

For example, some online vendors claim they sell authentic Viagra for a dollar or two per pill. This is NOT real Viagra. But you won’t know that until your Viagra order arrives. It may look like the little blue pill, it may even come in what looks like an authentic package. You’ll only discover the deception when the medication fails to work. Or worse, it makes you sick.

Knowing which online pharmacy to trust can be confusing. Researching them all is impossible. So before you randomly choose where to buy Viagra online, read these reliability tips. They will help you weed through the vendors and find one you can trust for a genuine product, good service and fair pricing.

Choosing a Viagra Online Vendor:

Does the website have US-licensed physicians and pharmacists on staff who can properly assess your medical information, issue a prescription, and dispense your Viagra order?

Is the online pharmacy’s headquarters in the US?

Do they have reliable 24-hour customer service and a toll free line? (Try calling and asking questions before you order Viagra online from any vendor.)

Does the pharmacy sell ONLY FDA-approved genuine Viagra? Remember: If it’s too cheap, you’re getting a fake. Generic Viagra does not exist – Pfizer continues to hold the patent – but illegal fake copies are out there. They have not been approved by the FDA and could risk your health. (See this article on Herbal Viagra for more information about fraudulent Viagra claims.)

Beware Viagra online vendors who encourage you to buy the 100 mg tablets and break them into smaller doses to save money. Genuine Viagra pills are NOT scored, they have a hard outer coating, and cannot easily be divided even with a pill cutter. It is always best to order the correct dosage.

Do seek out Viagra online pharmacies that offer loyalty discounts and special offers, for example a certain percentage off refills. eDrugstore.md also offers a free consultation while other pharmacies charge up to $50. Careful selection will save you money when you buy Viagra online.

Just like size, sometimes appearances DO matter. Avoid online pharmacies with shoddy looking or single page websites that look like they were slapped together yesterday. Chances are they were. And if the English is poor, you may be dealing with an offshore pharmacy masquerading as a homegrown US business.

Narrow your search to include Viagra pharmacies that offer a comprehensive online library of information about the product(s) they sell. This indicates they care about ensuring their customers are informed about the drugs they take.

Look for the secure symbol in the website’s address (https://). This layer of security protects your medical and credit card information.

Finally, buy your Viagra online from a pharmacy with at least four or five years in business. They are in it for the long haul, not here-today-gone-tomorrow, so you can trust them with your business.

In short, you need to employ a healthy dose of consumer caution when you order Viagra online from a pharmacy that you’ve never used before. Getting a positive recommendation from a trusted friend is always the best way to go. Plus the ten tips above will help you avoid disappointment and money wasted.

If you search through various publications and on the internet, you will find numerous offers to make an income through home-based opportunities. When selecting the best opportunity, it’s already known that your options may be limited. The reasoning behind this situation is that there are limited facts on MLM home-based opportunities out there. A person might assume that the limited facts indicate that not enough people have previously made an income with such an opportunity.

A potential participant with a MLM home-based opportunity should proceed with caution, and thoroughly investigate all information, so as to obtain the most effective success from it. The prospect should employ all sources available to them such as those at any public library which usually offer internet access and personal sources (i.e. family, friends, or associates) with valuable experiences concerning a business MLM money home-based opportunity.

The first step in obtaining success in a MLM home-based opportunity is to check out the program’s credentials. If there’s not an indication of the program’s legitimacy, this situation would present a problem for the prospective respondent. The prospect should not allow intimidation or awe by a flashy email or other media advertising about MLM home-based opportunities.

The next step is to really examine the opportunity, ask several searching questions, and do plenty of research on the MLM home-based opportunity before the final decision is made. Your best policy is to maintain a professional and unbiased detachment at the research stage. This step will essentially determine the prospect’s success or failure. Another important step for success in a MLM home-based opportunity includes finding and talking to those who have really been successful in the program. Take plenty of notes and keep a journal at this point and when the research stage is finished, come back to examine your journal to complete the decision making process.

Another important step to take as a prospect of a business MLM money home-based opportunity is to closely examine all paperwork of the program. Some experts mention that even hiring an attorney to examine program paperwork would be cost-effective for the prospect, and it would help protect the prospect as well. This step would additionally provide the prospect with the peace of mind of knowing the business MLM money home-based opportunity is legitimate or not. An alternative for the prospect would be an academic professional with general knowledge about the business world.

When the preceding steps are completed, talk about the MLM home-based opportunity to family members to confirm that it is the most effective program for you. If there is agreement among your family, the next course of action would be to pursue the program. A word of caution; proceed carefully and maintain a careful account of spending incured concerning the program. If not, current success can quickly turn to failure and problems.

A higher quality lifestyle can be achieved if all of these steps are followed by the prospect of a business MLM money home-based opportunity. In addition, the best MLM home-based opportunity will eventually increase the prospect’s success and confidence with the appropriate application of effort. The final result should be an enhanced quality of life for you and your family members. This, after all, is why it is worth it.

Traditional ideas about female serial killers hold that such offenders are motivated primarily by gain, are less violent than males, are largely reactive rather than initiating, and are not sexually compulsive in their bid to kill. But there are exceptions to every rule, particularly when it comes to stereotypes about serial killers. Some women who repeatedly kill have certainly been predatory and brutal. A few have even been sexually compulsive. There’s no reason to believe that females are immune to an erotic rush from the act of murder, and we’ll examine several cases to illustrate this. Not surprisingly, many turn up in the healthcare industry.

Jane Toppan, a nurse at the end of the nineteenth century, experimented on patients with a mixture of drugs that killed slowly. As they gradually lost consciousness, she would climb into bed to cradle them while they slipped into oblivion. (Schechter 2003). After she went to work for a family, its members began to die, one by one, with gentle Jane by their side. Finally, someone grew suspicious and examined these deaths more closely, leading to Toppan’s arrest. During her examination and trial, Toppan admitted to being aroused by death, which places her squarely in the category of a lust killer. In fact, she said that her sole regret was that she had been stopped so soon, and had she married and had a family, she was certain she would have killed them all as well.

There has been little to no research on female lust killers, in part because it’s an unexpected phenomenon and in part because the cases are rare. However, similar to male lust murder, the female counterpart is often driven by a paraphilia, such as arousal upon viewing a corpse or when rubbing inappropriately against someone. Often, there’s something deviant in their sexual development that consistently triggers arousal and thus feeds a compulsion.

Erotic motivation is even more prevalent among women who kill in partnerships with other women (although this behavior does not show up in all cases). There aren’t many documented examples, but those we have identified involved at least one person with a scheming mind, a degree of psychopathy, and the capacity for getting a thrill from deciding that others should die. In our first case involving two women, it’s not altogether clear who was actually the dominant partner, but violence apparently gave them both a sexual rush.

Catherine May Wood was described by her former husband, Ken Wood, as flighty, overly sensitive, moody, and unpredictable (Cauffiel 1992). She would start something and even pursue it for months, but would then drop it to do something else. He said that he could never count on her to commit and believed that she had never known unconditional love. As a result, he thought, she was both needy and insecure. She surprised him once by admitting that she wondered what it would be like to stab someone. She also felt no maternal affection for their daughter. Bothered by her excessive weight, she nevertheless continued to eat junk food.

The Woods separated in 1986, but not before Ken caught a glimpse of the kinds of friends Cathy was keeping at the nursing home where she worked as a supervisor —the Alpine Manor in Walker, Michigan. Apparently, a clique of lesbians employed there had become party friends, Cathy among them. Her sense of morality, already tenuous, seemed to Ken to have taken a back seat completely.

Cathy told Ken that she was in love with an aide, Gwendolyn Gail Graham, but that some of the things they did together frightened her. Graham had arrived from Texas, and this 22-year-old motorcycle rider had a tough side. Cauffiel (1992) states that people viewed her as masculine. She had been seriously injured several times and she often displayed the scars on her arms, sometimes lying about how she got them. She apparently had severe reactions to what she perceived as abandonment, which included the type of self-mutilation common to people with borderline personality disorder. Several of Graham’s coworkers liked her, but she took up with Cathy and they became lovers. Then they became killing partners.

Alpine Manor, with more than 200 beds, averaged about 40 deaths a year, and thus, six unnatural deaths, especially of “total care” patients who required the most attention, did not stand out. One victim had gangrene, another had Alzheimer’s, and all of them had been expected to die there at some point. It was an easy situation to exploit, especially with 70 staff members covering all the shifts.

According to Wood, whose tale became the primary legal record, it was Graham who first broached the subject of murder. At first Wood claimed she was just a witness, but later admitted to participating. Under interrogation and later at trial, Wood described how they had practiced sexual asphyxia to achieve greater orgasms, so she thought Graham was kidding when she suggested killing a patient. Yet the linked pain and pleasure of their sexual games had become threaded with images of cruelty against others. Just talking about murder, she said, got them both sexually excited. Finally, they decided to do it.

They started killing patients in January 1987 and continued for three months, initially attempting to select victims whose names would be part of a spelling game. The idea occurred while working on a crossword puzzle. They knew that the Alpine Manor recorded the names of patients who had died or were discharged in a book. Just for fun, they wanted to make the first initial of six names in a row, when read down, spell MURDER.

However, it proved too complicated to select the right patients in a way that minimized risk and also spelled the word, so they just selected patients that seemed easy to kill without discovery. Their new motive, said Wood, was to share this secret so they would be bonded “forever.” With each killing, they added one more day to that time period, so that after the third murder they might sign a love letter, “forever and three days.” Wood said she agreed to be an accomplice because she feared losing Graham, who apparently killed to relieve personal tension.

Acting as sentry, Wood watched as Graham attempted to smother elderly women, but some struggled so hard she had to back off. Oddly enough, none registered a complaint, and in fact most of the patients liked these two women. In many respects, they appeared to be good at this job, patient and compassionate.

The first victim to actually die was a woman suffering from Alzheimer’s disease whom both knew would be unable to fight. Her last name began with an “M.” Placing a washcloth over the woman’s nose and mouth, Graham smothered her to death. In the weeks that followed, Graham moved on to another, and then another, leaving a washcloth in the room as her “calling card.” After she failed at killing one of the male patients, they stuck to females, especially those who proved difficult to care for. In one version of the story, they had targeted at least 20 different people, including other aides.

To relive the crimes, Graham took items off the victims, such as jewelry, personal keepsakes, and socks. She and Wood placed these souvenirs at home on a special shelf. In a morbid postscript, they sometimes washed down the bodies as part of the postmortem routine, and handling their deceased victims further excited them.

Then they grew bolder. They told colleagues what they were doing, because the confessions added to their heightened sexual drive, but their accounts were dismissed as sick jokes. No one could believe that a person who entered healthcare would actively kill a patient, let alone become an outright predator. Wood, in particular, was known to lie and play mind games, so few associates took her seriously. Even her shelf of souvenirs impressed no one.

Graham then pressured Wood to take a more active role: she would have to kill one of the patients herself. Wood wasn’t ready for this, or so she later claimed. This angered Graham, who took up with another woman and returned to Texas. From there, she wrote disturbing letters about wanting to smash the faces of babies in her care at another facility. Wood swore her ex-husband to secrecy and confessed everything, admitting they had killed patients because it was fun. Despite his promise to her, Ken felt endangered just by knowing about their activities, so he notified a therapist, and a year later, the police. Wood attempted to deflect their investigation but quickly caved and blamed Graham. (There is some speculation that she set Graham up with this confession to punish her for leaving.)

After an investigation that involved two exhumations (which offered no physical evidence), both women were arrested. Wood turned state’s witness against her former lover for a sentence of 20 to 40 years, with the possibility of parole. Graham, too, testified, but the most telling witness was Graham’s current lover, who admitted that Graham had confessed six murders to her. Others testified in a similar vein.

On September 20, 1989, the jury deliberated for only 6 hours before they rendered a verdict: Graham was convicted of five counts of first-degree murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder. She drew six life sentences, with no possibility of parole. In media accounts, Wood’s role was downplayed to “occasional lookout,” and the case remains controversial today over whether there were more murders, as well as whether there were any murders at all. There is some speculation, especially after a psychological evaluation of Graham, that even if Graham did the killing, Wood had been the mastermind.

In studies of team killers, researchers have found that many couples, no matter what gender, follow a common pattern: Two people meet, feel a strong attraction, and establish an intimate familiarity that allows them to share fantasies—even violent ones. When eroticized, this approval encourages acting out, and if the partners succeed in committing a violent crime without getting caught, they grow bolder. The dominant person is generally charismatic and maintains psychological control—his or her erotic preferences set the tone.

In the case of Graham and Wood, regardless of who actually performed the murders, their fantasies and activities enhanced their sadomasochistic sex. Thus, until they broke up, the “game” became an essential aspect of their pleasure and a way for each to manipulate the other. They egged each other on, but they also exploited the fear of discovery to threaten each other. The fact that killing elderly women also gave them an outlet for issues they both had with their mothers added yet another level of motivation. All in all, murder was both fun and satisfying.

When lust is not the propellant, but females nevertheless kill for camaraderie, there still appears to be an element of thrill with erotic manifestations. They don’t kill specifically for a sexual thrill, but their pact and the actions that sustain it provide the stimulation. We see this phenomenon in a series of murders in Vienna, Austria.

It was again a nurse’s aide who initiated the 6-year spree at Lainz General Hospital. Most of the victims were elderly, many terminally ill. The killing began in 1983, and by the time officials began to investigate, the death toll stood at 49 (Protzman 1989). Reports of the trial turned up in the New York Times.

Waltraud Wagner, 23, had a 77-year-old patient who one day asked for help to end her suffering. Many nurses in elder care units or facilities face such requests. Wagner hesitatingly obliged, overdosing the ailing woman with morphine. Once she accomplished this without being caught, she apparently felt a surge of energy. She soon recruited accomplices from the night shift to engage in this “mercy-killing.” Maria Gruber, 19, and a nursing school dropout, was happy to join. So was Ilene Leidolf, 21. The third recruit was a grandmother, 43-year-old Stephanija Mayer. While the initial idea was to do something beneficial, they soon found pleasure in killing patients who got on their nerves. Many were not even deathly ill; they were just annoying.

Wagner showed the others how to give lethal injections with insulin and tranquilizers, and added a mechanism of her own creation: the “water cure.” This brutal method involved holding a patient’s nose while forcing him or her to drink water, which then filled the lungs and caused an agonizing death. Yet it was virtually undiscoverable as murder, because many elderly patients already had a certain amount of fluid in their lungs.

At first, the nurses killed sporadically, but by 1987 they had escalated and rumors spread that there was a killer on Pavilion 5. Allegedly, Wagner may have killed as many as 75—her own estimate before she withdrew parts of her confession. She then said she had only killed nine, although one of her accomplices placed her victim toll closer to 200.

As they grew bold, the nurses also grew careless. Over drinks one day, they relived one of their latest cases. A doctor overheard them, and he went to the police, who launched an investigation. It took 6 weeks, but all four women were arrested on April 7, 1989. The doctor in charge of their ward, who had been alerted to the killings a year earlier, was suspended.

While Wagner and the others insisted on selfless motives, the jury did not agree. Ultimately, Wagner was convicted of 15 murders, 17 attempted murders, and two counts of assault. She received life in prison. Leidolf, too, got life for five murders, while the other two drew 15 years for manslaughter and several attempted murder charges. This set of relatively light sentences may indicate how difficult it is for society to accept the idea of a predatory female killer—let alone four working together.

Researcher Carol Anne Davis (2001), who wrote about Graham and Wood, states that many female killers do plan their crimes, feeling empowered when they get away with them. Alone, they might be “bad news” in other ways, but engaging a partner willing to go the distance can provide a catalyst for repeat murder. Dominant women intent on violence, she says, tend to be sexually-driven, narcissistic, secretive, and manipulative. Often victimized in some manner during their lives, they turn this around by victimizing others. Having an approving or submissive partner energizes them, perhaps even making them feel invincible. Once caught, they attempt to manipulate the system, still believing in their own power. Sometimes they even succeed, thanks in part to the misperception of violent females fostered by erroneous stereotypes. As more cases emerge, we’ll learn more about this type of crime, and formal studies of female killing teams is clearly in order.

References

Associated Press. (1989, November 3). Ex-nursing home aide gets life term in five patient killings [Electronic Version]. The New York Times.

Cauffiel, L. (1992). Forever and five days. New York: Zebra Books.

Davis, C. (2001) Women who kill. London: Allison & Busby.

Yeomen, B. (1999). Bad girls. Psychology Today, 32(6).

Protzman, F. (1989, April 18). Killing of 49 patients by 4 nurse’s aids stuns the Austrians [Electronic version]. The New York Times.

Schechter, H. (2003). Fatal: The poisonous life of a female serial killer. New York: Pocket Books.

Women killed to assure love, one testifies,” (1989, September 14). Detroit Free Press.

About the Author

Katherine Ramsland, PhD, CMI-V, has published 25 books including The Human Predator: A historical Chronicle of Serial Murder and Forensic Investigation. Dr. Ramsland is an assistant professor of forensic psychology at DeSales University in Pennsylvania. She is a Certified Medical Investigator (CMI-V) and has been a member of the American College of Forensic Examiners since 1999.