B2 THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE SUNDAY • FEBRUARY 4, 2018 MEDIATE THIS ! THE SURF SHOP, THE WET FLOOR, AND THE MEDICAL BILLS BY STEVEN P. DINKIN unexpected bonus. everyone — including him — You and your husband will benefit if he accepts This week’s column of are sharing equally in the some responsibility. expert tips on resolving loss of money and vacation It’s a good bet he feels everyday conflicts focuses on time. He is willing to absorb remorseful about the wet a dispute about injuries the loss because he wants to floor. He may be dreading a suffered in an accident. protect something of greater confrontation and the loss of value to him, a close friend- a close friendship. But he Dear Mediator: ship. hasn’t had an opportunity to My husband and his But that relationship convey his perspective, at buddies meet for coffee every holds little value for you, least not to you. day at the surf shop owned especially now that his Mediators always counsel by his best friend. Last friend’s inattention to safety clients to give opposing month, while walking factors led to your husband’s parties the benefit of the through the store, my hus- injuries. doubt. You should assume band slipped on a wet floor, In such situations, a this shop owner wants to fell, and hurt himself badly resolution can be crafted make amends and restore enough for an ER visit and a with a transactional negotia- good will. week of missed work. This tion tool called “option iden- If you open up the lines of has cost us plenty in co-pays, tification.” If you look outside communication and hear deductibles and vacation your framework of limited him out, he might surprise time. I think his friend choices, you might identify GETTY IMAGES you with an apology and a should cover our losses, but something else that will This week’s query involves an accident that occurred at a surf shop, and a dis- peace offering (free surf gear, my husband says he “doesn’t compensate you personally. agreement between the affected husband and his wife over who should be liable anyone?). want to cause trouble.” What This type of reciprocal for the associated medical bills and financial losses. recourse do I have? deal-structuring (commonly Steven P. Dinkin is a professional Sidelined Wife in Pacific known as “horse trading”) a gift certificate. Then garage and more private you’ll ease the tensions that mediator who has served as Beach helps parties use ingenuity browse your imagination for time for exercising or read- hinder resolution. And the president of the San-Diego based and flexibility to break ways to redeem it for some- ing. party that makes the first National Conflict Resolution Center Dear Sidelined: through impasses. thing you want that was When you discuss this overture in a negotiation can since 2003. Your situation encom- When John F.Kennedy previously off the table but with your husband, open the gain bargaining leverage. passes two conflicts — a persuaded his wife to attend could now be within reach. conversation by expressing When your marital con- Do you have a conflict that real-time argument over a White House ceremony she Maybe there’s a trip empathy, which is a media- flict is settled, you will clear a needs a resolution? Share your marital assets and a poten- dreaded, his aides asked how you’ve longed to take or an tion staple. path for addressing the story with The Mediator via tial dispute about liability for he overcame her reluctance. item you’d like to purchase. If He has endured a painful liability conflict. email at damages. The marital con- “It cost me two symphonies,” money is tight, your wish list fall and a stalemate involving Even if your husband’s [email protected]. flict is more tangled, but as said the president. could include no-cost op- his wife and his friend. If you friend does not provide All submissions will be kept you’ll see, it could yield an Envision this standoff as tions like a cleaned-out acknowledge his quandary, financial compensation, anonymous. NOTEBOOKS From Union-Tribune reporting staff SCIENCE: BRADLEY J. FIKES THE READERS’ REPRESENTATIVE: ADRIAN VORE Blood test might detect Alzheimer’s A grab bag of items from readers Alzheimer’s disease might be detectable spinal taps are invasive and can be uncom- I’ve been collecting small items readers split. One reader vehemently opposed the at its earliest stages by a blood test, accord- fortable. A blood test would be less invasive. have flagged or ones I’ve noticed over the label when the offense has nothing to do ing to a study by Japanese researchers. The test examines blood plasma for beta past few weeks, so I thought I would present with person’s service. “It creates or perpet- If the study in Japanese and Australian amyloid fragments and a related protein them here as a sort of potpourri. uates an image of lawlessness or foolishness volunteers is confirmed, it would reduce the that is cleaved to make beta amyloid. In a by members of a military organization, cost and difficulty of detecting a toxic pro- study of 121 people in Japan and 252 in Aus- Headline goof when in fact it’s the action of an individual tein called beta amyloid in the brain. tralia, blood tests closely followed PET The Readers’ Rep received multiple alone,” the reader wrote. However, it might take years to get the scans and spinal taps in assessing how emails regarding a typo-style error that Another Marine vet disliked the term test ready for the public. More people need much beta amyloid was in the brain. made it past copy editors on Monday’s A3. “ex-Marine.” “Once a Marine, always a Mar- to be studied to determine if the findings are Both groups included cognitively nor- The one-column headline read: “U.S. takes ine,” she said. She had no problem bringing accurate enough, the researchers say. mal individuals, those with mild cognitive dominate role in oil production.” up the person’s past service, regardless. The study was published in the journal impairment and those with Alzheimer’s The readers were all asking basically Another reader said the label must be Nature. It can be found at j.mp/alzblood. disease. Participants were aged 60 to 90. how an error like that made it into print. relevant. Beta amyloid is a major factor in Alzhei- There is now no therapy proven to halt or No explanation. It should have been And another said to include it because it mer’s disease, where it has been found to slow down Alzheimer’s. Some drugs tempo- caught. offers some background information on the make neurons unhealthy and contribute to rarily alleviate symptoms, but don’t alter person. their eventual death. By detecting early the underlying course of the disease. Re- What kind of car? signs of its buildup, researchers hope to be- cent studies with potential Alzheimer’s An Associated Press article out of Bagh- A missing ‘who’ gin treatment early, before actual symp- drugs hint that those treated earliest in the dad last month raised a few queries. The David Morrison of Del Cerro expressed toms develop. disease may get some benefit. And new story reported on car enthusiasts in Iraq re- his frustration at an AP story that ran a cou- Beta amyloid can be detected by a PET drugs are entering clinical trials. storing older American cars and trucks. ple of weeks ago. “How do you print an arti- brain scan, or by analyzing cerebrospinal The article included two “Townson cars cle entitled ‘Baltimore Mayor Fires Police fluid obtained through a spinal tap. Howev- [email protected] from the mid-1960s” and a “1959 Townson.” Commissioner,’ without mentioning the er, PET scans cost thousands of dollars, and (619) 293-1020 It also noted a “1904 Jeep Levon.” name of the person who was fired?” Reader David Miller Jr. of Point Loma He’s right. That name should have been flagged two problems: “(The article) men- appeared in the story and up high. The HIGHER EDUCATION: JOHN WILKENS tioned a 1959 Townson. I had never heard of story originally included the person’s name, such a car, and sure enough when I checked but it was down far in the article. It appears online there was nothing listed. the name was mistakenly deleted when the Consumers ‘forget’ about those ethics “A 1904 Jeep was mentioned, but Jeeps story was being cut to fit the hole in print. did not exist until the early years of World The commissioner was Kevin Davis. A desk catches your eye, but it’s made The researchers believe consumers are War II.” with wood from an endangered rain forest. using memory as a coping mechanism to re- Indeed, I also came up empty in trying to More explanation, please What do you do? solve the conflict between one part of the locate a “Townson.” I also could not find on- Like many readers, I look for details in If you’re like many people, you’ll “forget” self that wants to do the ethical thing and line a Jeep “Levon.” However, I did find a ref- stories. They provide much more informa- the rain forest part and buy the table, ac- another part that wants to avoid unpleas- erence to a Jeep owned by a guy named tion and clarity than generalizations. For cording to a new paper co-authored by a ant information that interferes with the fun Levon.