( CNN) - - The wind whistles by like a gentle caress, propelling you forward, as you build up momentum. Legs begin pumping. Scenery is whooshing by, yet you glide down the road as if one with the ground. You and your bicycle are operating in perfect harmony, literally balancing on two wheels.

It' s something most people take for granted: riding a bike. Yet, it' s an activity many learn early in life.

In fact, some would say it' s even a childhood rite of passage in many cultures. & quot; You get a sense of ease of motion, & quot; says Walt Kenzie of Roswell, Georgia, an mateur cyclist who has raced his bike on occasion. & quot; It' s relaxing. It' s very mentally relaxing from the standpoint of you are always experiencing something new, because everything' s changing very quickly, yet you' re still getting a lot of exercise, & quot; he says. And that' s something about cycling that people have loved from the very beginning, when the first European bicycle made its appearance in the United States more than 100 years ago.

In the late 1800s there were nicknames for the bicycle, like & quot; steel horse, & quot; & quot; silent stead, & quot; and & quot; hobby horse. & quot; It also sparked a growing craze. But, for women, the bike symbolized much more than a trendy craze or a favorite pastime. & quot; The bicycle created this opportunity for them to leave, to see the outside world quite literally, & quot; says author Sue Macy, who recently released a new book called & quot; Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom. & quot; Macy explained most adult women in the late 1800s were pretty much confined to their homes, as young women or wives, unless they were factory workers. They even socialized in their homes, usually in the parlors with their beau. And their parents would sit there and watch them.

Then the bike rolled onto the scene. & quot; It was extraordinary. It affected the way women dressed, women' s sense of themselves, women' s ability to travel beyond the confines of their homes, & quot; Macy told CNN Radio. For one thing, the layers of heavy petticoats and wide crinolines had to go. & quot; When they started riding bicycles it became clear that this wouldn' t work, & quot; Macy says. & quot; The petticoats were getting caught in the spokes. Women were really getting injured just because of the clothing they wore. So quite quickly alternatives to the way they dressed were introduced.

They were no longer wearing such heavy clothing. & quot; Macy said the petticoats gave way to the bloomers, the puffy underpants worn under skirts. Even with the bloomers, though, women weren' t riding for speed or to get somewhere at that time.

Beth Emery is a biking teacher in Connecticut. She' s also a historian on women' s athletics. Emery said women weren' t really riding in the way that biking is thought to today because biking at the time was mostly about being out and being seen. & quot; It was like parading around and part of getting the fresh air and exercise, & quot; says Emery.

She has an extensive collection of turn- of the- century photographs and drawings of cyclists and says, at that time, it wasn' t an activity or a hobby for the masses, at least not yet. & quot; Bicycling was a very middle- class or upper- middle- class activity because to buy a bike was hugely expensive. & quot; But the biking craze caught on.

Macy argues in her book that as biking grew in popularity, it helped advance the the women' s movement.

She points to famous women' s rights advocates of the day, including Susan B. Anthony, who thought the bicycle not only helped change women' s fashion, but how they behaved socially. Macy offered a quote from Anthony, who said, & quot; Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. & quot; These days thousands of women routinely hop on their bikes and think nothing of the shorts they' re wearing or the comfortable shoes they' re wearing to pedal.

They' re thinking about other things, like maybe how environmentally friendly biking really is.

Biking fan Lori Kenzie, Walt Kenzie' s wife, explains it this way: & quot; It' s a green thing to do. Our daughter has made us even more aware of how green ( it is) because she is totally into protecting the planet, recycling, ( reducing) the carbon footprint, that kind of thing. She thinks we should all be either riding a bike or using horses instead of cars. & quot; And that would that be a true example of riding full circle. CNN Radio' s Pat St. Claire, Chip Grabow and Susanna Capelouto contributed to this report.

Your dentist or oral surgeon will take a number of steps to ensure proper healing of the socket and to prevent dry socket. You' ll be instructed on steps you can take to prevent the complication. What your dentist or oral surgeon may do Oral antibiotics, particularly for people with compromised immune systems What you can do before surgery Seek a dentist or oral surgeon with experience in tooth extractions. If you take oral contraceptives, schedule your extraction, if possible, during days 23 to 28 of your menstrual cycle, when estrogen levels are lower. Stop smoking and the use of other tobacco products at least 24 hours before tooth extraction surgery.

Consider talking to your doctor or dentist about a program to help you quit permanently. Talk to your dentist or oral surgeon about any prescription or over- the- counter medications or supplements you' re taking, as they may interfere with blood clotting. What you can do after surgery You' ll receive instructions about what to expect during the healing process after a tooth extraction and how to care for the wound. These instructions will likely address the following issues that can help prevent dry socket: Activity. After your surgery, plan to rest for the remainder of the day.

Resume normal activities the next day, but for at least a week, avoid rigorous exercise and sports that might result in dislodging the blood clot in the socket. Beverages. Drink lots of water after the surgery. Don' t drink alcoholic, caffeinated, carbonated or hot beverages in the first 24 hours.

Don' t drink with a straw for at least a week because the sucking action may dislodge the blood clot in the socket. Food.

Eat only soft foods, such as yogurt or applesauce, for the first 24 hours. Start eating semisoft foods when you can tolerate them.

Avoid hard, chewy, hot or spicy foods that might get stuck in the socket or irritate the wound. Cleaning your mouth. Don' t brush your teeth, rinse your mouth, spit or use a mouthwash during the first 24 hours after the surgery. After that time, gently rinse your mouth with warm salt water every two hours while awake and after meals for a week after your surgery. Mix 1/ 2 teaspoon ( 2.

5 milliliters) of table salt in 8 ounces ( 237 milliliters) of water.

After the first 24 hours, resume brushing your teeth, being particularly gentle near the surgical wound. Tobacco use.

If you smoke, don' t do so for at least 24 hours after surgery. If you chew tobacco, don' t use it for at least a week. Any use of tobacco products after oral surgery can delay healing and increase the risk of complications. & copy; 1998- 2011 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research ( MFMER) .

There are several ways to treat periodontitis, depending on its severity. The goal of periodontitis treatment is to thoroughly clean the pockets of bacteria and to prevent more damage. Treatment may be performed by a periodontist, a dentist or a dental hygienist. Treatment is most successful when you adopt a daily routine of good oral care. Nonsurgical treatments If your periodontitis isn' t advanced, treatment can include less invasive procedures, including: Scaling.

Scaling removes tartar and bacteria from your tooth surfaces and beneath your gums. It may be performed using instruments or an ultrasonic device. Root planing.

Root planing smoothes the root surfaces, discouraging further buildup of tartar. Antibiotics.

The use of antibiotics to treat periodontitis remains open to debate. Your periodontist or dentist may recommend using topical or oral antibiotics to help control bacterial infection. Topical antibiotics are generally the treatment of choice. They can include antibiotic mouth rinses or insertion of threads and gels containing antibiotics in the space between your teeth and gums or into pockets after deep cleaning. However, oral antibiotics may be necessary to completely eliminate infection- causing bacteria.

Surgical treatments If you have advanced periodontitis, your gum tissue may not respond to nonsurgical treatments and good oral hygiene. In that case, your periodontitis treatment may require dental surgery, such as: Flap surgery ( pocket reduction surgery) . In this procedure, your periodontist makes tiny incisions in your gum so that a section of gum tissue can be lifted back, exposing the roots for more effective scaling and planing. Because periodontitis often causes bone loss, the underlying bone may be recontoured before the gum tissue is sutured back in place.

The procedure generally takes from one to three hours and is performed under local anesthesia.

Soft tissue grafts. When you lose gum tissue to periodontal disease, your gumline recedes, making your teeth appear longer than normal. You may need to have damaged tissue replaced.

This is usually done by removing a small amount of tissue from the roof of your mouth ( palate) or another donor source and attaching it to the affected site. This procedure can help reduce further gum recession, cover exposed roots and give your teeth a more cosmetically pleasing appearance. Bone grafting. This procedure is performed when periodontitis has destroyed the bone surrounding your tooth root. The graft may be composed of small fragments of your own bone or the bone may be synthetic or donated.

The bone graft helps prevent tooth loss by holding your tooth in place. It also serves as a platform for the regrowth of natural bone.

Bone grafting may be performed during a technique called guided tissue regeneration. Guided tissue regeneration. This allows the regrowth of bone that was destroyed by bacteria.

In one approach, your dentist places a special piece of biocompatible fabric between existing bone and your tooth.

The material prevents unwanted tissue from entering the healing area, allowing bone to grow back instead. Enamel matrix derivative application. Another technique involves applying a specialized gel to a diseased tooth root. This gel contains the same proteins found in developing tooth enamel and stimulates the growth of healthy bone and tissue. & copy; 1998- 2011 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research ( MFMER) .

Reprise is a barbershop quartet assembled in 2001 at Brigham Young University.

The singers, Tim Workman ( tenor) , Joel Gillsepie ( lead) , Rex Kocherhans ( baritone) , and Tad Harris ( bass) are alumni of the internationally- renowned BYU Singers. Strangely enough for a barbershop, all are classically trained. The year of the group' s conception ( 2001) , Reprise won the MBNA America Collegiate Barbershop Quartet Contest held in Nashville, Tennessee with their renditions of the barbershop classics & quot; What' ll I Do? & quot; and & quot; Dinah& quot; .

They have since performed with the Saltaires Show Chorus for the 2002 Winter Olympics, as guest performers with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and others. User- contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By- SA License and may also be available under the GNU FDL.

Pitted to be the UK’ s next big female soloist, Kyla La- Grange has already been compared to a young Marianne Faithful and shot in Glamour magazine.

Bel Trew grabs her between recording sessions. ‘ The first instrument I ever played was probably a kazoo’ , says singer- songwriter Kyla La- Grange.

Recently featured in Glamour magazine as hot new talent, Kyla has just recorded her latest track ‘ Courage’ and thankfully the kazoo is not present. Part South- African and part Zimbabwean, Kyla grew up in London ( mind you there’ s not much Watford in her music) . Her Indie- Folk- Rock- Pop ( it’ s hard to put a label on it) is putting some glorious oomph into the world of female vocalists. Kyla’ s voice is what sets her apart.

It’ s odd. It doesn’ t seep out of your stereo into a syrupy puddle at your eardrum. Her voice has all the gritty, awkward vulnerabilities of a major Folk- singer with a smoky punch of Blues. Her music has drama with intimate starts, large choruses and smashing beats.

Vampire Smile, her first recorded song, surges towards a kind of delicious bacchanalian rally- cry at the end.

Courage, her latest offering, takes a more decisive step towards a vast folk symphony. ‘ We’ re building up these big walls of sound’ explains Kyla, ‘ with thick layered guitar bars and vocal harmonies’ and a mixture of female and male voices. Kyla is also demonstrating the real versatility of her voice. There is definitely something of Elliott Smith in her delivery and Leonard Cohen in her lyrics – both icons of hers. Courage is based on a friend: ‘ It' s about wanting to be brave enough to walk away from someone because you know they don' t love you as much as you love them, ’ before adding, ‘ I' ve never been brave enough to do that and I' m amazed by people who can. ’ Kyla has played at Glastonbury but some her favourite gigs are little acoustic ones ‘ where everyone is so quiet you could hear a pin drop’ . The Flowerpot and the Troubadour in London, she says, are the best places to hear and play music.

Despite doing well, Kyla admits its hard making music: ‘ You can get caught up in that dilemma between writing for yourself and writing for an audience’ .

It’ s also not an industry that promotes self- esteem, something she bizarrely lacks. ‘ But, ’ she jokes ‘ I think it gives me a lot too. Patience.

Callouses on my fingertips. ’ Kyla is irritatingly talented. A Cambridge University Philosophy graduate, she’ s good at sports, astonishingly beautiful and, of course, a bloody good singer.

When I asked her for any more hidden talents, it turns out she can even speak to her dog. So she’ s busy recording her album at the moment in London. ‘ No one has really heard the new stuff yet so it’ s exciting to be at the point where I know these songs are the blueprint for how I want the album to sound. ’ If her previous efforts are anything to go by, the album is set to be gutsy and beautiful. When will it be ready? Soon. Watch this ( my) space.

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Shook Ones are a band from Bellingham, Washington that formed in 2004. They have done several tours of the United States and a three- week tour of Europe. In April 2007, the band toured Japan playing several shows with Easel. In November of the same year, Shook Ones left Revelation Records, along with many of the other bands that Revelation had worked with between 2005 and 2007. The Summer of 2008 saw the release of a split EP with End of a Year, a band who had also left Revelation Records the previous fall.

Philadelphia based Runner Up Records handled the release of the split, which features four songs from Shook Ones and one from End of a Year. Future releases include a split EP with Hour of the Wolf on No Idea Records and a new LP to be released on Paper + Plastick.

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