Thailand: The Politics of Continuity
Since the 1932 revolution when constitutional rule replaced the absolute monarchy, Thailand has intermittently experimented with democratic government. The Kingdom's most recent attempt began in June 1968 with the promulgation of the eighth post-revolution Constitution. The Constitution called for national elections, held on February 10, 1969, for the House of Representatives, the lower house in the bicameral legislature.' Under the leadership of Prime Minister Thanom Kittakachorn, the Thai government mobilized some 250,000 rural and urban officials and spent approximately 102 million baht ($5,100,000) in order to carry out the elections. The massive organizational effort resulted in elections which were considered by spokesmen for both government and opposition parties to be the most orderly and least corrupt in Thai history. Isolated incidents of double voting by military units, bribery, and ballot box stuffing were reported informally, yet only twelve nullification suits, a very small number of protests in comparison with past elections, were filed officially with the Minister of Interior. Although political parties had been banned since 1958, thirteen parties managed to organize, register and engage in campaigning. Of these, the pro-government United Thai People's Party (UTPP) and the opposition Democrat Party merit particular attention. The organizers of the UTPP were comprised of the persons in the most powerful political institutions of Thailand. In addition to the Prime Minister, Party leaders included the most prominent civilian and military cabinet members and the Army, Navy, and Air Force Commanders-in-Chief. At election rallies in the Kingdom's 71 provincial constituencies, the UTPP candidates stressed: 1) the need for strong centralized leadership to ensure continued stability in the Kingdom; 2) the ability of the existing military regime to meet the dangers of Communism; 3) the success of the government's economic development program; and 4) the advantages UTPP candidates would have in terms of access to government funds for local development projects. The Democrat Party, the oldest and most influential of the opposition parties, was led by former Prime Minister Seni Pramoj. In contrast to the UTPP which was able to field a full slate of 219 candidates, the Democrat
Thailand: De-Escalation and Uncertainty
Winston Churchill once remarked that sovereign nations possess no permanent friends and no permanent enemies; they possess only permanent interests. During 1968 certain aspects of this fundamental principle of international politics became painfully apparent to some elements of the Thai government. The de-escalation of American military power in the Vietnamese war and the possibility of a retrenchment in American policy in Southeast Asia aroused a growing sense of doubt and uncertainty among officials in the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The developments jolted these officials into a deeper realization that important sectors of their national life are intimately related to the vagaries of international affairs. The concern began when President Johnson announced on March 31 that he was reducing the level of American military involvement in Vietnam and taking steps toward a negotiated peace settlement with the Hanoi government. As the American presidential and congressional campaigns progressed, Thai Foreign Affairs officials became increasingly worried over numerous demands from critics of both major political parties for a disengagement of American power from Southeast Asia, urgent appeals for a unilateral withdrawal" of American troops from Vietnam, and specific claims that the U.S. has only a "limited obligation" in Thailand and other nations in Southeast Asia. In brief, elements in Bangkok became increasingly fearful that the government policy which had been followed for almost twenty years in close cooperation with U.S. efforts to contain Communist expansion in Southeast Asia might be coming to an end. At mid-year the Thai Foreign Minister, Thanat Khoman, declared: "The United States has tried to raise doubts in our minds and it has succeeded. It has succeeded in raising doubts in its own mind."' However, the nation's top leaders, Prime Minister Thanom Kittikachorn and Deputy Premier Prapart Charusathien, while worried, apparently assume that the U.S. will continue its assistance to Thailand. Thanat's statement and the extreme anxiety of his Foreign Affairs Ministry should be viewed as the most dramatic expressions of a pervasive concern within Thai officialdom. The uncertainty among Thai leaders assumed heightened proportions as external and internal Communist threats continued to confront the kingdom. On the third anniversary of the Communist underground organization, the
Role of computer technology in medical illustration.
OBJECTIVE
Recent improvements of computer technology have resulted in a new approach to medical illustration and the scientific research process. The purpose of this manuscript is to define the current state of the art and to review paths of progress.


CONCLUSION
Using examples, we compared the process of time-intensive hand-rendered art with current art created using new computer technology. Specific emphasis was made on the newest technologies and how high-quality lower cost medical art can now be created. These newly available tools and illustration methods have resulted in a new approach to research, creation, and reproduction of medical art.