Culture Connoisseur Badge Culture Connoisseurs consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on the arts, lifestyle and entertainment. More about badges | Request a badge Washingtologist Badge Washingtologists consistently post thought-provoking, timely comments on events, communities, and trends in the Washington area. More about badges | Request a badge Post Writer Badge This commenter is a Washington Post editor, reporter or producer. Post Contributor Badge This commenter is a Washington Post contributor. Post contributors aren’t staff, but may write articles or columns. In some cases, contributors are sources or experts quoted in a story. More about badges | Request a badge Post Recommended Washington Post reporters or editors recommend this comment or reader post. You must be logged in to report a comment. You must be logged ... Continue reading →
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The first private spaceship is headed to the International Space Station. Some questions and answers about the cargo mission by Space Exploration Technologies, known as SpaceX: Q: If this is just supplies and no astronauts, why is this launch such a big deal? A: It's not the ship or what's in it that makes this important. It's who's behind it. Until now, going to and from the space station has been the job of governments, big ones at that. This is a privately built and run spaceship and it's loaded with food, clothing and equipment for the test run. Q: What's next in this space trip? A: The Dragon capsule is in orbit after its launch on top a Falcon 9 rocket. ... Continue reading →
Culture Connoisseur Badge Culture Connoisseurs consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on the arts, lifestyle and entertainment. More about badges | Request a badge Washingtologist Badge Washingtologists consistently post thought-provoking, timely comments on events, communities, and trends in the Washington area. More about badges | Request a badge Post Writer Badge This commenter is a Washington Post editor, reporter or producer. Post Contributor Badge This commenter is a Washington Post contributor. Post contributors aren’t staff, but may write articles or columns. In some cases, contributors are sources or experts quoted in a story. More about badges | Request a badge Post Recommended Washington Post reporters or editors recommend this comment or reader post. You must be logged in to report a comment. You must be logged ... Continue reading →
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Swept by the barefoot running craze, ultramarathoner Ryan Carter ditched his sneakers for footwear that mimics the experience of striding unshod. The first time he tried it two years ago, he ran a third of a mile on grass. Within three weeks of switching over, he was clocking six miles on the road. During a training run with a friend along a picturesque bike path near downtown Minneapolis, Carter suddenly stopped, unable to take another step. His right foot seared in pain. "It was as though someone had taken a hammer and hit me with it," he recalled. Carter convinced his friend to run on without him. He hobbled home and rested his foot. When the throbbing became unbearable days later, ... Continue reading →
(05-21) 10:33 PDT New York (AP) -- "Pink slime" was almost "pink paste" or "pink goo." The microbiologist who coined the term for lean finely textured beef ran through a few iterations in his head before pressing send on an email to a coworker at the U.S. Department of Agriculture a decade ago. Then, the name hit him like heartburn after a juicy burger. "It's pink. It's pasty. And it's slimy looking. So I called it pink slime," said Gerald Zirnstein, the former meat inspector at the USDA. "It resonates, doesn't it?" The pithy description fueled an uproar that resulted in the main company behind the filler, Beef Products Inc., closing three meat plants this month. The controversy over the filler, which is made of ... Continue reading →
ATLANTA (AP) -- Half the nation's overweight teens have unhealthy blood pressure, cholesterol or blood sugar levels that put them at risk for future heart attacks and other cardiac problems, new federal research says. And an even larger proportion of obese adolescents have such a risk, according to the alarming new numbers. "What this is saying, unfortunately, is that we're losing the battle early with many kids," said Dr. Stephen Daniels, a University of Colorado School of Medicine expert who was not involved in the study. People can keep their risk of heart disease very low if they reach age 45 or 50 at normal weight and with normal blood pressure, normal cholesterol and no diabetes. So these results are not good, he said. The ... Continue reading →
ATLANTA (AP) -- For the first time, health officials are proposing that all baby boomers get tested for hepatitis C. Anyone born from 1945 to 1965 should get a one-time blood test to see if they have the liver-destroying virus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in draft recommendations issued Friday. Baby boomers account for 2 million of the 3.2 million Americans infected with the blood-borne virus. The virus can take decades to cause liver damage, and many people don't know they're infected. CDC officials believe the new measure could lead 800,000 more baby boomers to get treatment and could save more than 120,000 lives. "The CDC views hepatitis C as an unrecognized health crisis for the country, and we believe the time ... Continue reading →
