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Senior editor at HISTORY, science writer, relocated Mainer. Opinions my own.
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Articles by Amanda Onion
Study Finds Doctors' Neckties Carry Pathogens
May 25, 2004 -- When your doctor smoothes his tie, leans over, places a stick in your mouth and asks you to say "ah," have you ever found yourself wondering where his tie has been? Steven Nurkin did. The fourth-year medical student at the Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine in Haifa, Israel, got to thinking that with hospital infections affecting 5-10 percent of all admitted patients, it might be interesting to analyze doctors' neckties for disease-causing pathogens.
Human Din Is Drowning Out Nature's Quiet, Even in Parks
Advertisement "Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity," naturalist John Muir wrote in 1901. Today, Muir would be dismayed to learn that in a majority of the United States' protected areas, there's no escape from human-made noise pollution.
September 11: Six Ways Uncertainty Reigned Aboard Air Force One
On 9/11, millions of Americans became glued to their televisions, watching in horror as hijacked planes attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. But there was one critical group of people who, for a time, received only snippets of information—and misinformation—as the day unfolded. They were the passengers of Air Force One—including the president of the United States.
How the Great Compromise and the Electoral College Affects Politics Today
The Great Compromise was forged in a heated dispute during the 1787 Constitutional Convention: States with larger populations wanted congressional representation based on population, while smaller states demanded equal representation. To keep the convention from dissolving into chaos, the founding fathers came up with the Great Compromise.
Ronald Reagan fires 11,359 air-traffic controllers
On August 5, 1981, President Ronald Reagan begins firing 11,359 air-traffic controllers striking in violation of his order for them to return to work. The executive action, regarded as extreme by many, significantly slowed air travel for months. Two days earlier, on August 3, almost 13,000 air-traffic controllers went on strike after negotiations with the federal government to raise their pay and shorten their workweek proved fruitless.
Leeches May Be Making a Medical Comeback
They may be slimy, blood sucking worms, but leeches can help you heal, and may also ease your knee pain. The three-jawed creatures have long had a role in medicine, dating to at least as far back as 1500 B.C. when ancient wall art shows Egyptians applying the worms to patients for bloodletting. In the 1800s, leeches became a widespread treatment preferred by doctors throughout the United States and Europe.
Research: Humans Are Born to Run
Not everyone may feel this way, but new research argues that humans evolved to become natural runners. From our spring-loaded ligaments to our muscular behinds to our ability to sweat, the human body took the ideal shape of a long-distance runner starting some 2 million years ago, the researchers say. The long, lean build helped us scavenge widely scattered kills and could also have been an advantage when hunting down prey over long distances.
Sea Slugs Go Solar by Stealing From Algae
Slugs, in general, don't often impress. But a green sea slug that floats around the intertidal zone along the northeast coast has wowed scientists with this ability: It can suck out an algae's parts that generate energy from sunlight — and incorporate them into its own biology. In doing so, it becomes an animal with the photosynthetic ability of a plant.
Why Was the Battle of the Somme So Deadly?
The Battle of the Somme was one of the largest battles of World War I, and among the bloodiest in all of human history. Mondadori Portfolio/Getty Images Published: May 01, 2018Last Updated: February 18, 2025 The Battle of the Somme was one of the largest battles of World War I, and among the bloodiest in all of human history.
Why Was the Battle of the Somme So Deadly?
The Battle of the Somme was one of the largest battles of World War I, and among the bloodiest in all of human history. A combination of a compact battlefield, destructive modern weaponry and several failures by British military leaders led to the unprecedented slaughter of wave after wave of young men.
How World War I Changed Literature
World War I, the war that was originally expected to be “over by Christmas,” dragged on for four years with a grim brutality brought on by the dawn of trench warfare and advanced weapons, including chemical weapons. The horrors of that conflict altered the world for decades—and writers reflected that shifted outlook in their work.
Mysterious New DNA Structure Found in Living Human Cells
Some 65 years ago, James D. Watson and Francis H.C. Crick made a revelatory discovery. "We have found the secret of life!" Crick blurted out in a pub, Watson would later claim, after the pair mapped the famous double helix structure of DNA. Now scientists have found that "secret of life" – DNA – hosts another kind of structure. In addition to the double-stranded spiral, a four-stranded tangle, known as an i-motif, has been shown to exist throughout our genetic material.
Adding Sand Not Enough to Save Beaches
In summer, there's nothing like feeling the sun on your face and the sand between your toes. But rising sea levels and stronger coastal storms associated with climate change pose a threat to the sands that make up our beaches. A common approach to combatting erosion at U.S. coastlines is beach nourishment, which is literally taking sand from one place, often offshore, and pumping it onto a sand-depleted beach.
Water Shortage? Let's Lasso an Iceberg
Cape Town, South Africa is suffering from a severe water shortage after a sustained drought, so here's an idea: Send tankers down to Antarctica, lasso a giant iceberg and haul it north off the shores of Cape Town. Chip off the ice, filter it and use it as fresh water. That's a proposal that has been floated in various forms multiple times when regions in Africa and the Middle East have been faced with drought.
Why Is the Ocean Different Colors in Different Places?
Someone gazing out at the ocean from the Maine coast sees very different hues than someone squinting at the sea from a sunny beach on a Greek island. So why does the ocean come in so many shades of blue? First of all, as NASA oceanographer Gene Carl Feldman points out, "The water of the ocean is not blue, it's clear.
Climate Change Threatens the Moai of Easter Island
For more than 800 years, a series of mesmerizing statues have towered over Rapa Nui, a remote, 15-mile-wide (24-kilometer-wide) island in the southeast Pacific Ocean. The 40-foot-tall (12-meter-tall) statues, known as the moai, may have survived nearly a millennium, but the effects of climate change now threaten to topple the island's mysterious ancient history.
Which Ocean Is the World’s Smallest?
We humans may spend most of our time on land, but we live in a saltwater-dominated world, with ocean covering 71 percent of Earth's surface. Geographers divide the globe's ocean into named regions, and the smallest of these is the Arctic Ocean. Even the smallest of the world's oceans is impressively vast. Stretching for about 5.4 million square miles (8.7 million kilometers), the Arctic Ocean measures about 150 percent larger than North America.
What Is the World’s Shortest River?
Rivers are known for their long, meandering flows, but not all rivers run great distances. In fact, Montana's Roe River flows for a mere 201 feet (61 meters) between Giant Springs and the Missouri River. The Roe River was named the world's shortest river in the 1989 Guinness Book of World Records. Before that year, the title had belonged to the 440-foot-long (134-meters-long) D River in Lincoln City, Oregon.
Understand? Your Brain Signals Will Tell
Remember the voice of Charlie Brown's teacher: "Wha wha wha wha ..."? Sometimes we can hear someone speaking, but that doesn't always mean we're tuning in. Now neuroscientists have identified a way of detecting brain signals that indicate when a person is actually understanding speech.
Concentration Makes the Face Grow Cooler
In a moment of embarrassment, your face may flush and suddenly feel warm. But during times of intense concentration, the opposite is true: you're more likely to keep a cool head, or rather, a cool face, according to new research. A study that evaluated facial thermal temperatures revealed that as a person engages in intense mental tasks, their face, and in particular the area around the nose becomes cooler.
Cuttlefish, Masters of Camouflage, Have Newly Discovered Super Power
Cuttlefish – the cephalopods known for their stunning ability to instantly change color and texture to blend into surroundings – have another, newly discovered trick. Researchers have found that these soft creatures can "freeze" their camouflage pallete and lock it in place for up to an hour without any energy-consuming input from their main nervous system. That super power allows them to hold their disguise for long periods to avoid being detected – and eaten.
El progreso acaba aquí
Mira a tu alrededor porque lo que veas podría ser lo mejor que puedas tener. Algunos investigadores piensan que la raza humana ha alcanzado su punto máximo en el ámbito físico y que lo único que nos queda es la decadencia, debido a los problemas ambientales.
Your Local Library Also Happens to be a Newsroom
1. Welcome to your local library, which also happens to be a newsroom. 2. Humankind has reached its peak — in height, lifespan and physical fitness. 3. Robots will transform fast food — and that might not be a bad thing. By Alana Semuels in the Atlantic 4. With a simple test, patients with anxiety can learn whether drugs or talk therapy will work better. By the University of Illinois 5. Nearly half of U.S. households don’t save for emergencies. Should employers make emergency savings automatic?
Your Local Library Also Happens to be a Newsroom
1. Welcome to your local library, which also happens to be a newsroom. 2. Humankind has reached its peak — in height, lifespan and physical fitness. 3. Robots will transform fast food — and that might not be a bad thing. By Alana Semuels in the Atlantic 4. With a simple test, patients with anxiety can learn whether drugs or talk therapy will work better. By the University of Illinois 5. Nearly half of U.S. households don’t save for emergencies. Should employers make emergency savings automatic?
Common antidepressant found to reduce belly fat in older mice
Belly fat can be deadly, and is linked to a host of chronic diseases, including heart disease and type 2 diabetes. But as many of us probably know, it can be hard to lose weight in this area. Now it seems that inflammation of immune cells may be to blame, and we may be able to use drugs to help us burn off our belly flab.
Intricate Ice Caves in Antarctica May Harbor Unique Life
Aboveground, Antarctica appears barren and sterile. But tucked within warm pockets of volcanic ice caves, diverse plant and animal life may flourish. Steam and gas spewed by active volcanoes at Mount Erebus on the continent's Ross Island, and at three volcanoes on nearby Victoria Land, have carved out heated oases in ice domes, towers and cave systems.
Vietnam War Timeline
• January 1968: The Tet Offensive begins, encompassing a combined assault of Viet Minh and North Vietnamese armies. Attacks are carried out in more than 100 cities and outposts across South Vietnam, including Hue and Saigon, and the U.S. Embassy is invaded. The effective, bloody attacks shock U.S. officials and mark a turning point in the war and the beginning of a gradual U.S. withdrawal from the region.
Could Gut Bacteria Become the Next Sports Drink?
Feeling sluggish during your runs? In the near future, rather than reaching for an energy drink, you may opt to chug a concoction of your favorite athlete's gut bugs. A team of microbiotic researchers affiliated with Harvard University Medical School plan to launch a company this fall that aims to find and purify the best bugs from the feces of elite athletes and then market them as probiotic supplements in pill, liquid or powder form.
What Causes Spooky Out-of-Body Experiences?
While driving and accelerating in his car, a patient in France suddenly had a bizarre sensation. He felt like he was outside his car, looking in at his physical self, which was still at the wheel. The patient was part of a new study that links problems of the inner ear with eerie "out-of-body" experiences. These experiences arecurious, usually brief sensations in which a person's consciousness seems to exitthe body and then view the body from the outside.
Ticks Taking Brutal Toll on Moose
Spring is a time of rebirth. But for moose in northern New England, it's when the insidious effects of ticks can take their toll and kill their hosts. Early results from an ongoing, five-year study in Maine and New Hampshire show that more and more moose are dying from rampant tick infestations. Tracking collars placed on 36 calves in New Hampshire show nearly 75 percent of the collared moose calves died from ticks.
Parkinson's Disease May Take Root in the Gut Before Moving to the Brain
Parkinson's disease, which involves the malfunction and death of nerve cells in the brain, may originate in the gut, new research suggests, adding to a growing body of evidence supporting the idea. The new study shows that a protein in nerve cells that becomes corrupted and then forms clumps in the brains of people with Parkinson's can also be found in cells that line the small intestine. The research was done in both mice and human cells.
How the Ladybug Folds Its Giant Wings
It's one thing to unfold an origami puzzle, but then try refolding it — quickly and without any fingers. That's what the ladybug manages every time it settles down after flight. The beetle's ability to transform from a flying beetle to a walking one — and vice versa — in a fraction of a second offers it access to a broad range of habitats.
Humans' sense of smell is keener than you think
As you read this, take a whiff. What smells do you detect? How do these smells affect how you feel? It's rare that people consciously take in the smells around them, but a new review argues that the human sense of smell is more powerful than it's usually given credit for, and that it plays a bigger role in human health and behavior than many medical experts realize.
Climate Change and Silver Linings | Amanda Onion on WordPress.com
Forming a hypothesis, we all learned in middle school, is one of the first steps to doing scientific research. The aim is to prove your hypothesis, but since science is a reflection of facts, not theory, it doesn’t always turn out that way. This week I talked to a climate researcher who got unexpected results. Post doc researcher Nick Obradovicha in the Science, Technology and Public Policy program at Harvard University’s John F.
Thyroid Cancer Rates Triple, and Scientists Look for Cause
Thyroid cancer rates are rising faster than any other cancer in the United States, a new study found: Between 1975 and 2013, the number of thyroid cancer cases diagnosed yearly more than tripled. The numbers have prompted many epidemiologists to caution in recent years that the increase in cases is really just a matter of doctors catching more cases. This includes cases that are slow-growing and that would be unlikely to cause symptoms that affect a person's life.
The Entire Female Menstrual Cycle Can Be Simulated by This Lab Device
The female reproductive system is such an intricate network of organs and fluctuating hormone levels that it can seem mysterious, even to women. But now, scientists have replicated the entire female menstrual cycle in a bento-box-like device that can fit into the palm of your hand. The device represents a huge leap beyond the standard plastic petri dish as a medium for studying human biology and developing new disease treatments, the researchers said.
April Fools’ Day
Hilaria in Ancient Rome Historians have also linked April Fools' Day to festivals such as Hilaria (Latin for joyful), which was celebrated in ancient Rome at the end of March by followers of the cult of Cybele. It involved people dressing up in disguises and mocking fellow citizens and even magistrates and was said to be inspired by the Egyptian legend of Isis, Osiris and Seth.
Make Way for Amphibians | Amanda Onion on WordPress.com
It’s a rainy, mild day in March and that means frogs, toads and salamanders will be on the move tonight. The migration begins when the ground starts to thaw in late winter and early spring. Normally that falls somewhere between late March and early April, but an unusually mild spring (global warming, anyone?) means the animals are likely to start their journeys weeks earlier.
Hitler's Mobile Phone of Destruction Goes Up for Auction
It was Hitler's version of a cell phone. The red, chipped, corded phone likely traveled with the dictator wherever he went. Its handset was made to stay firmly in its cradle, unless rotated 60 degrees — a sign that the telephone was taken on bumpy travel.
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative Acquires A.I. Science Search Tool, Will Make It Free
A substantial part of the day in biophysicist and RNA folding expert Alan Chen's lab is consumed by combing through research journals to ensure that he and his team are aware of new studies pertinent to their field.
The Brains of Women and Men Are More Alike Than You May Think
We all know the cliches: Men are from Mars, women are from Venus. Women are quicker to cry. Men don't show their emotions. But research that looked at differences in the brain — specifically in the brain's emotion center — suggests that may all be bunk."That belief that there's a male-type brain and female-type brain — is just not true," Lise Eliot of Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science told Seeker.
Saving All Your Exercise for the Weekend Counts Too
It's Monday, so if you're a weekend warrior that might mean you have achy legs or arms from the physical activities you packed into the weekend.Most are aware the recommended guidelines call for consistent exercise throughout the week. But many are also just busy — until the weekend.
For decades and as recently as 1990, many medical professionals believed stuttering, an interruption in the flow of speech, was caused by some malfunction of the vocal tract, throat or tongue. One treatment even called for injecting botox into the tongue.
Feed Your Babies Peanuts, New Guidelines Say
The latest government advice to parents is: Let them eat peanuts!Guidelines for new parents is known to shift with the times and the latest government recommendations on when to expose children to peanuts represents a dramatic shift from previous advice to delay exposing children to peanuts until at least after infancy.On Thursday the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases presented new guidelines, recommending giving babies food containing peanuts as early as 4 to 6 months...
Shadow Maps Show Where Sunlight Does Not Fall
The maps most of us are familiar with feature landmarks that stand out — like mountains, roads, lakes and rivers.
Salamanders on Treadmills Reveal They Can Walk Extreme Distances to Mate
When it comes to finding a mate, some small-mouth mole salamanders will walk... and walk... and walk. They may not "walk 500 miles" and then "500 more," like the old Nineties hit goes, but new research that placed salamanders on mini, custom-made treadmills showed that they will walk an average of six miles and up to nine miles for love before pooping out.
Deer Attacks Puzzle Wildlife Officials
A rash of attacks by male deer has prompted California wildlife officials to warn people to try and keep their distance from the wild animals. The attacks, two against people and three against neighborhood pets, are most likely fluke incidents, officials say. However, the gorings could also be a sign that as residential areas expand, wild deer are becoming more accustomed to people and less fearful of them.
New Map Shows How Roads Are Fragmenting Earth's Wilderness
Robert Frost once famously wrote about choosing the road "less traveled by" in his 1916 poem, but 100 years later, that less traveled road would likely be a highway.The fact is that once a road is built, it becomes more traveled and more developed in a way that leaves a huge mark on ecosystems. This is why an international team of researchers have tapped crowd-sourced digital platforms to try and map exactly where roadless stretches of land remain.
Your MP3s Are Stripping the Joy From Music
Do you like being able to carry an entire library of music on your phone?
Top Scientists Urge Trump to Select Competent Science Adviser
Top scientists who lead 29 major scientific organizations in the United States have sent a letter to President-elect Trump urging him to quickly appoint a "respected" assistant to the president for science and technology."As President you will face a wide range of domestic and international challenges, from protecting national and energy security, to ensuring U.S. economic competitiveness, curing diseases, and responding to natural disasters.
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