Until 2011, Dr. Edzard Ernst was the head of one of the few university departments doing real, unbiased research on the effectiveness and safety of alternative medicine techniques. That's important, because you can't just dismiss weird-sounding stuff out of hand, but you also want somebody other than the practitioners of that weird-sounding stuff conducting research and analyzing the data. Now retired, Ernst recently started blogging, and I wanted to point you to his new home on the Internet. He can be a bit snarky and caustic (especially with chiropractic and homeopathy). But in general he's a fair, reasonable, and knowledgeable source on what works and what doesn't. Definitely worth a bookmark.
A useful blog for people interested in alternative medicine
Scientific paper about being bitten by a weird snake
Meet the leaf-nosed snake, a peculiar Madagascan species with a gift for crypsis. Reading about it I found my way to Envenomation by the Malagasy colubrid snake Langaha madagascariensis, which turns out to be "This God Damned Snake Bit Me!" written up as a formal scientific paper. To avoid harming the snake and to prevent… READ THE REST
Sasha Sagan interviews a series of inspiring female scientists
In Violet magazine, writer Sasha Sagan, author of the must-read For Small Creatures Such As We, is interviewing a series of inspiring and diverse female scientists. First up is evolutionary biologist Dr. Michelle Trautwein, "curator of flies" at the California Academy of Sciences. followed by South African chemist/nanotechnologist Dr. Tebello Nyokong of Rhodes University, and… READ THE REST
"Our brain is better at remembering where to find brownies than cherry tomatoes."
Spatial memory is the cognitive process for remembering and recalling the location of objects in relation to yourself and other objects. Turns out, our spatial memory also evolved to more easily remember where chocolate brownies than cherry tomatoes. Makes sense to me. According to researchers at Wageningen University & Research, this is because our evolutionary… READ THE REST
The KODAK PrintaCase Printer is a fun way to make your iPhone as unique as you
Mid October is too early for us to start in on holiday shopping suggestions. Oh, you'll get 'em all soon enough, trust us…but with more than two months before Santa rolls into town, we're not gonna hard sell you about the holidays. However…if your shopping list may eventually include an artsy teen who's obsessed with… READ THE REST
FlipNetik are mesmerizing desk toys with a strange power all their own
Fidget toys are made for relieving anxiety and stress, but there's a very ephemeral quality to finding fidget toys that actually do the job. Many are just clutter on your desk or can even be just kind of annoying. But the best ones slip into your hand almost unconsciously, providing a very soothing tactility and… READ THE REST
These Apple accessories will go great with that new iPhone 12 — and they're all on sale
With the announcement of the iPhone 12 just a few days ago, everybody is assessing their smartphone needs and making the big decision about upgrading. While the smartphone may be at the heart of these latest tech questions, it's probably also a good time to give your entire Apple device collection a once over and… READ THE REST
