Ammonia Capsules Cited in Death of Florida Teen
According to CNN, the guards who roughed up a Florida teenager at a military-style bootcamp, who later died, will be charged in his death. This incident, which took place around Pensacola, was a huge...
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Modified Human Blood Protein Deactivates HIV Virus
One reason that treatments for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) are particularly difficult to develop is that HIV is quite good at adapting resistance to drugs. Many of the virus’ surface...
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Antioxidants in Berries Increased by Ethanol (but Are Daiquiris Healthy?)
From the BBC on down, in the past few days the headline “Alchohol Makes Fruit Healthier” has been highlighted in nearly every news venue. The fruit contains compounds [antioxidants] that can protect...
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Caffeine Soap Update: Product Testing!
Yes, someone tested out the caffeine soap and blogged the results! Seems like he felt a bit of a buzz, however whether its caffeine or a bit of the placebo effect, well who can say. I jumped into the...
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Glowing Firefly Guts (aka to Science, Luciferase)
On my way over to a friend’s house last night, an unusual thing happened: a firefly which was in the process of lighting up got squashed against my windshield at that exact moment. While there wasn’t...
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Snail Venom A Cocktail of Neurotoxic Peptides
Cone snail shells are beautiful, but their venom is a potent cocktail used to paralyze passing fish. The venom is a witch’s brew of hundreds of novel compounds, many more than are found in snake venom...
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The Wonderfully Tasty, and Deadly, Fugu
One of the more, uh, interesting culinary experiences I have had in Asia was ordering fugu (pufferfish) sushi at a Japanese restaurant in China. A few moments after my order, a plate was sat in front...
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The Magic of Sake Fermentation
In keeping with my discussion of Japanese foodstuffs (see fugu) this week, I thought I’d post a bit about the alcoholic drink sake. Sake, often called rice wine, has polished rice kernels as its raw...
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Why Do Some Plants and Fungi (Like Stinkhorn) Smell Bad?
There are a few plants and fungi that rely on extremely offensive odors to attract insects and spread its pollen or spores. These odors, to people, stink like decomposing, rotten meat, but to flies...
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Bourbon in Lexington (or “What I Did On My Holiday Vacation”)
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day I spent with friends in Lansing, Michigan, but on the 28th I packed up my car, kissed Pepper goodbye, and headed to Lexington, KY to hang out with Steve of OmniBrain for...
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