holidays
dr. dolittle | November 3, 2016Mitochondria produce more than just ATP
Anatomy of a mitochondrion from Wikimedia Commons
Pinchas Cohen from the University of California - Davis presented data showing that mitochondria produce more than just ATP. They also make several peptides that can each affect our physiology. Some help cells respond to insulin better, some help with weight, some regulate cell metabolism. What is even more impressive is that some of these peptides have been shown to slow down the development of atherosclerosis or Alzheimer's, and some even help prevent side effects from chemotherapy in animals. Maybe…
gregladen | November 18, 2011Tradition. Not just a song from Fiddler on the Roof.
You know the refrain: "The Papa, the Papa! Tradition." It's a great play but it is firmly rooted in the patriarchy, as "tradition" often is.
There are many ways to define "tradition" and we can look it up somewhere and have a flameware over dictionary meanings if you want. But instead I'll tell you what I think the word means, roughly, generally, and subject to revision.
First, "tradition" is a feature of culture that simply refers to practices that are habitual. A subset of "traditions" are formalized or regularized, like holidays in…
milhayser | March 7, 2011
For the last few years, Claire L. Evans and friends have been producing a television show designed to teach computers about the human experience. On Valentine's Day, the term technophile got a new meaning on Universe. Claire explains, "we made some valentines for you and your computer to share. After all, you do spend all day staring at each other." On Pharyngula, PZ Myers looks at love throughout the animal kingdom, including among tortoises and penguins who look downright ecstatic in their couplings. Meanwhile, Mike the Mad Biologist encourages forethought before foreplay, showing us a…
sastyk | September 17, 2010During a three month period, between September 9 and December 16th, we have Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Simchas Torah, Asher's birthday, Simon's birthday, Thanksgiving, Isaiah's birthday and eight nights of Chanukah. It was manifestly poor planning on my part to produce three kids between Rosh Hashana and Chanukah, but it also means I don't have the luxury of slacking off on holiday prep - not if I want to do them sustainably.
Now on the one hand, I think most of us realize that the traditional Western holidays and birthdays are kind of ridiculous. Less is good for our kids, good for…
grrlscientist | April 3, 2010tags: cartoon, easter, humor
I know this cartoon is as old as I am so you've all seen it a hundred times already, but it never fails to make me laugh, so I am sharing it with you anyway.
grrlscientist | March 25, 2010tags: Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Armeen von Schokoladenhasen, easter, springtime, holidays, photography
Armeen von Schokoladenhasen.
Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Image: GrrlScientist, 24 March 2010 [larger view]
Easter is coming, and vast armies of chocolate bunnies are massing in the grocery stores, waiting to invade your homes and waistlines.
grrlscientist | January 9, 2010tags: How to Wrap a Cat for Christmas, holidays, christmas, funny, weird, silly, cats, pets, streaming video
This silly and amusing video is a little late for christmas, but it's still the holiday season, more or less (especially considering the mountains of snow that people in much of the Northern Hemisphere are dealing with right now), so it's appropriate.
grrlscientist | December 24, 2009tags: Jingle Farts, Holidays, humor, funny, silly, streaming video
Here's a silly holiday greeting and song especially for all my readers who appreciate such things.
grrlscientist | December 21, 2009
As you know, I recently married a British nutter and relocated to Germany, where I assume we both will remain for a significant period of time. Like most newlyweds, we wish to start our own traditions for the holidays, but since our possessions have not arrived yet, we are living in a nearly empty flat.
No seriously: our flat is nearly empty. For example, in Germany, when people move into their own flat, it is empty of all furnishings -- including the entire kitchen. Most Germans design and purchase their kitchen before moving in -- refrigerator, stove, range top, microwave, dishwasher,…
grrlscientist | December 15, 2009tags: peer-reviewed paper, psychology, gift wrapping, wrapping paper, behavior, holidays, holidaze
Besides bright lights, my favorite thing about the holidays is wrapping gifts. I love covering a boxed gift with colored papers (or even with plain brown paper bags), I get tremendous satisfaction from folding the paper so it makes precise corners and then I especially enjoy decorating the wrapped gift with bows, ribbons and toy flowers and birds, christmas ornaments or other decorations. I also enjoy figuring out how to wrap unusually shaped objects. However, my most favorite thing to do is…
grrlscientist | December 13, 2009tags: safety tips, holidays, christmas, hanukkah, kwanzaa, new year's day, pets, birds, parrots
Elektra.
My pet Female Solomon Islands Eclectus parrot,Eclectus roratus solomonensis, April 2008.
Image: GrrlScientist 2008 [larger view].
This message was emailed to me, and I am posting it here as a public service. With the Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah and the New Year's holidays upon us, we are all busy planning our family gatherings, gift giving and decorations. The season brings with it unique hazards that we all need to be mindful of so that we can ensure that our feathered family members…
grrlscientist | September 7, 2009Today is Labor Day in the United States. This holiday is designed to honor those of us who are lucky enough to have employment -- you know, a job that actually pays a living wage. Today, we honor work by ... not working.
Most people in America view Labor Day weekend as the last weekend of summer, so those of us who can afford it usually indulge in a mini-vacation intended for rest, relaxation and partying. To help us along in this endeavor are many clothing store discount sales, new movie releases, college football games (often the first official game of the season), parades and fireworks…
grrlscientist | April 12, 2009tags: easter bunny, easter bunny is dead, holidaze, holidays
Image: Orphaned [larger view].
On the way to the subway today, I photographed this tragic accident. This must be the reason I didn't get any Easter candy this year! I am bummed!
grrlscientist | April 12, 2009tags: Jesus Christ, The Life of Brian, easter, humor, satire, religion, holidays, holidaze, streaming video
This streaming video is from the British series Not the nine o'clock news. It comments on the controversy created by the Biblical story about Jesus Christ and how it is really a cheap rip-off of Monty Python's popular film, The Life of Brian [3:24]
sporte | January 1, 2009I made this video last night with a Flip Cam Mino. There are some kind of wild trippy effects. Sometimes it even looks like there's popcorn shooting out the top of the space needle. It was sure fun!
Happy New Year everyone!
technorati tags: fireworks, Seattle, New Year's Eve, Space Needle
awild | December 20, 2008An unusually festive jumping ant from a laboratory colony at Arizona State University. Researchers mark ants with unique patterns of paint to keep track of individuals for studies of ant behavior.
grrlscientist | December 18, 2008tags: California Raisins, holidays, funny, humor, parody, streaming video
Are you in the Holiday Spirit yet? No? Well watch this silly video and maybe this will help you get there ... [2:54]
grrlscientist | December 8, 2008
Santa in the Stacks.
Image: GrrlScientist, 8 December 2008 [larger view].
I was sitting in one of the public libraries in NYC when all of a sudden, a celebrity walked in: Santa Claus! He gathered together some reading materials and sat at a table near me for at least an hour. Even though I tried to be discreet, I think he noticed me snapping pictures of him.
Okay, so I have a question for you: what was Santa reading? Obviously, it's not an Atlas (although you'd think that Santa needs to brush up on his geography so he doesn't get lost on Christmas Eve) but after that, I cannot tell you…
grrlscientist | December 6, 2008tags: safety tips, holidays, christmas, hanukkah, kwanzaa, new year's day, pets, birds, parrots
Elektra.
Female Solomon Islands Eclectus parrot, Eclectus roratus solomonensis, April 2008.
Image: GrrlScientist 2008 [larger view].
This message was emailed to me, and I am posting it here as a public service. With the Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah and the New Year's holidays upon us, we are all busy planning our family gatherings, gift giving and decorations. The season brings with it unique hazards that we all need to be mindful of so that we can ensure that our feathered family members are…