urine
oracknows | October 23, 2015I consider posts like the one I'm writing now to be public service, an obligation. There are times when I don't want to do them, when they become so sadly, depressingly repetitive in overall outline (and, unfortunately, likely outcome) that it takes an effort to begin. However, given that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and as a result these sorts of stories seem to pop out of the woodwork this time of year, I feel I must. It doesn't matter that I just discussed another one of these cases a mere month ago. This time around, the article appears (as is so frequently the case) in The…
oracknows | October 19, 2014
I'm beginning to feel that I'm flogging a topic a bit too hard again. Usually, this happens primarily when I'm on a roll over some particularly tasty ridiculous tidbit of antivaccine nonsense. This time around, it's not so much antivaccine nonsense (although some did manage to slip its way into the discussion) but rather Ebola virus disease. In particular, it's the conspiracy theories and quackery that have sprung up in the media like so much kudzu smothering rational and science-based discourse, revealing the depths of distrust based on politics, pseudoscience, and just plain nonsense…
dr. dolittle | September 9, 2014 Image of mosquito from http://bloodinurineandpainofca.wordpress.com/
Until now I thought I had come up with enough reasons to dislike mosquitoes, those tiny little blood sucking vectors of disease. With reports of the debilitating mosquito-borne virus chikungunya in the Americas (Carribean), I was ecstatic hear that researchers are working hard to find ways to control mosquito populations. As mentioned in a previous blog, only the females bite to obtain nourishment for developing eggs. According to the study authors, the female mosquito can double her own body weight after just one meal,…
dr. dolittle | February 4, 2013 Image of camel from ukmedix news.
Researchers from King Abdulaziz University (Jeddah) have tested the effectiveness of micro and nanoshells for delivering a substance from camel urine, PMF701, thought to be a cure for cancer. These findings will be presented at the 2nd Biotechnology World Congress (Feb 18-21).
PMF701, not yet approved by the Saudi Food and Drug Authority, is currently in clinical trials. In a quote published by SciDev.net, the head of the university's tissue culture unit and the principal investigator of the project Faten Abdel-Rahman Khorshid stated, "We made a natural…
jchosy | April 16, 2010Researchers at the University of Hull, UK, recently published a paper about chemical signaling in reproductive behavior in crayfish. Yep, crayfish. Apparently, the female must release urinary cues in order to initiate courtship behavior in males. No pee, no sex. Unfortunately (and understandably), being peed on also triggers aggression in this species. The authors argue the female crayfish use their influential bodily fluids to stimulate aggression in males to gauge size and strength in prospective mates, allowing the females to choose the fittest males for subsequent copulation.
In male…
omnibrain | March 4, 2010Here's a snippet of some of the relevant text from the article describing the model below:
show attribute/state-oriented functions.
Type7. [Useful Attribute/State]: 2.3) Change of structure or object
directly make a useful "attribute" including "ability".
Type8. [Attribute/State]à Interactionà [Useful State]: 2.4) Change of
structure or object makes interaction between its "attribute/state" and the
other "attribute/state" which makes up a useful "state".
show
And now for the actual model:
Any guesses? Head past the break for the big reveal. Trust me - you'll be surprised.
Got it yet?
No?…
sciencepunk | April 2, 2009Have you ever heard the phrase (usually directed at some very recently-single lady) "he's not worth your tears"? Well, how much are tears worth, really? How much are any of your bodily fluids worth? Thankfully the good people at Innovative Research have just the answer! See below for my handy graph showing the value of your various bodily fluids, with 'expensive' liquids such as petrol and high-end champagne thrown in for comparison.
Click to biggify!
This article comes courtesy of the SciencePunk Central vaults!