The media consistently paints a simplistic picture of climate change: stop burning fossil fuels that emit CO2, and the planet will stop heating. However, the current CO2 reductions have had little effect on global temperatures. Factors. Atmospheric “greenhouse” gases that trap heat have long been known:. Carbon dioxide...

Much as it is said that even a blind squirrel finds a nut, California, the State placing Proposition 65 labels on all our products, has just passed a new food labeling law, California Assembly Bill 660, prohibiting the use of “Sell By” dates on food. Good squirrel because, in this instance, it is a good nut.

In a scene from the dystopian sci-fi novel Hum, the protagonist returns to a public toilet to retrieve her ten-year-old son’s poop, fearing that his DNA might be used to identify her, undermining the painful steps she’s taken to avoid surveillance detection. While we’re not at the point where surveillance cameras can instantly identify a target, DNA analysis is far more advanced, along with the risks of the information getting in the wrong hands.

Sports are a big business in the US. Much has been said about cities spending millions to provide stadiums for their sports franchises. But then there is this. “I love the sport of racing and the passion of our fans, but the way NASCAR is run today is unfair to teams, drivers, sponsors and fans.” Michael Jordan.

This may sound strange but on some level antiviral drug research is "easy." Make that "easy compared to other therapeutic areas," because those who do research in the antiviral field – something I did for 10 years – have an advantage over scientists who work on other conditions, such as Parkinson's, pancreatic cancer, or autoimmune diseases. This advantage, which is based on pioneering work in the HIV/AIDS field, may lead to the first-ever antiviral drug for respiratory syncytial disease (RSV).

Orthopedic surgeons are probably the most protocol-driven group I have worked with. While they care for a range of emergencies, their physician extenders, physician assistants, or nurse practitioners can address many of the simpler fractures and sprains. Most hip fractures, on the other hand, demand urgent surgical intervention. Because these occur primarily in the elderly with other co-morbidities, orthopedists, having foresworn any medical thought outside orthopedics, generally have hospitalists or other internal medicine types “optimize” these patients before taking them to the OR within 24 hours. This allows for safer surgical care and outcomes and lets the orthopedist sleep through the night and face those urgent cases as a part of their workday.

“Social networks gave voice to a legion of imbeciles.” – Umberto Eco. His observation is particularly relevant today, as the digital landscape is flooded with information and misinformation. The ease of sharing content by online charlatans, conspiracists, manufacturers, and “brands” has created a breeding ground for falsehoods that can seriously affect public health.

The notion of human medical experimentation elicits visceral repulsion. Nevertheless, we allow such research for the betterment of society, but only with safeguards to protect the volunteers. These guardrails include an evaluation by an impartial ethics board that weighs the risks and benefits and full informed consent by the participants, governed by policy rubrics, applicable statutes, or international guidelines. Sometimes, however, there is research overreach, commingled with shoddy and/or obfuscatory study reporting. Only if something untoward happens does the public (sometimes) find out. So, volunteer, be warned.

Join Cameron English and Dr. Chuck Dinerstein on Episode 94 of the Science Dispatch podcast as they discuss:. This week, Scientific American urged readers to "Vote for Kamala Harris to Support Science, Health and the Environment." It's a senseless, shortsighted move that will inflame America's disdain for science. The upside is that it could incentivize needed reforms in our ideologically slanted academic and public health institutions.

Eric Boodman, in Part 4 of the series Coercive Care, presents a study raising the specter of “the denial of reproductive autonomy for people with sickle cell disease.” Mr. Boodman “focuses on narrative features, exploring the startling ways that science and medicine affect people's lives,” so while we may all agree upon the statistical dots he cites, we may take exception to the resulting narrative.

Frankly, I have been a bit mystified by the recent push to make America healthy again. Why now and why individuals like Calley Means and RFK Jr? While the simple answer revolves around the presidential election, these are individuals and groups that can play the long game. Falling back on the 70s mantra, “follow the money,” I came across a more complex reason, hidden, as always, in plain sight – the Farm Bill.

I am often most moved in the moment by my current reading, in this instance, Hurari’s Nexus. He discusses fallibility, the opposite of certainty. And then I found this. “A hallmark of religion is certainty, often called faith in this context. Certainty is what allows you to carve up your neighbor as a path to salvation. Like all effective religions, the Church of the Environment demands certainty. There’s no half-way house; no real difference between a denier and a skeptic. You are either a believer or an infidel. That certainty is what allows wealthy followers to impoverish Sri Lankan farmers by proscribing ammonia-based fertilizer.”

In 1903, Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize (in experimental Physics). It took another sixty years for the second woman to become a Physics Nobel Laureate. That was Maria Goeppert Mayer, the first (and only) woman to win the award for theoretical physics. (It would take another 60+ years for Donna Strickland to become the third woman physics laureate in 2018),

Now that I am four months or so into my Ozempic journey, it is time for an update. Let’s begin with the big goal: weight loss. As I might have predicted, the weight continues to be shed, albeit more slowly. Early on, I was losing two pounds a week, but now I can eke out a half pound, so it is clearly not a silver bullet to weight loss. That diminished rate is primarily due to my body’s homeostatic survival skills – slowing my metabolism to compensate for the reduced calories I am providing.

I will soon be writing about the possibility of the first-ever direct-acting antiviral drug (DAAD) for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), courtesy of Enanta Pharmaceuticals, a Massachusetts biotech company specializing in oral therapies for viral infections. More on this soon. Since the company's research strategy is (at least partly) based on...

Join Cameron English and Dr. Chuck Dinerstein on Episode 93 of the Science Dispatch podcast as they discuss:. Calley Means, co-founder of TruMed, recently raised concerns about conflicts of interest within the FDA and the influence of corporate funding on public health guidelines. Thereby, he joined the ranks of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr and his newfound friend, former President Trump, who argued for "a special Presidential Commission of independent minds who are not bought and paid for by Big Pharma."

Mindbodygreen (Mbg) is a health, wellness, and lifestyle industry behemoth. Their website features regularly published articles, a podcast, classes and certificates, a panel of experts, and their own product line. With such offerings, popularity, and influence, it's essential for consumers to know more about them. A convenience store of health...

As America’s population ages, Medicare will play an even more critical role in ensuring access to high-quality, affordable care for the elderly. Congress must fix the broken Medicare physician payment system. Access to affordable, high-quality health care is essential — particularly for more vulnerable Americans such as seniors and...

Looking for some good dinnertime conversation? Or perhaps it's your first online date, and there's an awkward silence. Need an icebreaker?. You've come to the right place: ACSH, your provider of multiple forms of information, enlightenment, education, entertainment, and occasionally, tales of the grotesque. Now and then I throw in some fairly gross stuff for no discernible reason (other than the quest for even more puerile humor). But this is only partly true here. It's both gross and scientific. You'll see.

In my article The Fluoride Controversy Never Dies I discussed the long history of fluoridation in the US, beginning in 1945 when Grand Rapids, Michigan, became the first city in the world to fluoridate its water supply to help fight tooth decay. Results showed that Grand Rapids children born after fluoride was added to the water had a 60% reduction in cavities. Over the years, fluoridation has spread across the US, with 75% of our population receiving fluoridated water today.