Marijuana May Hold the Secret to Dieting, Man.
There’s been a lot of hype about marijuana in the news lately and its legalization for medicinal purposes, among a few other ones. Scientists have been working on discovering how marijuana interacts with human metabolic systems. Using lab mice to test the effects of endocannabinoids, scientists have found that certain low levels of the chemical called 2-AG keeps the mice skinny and healthy despite purposely feeding them a diet high in fats. These results could mean significant changes in the way humans diet, or at least the humans who hate exercise. The mice’s brain chemicals influenced the way in which they burned fat without getting more exercise when the endocannabinoid levels were controlled, so if these scientists can find a way to regulate it in humans, we could efficiently burn fat calories much quicker than we normally do when just sitting around. That means that if you take marijuana diet pills you could potentially be burning fat just while reading this! Just another reason marijuana supporters like the idea: they can support the idea without having to get up and do anything about it. [Huffington Post]
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Titanic Captain Not Entirely at Fault For Not Knowing About Moon Factors.
Most of us are familiar with the events that took place regarding the tragedy of the Titanic, but physicists in Texas have been formulating a few other ideas as to why the ship went down like it did. The Titanic sank April 15, 1912, and the day and time of the incident may reveal some crucial clues rather than the sheer carelessness of Captain Edward Smith, supposedly the best seaman of his time. The scientists point to the moon for their answers and found that the unusual lunar pattern that year is the likely culprit for the placement of the icebergs at just the right time. The moon exerts a lot of control over the ocean and what’s in it. The team suggests that the tides in the January 1912 caused icebergs from Greenland to cruise down into the Titanic’s path by April. The alignment of the sun and moon to the Earth probably wasn’t at the forefront of Captain Smith’s mind when the ship struck the iceberg. Donald Olsen of the research team said, “This configuration maximized the moon’s tide-raising forces on the Earth’s oceans.” Thanks to modern day science, when fans of the movie “Titanic” cuddle up for a re-watch, they can now shout, “The moon! Watch out! It’s scientifically bringing you closer to death!” [Reuters]
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Study Between Abortion and Mental Illness Cleared Up.
A study published in 2009 about the mental effects of abortion is under fire for printing information that was not empirical, or evidence based. For those of you who don’t understand the gravity of publishing falsified results, let me tell you, it’s a bigger deal than getting caught for plagiarism or murder (well, it seems that way to me, at least). Falsified results can easily get the author and team in a lot of legal trouble, especially when it comes to ethical debates such as abortion. Abortion was legalized in 1973, but we all know the argument of whether it is right or wrong is still in full swing. The Journal of Psychiatric Research’s article, written by Priscilla Coleman of Ohio, asserted that past abortions had negative mental effects for women who received them, but she didn’t actually do accurate research to ascertain this information. A different research team in California did the same study, which is very common in research in order to validate results, and they found numerous statistical mistakes. Caught ya, Coleman! The California team said that the research Coleman conducted didn’t look at women who had mental health problems before undergoing an abortion, and therefore had no idea whether the abortion triggered the mental health problems. This raises the question whether women thinking about abortion are getting completely accurate information. Scientists need to remain objective and not publish results that cater to their personal opinions. [Reuters]
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