The Magic Sandwich on genetically modified foods

I don’t usually post the Magic Sandwich Show because though there is sometimes good stuff there, it is not a great fit with this blog – at least, most of the time.

And – it is a full hour long.

Yet, in this episode, there is a most illuminating discussion regarding genetically modified foods.  But, it is not your run-of-the-mill discussion – it actually gets into the nitty-gritties of the process and explains it in a way that I suspect most people who have finished basic highschool biology can follow.

The discussion opens with a discussion of one creationist’s position, a creationist with a scientific education…and around the 13 minute mark they first mention DNA, but the interesting ‘genetically modified food discussion’ does not really get started until after the 16-minute mark:

Thunderf00t: Some AMAZING facts about life!

Thunderf00t: To Infinity and Beyond!

 

Thunderf00t: Something you see ONCE in a Hundred years!

 

Relativity Part 6: Approaching the General Theory

Blindsight

I did not know that this is possible, but it’s quite amazing.

A man had several strokes which left him blind.

But, his eyes were not damaged – only the visual cortex, the part of the brain which processes the input from the eye into pictures, was damaged.

The most curious thing happened:  bits of information fed from the eyes to other bits of the brain were interpreted correctly.  The patient could even navigate a maze without help, without bumping into things – even though he could not actually see the obstacles!

Apparently, this is called ‘blindsight’!

So, what is it called when you can actually see things well, but still bump into them all the time?  ;o)

Relativity Part 5: The Twin Paradox

This is an excellent explanation which explains why the choice of reference frames does not affect the results when one of the frames undergoes acceleration with respect to the other – something not properly covered in many explanations of the ‘paradox’.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txZO_ELt_S8&feature=colike

 

Harvard Study Confirms Fluoride Reduces Children’s IQ

This is not the first study – but a follow up one that confirms earlier findings:

‘A recently published Harvard University meta-analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has concluded that children who live in areas with highly fluoridated water have “significantly lower” IQ scores than those who live in low fluoride areas.’

It’s not the only problem with fluoride – it has also been demonstrated to cause childhood bone cancer.  (That is why, ever so quietly, fluoride was removed from children’s toothpaste…)

And, perhaps most ironic finding of them all is that too much flouride actually increases – yes, increases – the probability of getting cavities!

Yes – you read correctly:  a little bit of fluoride reduces the incidence of cavities – but more than a little bit, and the cavities are more frequent than they would have been with no fluoride at all!  Plus, you get all the side-effects…

Of course, fluoride is also used as prescription medication to reduce the function of the thyroid – making people more tired, sluggish, fat and, yes, apathetic…

Now, we can add ‘making us dumber’ to the list of side effects this government-enforced medication-in-the-water scheme is causing….it sounds like ‘the government is putting poison in my coffee’ line is not ‘Paranoia’ after all!!!

A New Species Discovered – on Flickr…

An entomologist was looking at some bug pictures on Flickr – and realized that he was looking at a previously unclassified species!

‘The new species was dubbed Semachrysa jade — not after its pale green color, but after Winterton’s daughter. It was introduced to the world in the latest issue of ZooKeys, a scientific journal focused on biodiversity. In keeping with the digital nature of their discovery, Winterton, Guek and Brooks wrote the paper from three different continents using a Google document.

The moral of the story? The world is full of potential naturalists, Winterton says. More and more people using high-quality cameras that capture the kind of detail scientists need for identification, and they are sharing these photos online.’

 

Relativity, part 3: gravity and light