Category: Health
How the sonic hedgehog (SHH) gene got its name
SEGA/mdlinx.com Encoded in a gene in your body is a protein that makes sure that your organs grow in the…
How does coffee wake us up (and why is it addictive)?
Julius Schorzman •Coffee keeps us awake and helps us focus because of its caffeine content. •Caffeine is a stimulating drug…
Divinity or deception? Stigmata, an enigmatic phenomenon
•The phenomenon called stigmata, or the sudden appearance of Christ-like wounds on the body, has been a centuries-old scientific enigma.…
Beware: These ‘healthy’ food items are actually hiding trans fats
ObesityHelp This article is the last in a three-part series on trans fats. Read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.…
Yes, trans fats are bad—but how bad, exactly?
iStock This article is the second in a three-part series on trans fats. Read part 1 here. “Trans fats are…
No, a COVID-19 swab test won’t puncture your brain. Here’s the full story
Freepik •Recent news about an American woman experiencing “brain fluid leak” after a COVID-19 nasal test has raised fears about…
Hysterical history: What we know about mass hysteria
Pieter Brueghel the Younger •Also called mass psychogenic illness or collective obsessional behavior, mass hysteria happens when a closely knit group…
Does it really take more muscles to frown than to smile?
Getty Images “It takes 43 muscles to frown, and only 17 muscles to smile.” No doubt, you’ve already come across…
Activated charcoal: scientifically proven benefits, or just marketing?
Victoria Shibut/Dreamstime.com •Activated charcoal results from heating carbon-rich materials at very high temperatures, typically with an additional “activation” process. •Medical…
Penicillin: The accidental discovery that changed medicine forever
Kallayanee Naloka via Shutterstock •In 1928, microbiologist Alexander Fleming discovered what we would eventually come to know as penicillin. •Penicillin’s…
