Uncategorized
- Humans
From the March 15, 1930, issue
LARGEST BOILER One of the three largest boilers in the world is shown on the front cover. The boilers were recently installed in the East River station of the New York Edison Company to run the largest single-unit electric generator in the world. If this 215,000-horsepower turbo-generator had been developed in 1906, it could have […]
- Materials Science
Fridge Magnets and Chemistry
Theres a tiger on your fridge! Lurking inside refrigerator magnets of the flat, flexible variety are magnetic-field stripes of alternating polarity. This University of Wisconsin Web site explains how fridge magnets work, shows how you can use such magnets to learn about magnetic force microscopy, and suggests experiments involving fridge magnets to model how metals […]
- Math
Whips and Dinosaur Tails
The loud crack of a deftly flicked bullwhip can certainly command attention. That distinctive noise is a small sonic boom, generated when the whip’s thin, highly flexible tip exceeds the speed of sound. Swinging a leather bullwhip’s thick, rigid handle in an arc gives the whip angular momentum. Sharply reversing the motion’s direction sends a […]
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Alcohol can induce fainting spells
Alcohol imbibed in modest quantities can disrupt the reflex that maintains blood pressure when a person stands up quickly, which may account for why some people faint when they down a few drinks and then stand up.
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19117
This article fails to make the distinction between the synthetic hormone progestin and the naturally occurring hormone progesterone. Progestin is medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), which is manufactured from the urine of pregnant mares. MPA is 10 to 100 times more potent in its effects on women than natural progesterone and does not produce the same reactions […]
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Progestin adds to breast cancer risk
Women taking estrogen are more prone to get breast cancer if they are also taking the hormone progestin.
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Listen to the shapes
People use still-unspecified acoustic cues to discern the shapes of hidden, vibrating plates.
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19121
As many wives of depressed men will tell you, depressed husbands don’t just mope around. They are often angry, upset, unpredictable, and short-tempered. Kind words are often followed by angry words and periods of self-pity. The wife lives in a minefield and often finds it difficult to believe or accept positive comments. There is very […]
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Tough talk for depressed husbands
Positive comments directed by depressed men to their wives often elicit negative responses from the women, a conversational style that may contribute to the men's mood problems.
- Chemistry
Where the Gems Are
By using a novel tool to figure out an emerald’s oxygen-isotope ratio, gemologists can now determine which mine the precious stone came from and, possibly, gain insights into the formation and history of these coveted gems.
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19120
I read with interest your article on determining the origin of emeralds by measuring oxygen isotopes. While there is great potential for legal and historical applications, I think that using this method to determine the source of gems for purely economic reasons is ludicrous. At least for myself, whether an emerald originated in Austria or […]
- Health & Medicine
Is Snoring a DiZZZease?
Snoring may trigger high blood pressure, which can lead to heart disease or stroke.
