Every day, the same, again
Lawsuit over Subway tuna now says chicken, pork, cattle DNA were detected
The US Treasury Is Buying Private App Data to Target and Investigate People
“cruising” activity and its environmental impacts on a protected coastal dunefield
Response Behaviors of Svalbard Reindeer Towards Humans and Humans Disguised as Polar Bears
Silk modified to reflect sunlight keeps skin 12.5°C cooler than cotton. It is the first fabric to be developed that stays colder than the surrounding air when in sunlight.
Are scented candles harmful to your health? […] while scented candles do produce various vapors and particles that can be unsafe to inhale at high doses, research suggests that with typical use, the dose you get is far below what is considered harmful to your health. […] “under normal conditions of use, scented candles do not pose known health risks to the consumer.” (It’s important to note that while this study’s conclusion is consistent with others, few studies have looked into the health effects from burning scented candles in general. And most, including this one, were conducted by researchers affiliated with the candle industry. But independent researchers have said that the findings are solid.) [NY Times]
Like many men of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Beethoven suffered from a plethora of other illnesses and ailments. […] chronic abdominal pain and diarrhea that might have been due to an inflammatory bowel disorder, depression, alcohol abuse, respiratory problems, joint pain, eye inflammation, and cirrhosis of the liver. This last problem, given his prodigious drinking, may have been the final domino that toppled him into the grave. Bedridden for months, he died in 1827, most likely from liver and kidney failure, peritonitis, abdominal ascites, and encephalopathy. An autopsy revealed severe cirrhosis and dilatation of the auditory and other related nerves in the ear. […] A young musician named Ferdinand Hiller snipped off a lock of hair from the great composer’s head as a keepsake — a common custom at the time. The lock stayed within the Hiller family for nearly a century before somehow making its way to the tiny fishing village of Gilleleje, in Nazi-controlled Denmark and into the hands of the local physician there, Kay Fremming. The doctor helped save the lives of hundreds of Jews escaping Denmark and the Nazis for Sweden, which was about 10 miles across the Øresund Strait, the narrow channel separating the two nations. The theory is that one of these Jewish refugees, perhaps a relative of Ferdinand Hiller, either gave Dr. Fremming the lock of Beethoven’s hair or used it as a payment of some kind. At any rate, the doctor bequeathed the lock, consisting of 582 strands, to his daughter, who subsequently put it up for auction in 1994. It was purchased by an Arizona urologist named Alfredo Guevera for about $7,000. Guevera kept 160 strands. The remaining 422 strands were donated to the Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies at San Jose State University in California. […] They put the brown, gray and white strands through a number of imaging, DNA, chemical, forensic and toxicology tests. There was no trace of morphine, mercury or arsenic but there was an abnormally elevated lead level, potentially indicating chronic lead poisoning, which could have caused Beethoven’s deafness, even though it does not explain his multiple other disorders. Further studies suggest he probably drank from a goblet containing lead. It should also be noted that wine of that era often contained lead as a sweetener. [PBS]
The moon’s top layer alone has enough oxygen to sustain 8 billion people for 100,000 years
