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Aspirin Can Do More Than just Alleviate Pain

8 Nov 2018

It is a common misconception that aspirin is a naturally occurring substance that was discovered in the bark of the willow tree. A related compound called salicin does indeed occur in white willow...

Paper Cuts Hurt so Much Because Our Fingers Are Really Sensitive

30 Aug 2018

You’re reading the morning paper, or turning the page on your recipe, when suddenly you notice a little line of blood, and feel a disproportionate amount of pain....

Heat Wave Fury

19 Jul 2018

Like all warm-blooded mammals, we humans need to get rid of the heat we generate with every chemical reaction in our bodies. Most animals, like dogs, get rid of heat by panting. Panting is actually...

Fingerprick Blood Sugar Tests: How They Work and Why We Still Use Them

17 Jul 2018

We are living in the future. We have robotic personal assistants, watches that replace credit cards, phones that recognize our faces, and self driving cars are just around the corner. But for all...

Before the Breathalyzer There Was the Drunkometer

4 Jul 2018

The idea of a mechanism to measure the alcohol a person has consumed dates back quite far.

Snails, Spiders, and Octopi all have Blue Blood

15 Feb 2018

Snails, spiders and octopi have something in common- they all have blue blood! We're not talking in the sense of royalty, these creatures literally have blue blood. So why is their blood blue and...

Dr. Oz's Sweet Tooth

20 Mar 2017

Dr. Oz is talking and nutritionists are shuddering. It’s almost a daily occurrence. This time he is all excited about a sugar substitute that according to him does not have a “chemical taste,”...

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