1

Physiology & Medicine / Can Coffee Or Tea Ever Really Go Bad?

« on: 03/10/2024 08:23:07 »

Can coffee or tea ever really go bad? I mean in dry form or as the beverages? Because, in HS I once used a container of 10-year-old teabags. And the cup of tea they made tasted just fine. I know if I keep a prepared pot of coffee or tea laying around couple of days, there never seems to be a problem with it. Unless I add cream. Cream of course can always go bad, and usually in a day of course, if left out.

I know I learned, also around HS, liquid medicines like Pepto Bismol never go bad. They lose their potency, but they never go bad. Because they have nothing in them that food poisoning microorganisms would be interested in. Tea and coffee are foods, of course. But they work differently, I've noticed. I know they have 40 year old Scotches and hundred year old wines. But those two go bad too. Just after, oh I don't know, maybe 500 years, maybe a thousand.

2

General Science / Is There A Pattern In The Number Pi?

« on: 27/09/2024 22:10:48 »

Why does it seem so hard to calculate the value Pi? Pi is defined as the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. And it is non-terminating and non-repeating. But in calculating it, the further out they go, the more difficult the task seems. To-date, the furthest it's been calculated is to 105 trillion places this year.

Is it because the further out you go the larger (or actually smaller) the digit that far out is? For example, for 3.141592653... the three would be 3 divided by 100,000,000.

Because some time back, I got this idea. .01001000100001... is an example of a non-terminating and non-repeating number. But the pattern is obvious. So could it be there is a more simple way of calculating Pi based on some pattern that we haven't discovered yet?

3

Physiology & Medicine / Is There Any Safe Amount Of Smoking?

« on: 19/09/2024 20:50:54 »

Interesting story. One time, some time back now, I was talking with my family physician. I told him, I like the occasional cigar. In fact, I usually have one around Christmastime. He told me he really saw nothing wrong with that. In fact, he told me, he, a medical doctor, was probably going to have a cigar when he got home that day. His point being, that once in a great while, smoking a cigar would do no harm.

I don't think I ever discussed cigarettes with him. But that got me to thinking. There is a lot of, basically, hysteria surrounding smoking. In my country, and around the world. Starting in the mid-90's in my country, tobacco companies were forced to pay monetary damages to each state to pay for people's medical expenses caused by long-term smoking. There also was a lot restriction in advertising introduced then. Tobacco companies had to admit how dangerous their products were. And there was a lot hysteria in general surrounding that subject. Sometimes a little too much, in my opinion at least.

Is there any amount of safe cigar or cigarette use? Medical authorities where I live say no. There is no such thing as safe moderate smoking. But is that true? Is there a rate of smoking, let's say one cigarette a week, that would probably be safe? And has anyone tried to determine that yet?

4

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / Why Does Freezing Preserve Food?

« on: 12/09/2024 08:13:32 »

Why does freezing preserve food, apparently forever? I know it keeps food fresh for a very long time, because people sometimes thaw and eat frozen woolly mammoth, from mammoths that have died in North America and Siberia. The last wooly mammoth lived in Siberia about 2,000 BCE. So the frozen carcass would be at least 4,000 years old. People who have eaten thawed mammoth meat say it tastes a little different. But they usually don't get food poisoning from it.

So why does freezing something to the point when water freezes, 32 degrees F or 0 degrees C, preserve it so well? Absolute zero, which is −459.67 degrees F or −273.15 degrees C, is the when all molecular motion stops, or the coldest anything can reach. And nothing has ever reached absolute zero, scientists say. So why is the temperature water freezes enough?

5

Just Chat! / What Exactly Is Fat-Free Coffee Cream?

« on: 05/09/2024 10:26:52 »

Where I live they now sell fat-free coffee cream (or half-and-half as it is also know). What exactly is fat-free coffee cream? Last time I checked, fat-free milk is skim milk. IOW, just plain, ordinary, bland milk with 0% milkfat. Kind of thin and watery too.

Now, I have never tried fat-free coffee cream. But they seem to think it rich and thick like regular cream. How could that be? What makes it taste like cream? And what's in it?

6

Physiology & Medicine / How Much Of A Biohazard Is Dried Animal And Human Waste?

« on: 29/08/2024 13:35:27 »

Growing up, in HS, one of our teachers told us she and her young daughter followed the playdough rule. When playdough, that toy modeling clay, falls on your shag carpet, you wait the next day to clean it. Because then it will be dry and will easily lift off without making a mess. As I tell people, that also works with dog and cat waste.

But that got me to thinking. Once animal waste is dried, and human too for that matter, how much of a biohazard is it then? Not as much I would think. But how many bacteria, etc. does it have in comparison to waste when it is still moist? Much less? Or about the same? Does it make any difference at all?

7

Physiology & Medicine / What Is The Role Of Bread In Human Nutrition?

« on: 23/08/2024 17:52:59 »

I'm a little confused by the human nutrition guidelines. I of course mean in my country, the USA. But I think our standards are the rule in other countries, like the UK and the European Union.

I remember growing up, the used to tell us that there were four basic food groups. Fruits and vegetables, breads and cereals, meat and protein, and dairy. And, I think I recall, they recommended four servings a day for each group. Except meat and protein. They recommended two servings a day for that group. Anyways, I think that is basically what they are saying in websites like this:

https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/nutrition-basics/suggested-servings-from-each-food-group

That, the main groups (they say above) are vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy, protein foods and fats and oils. That's six groups there. I think though, they might have told us fats and oil was an optional group when I was growing up. Now for the breads and grains, it recommends three to six serving, which on that above list, is about what the recommend for the other groups, more or less.

But I am a little confused by this. Grains and breads are always starches. And starches, a carbohydrates, tend to be bad for you. You need them. But it should always be the smallest group, I was told. (Also, it's worth pointing out, this site

https://www.moulinex-me.com/en/how_many_slices_of_bread_a_day_for_healthy_living#:~:text=An%20average%20person%20can%20consume,and%201%20slice%20of%20bread.

says you can safely consume up to eight slices of bread. Now, that's a lot.)

So I have a couple of questions about breads and grains, and my confusion on how they are classified in nutrition. Are they starch and sugar, or are they something else? More of a vegetable? Are you always supposed to have grains and breads high in fiber? Does that change what category they are put in? And lastly, why is bread necessary for, basically, human civilization? I just know I read somewhere, it was actually beer, with it's sugars and B vitamins and other nutrients, that led to modern cities and states. What is about them that makes them not just preferred, but necessary in human nutrition?

8

Just Chat! / How Do You Interpret This Shakespeare Quote?

« on: 16/08/2024 04:43:52 »

"'Tis not enough to give.
Methinks I could deal kingdoms to my friends
And ne'er be weary. Alcibiades,
Thou art a soldier, therefore seldom rich.
It comes in charity to thee, for all thy living
Is 'mongst the dead, and all the lands thou hast
Lie in a pitched field."

-Timon of Athens,
Act I, Scene 2.

I first heard of the Shakespeare play "Timon of Athens" around 2000. It is one of his lesser know works. I have taken an interest lately in studying it and reading about it. In this scene from the play, Timon is getting in trouble with his advisors for overspending. But what is too much, he asks? He's rich, so it'd be kingdoms probably. Alcibiades, a general, is an honored guest too. But Alcibiades feels cheapened, because the rich people paid for his battlefields.

Timon goes on, that even for his esteemed guests that would be charity in its purest form, for Alcibiades. Because he's still a soldier and seldom rich. Alcibiades accepts his gift of money, but adds with irony that his pitched fields are not just tainted with death, but tainted because rich people paid for them. (A pun on "defiled = death" and Shakespeare was referring to Ecclesiasticus 13:1 because pitched in Shakespeare's time also meant standing in a row, i.e., troops).

So I am still a little confused by that last time. Did he mean his battlefields are tainted by rich people's money because someone else paid for them, or because Timon did? Or is it a warning to Timon? Because all the other guests at his banquet are just sycophants?

I will go by anyone's knowledge of Shakespeare here for this quote. But people often take a different, or even their own, interpretation of Shakespeare. So I may go with that too.

BTW, here is an excerpt for this quote:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQCTxRfIvwk&t=1730s

9

Physiology & Medicine / How Much Liquid Do You Drink When You Have A Cold?

« on: 08/08/2024 17:30:49 »

Doctors have always told me to get plenty of fluid, and bedrest, when I have cold. I finally asked one, exactly how much? He said, how could I quantify that? I said, well, there must have been a study done. He told me, there was never a study done.

Well, that was a while ago, and there must have been a study since then. I know another doctor I saw told me, in 2011, when I asked him why he kept leaving the room. He said, he had a bad cold. And he thought 8 oz. of water an hour would knock it out of him.

That makes sense. Water alone is fine, of course. So a cup an hour? Would that be enough? And would more than that be better? Is there too much? Not just so you don't O.D. on the water, and get water intoxication. But would getting too much water make the cold worse possibly?

10

Physiology & Medicine / Are Lutein and Zeaxanthin Vitamins?

« on: 01/08/2024 15:50:52 »

I know they're not now. But will Lutein and Zeaxanthin ever be considered vitamins? Do some consider them that now?

Because I know there are a lot of nutrients, like phytonutrients, antioxidants, and even amino acids some say, that are important in human nutrition. Some are even necessary. But they aren't officially vitamins. Plus I think vitamins were first isolated, with Vitamin C, in the 1920's (although Scottish physician James Lind had demonstrated that the disease scurvy could be treated by citrus fruits by the 1740's).

(BTW, my eye doctor can't even pronounce the word Zeaxanthin. Or at least she told me once she just pronounces it differently. You know, George W. Bush couldn't pronounce "nuclear". But it was later revealed he got higher grades in college than his 2000 presidential opponent Al Gore. So I don't know anymore.)

11

General Science / Why Are Red And Yellow Most Visible?

« on: 25/07/2024 09:47:17 »

There is a story in the US. Fire engines are painted red so that they are more visible from a distance. Taxicabs are painted yellow for the same reason.

Why are red and yellow the most visible, or catchy to the eye, from a distance? Red and yellow have the lowest wave length on the visible spectrum. Is this something to do with optics and physics? Or is it just the human brain, maybe human psychology even?

Violet is at the other end of the spectrum. Shouldn't it be the most visible?

12

Physiology & Medicine / What Punishments Are Appropriate Raising Children With Behavioral Problems?

« on: 18/07/2024 15:37:00 »

I was taking an ethics class at a local community college in Fall of 1996. And our professor brought up an interesting point. There was this genetic syndrome, Jacobs Syndrome (also called XYY syndrome, because the man is born with an extra Y sex chromosome). Here are some brief articles on this syndrome:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557699/

https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/condition/47xyy-syndrome/

People in the 1960's and 70's thought it always led to crime. Because there were an unusually high number of men in prison with this genetic disease. Here is the statistical link my teacher was talking about:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10473322/

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1359178915000348

Actually, our teacher pointed out, there are just as many men not in prison. Because morality is all about the choices we make, not what is going on in your mind. Sorry to quote the wisdom of Star Trek again. But as Counsellor Deanna Troi once said, "Data, feelings aren't positive and negative, they simply exist. It's what we do with those feelings that becomes good or bad. For example, feeling angry about an injustice could lead someone to take a positive action to correct it."

Anyways, I was thinking. I have heard people make the argument. That with certain children, boys really (because let's face it, even boys have more Testosterone than girls, even when younger) corporal punishment is the only way to raise certain children. Even in one family, most boys are well-behaved. But some of their boys, maybe just one, needs a firm hand in the way he is raised. Especially in his formative years. Now, corporal punishment is still legal in my country. But if it becomes physical abuse of course, is definitely illegal. (I don't know how that works in other places. I know in 1979 Sweden was the first country in Europe, and the world, to outlaw all forms of physical punishment for children. But I don't know if it's illegal in all W. European countries at this time.)

Anyway, I assume everyone on this message board agrees with me that hitting your child ever for any reason is never justified. But as I said some time back on another message board, being strict isn't the same thing as corporal punishment. In fact, as I pointed out, you can be too strict but still never lay a hand on your child. But there is also the idea of negative reinforcement to deal disciplinary problems. I think most people would agree that is what punishment is for, when you are raising kids. And children growing up are forming their consciences and their personalities in general. How you raise them will affect their moral choices, and their social interactions for the rest of their lives. So what kinds of punishment would be appropriate to deal with children with behavioral problems? More severe ones obviously, but never involving hitting. But which ones would be always inappropriate? Also, I am just going to bring this up once, and please don't misunderstand. With children with very serious behavioral problems, you could just threaten them with physical discipline, but never do it. Would that work, even in very serious cases? And would that be justified for those situations?

13

Physiology & Medicine / Why Is An Education So Important?

« on: 04/07/2024 13:05:25 »

"Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory."

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) Article 26,
10 December 1948, Paris, France.

https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights


As you can see from above, the right to an education is universally recognized as fundamental. But more than that, it seems important that it be mandatory. I've heard in more than one place because it is necessary for your intellectual and psychological development.

Is that true? And how does that work? Also, up till the early 20th Century in the western world, most people were illiterate. How did that affect society? And how are we better off now that most of us can read and do math? How would society be different if we couldn't?

14

Physiology & Medicine / What Is Junk Food?

« on: 27/06/2024 19:20:15 »

This question is about what qualifies a food as junk food. I know when I was a kid, my mother used to tell me popcorn was the one junk food that actually had nutritional value.

Also, I noticed that Ore-Ida frozen French fries are considered junk food. Or at least not nutritious food. They say so in their commercials and on the bag. Yet they are made with potatoes. Fresh potatoes, because they are not dried like potato chips.

So why are they not nutritious food? And what about popcorn? Is it nutritious food or junk food? And can a food have vitamins and minerals and still be considered junk food?

15

Just Chat! / What Group Of Spices Is Cinnamon In?

« on: 20/06/2024 13:41:25 »

I could be wrong. But it seems that there are a lot of spices that are like cinnamon. Allspice is. So are cloves. Ginger perhaps. Nutmeg, I don't know. So maybe less so the last two. And even more exotic spices like cardamom and coriander spice.

Is there a name for the group of spices that are listed above? I know I learnt in HS, some dishes are sweet and some are savory. I.e., sweet and just salty or plain. Is that it? Or is the spices I listed above unique in some other way? (The above spices always seem to be put together I've noticed. Like gingerbread and spice cake.)

16

Just Chat! / Should Companies Be More Careful Labeling Health Products?

« on: 13/06/2024 13:56:46 »

Should health companies have rules that address safety in their labeling of health products? I know where I live, the FDA just says the product has to be safe and that the bottle has to contain what it says on the label. No food  adulteration. In other words, except dyes, artificial flavor, etc. and things that are simply added to the product anyways.

To make myself clear, I'll give you an example of what I am talking about. You have to be careful when you buy certain health products, especially that you might use in sensitive areas, like your eyes. In 1986 I was interested in the herb Eyebright. Eyebright has been used at least since the 1300s as an eye rinse and to help with eye strain and diseases of the eye. In 1986 I got it in powder form in cellulose capsules.

One day, I was about to open a capsule and use it as an eye rinse, when I read the ingredients. It had cayenne pepper in it. I don't think I would have wanted to have used it as an eye wash.

But whose fault would that be if I used that product that way and it gave me something like conjunctivitis? I thought about that at the time. Because I don't think I was the first person to think of using that product that way. Should products that are usually used that way, in the eyes, have a warning on them? Should they be allowed to put things, even like cayenne pepper (which is safe taken internally), in them? And what are the regulations like where you live?

17

Just Chat! / Why Do They Put Weird Stuff In Canned Soups?

« on: 06/06/2024 11:29:35 »

I don't know how many people here eat canned soups. But why do canned soups have weird ingredients like MSG and hydrolyzed soy protein? Because, has anyone ever tried Amy's soups?

Most of them are vegan. Some have dairy in them. And most of them have only the most basic ingredients in them. Usually vegetables and water. (Their No Chicken Noodle has hydrolyzed corn and soy protein. But I think that is the only one.) And they are delicious.

Anyways, I am recommending Amy's line of soups. But that is my question. Why do they put strange stuff like that in canned soups? It makes it taste weird. I can tell the difference. Why not just keep it simple?

18

Just Chat! / How Do Cakes Fall?

« on: 30/05/2024 14:01:55 »

When I was a small kid, my mother used to tell us kids not to roughhouse around her cake when she was baking it. And she was right. Vibrations near a cake that's baking will make it fall. How does that happen? Why is it so important to avoid vibrations at that point in the baking process? And at what point is that no longer a problem?

19

General Science / What Is Synchronicity?

« on: 23/05/2024 12:39:33 »

Synchronicity is a concept introduced by psychologist Carl Jung (1875 - 1961) "to describe circumstances that appear meaningfully related yet lack a causal connection". My question is, is there any scientific basis for it? Jung was a psychologist and a scientist. But I think he had a tendency towards magical thinking himself.

And what is the current scientific view of synchronicity? Do people still believe in it? And this is going to sound strange. But has it ever been proven? Or at least has there ever been any evidence for it?

20

General Science / Is It Safe To Use Rusty Utensils?

« on: 16/05/2024 21:02:32 »

Is there any reason why you shouldn't use rusty utensils? I know they are disgusting. And as a kid we were discouraged from using them, probably because they were old and used. Rusty forks, knives, spoons. Rust is just iron oxide. So is there any real reason why you shouldn't use them?