My Virtual Reading Room

And here's the article I got it from, with info about the dishes: Traditional Russian Table for the New Year

And there's this: A salad that no nation wants to call their own

Watercolor by Eric Christensen, and I got it from levkonoe 

The mates who have met for a pint every Thursday for 56 years, from BBC

(via lindahoyland --many thanks!)


The Life-Changing Magic of Japanese Clutter, from Aeon

(a lengthy but fascinating article)


This American fruit could outcompete apples and peaches on a hotter planet, from The Washington Post

Some repeats in this one, but you can choose the parts you want, using timestamps:

Anthropological trivia from Sapiens

Did he want a cat scan? Mountain lion makes surprise visit to Arizona hospital, from USA Today

What are red sprites, blue jets, and other Transient Luminous events?, from Paul M. Smith Photography

(check out their FB page btw--amazing photos)


and three from Medium:

How to Become the Best in the World at Something

With skill stacking, you don’t need to be at the top to be extraordinary

(an interesting perspective)

We live to compete. What I learned by winning the Duolingo diamond league

Common side effects of not drinking

By rejecting alcohol, you reject something very human, an extra limb that we have collectively grown to deal with reality and with each other. Getting around without it is not painless.

(I was a bit puzzled by this one actually, but I suppose, as with many things, it depends on one's experience and social circle...)

This Artist Transforms Bananas Into Popular Movie Characters, Animals Other Things (79 New Pics)

30 Creative Lunchbox Ideas From A Talented Japanese Artist

(both from Bored Panda)

As obesity rises, Big Food and dietitians push ‘anti-diet’ advice

General Mills warns of ‘food shaming’; dietitian influencers promote junk foods and discourage weight loss efforts, from The Washington Post

3 new memoirs tell stories of struggle and resilience

‘This American Ex-Wife,’ ‘Everywhere the Undrowned’ and ‘The Manicurist’s Daughter’ delve into the challenges of knowing oneself and one’s family, also from The Washington Post

It Took Divorce to Make My Marriage Equal

I spent 12 years fighting for an equal partnership, when what I needed was a divorce, by Lyz Lenz, in Glamour (yes, she's the author of "This American Ex-Wife")

The All-American Father

When I became a father, I felt a torrent of love, pride, and terror. Now, looking back on the rules of manhood that shaped how my own father raised me, I wonder: did he love me the same way? (from Esquire)

Three from The Washington Post:

Melted, pounded, extruded: Why many ultra-processed foods are unhealthy

Look for these 9 red flags to identify food that is ultra-processed

Do you have a hunger habit? How to conquer mindless eating.


Are Probiotic Sodas, Stress-Relieving Tonics, and Other So-Called Healthy Drinks Good for You?, from Consumer Reports

These Laundry Hacks Will Make Your Life Easier, a Firefox Pocket collection of articles

Lyrics and translation:

Ох, мы неправильно питаемся, и худеть мы не пытаемся,
Вечно жрём, чего ни попадя, вечно пьём, чего нальют.
И только жёны наши бедные, диетические, бледные,
Одуревши от бескормицы, зелень вялую жуют.

Oh, we eat all the wrong things, and we don't even try to lose weight.
We're forever chowing down anything that comes along, and forever drinking whatever is poured for us.
And only our poor wives, pale and dieting,
Dizzy from lack of feed, chew on limp greens.( Read more... )

10 Nutrition Tips for a Healthy New Year, from The New York Times

10 Nutrition Myths Experts Wish Would Die, also from The New York Times

Three articles from the NYT:

People Say, ‘Be Positive’ When You Have Cancer. I Prefer to Complain With Friends.

Cancer Took Away My Ability to Eat, but Not My Love of Food

I Have M.S. This Is What It’s Like to Be Fed by Other People.


Technology and Research:

Doctors Transplant Ear of Human Cells, Made by 3-D Printer, also from the NYT

Liver Preserved for 3 Days With Machine Perfusion Successfully Transplanted
--Patient healthy and leading normal life at 1 year, from MedPage Today

Other tidbits:

My “Private” War against the Tobacco Industry, by Stephen Barrett, M.D.

(or, what can happen over time if enough people cause enough of a ruckus)


Sophie Freud, professor who challenged her grandfather’s doctrine, dies at 97


"...“I’m very skeptical about much of psychoanalysis,” she told the Boston Globe in 2002. “I think it’s such a narcissistic indulgence that I cannot believe in it.”Is Putin Sick – Or Are We Meant to Think He Is?, from the New Lines Magazine

"...Steroids – a common one is prednisone – attack malignant lymphocytes that circulate in the blood, but they are also known for two common side effects.

The first is a high risk of infection owing to how badly they deplete immune cells. “Anyone on heavy doses of steroids will find it much easier to contract COVID-19,” Grossman said, which might account for Putin’s extreme germophobia and recourse to Howard Hughes-like seclusion. Pneumonia, too, can easily kill an immunocompromised steroid user.

And the second side effect?

“Deeply irrational or paranoid behavior.”

(Sweet dreams are made of cheese, who am I to diss a Brie; I cheddar the world and the feta cheese, everybody's looking for Stilton)

(cross-posting from 1word1day)
~~

Well, this is my last post in this comm in 2017. I'd like to wish everyone here a Happy New Year, and here are some words to impress your friends and family at New Year's ;)
~~


The cork and wire cage are wrapped in foil (the ‘coiffe’), which extends down the neck of the bottle to the ‘collerette’ (neck band fitted on most Champagne bottles).

(source: Champagne Official Website: From Vine to Wine)

Bonus word: muselet: the wire cage to keep the cork on, as you see in the photo here. Also known as "the cage" or "agraffe."

23 of the weirdest, funniest, creepiest, most surprising items found by archivists.

Ever wondered what goes on in a library's dark corners, where you aren't allowed to go?

Wonder no more, thanks to The Society of American Archivists' Ask an Archivist Day.

This pastry chef leans on her STEM background to design impossible-looking desserts.

Dinara Kasko makes cakes. Absolutely stunning cakes.

They're modern, bold, and structural, with decadent shapes and surprising flavors. They're also designed using algorithms and mathematical principles.
~~
Do take a look, they really are amazing!

(also, it turns out there is a new kind of chocolate out, "ruby", shall have to look for it to try ;))

Originally posted by med_cat at Friday word: Gherkin

It’s Fun fact Friday!

A chocolate bar most of us are not old enough to know about with a taste few cared for and was even called “Hitler’s Secret Weapon” by many infantrymen.

“The D ration bar”.

Developed by Hershey in 1937 at the request of the Army Quartermasters office had four requirements: a bar weighing about 4 ounces, able to withstand high temperatures, be high in food energy value, and with a taste that was just a little better than a boiled potato.

The reasoning for the latter was to prevent them from being eaten as snack so they would be kept and used as an emergency food source. The blend of chocolate, sugar, cocoa butter, skim milk powder and oat flour was so thick that it did not flow like conventional chocolate and had to be hand packed into each mold.

Most who ate it said they would have rather eaten the boiled potato. Because the bar was designed to withstand high temperatures, it was nearly impossible to bite into, requiring the men to shave off slices before they could chew it, and the sugar did little to mask the bitter taste of the dark chocolate.

Despite this, Hershey produced about 3 billion (yes with a B) of these bars between 1940 and 1945 receiving numerous awards for their outstanding war effort. Until next Friday – Have a sweet week.

(from the Old Town Candy shop on FB, May 5th)

(The second link is hilarious...do take a look :P)

Originally posted by browngirl at Science and Food