What the Nose Knows…

The nose knows how to sniff out criminals according to recent research. Each person has a unique body odor similar to the uniqueness of fingerprints. So when used in witness situations (lineups) smelling criminals odors helped people identify the bad guys 75% of the time, significantly better than the 45-60% for correctly (visually) identifying via lineup. The sense of smell has been proven to be a strong trigger for memories, more so than any other sense so it makes sense that associating odors with negative emotions could enhance the ability to identify the odor again. Dogs have long been accepted as nosewitnesses but this is a fairly new forensic possibility for human witnesses or victims, especially when crimes occur under visually obscure conditions.

In the study where researchers went out to prove what the nose knows, body odor samples were taken from the armpits of 20 participants. Then videos of violent crimes were shown to 40 students, each with a specific odor sample. Afterwards the students were given 5 samples to sniff and told to identify the one associated with the criminal. Although this experiment wasn't done in a real world situation the results (75% identification accuracy) were pretty significant. Now you know what the nose knows!   

A Defining Letter?

Anyone else have one letter of the alphabet that begins words that seem to sum up and repeat themselves all throughout their lives? My letter is the lowly R. No I’m not a pirate and there is nary an R anywhere in my name, yet R has been popping up and even predominating, during what I sometimes consider my meager existence. For years, as a teacher, I planned my lessons, set my alarm, and focused on the three Rs, reading, writing, and ‘rithmetic, day in and day out. Then I retired (another R), unplugged my alarm, and put away the schoolbooks. Now the grandsons are back and I find myself setting the alarm on my phone, making hot oatmeal on cold mornings, and making a trip to school (even though it is only to drop them off) all over again.

Today is our trash pickup day and as I return to the house, I notice ours is the only one with a full recycling bin (or any bin even though I know everyone has one-they aren't putting them out) beside the big black can on my block. Reduce, reuse, recycle (three more Rs) is my motto, one of them anyway, and I have been faithful to it for a long time and plan to continue to be. Why reinvent the wheel? is another motto and reduce, reuse, and recycle works with that too. There is already enough trash and clutter in our world, and I plan to try to add as little as possible to that.

My most recent set of Rs includes Run, Rest, and Repeat. These three are important because now that I am retired I am finally taking care of me and I like it. When I’m not concentrating on being active I find myself returning to two of the first three Rs I mentioned here, reading and writing, but instead of for my job, for pleasure. Which letter of the alphabet sums it all up for you? 

A Visit to the Peacemaker on this Day of Remembrance

In a world where fathers throw their children off bridges, and mothers set their babies on fire in the middle of the street it seems that the evil that men do, and the evil, man’s inhumanity toward their fellow man, that perpetuated the horrors of the holocaust has never really gone completely away. It just resurfaces in different places, in different sometimes smaller scaled ways, at different times. Days of Remembrance is a time to remember the victims of the holocaust and the heroes that helped put an end to their suffering. For me it’s about a chance for mindful reflection on whether or not I would ignore man’s inhumanity if faced with it or be strong enough to stand up to it. It’s also a time to say a prayer. I asked my grandsons if Days of Remembrance were mentioned at school today when I picked them up and they said no. Maybe it isn’t covered under common core. We talked about it anyway on our way to tour the Peacemaker (a tall 3 masted ship) that is docked downtown, St Marys. The barquentine ship is touted as the flagship of the twelve tribes and of course I immediately thought of the twelve tribes of Israel. After a little research including a visit to their website I found out I was incorrect about which tribes these twelve were but I still like the Peacemaker’s mission of bringing people into peace with their Creator and with one another. The ship really is something to see and there is no charge to tour it. Children must be accompanied by an adult and no high heeled shoes are allowed. There are also nice benches along the riverfront park upon which to stop and rest while you take a moment for reflection on these Days of Remembrance.       

The Ethics of Snack Smuggling at the Movies

Nancy Williams, the coordinator of professional education at UNC Asheville (in North Carolina) wrote on this topic recently. Apparently at Carmike movie theaters (Nancy’s theater of choice), the 2015 refillable popcorn bucket is $20. Refills are $4 each, all year long and the bucket comes with a lid. This makes bringing in a hidden snack even easier. After reading Nancy’s article I have decided to add my own two cents on the subject of snack smuggling. Since everyone knows snacks at the movies cost a lot more than two cents, we easily have room for this topic in the first place. Movie theater snacks often run more than the price of a ticket (at least for the matinee or senior rate), so when I take the grandkids to the movies I carry a big purse and stop off at the Dollar Tree (dollars in hand) so everyone can pick out their candy. I give each child a dollar and then station myself at the register in order to pay the tax to the cashier and stash the goodies in my purse. The store is in the same shopping area as the movie theater and that makes this even easier. The last time we went my two youngest grandsons came running up to the register from the candy aisle yelling about how they each scored 60 ring pops for a dollar. I just said pay your dollar to the cashier and put them in my purse. Somewhere in the back of my mind I wondered what that much sugar might imply for the rest of my afternoon but skittles and gummy worms were soon added to my purse and we were off to the movies. Those two candy bargain hunters were very disappointed when they opened the bags and found only 4 ring pops in each. In the small print on the front of the package they read, Only 60 Calories per serving. The movie was a good one but I figure they’ll look closer at candy packaging in the Dollar Tree the next time we go because yes, I plan to continue snack smuggling.

Is it time to re-moat your Castle?

Last night, while SKYPE-ing with my better half, I mentioned the new radar that allows the police to “look” through your house’s walls for criminals and their activity as a possible blog topic, one I thought he might like because it is so 4th amendment-y. I sent him the link to an article and video on it and this was his reply:

There is a doctrine in existence called the “Castle Doctrine.” In old English times, a moat was placed around the castle to protect the occupants from snooping neighbors or ne’er-do-wells who might want to steal or occupy the castle. It was interpreted to mean that a man’s home is his castle and he is entitled to do as he pleases within its bounds with no outside interference. Under modern law, the Castle Doctrine specifically provides a legal standing designating a person's abode (or, in some states, any legally occupied place [e.g., a vehicle or workplace]) as a place in which that person has certain protections and immunities. Even our own U.S. Constitution in the 4th amendment guarantees “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects…. What are they secure from? They are secure “against unreasonable searches and seizures, (they) shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. “ So why is it now that we find law enforcement agencies both local and federal suddenly able to “look” inside our castle without our permission? Recent news reports and the Tenth Circuit of the U.S. Appeals Court reveal law enforcement agencies are using devices like the Range – R which allows them to detect movement within a house simply by attaching it to the outside of the house.

This current type of device was first employed by our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and subtly made its way back to the U.S. and into the hands of police and even the FBI and U.S. Marshals more than 2 years ago. It’s interesting that a similar case had addressed a similar situation of “looking into our houses” over a decade ago in a case decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. Kyllo v. United States, 533 U.S. 27 (2001), held that the use of a thermal imaging or FLIR, device from a public vantage point to monitor the radiation of heat from a person's home was a "search" within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment, and thus required a warrant. In other words, police couldn't just take a look for heat signatures. Shouldn't it be the same thing for movement? What if criminals get ahold of this $6000 device so they, too, can see if anyone is home? There is a plethora of pros and cons – what about terrorists, what about hostage situations, etc. Undoubtedly there are a myriad of questions that will have to be answered by our courts. In the meantime, should I break out a shovel just to “re-moat” my house for privacy? Do the needs of society’s safety outweigh my right to privacy? I’m sure attorneys on both sides of this development are ready to “dig” in. 

This is your body on soda (or pop for my northern cousins)!

Do you keep hearing (and tuning it out) all the bad news about soda and the obesity epidemic? Maybe you shouldn't be tuning it out like I did for years. By the time you finish drinking one sugary sweet soda your body is nudging you toward another one. Now I know why those 2 liters I used to knock out (at least one a day) managed to disappear so easily. As soon as you swallow it, your pancreas is notified and rapidly begins to create insulin in response to the sugar in the soda. Insulin is used by the body to move sugar from your soda drink into the bloodstream, where cells are then able to it for energy. Within just 20 minutes, your blood sugar levels spike and your liver responds by turning that sugar into fat for storage. Now that happened to me a lot too. I guess that’s where the sugar from all those 2 liters went! Within 45 minutes of gulping down a single 20-ounce glass of soda, caffeine from the drink is fully absorbed, and as a result your pupils dilate and blood pressure rises. Your body produces more dopamine, which stimulates the pleasure centers of the brain like a low-grade line of cocaine. Did this make me a dope? I ask myself. Probably, I answer myself! Because in the next five minutes you’re going to experience a blood sugar crash, the want another soda or sweet to keep the happy going and Harvard researchers have calculated each addition soda consumed increases the risk of obesity 1.6 times. All this and the fact that soda has no actual nutritive value are reason enough to cut it out of your diet. I’m glad I did!

The Tryst

They met in secret, deep in the woods of northern California for their tryst. The affair’s secrecy lasted a mere nine months. The results were, surprisingly enough, unexpected but thrilling just the same. It was only the third unobserved pairing of condors in the wild documented in the last 18 years. The offspring ( a single hatchling) was approximately nine months old at the time of its discovery by happy wildlife biologists. The last 27 California condors left in the wild in 1987 were captured and placed in a breeding program. In 1997 wildlife biologists began releasing them in Big Sur. The California condor is one of the world's rarest bird species and as of June 2014 there were about 400 condors living wild or in captivity. 

Free Range Children

I used to be one of them. My parents turned us out in the morning and expected us in when the streetlights came on. We stayed in our neighborhood. We weren't perfect. We played baseball in the street and broke an occasional window. We played a game that consisted of running under wires that spanned the alley, avoiding pigeon poop. We stayed out of the playground when drunk, homeless people occupied the bench there. We played army, jumped rope, hula hooped, and roller skated. My twin and I shared a bike so we took turns with that. He wore coke bottle glasses and we charged other kids a nickel to take a turn wearing them while running down 3 flights of stairs. We didn’t get rich but we made enough to buy an occasional popsicle from the ice cream truck. We went to the Ivanhoe movie theater on some Saturdays for the matinee. All these things we did without a parent or child over 13 years of age present.

Nowadays allowing your child to be free range (the opposite of helicopter parenting) is frowned upon in some places. One pair of parents found their unescorted children escorted back home by the police with follow ups by social services. Some communities have rules and ordinances against free range children and in some communities free range children must carry a card or credentials explaining that they are free rangers. Things weren't as complicated when I was a kid and I’m pretty sure whether we knew it or not we were all (or mostly all) free range kids. For the most part, I like to think we turned out ok. We handled bullying ourselves and settled our own disputes. We weren't perfect but we didn’t cyber anything and we were respectful to all adults in our neighborhood. We took responsibility for the things we did and we looked out for ourselves and each other. I don’t think being a free range kid is a bad thing. I think it should be called teaching a child to grow up. 

Musical Nostalgia

Musical nostalgia is more than just a cultural phenomenon. Researchers (doing research on how human brains work) see musical nostalgia more like a neuronic command. Evidence suggests that our brains bind us to the music we heard as teenagers more tightly than anything we’ll hear as adults and this a connection that doesn't weaken as we age. Songs from our teens and early 20s trigger personal memories and in our brains, triggers our prefrontal cortexes where info relevant to personal life and relationships reside. Our favorite songs stimulate our brain’s pleasure circuit, which releases an influx of dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and other neurochemicals that make us feel good. This is interesting to me and my own sense of musical nostalgia validates the research in my mind. But what is even more interesting is the idea that musical nostalgia, like so many other things, can be inherited. It evokes a different memory but a connection to the music my parents played and I grew up with also exists. This may also be why I like to move around between the stations that play music from different decades on satellite radio. Either way, once a song makes it to the top of the charts, the memories people associate with it stay in our cultural consciousness (and my consciousness-thinking about the next time I hear Louie Louie) and if you’re a teen or young adult it may become the basis of your own musical nostalgia in the future.

A First Time for Everything, Including a Trip to V.S.

The sun was finally out today and after a recent damp and dreary spell I was happy to get a load of laundry out on the clothesline. Let the sun help me save on my electric bill by drying my clothes. What does this have to do with Victoria’s Secret you might ask? Well until recently I could say I’d never been in one of their stores in the 38 years that they have been in business. Maybe V.S. always seemed too expensive for me, I don't know, but last week I did for the very first time, stop to shop. After being measured for a new bra I explained to the salesgirl that I was only interested in trying on bras with no underwire. Come to find out Victoria’s Secret only makes two without. Interesting, I thought, (underwire is Victoria’s Secret?) but I have reached a time in my life where I am totally ready to accept what gravity has given me and forego the discomfort of underwire so my choices were going to be limited. I am also at a place in my life where I just hang my undies on the clothesline with the rest of my clothes, yes, granny panties and all. But back to the bras at Victoria’s Secret…the sales girl brought me a lacy (underwire free) one to try on. It fit but I took an instant dislike to the new matronly look of my now lacy double Ds. So I figured I’d give the other option (underwire free bra number 2) a try, and this no frills bra had just the right fit. I ended up getting two and some non-granny panties too. I will say that V.S. undies and bras are some of the most comfortable I have ever worn and I am perkier than I have been in years even without underwire. The idea of hanging them out on the clothesline today gave me a moment’s pause but I figured I hang all my clothes (even the under clothes) on the line all the time so why not. Let the sun do its thing (dry all my laundry) on a beautiful day.

Latest Weight Loss Device Gets FDA Approval

It’s an implant that electrically stimulates stomach nerves thus inhibiting appetite and it’s the newest FDA approved obesity device since 2007. The device called the Maestro Rechargeable System was designed for the morbidly obese and manufactured by EnteroMedics Inc. It sends electrical signals to nerves around the stomach that help control digestion to decrease feelings of hunger and increase feelings of fullness. It’s approved for use in people aged 18 and older who have a body-mass index (BMI) of 35 to 45 and at least one other obesity-related condition, such as type 2 diabetes. Another criterion for the implant is previous failure to lose weight with a traditional weight loss program. The Maestro device has shown promise in helping obese patients lose weight and maintain the loss. According to the CDC, more than one-third of all U.S. adults are obese, and people with obesity are at increased risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain cancers, so maybe this device will in time help lower those statistics. As part of the FDA approval, Minnesota-based EnteroMedics must conduct a five-year post-approval study that will follow at least 100 patients and collect additional safety and effectiveness data. But so far it seems that the benefits of the device outweighed the risks (inherent in any kind of surgery) in patients who meet the set criteria.

And So It Begins…the Zombie Apocalypse, Maybe

Yesterday added going to the computer fix it store to my already busy list of places to go and I ended up going twice. The first visit was painless and short. My grandson’s laptop keyboard needed replacing and the new keyboard we’d ordered had come in. The removal of the old (with an uncooperative spacebar, four, and six) and addition of the new took only minutes done right at the counter before my very eyes. While the computer guy was affecting repairs I chanced to mention the long line I’d noticed in front of the AT&T store just down from the computer store. What’s going on over there, I asked? The computer guy never even looked up from his task, rather he just shrugged and said, Maybe it’s the start of the Zombie Apocalypse. I immediately figured it was a good thing I was driving my Honda because our other car has a Zombie hunting permit (no bag limit) on the bumper and with a line that long even a dedicated hunter could be in trouble. Even though I have the permit I have zero Zombie hunting experience and I’ve never watched a single episode of the Walking Dead. I wondered if Zombies came out during the day or did I have them mixed up with Vampires. Then I decided that since the day was truly nasty and overcast, it was probably a perfect day for either. The real surprise didn’t turn out to be the Zombies at all, but the fact that I didn’t have to pay for the computer repairs, since the bill was usually taken care of at the time of ordering, according to the computer guy. So after taking a last, at least last is what I figured at the time, glance at the line of Zombies as I drove out of the parking lot and on to my next stop (Walmart), Zombies and Vampires completely slipped from my mind. I could say that a strange psychic pull called me back (a second time) to the computer store, but the truth was as I was leaving Walmart my cell phone rang and it was the computer guy calling to let me know he could find no receipt showing that the keyboard repairs were in fact paid for, so could I stop back by and pay. Once again I pulled into a parking spot in front of the computer store and once again there were the Zombies. This time they were accompanied by one of St. Marys’ finest with lights a flashing so I had no reason to fear the Zombies or Vampires, whichever. I just paid the repair bill and wondered what was going on at AT&T.

Anonymous Glitter

Of all the things I’d ever considered sending (or wished upon) an enemy, glitter is one I’d never thought of. In school glitter was one of my least favorite items to work with because it really does get everywhere. In fact, glitter was one of those things in my classroom that only came out a couple of crafty times during the school year, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and Mother’s Day. Whether the classroom had carpet or tile flooring once the glitter came out, no matter how carefully used, it was there to stay. That said, if you should receive some glitter in the mail and it isn't on your Valentine’s Day card, it might be anonymous glitter sent from someone who is NOT your friend. For a penny less than $10 you can go online and have copious amounts of glitter sent anonymously to an enemy. It will arrive within a note letting the receiver know that they are considered an enemy and when opened will cause the glitter to leave itself (an unpleasant reminder) unpleasantly all over. Of course of all the things the internet has to offer these days, this is just one glittering example. 

Gas Never Going over a Dollar Again?

I must be tired because this- Gas Never Going over a Dollar Again?-is what I read even though what the MSN headline actually said was- Oil above $100? Never again,-according to some Saudi Prince as he waved to the cameras with a big smile. Must be that I heard the price of gas in Jacksonville and Tampa has dropped below the $2 mark, that and wishful thinking. It was $2.07 here today and has steadily dropped a penny or two every day for quite some time. All this got me wondering when gas really did cost less than a dollar. So I looked it up and the last time the price of gas was under $1.00 in the United States was the week of March 15, 1999. The average price of gas per gallon was 97 cents back then. But the last decade in American history in which gas prices consistently averaged less than $1.00 was the 1970s. All my children were born in that decade and we did travel quite a bit by car back then, now that I think about it. I don’t think we will see those consistent low gas prices, less than a dollar, again but as tired as I am right now, I could say, one can always dream…because I could easily be dreaming in my sleep momentarily. That’s why I'll end this blog post here with a big yawn and say, Good Night!  

The Dirt on New Antibiotic in Fight against MRSA

Interestingly enough the bacteria from which this new antibiotic has been developed from is found in soil. That’s the dirt, and it isn't a dirty secret either. Traditionally bacteria from soil has resisted growing in lab settings until scientists came up with something called an iChip that allows soil to seep in giving the bacteria the sort of environment in which it naturally likes to reproduce, basically tricking the bacteria into growing in a lab setting. Of all the bacteria from soil grown this way there is one standout. It’s called teixobactin and it kills MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, in mice. Teixobactin also killed a type of drug-resistant tuberculosis. This new antibiotic is still two years away from trials in humans and often times antibiotics that work in mice fail to work for us. If teixobactin shows promise in the fight against superbugs like MRSA in humans there’s an additional five years to consider before the drug could go on the market. But surely the demise of superbugs like MRSA is on the horizon as scientists continue to seek to develop new medicines for the future. Maybe discovering important antibiotic bacteria is the upside to consider when you find your child (or grandchild) playing in the dirt. 

Fuzzy Penguin PJs

Maybe it’s because I’m old, I don’t know, but I would never consider going outdoors in my PJs. Oh maybe I’d sneak out in my PJs and robe to grab the newspaper off the driveway, but you would never find me wearing my PJs to Walmart or the grocery store. Well, now I’m thinking never might be too strong a word since I got this comfy pair of plush and fuzzy penguin pajama pants, combined with the falling snow flurries and temperatures outside in yes, south GA, St. Marys. I got these plushy penguin PJ pants (and I love alliteration) at Walmart yesterday and I have to say that they are warmer and lots more comfy than my usual cold weather go to, sweat pants. They work wonderfully without the aid of thermals (long johns) too, one layer warms all. So if you should spot an old lady pushing a cart around the store, avoiding eye contact and wearing plushy penguin PJ pants go ahead and make your cold comments. The heck with the fashion police, I’m staying warm today!

Second Thoughts on Mrs. Fixit Stuff

First let me say I got a small set of tools for Christmas like my set in St. Pete. I have surprised myself and discovered that I really can use tools (like monkeys do too) because along with problems knowing my left from my right, tools were never a big part of my skill set. Yep, I’m the one with screw driver in hand that you hear mumbling under her breath, lefty Lucy-righty tighty. Then this morning I saw a headline about a woman plunging her toilet who plunged up a five and a half foot snake. This immediately brought to mind a mental picture of me during my most recent fixit adventure, standing on step stool plunging the garbage disposal side of my double kitchen sink and what my reaction would be to plunging up any kind of snake, let alone a five footer (I am 5 foot 2 in running shoes). Needless to say the disposal is dead, the water down the drain, and no snake slithered out, so whew, so much for that lackluster fixit adventure. Today’s drama will be returning the mailbox to the post. I’ll let you know if any snakes get involved in this one!

Sea Coral in the Desert

Coral is no longer only found under the sea. Now it’s being farmed in of all places the desert. The coral produced in Israel’s desert by OkCoral farms in fish tanks, far from the sea is used to create bone scaffolding for medical and dental use. The water in the tanks where the coral is grown must be kept perfectly balanced at all times, or the coral will die. Fish swim among the coral and eat the algae off the coral. Fish poop and keeping the water moving as the fish swim also helps the coral grow. Coral is made of calcium just like human bones so it has long been used for growing bone replacements. OkCoral coral is different from coral harvested from the sea because it is sustainable and free from disease that could contaminate the product (bone scaffolding made from the coral). The human body doesn't reject coral implants either. Coral has been used as a scaffold for bone grafts and replacements since the 1980s and with current research continues to take over more of the market from cadaver bones.

Old Tech Pack Rat-ism!

So I read today that old tech pack rat-ism isn't necessarily a bad trait. That’s probably a good thing because I have a bunch of old tech hanging around. I really work at railing against pack rat-ism by purging stuff now and then but not so much with old tech stuff. Lots of times I find myself still using old tech (probably because I am in the old category myself). Anyway, old electronics are full of toxic stuff like arsenic, lead, and cadmium. These poisons don’t need to find their way from the landfill into the water table etc., and if you trash them they might. Then there is the personal data that you may no longer access on your old tech but other more tech savvy identity thieves could access. If you don’t want to be an old tech pack rat (like me) you can find appropriate ways to end old tech clutter, just recycle, repurpose, sell the stuff or donate it. So even if being an old tech pack rat isn't necessarily a bad thing you don’t have to be one!

Happy New Year!

The first day of 2015 is almost over and I haven’t made any resolutions! Strangely enough, I am totally at peace with this. I have a hopeful feeling about this New Year, and I think I can make it a good one without resolutions. I stayed up later than I usually do to welcome 2015 in with a bunch of grandsons, some fireworks, and noisy horns. Amazingly enough, the boys all slept in this morning too, a rare event. That made the start of 2015’s day one pretty nice. Spending the past week with this crew makes me wish right along with them that they didn’t have to go back to school. But I know they will, so I’ll just have to look forward to the next time school is out and we can all be together again. Till then I'll just hold on to the memories of the funny things they did and said. Those are the stories I will tell them when they’re older.