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Our eyes tend to skim over information and our brains often jump to conclusions. This is because we take in so much visual information, that our brains need shortcuts to process it all. The trait evolved to help early humans survive encounters with fast predators, but it also means that we can be easily fooled by simple illusions. A new video, which is a collaboration between the American Chemical Society and Inside Science TV, explains the science behind this visual trickery. Take a look at the centre of this figure. It looks like an intricate pattern, nothing more. But when … Continue reading →

Are root canals safe? Dr. George Meinig, author of Root Canal Cover-Up, was a founding member of the American Association of Endodontics. He quit the association later in his career after he saw firsthand the adversereactions that root canals have on the immune system. Dr. Meinig also witnessed the irreparable damage to the jaw bone caused by the infected cavitation sites where root canaled teeth once sat. What exactly is a root canal? The standard root canal procedure effectively kills the tooth by removing all the dental pulp. The dental pulp contains the blood supply, nerves, and connective tissue. Once … Continue reading →

[This essay has been adapted from chapters 1 and 2 of Susan Southard’s new book, Nagasaki: Life After Nuclear War, with the kind permission of Viking.] Korean and Chinese workers, prisoners of war, and mobilized adults and students had returned to their work sites; some dug or repaired shelters, others piled sandbags against the windows of City Hall for protection against machine-gun fire. In the Mitsubishi sports field, bamboo spear drills in preparation for an invasion had just concluded. Classes had resumed at Nagasaki Medical College. Streetcars meandered through the city. Hundreds of people injured in the air raids just … Continue reading →

Obese and overweight people who are deficient in vitamin D should take supplements to boost their chances of losing weight, experts have said. The advice comes as a new study warns people who have low levels of the ‘sunshine’ vitamin, are more likely to be obese or overweight. Previous studies have linked a vitamin D deficiency with developing obesity and the risk of related complications, including type 2 diabetes. Researchers at the University of Milan estimated that in northern Italy, severe vitamin D deficiency ranges from six per cent in overweight people to 30 to 40 per cent in those … Continue reading →

There exists an elite club within the world of old discoveries—those special finds that are the oldest of their kind. They are the record breakers that rewrite the history books or completely change our understanding about something we thought we knew. Sometimes, they don’t carry much historical or archaeological value, but they still amaze us with their ability to survive. 10 Bottled Message – 102 Years Old In 1913, 20-year-old Richard Platz stuffed a postcard with his address into a beer bottle and threw it into the Baltic Sea. The message urged the finder to return it to him. But … Continue reading →

Arizona – -(Ammoland.com)- What you say on 911 is recorded.  It can and will be used against you in a court of law.  My friend and publisher of numerous books on gun laws, Alan Korwin, says that in the vast majority of cases where people involved in self defense scenarios end up in serious legal difficulties, it is what they said on 911 that got them into trouble.  He expounds on this in his book “After You Shoot“.   In a recent case in Florida, both male participants made errors.  One is dead and one has been charged. I suspect … Continue reading →

Faberge is one of the most iconic brands ever to come out of Russia and most known for its famous egg-shaped treasures. Created in the greatest of secrecy, each Faberge egg was lovingly crafted for up to a year to ensure the perfect placement of every gem, precious metal, and secret within. No other goldsmith or jeweler could match the lavish and detailed designs. Over a century later, Faberge eggs remain the benchmark for quality and wealth in the jewelry industry. 10 A Royal Easter Tradition Photo via Wikipedia Back when Easter was the most important event for the Russian … Continue reading →

Predictive policing, an unproven and controversial data-mining method intended to anticipate the location and participants or victims in future crimes, is now an integral part of the largest police department in the United States. During a recent panel, New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton declared that predictive policing “is the wave of the future,” and that “the ‘Minority Report’ of 2002 is the reality of today.” Bratton’s remarks, which are the most candid he has been about the department’s use of data mining, came during a discussion about Big Data, hosted by The New York Times, with editor Charles … Continue reading →

As much as we like to think we’re so much more advanced than people in the Middle Ages, we’re actually not too different. We still listen to demagogues and use dangerous cosmetics and drink too much. We’re still superstitious and paranoid and xenophobic. We’re still really into dragons. Bear that in mind while reading these extracts from medieval advice texts, books of conduct, and manuals. Some kind of make sense, some are timeless, and some are exactly the kind of thing that we make fun of the Middle Ages for. Just don’t forget that our generation invented an app that … Continue reading →

The growing number of secession movements around the world gives rise to our topic: breaking away from current government structures that do so much harm to liberty, peace, and prosperity. Recorded at “Breaking Away: The Case for Secession”—the Mises Circle in Houston, Texas, on 24 January 2015. Comments open on YouTube

Two elementary school students from Kentucky were traumatized after a deputy sheriff handcuffed the kids for behavior associated with their learning disabilities, a lawsuit filed on Monday claims. The suit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union working with the Children’s Law Center and legal firm Dinsmore and Shohl, names school resource officer and Kenton County Deputy Sheriff Kevin Sumner and Kenton County Sheriff Chuck Korzenborn.  It claims that Sumner was inadequately trained and that the department violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. The two children, an 8-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl, were so little that Sumner had to lock the handcuffs around their … Continue reading →

New revelations about the National Security Agency’s ability to track phone calls in pre-9/11 America are raising the specter of a massive government cover-up. One that could have been used to hide intelligence failures, and fuel arguments for mass domestic spying. In 2000, Khalid al-Mihdhar was living in San Diego. One year later, he would go on to be one of the five hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 77, steered into the Pentagon on September 11. But in the months leading up to that horrifying day, al-Mihdhar made a number of phone calls to Yemen from his California apartment. Those calls went directly to one of Osama bin Laden’s operation centers in Sanaa, already … Continue reading →

Of the 2.2 million Americans in prison right now, about half are there for drug-related offenses. It’s a tricky number to determine because felonies such as murder, assault, burglary, arson, robbery, and even kidnapping can still be linked to the drug war. The Bureau of Justice Statistics claims, “Between 2001 and 2013, more than half of prisoners serving sentences of more than a year in federal facilities were convicted of drug offenses.” There are no prominent right-wing politicians today condoning legalization, but can we at least start with pot? Making teenagers play videogames for hours and laugh too hard at … Continue reading →

At least our state-school system maintains schools, terrible as many of them are. The NHS, creaky as it is, still treats actual patients. And in the dear dead days of big nationalised industries, British Coal dug actual coal, British Steel made actual steel, and the same was true of the gas and electricity boards. But the police force now can’t even be bothered to turn up and investigate burglaries, and its chief spokesperson openly says so. For the first time we now have a huge and expensive nationalised industry that does not do what it says on the label. The … Continue reading →