Lucky Me
.
This past Saturday, Amylynn called me to share the news that her hubby had taken down (killed) a 9 point buck. I was really thrilled for them. That's a lot of meat! The hubby-man asked if they were keeping the skin. (He's always wanted a deerskin) They said, "No. Would you like it?" Sweet!

It seems that deer hunting is a lot of work. Amylynn's hubby made his kill about 2 miles away from his vehicle. He was hunting on an island, so not only did he have to drag 185 lbs of deer through the woods,(alone!) he also had to get it in and out of his boat.

Anyway, she had called because I'd offered to help with skinning and butchering the carcass. I thought it would be an awesome learning experience. And it was.

I drove out to their home and parked in the driveway. Right as I was pulling on the parking brake, Amylynn walked out of the garage; and I busted out laughing. Because she is *always* fashionable. ALWAYS. I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't what I saw. I beheld a vision in plaid and denimn. With a knit stocking cap. She looked like she'd just stepped off the set of "Fargo". And she still made it look good.

I felt a little out of place. I was expecting the job to be messy, so I wore my old paint stained sweats and a few layers culminating in an oversized sweater that I'd ripped the collar out of. I looked like crap, and she made plaid look runway good. Thus the laughter.

Anyway. We walked around back and I saw my first ever non-roadkill deer carcass. He was hanging by his back legs from a tree, with his head and chest resting on a cardboard mat. He was cut open and all his guts had been removed, so you could see what his ribs looked like from the inside. The skin had already been pulled off his legs and Amylynn's hubby was working on stripping the butt and tail.

It is astoundingly easy to skin a deer, at least once the initial cuts have been made. You just grab some skin and pull on it until you see stuff that looks like cobwebs between the skin and the muscle; then you use a scalpel or very sharp knife and cut the cobwebs. You don't have to use any pressure at all.

So we cut and pulled for a while, until we were stooping to reach more hide. Amylynn's hubby came out of the garage (where he was putting together their brand new meat saw/grinder) and pulled the buck higher up so that we didn't have to bend. Isn't he sweet? The we cut and pulled some more. :D

Their daughter offered to make us coffee, "Because it was cold outside, and she thought we might like something hot to drink." That was impressive.

We took a coffee break and hubby-in-residence raised the deer even higher. The we finished cutting. Amylynn's daughter brought a trash bag and we folded up the skin, bagged it, and I tossed it in the back of my truck.

Unfortunately, putting together the meat saw didn't go as well. The manual was a mess. It had blurry pictures of crucial parts, diagrams that were incomplete, and references like "see figure 22b" when there was no figure 22b -just a blank space with the text "22b" underneath.

So I didn't get to help quarter the deer, which is a shame. I was standing for a long time yesterday, and my foot hurts too much to go back and help today. I'm hoping that he catches another deer, so I can have the butchering experience.

Nevertheless, I have a big 'ol deer skin folded up in my freezer right now. As soon as I finish this blog entry, I'm going to look up some local taxidermists and find out what else I need to do to prep the skin for tanning. Yay!

A Disappointing Day For Technology

(sigh) The DARPA Grand Challenge began well, with most of the 15 autonomous vehicles making it over the start line... But then it all fell apart. All of the vehicles are now "disabled", none got farther than 7 miles. (sigh) I'm interested in knowing what happened with my favorites. Each of them had my support for a different reason. Phantasm is from a suburb of St. Louis. Of course I was rooting for the home team! They would have gotten my vote anyway, because they put all the companies who donated to the project right up on their front page. Unfortunately, Team Phantasm didn't make it through the qualifying rounds.
The Palos Verdes Road Warriors survived the qualifying rounds and headed off to the race, but traveled less than a mile before breaking down. They were the only high school team to even try for the DARPA prize; and I salute them for making it as far as they did.
TerraMax, by far the largest of the vehicles; stayed running the longest. But it didn't go very far.
I also had my fingers crossed for The Spirit of Kosrae, because Axion Racing has a great sense of humor. Oh, well.

DARPA is considering the challenge again in 2006. They spent 13 Million dollars setting the challenge up, but it should be cheaper next time because they won't have to build all the obstacles and markers and such.
So, 2 years from now I'll once again, be rooting for the geeks of the world. I'll be reading their websites, peeking at their pictures, and hoping for success.

Taking a Trip

While chatting with Chasmyn, she mentioned "salvia divinorum" was a popular new psychedelic. Like me, she knows a lot about things, without actually doing them. So I'm sitting there on the phone thinking, "salvia...salvia... what is that?" Then I remembered. Salvia is sage. I doubted my memory... it might be basil. I said, "Kids are smoking sage or basil to get high? *scoff*
She googled it and sent me a link.
Later on, I googled the URL and searched for pages that link to SageWisdom.org. Lo and behold; the Department Of Justice has a link to them! It's in a page about Drugs of Concern. Interesting...
So, of course, I had to go look at the other drugs of concern. I'm a mother of a 13 year old, I'd like to know what's floating around out there.
I couldn't find anything about mushrooms, though. I would think, that if they're concerned about a hallucinogenic member of the mint family; they would surely be concerned about a toxic fungus. Not finding what I was looking for, I looked elsewhere. I'm reading 5 different sites right now.
I also found a FAQ on codeine. That one is a big deal to me. When L was recovering from surgery, the hospital gave him Tylenol 3. He barfed all night. They decided he was probably allergic, and he did fine with just plain tylenol after that. However, I want to know everything I can about any opiates, so I can forewarn him -if he ever pulls the stupid teen trick of doing drugs. So today I learned some new things.
Tylenol 3 is: 30mg codeine, 30mg caffeine, and an unspecified dose of tylenol. I didn't know there was a tylenol 4. I'm not linking the site where I got the info, because it encourages the use of opiates for recreation. I'm not going to sully my blog with that. This part caught my attention, however: "Most codeine found in pharmaceutical products today is synthetically produced via the methylation of morphine." Methylation... as in dissolving morphine in methyl alcohol to extract it? Could my son have an allergy to methyl alcohol, or one of it's by-products? Better safe than sorry. I'll tell him he might be allergic to Meth, too. (snerk) Is that cruel?
I'm a child of the 80's. Everyone did drugs. Is it limiting for me to pray that my son never experiments with them? (Not that I really care if you think I'm mean) I believe in everything in moderation. I think occasional drug use won't do horrible damage, and you might just learn something. But I've seen what can happen with "recreational" drug use. People tend to make poor choices. -sigh- Just one more stress. :)
I was actually going somewhere different with this. Methinks I'll save it for another posting

No Working Title

There's a fascinating debate going on at The Soulful Blogger.
It began with a post on The Sick Soul, which was read by Joe -author of The Soulful Blogger. Joe wrote his opinions on his blog, which began The Great Debate on anal sex. In and amongst the truly eloquent commenting, are a few things I want to write at length about:

On the entire thread: Why do some people regard sex as a non-worthwhile thing?
Josh S said: There's no such thing as a "gay married couple." Mutual consent, sexual attraction, and commitment aren't sufficient causes for a marriage.
??? My heterosexual marriage is based on mutual consent, sexual attraction, and commitment. What's yours based on? I've known some really screwed up people who came from parents who's marriage was based on procreation.
Tess argues: Ironically female oral sex to climax is just fine, since it isn't vital to fertility.
Actually, female climax is vital to fertility. Climax produces fluids which make the vagina a habitable region for sperm. Climax also causes the cervix to spasm, which draws the semen into the uteris. If it's all about procreation, then you're wasting valuable resources and chemical energy every time you don't conceive.

(sigh)

Watching History Unfold

A while back, we got a satellite dish. I've been quite pleased with it. It works great in the rain, the picture is never grainy, there is no static. We have access to all kinds of strange t.v. shows, too. Nothing good on TLC? That's ok, I can watch a cattle auction!
One of these little-viewed stations is the NASA channel. Tonight the Hubby-Man and I watched people watch their computers tell them what was happening with the latest go at Mars. Now pictures are coming in. Who needs sleep when I can look at pics of Mars? Not only do I get to view images from the rover as soon as NASA does, they have commentators! Wow.

I snicker loudly at those of you who still have cable. You'll have to wait for the pics to show up on the net. I'm seeing them now.

Things Mothers Should Tell Their Daughters

My friends and I have been having a discussion (for a couple of weeks now) about things mothers should tell their daughters. Things our own mothers never bothered to tell us, and should have. This is my top 5 list:

5. Puberty is wonderful and you should talk about it.
4. Masturbation is healthy.
3. No one can smell your period or see your maxi pad
2. Your insides are moist for a reason.
1. All vaginas have a fragrance. It's normal. No one can smell it but you, and you wouldn't smell it either if you weren't worried someone else might smell it.

My mom described menstruation, ovulation and hair growth in intricate detail to me and my sister. She thought she had covered all the bases. She even drew pictures. I still stressed over the top 4.

Sun spots, solar storms and planetary mass

A site on historical anomalies has a section on the cycles of the sun.
"It is quite a coincidence that Chinese astronomers/astrologers saw influences coming from the cyclical partial alignments (over 12 years maybe originally, 11 to 12 now) of the solar system's planetary bodies - which are the Chinese horoscope segments

These also just happen to be the simplest/basic part of the sunspot cycle, the sun "weather" cycle and the sun's magnetic field cycle, all of which we now suspect are caused by those same alignments of mass in the solar system, driven probably by the approximately 12 year orbital period of Jupiter, the most massive planetary body. [The Chinese traditionally paid great attention to the 'stations' of Jupiter]

We also believe - from uef/footnotes - this grand cycle to be the main driver of tectonic and earthquake events on Earth"

So perhaps all the solar activity is because of a gravity well? No, that's not right... the harmonic concordance is a bunch of planets spread around evenly. Hm. Maybe the lunar eclipse has something to do with it? Nope, not remotely massy enough. Well golly gee, I'm stumped!

-just being silly today-

In other news...

Car rams Bush event, and misses the Prez, damnit! You gotta wonder though... if it wasn't a simple lost-control-of-the-car thing... How bad does it have to get in America for a mother with 2 kids in her car to ram the building our suck-ass president is in?

The Hines Emerald Dragonfly is an endangered species. Hmmmm, dragonfly nymphs eat mosquito larvae. No mosquito larvae, no baby dragonflies. I remember summers filled with brassy green dragonflies, the last time I saw one was in 1995. All I've seen recently are blue, purple-black, or brownish-green. Sad.

More Redhead Science

Reading a bit about racial profiling in medicine, and it's not what you think. Sally L. Satel, M.D. writes an article- How Political Correctness is Corrupting Medicine. She writes about the importance of knowing her patients' race, because certain medications don't work so well on certain races. She also writes about how difficult it has become for physicians to discuss the issue.
I tell you what, if I ever need general anesthesia again, you bet your ass I want a doctor that pays attention to race! Redheads need significantly more anesthesia than other people. I want anesthesia, and I want to stay asleep. Please do not use a "one dose fits all" politically correct policy. I'm special, damnit! ;)

Tee Hee

RR ranks 4th for "redhead mutation" in Google. :)
In checking the other links for "redhead mutation" I found this, um, thing... I won't link to the site 'cause it has nekkid redheads. But she states:

"Red hair is not another shade of blonde/brown/black which most of the planet possesses. The gene for red hair is recessive. It is a lack of colouring in the hair which allows the red to be seen, like green leaves turning red in autumn as their chlorophyl dissipates. Like blue eyes, two parents must have the recessive gene for it to become dominant in their child. Even then there is only a fifty percent chance of having a redheaded baby.

All Redheads are distantly related to one small gene pool that arose in what is now Ireland. The aboriginal people of Ireland and Scotland were known as the Picts. Being a cloudy place, I'm sure natural selection encouraged the pale skin of redheads because of it's ability to absorb vitamin D from small amounts of sunlight.

A recent scientific paper popularized a new theory about the origins of the redhead gene, known as the ginger gene to scientists. The theory traces the gene's origin back to the Neanderthals. A constant source of teasing from my non-redheaded friends. "

My rant on this: Um, yeah. Red is not a non-color. Non-Color is what you get when a redhead gets older, and the non-color is white. I dunno about the recessive thing, either, although it makes sense. Red hair does not originate from a small gene pool on a cloudy island. Both of my grandparents on my mother's side were brunettes. Black hair, no red highlights, yet they managed to produce 3 red haired children. My bloodline includes (in order of strength) Welsh, Sicilian, Dutch, Irish and Native American. I could get my hair from any of those.
I don't believe serious scientist call the gene that produces melacortin 1 the "ginger gene". and finally, As of yet, science has not been able to prove that there was successful interbreeding between us and neanderthals. I like the idea, I think it would explain a few things, but science can't prove it yet.
*update* There are 8 separate mutations that are linked to red hair in the MCR1 gene. A person with 2 or more of these mutations may have some or all of the "classic" redhead looks. The mutations have been found in about 40% of humans across the board, with the exceptions of "Asians" -who have a slightly lower occurrance of those particular mutations in the MCR1 gene.

Breach Of Trust
(swiped and paraphrased from an editorial in the Star Tribune. Not my words, but quite good writing)

...the Health Department's distortion of research findings in (an abortion info) brochure. It marks a major breach of public trust -- and the appearance at the state level of the Bush administration's similarly out-of-bounds skewing of scientific research.

(skipping a bit about the abortion issue...we all have our opinions, they all have value, this is a Bush rant)

In politics, and even in governance, the public understands that officials tend to interpret facts in a way that suits their agenda; they put the best face on bad news and tout the good. There are, however, boundaries to this behavior -- boundaries that are critically important to effective decisionmaking by both leaders and ordinary citizens.

A decade ago, President George H.W. Bush said to the National Academy of Sciences, "Science, like any field of endeavor, relies on freedom of inquiry; and one of the hallmarks of that freedom is objectivity. Now, more than ever, on issues ranging from climate change to AIDS research to genetic engineering to food additives, government relies on the impartial perspective of science for guidance."

Any threat to that objectivity, whether it involves actual manipulation of the scientific process or the distortion of scientific conclusions, will result in skewed guidance to policymakers. Such guidance is worse than worthless; ...with very real consequences.

This kind of distortion is very much akin to what happened during the buildup to the war on Iraq. Intelligence analysts' best thinking, based on the available objective evidence, was placed in subservience to the administration's agenda. Findings were exaggerated and distorted -- and now the public is beginning to understand both that the breach of trust occurred, and where it led.

(a report) documented numerous cases in which the administration "manipulated the scientific process and distorted or suppressed scientific findings."

It happened in abstinence education, "where performance measures were changed to make unproven 'abstinence-only' programs appear effective," in global warming, "where reports by the Environmental Protection Agency on the risks of climate change were suppressed," on missile defense, wetlands policy, and many other issues where objective scientific guidance is imperative, both for policymaking and to have an accurately informed citizenry.

Now it's happening here.

Huh. I
was going to bitch about my heart and the weird freaky dreams I had last night. It all clicked into place, tho. My heart has been acting up since I bought the last batch of Millstone coffee. Perhaps their quality has dropped. Perhaps they're using a new pesticide on their bushes.

Ok. I'll rant about pesticide in coffee instead! Everyone knows that coffee contains caffiene. Not everyone knows (or cares) why. Caffiene is a natural pesticide. It's the plant's defense against bugs and small animals. It works well enough. So why do most coffee growers use pesticides? Because big corporations told them they should.

Things I wonder about in the middle of the night

Earlier today I found a link to pics of spider webs that were spun while the arachnid was under the influence of certain drugs. This led me to google search for different "spiders on drugs" pics. This in turn, led me to a site discussing the benefits of LSD. My ever-wandering mind then thinks questions like these...

I once read that shamans use drugs to achieve their trance states. I, personally, do not use drugs to achieve a trance state. Yet, people all over the net yack about their enlightenment, trancendance, (escape), what-have-you, while under the influence of drugs. It makes me wonder what I'm missing, if anything. I've read about LSD causing temporary hallucinations not unlike those experienced by a schizophrenic. I've read the theory that "crazy" people aren't crazy, they're "enlightened". I've read blogs stating you, too can be just as enlightened; albiet temporarily, by doing drugs. The whole concept puzzles me. But then, I was a lame-o in the 80's. I smoked a little pot, did speed once (never again. speed bad.) and that was it. Allright, I drank like a fish, too. Marijuana made me sleepy and dumb. Speed made me angry. Alcohol made me drunk. Nothing external made me trance. As a matter of fact, external things connected me more completely with my body than ever. I had toxins to deal with. Nothing like a little poison to ground ya! ...ha.

An excerpt from the page that started this ramble:
" Mescaline [for example] thus allows us to see a far truer image than the ordered stereotype that our association-fibres normally permit us to apprehend. It lets us see the true shadow-colors--the blue shadow in the snow, the green beneath the red object, and so on, that we normally discountenance; for we can cope with the flux of our complex external world only if objects remain what we expect them to be, if snow is always white and houses are always vertical, irrespective of the tilt of the eye and the slope of the retinal image."

Reading stuff like this causes me to (momentarily) realize my uniqueness. I see blue shadow in the snow whenever it snows. Except in direct bright sunlight, I see the delightful translucency of snow. I see 9 colors when I look at a rainbow, sometimes more. There's non color #1, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, blinding pale purple, and (sometimes) non-color #2. I call them non-colors because I don't have a name for them. They only occur in rainbows and gemstones, as far as I can tell.

So, am I crazy? Is it all in my sad little imagination? Do I need so badly to be "special" that I make stuff up? Am I a walking acid trip? Are my delusions so convincing that I convince others? Or am I genuinely a Shaman? I haven't found tangible, laboratory-conditions proof for the existence of most of it. Yes, some people see more colors in a rainbow. Yes, I've done improbable things in front of witnesses. But most of it is personal. Shared only with a few close friends. I've never moved the refrigerator with just my mind. I can't tell which card you're holding up, and I can't fix you.

These thoughts take me in a circuitous route, ending where I began. I pity the "average" people, then I wonder if I'm the abnormal one; round and round it goes. I can only see life from my own perspective. Thus, my life is "normal".

Geology stuff I didn't know

From Serendipity comes this nifty tidbit. The element Uranium degrades into Lead. Neat, huh? Also, I would love to get my hands on some of the green glass created by the first detonation of an atomic bomb on American soil. It would be an interesting addition to my collection of ugly rocks.
Here's an excerpt from the article:

" Most natural elements have very stable atoms which are impossible to split except by bombardment by particle accelerators. For all practical purposes, the one true element whose atoms can be split comparatively easily is the metal Uranium. Uranium's atoms are unusually large, henceforth, it is hard for them to hold together firmly. This makes Uranium-235 an exceptional candidate for nuclear fission.

Uranium is a heavy metal, heavier than gold, and not only does it have the largest atoms of any natural element, the atoms that comprise Uranium have far more neutrons than protons. This does not enhance their capacity to split, but it does have an important bearing on their capacity to facilitate an explosion.

There are two isotopes of Uranium. Natural Uranium consists mostly of isotope U-238, which has 92 protons and 146 neutrons (92+146=238). Mixed with this isotope, one will find a 0.6% accumulation of U-235, which has only 143 neutrons. This isotope, unlike U-238, has atoms that can be split, thus it is termed "fissionable" and useful in making atomic bombs. Being that U-238 is neutron-heavy, it reflects neutrons, rather than absorbing them like its brother isotope, U-235.
Both isotopes of Uranium are naturally radioactive. Their bulky atoms disintegrate over a period of time. Given enough time (over 100,000 years or more) Uranium will eventually lose so many particles that it will turn into the metal Lead."

More things I don't believe in

ok, before I get to that, I want to type about this: I did a google search for "November 8, 2003" including the quotes. I was looking for more goofy thoughts on Harmonic Concordances and other ways to get off the planet without comiting suicide. heh.
I found that there will be a lunar eclipse in that day. Unfortunately, the best viewing will be in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. (sigh) I also found an events page for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. It had some interesting stuff on it, but it also had *** NOT FOR PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION *** printed all over the place. I'm a good citizen, so I won't distribute the link. ;)
I also don't recommend reading the NRC bulletin. Some of it's scary, if you're of a mind to be scared by nuclear power. I was actually comforted by reading it. On a side note, did you know that BLUE TOPAZ falls under the control of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission? It's true! White Topaz is heated, then irradiated to turn it blue. Some countries do this by leaving parcels of gemstones in a nuclear reactor for a while. Different radioactive materials cause the topaz to turn different shades. The darkest, London Blue, is caused by plutonium. But don't worry. Thanks to the NRC, you can be assured they're not radioactive. The stones are quarantined until the NRC gives the all-clear.

Now then... things I don't believe in:
Any of these UFO photos.
That the U.S. government is run by Grey Aliens.
That there are good guy aliens waiting for us to dismantle our nuclear arsenal before they get rid of the Greys.
That wearing a miniature satellite dish on a chain will make the good guy aliens move faster in getting my butt off the planet.

Things I Question

If we have access to advanced technology, why are we using 30 year old, inefficient space shuttles?
If there were once civilizations as (or more) advanced than we have currently, where's the trash from them?
Assuming our ancestors became advanced enough to dig up their landfills and recycle everything, where is the evidence of landfill digs, advanced mining technology, pollution layers in core samples, etc.?

I recieved an email from a friend about Thimerisol. Once upon a time, I had the entire email posted here, but I've deleted it. I left my reply, though:



Now, I asked my sister about the link between the MMR vaccine and autism. She is a very highly educated and in-touch member of the (western) medical community. She explained that the criteria was revised for diagnosing autism at around the same time parents started noticing a spike in the autism rates. Thus, more children are diagnosed with autism at around 6 months... the same time they recieve their MMR shot. She said there have been hundreds of studies specifically looking for a link, and they couldn't find one. She went on to tell me way more than I ever needed to know about the side effects of vaccinations, the risks involved, the known links to diseases, and how you don't have to vaccinate your child, because just about everyone else is vaccinated. She recommended getting a vaccine if you're leaving the country, and explained how difficult it is to have your child attend public school without their shots.

On to info about mercury. Mercury is almost never found free in nature. Like oxygen, it is a lonely element, and likes to bond with other things. Thus the problem with humans coming in contact with mercury.
The effects of chronic mercury poisoning are as follows:

If you are exposed to any form of mercury repeatedly or for an extended period, chronic mercury poisoning can result. Health effects include nervous system effects, kidney damage, and birth defects. There are several symptoms:

1. Gingivitis: The gums become soft and spongy, the teeth get loose, sores may develop, and there may be increased salivation.
2. Mood and mental changes: People with chronic mercury poisoning often also have wide mood swings, becoming irritable, frightened, depressed, or excited very quickly for no apparent reason. Such people may become extremely upset at any criticism, lose all self-confidence, and become apathetic. Hallucinations, memory loss, and inability to concentrate can occur.
3. Nerve damage: It may start with a fine tremor (shaking) of the hand, loss of sensitivity in hands and feet, difficulty in walking, or slurred speech. Tremors may also occur in the tongue and eyelids. Eventually this can progress to trouble balancing and walking. It has even caused paralysis and death in rare cases.

I swiped this for the CDC Website

"Based on this progress, the most likely maximum amount of ethylmercury that an infant may be exposed to from currently manufactured vaccines has been reduced from approximately 187.5 mcg to < 3 mcg. The measles, mumps, rubella, varicella, inactivated polio, and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines that are now in use have never contained thimerosal."

Ah, but how long have the thimerosal free vaccines been "now in use"? Reading further, it appears the vaccine change happened in March of 2001. If you're interested I highly recommend reading the entire FAQ I linked to above.

One interesting thing I noted was that acceptable contamination levels were given for methylmercury (found in food), not for ethlymercury (used as a preservative in vaccines). The CDC was really up front about it, too.

It's Tuesday, and welcome to today's weird critter, the jellyfish. If that image isn't freaky enough for you, here are a variety of gelatinous animals photographed by Dave Wrobel.
Thanks Dave, for your great site! Should you wonder what those teeny-tiny jellyfish are that stick to your skin or wash up on a beach like little balls of mucus are, they're hydromedusae.

The Redhead Cluster Phenomenon
This site rocks!
My hubby noticed ages ago that redheads tend to clump together. He expressed how beautiful it was to see 3 or 4 redheads together, lighting up a room and drawing all the attention. I laughed at him and told him we don't clump or cluster, we clot like blood.

One more thing on red hair: I went to the grocery store last night. As I was looking for the shortest check out line, I noticed 3 suicide redheads glaring at me and one genuine article smiling compassionately.

What is a suicide redhead you ask? Dyed by their own hand.

Kudos to Rex Stetson, Armchair Vigilante for sharing this with the world:

Monday, August 04, 2003
Sunscreen Sissies At Greater Risk For Skin Cancer
Hilarious findings today from the European Institute of Oncology in Milan, Italy. Sunscreen, designed to protect skin from harmful solar radiation known to cause sunburn, freckles, moles, and cancerous melanoma, ironically increases the risk of skin cancer! Since those most susceptible to sunburn are also the most likely to develop skin cancer, it was believed that sunscreen would reduce that risk. Researchers now believe sunburn and skin cancer are caused by different types of solar radiation, and that by preventing a sunburn from occuring, the sunscreen only encourages lengthy sun exposure that otherwise would have not occurred. Sunburn acts the as body's natural warning system for excessive radiation exposure- similar to the dosimeter radiation badges work by nuclear technicians. When too much radiation has been absorbed, the skin changes and begins to hurt- sending a warning to its owner. Unless, of course, he is wearing sunscreen. Whoops!
No word on any industry-crippling class action lawsuits yet. Similar charges have been weathered successfully by the "antibacterial soap" industry after researchers discovered increased illness among its users, many of whom suffer from weakened immune systems from lack of germ exposure-except for the soap-resistant strains of super-bacteria that now populate their homes.

// posted by Rex @ 8:48 AM

I'm just doing my part to counter stupidity in the world. -S

As long as I'm in a mood for pseudo-science, let's cover oxides too!
Have you heard how beta-carotene binds free radicals in our bodies, thus preventing cancer and premature aging, and all sorts of other maladies? It's true!
Those free radicals are mostly oxygen. Oxygen is a lonely little molecule. It likes diverse company. When oxygen bonds with hydrogen, it does so with a bang. Giving off energy and producing water as a result. Neat huh? Oxygen will bond with pretty much anything, given any opportunity. This process is called "oxidation". Ring any bells?

Iron oxide is better known as rust. Titanium dioxide (along with iron oxide) gives sapphires their lovely blue color. Oh! and remember the whole dioxide controversy? Three guesses what the main ingredient is!

In really laymen's terms, we are rusting ourselves to death!