danipretto

Getting into the holiday spirit, Nancy Pelosi tweeted this recipe for her family's chocolate mousse recipe:

Quick, easy & good for you too! This mousse recipe is a family fav. Best wishes to you & yours this #Thanksgiving! pic.twitter.com/vqi8MIjnGo

— Nancy Pelosi (@NancyPelosi) November 26, 2014

Two things stand out about this recipe. First, it looks delicious; I would partake in some Pelosi Family Chocolate Mousse in a heartbeat.

Second, there is absolutely no way this recipe is "good for you," at least not in the nutritional sense. The entire thing has 5,333 calories, according to the Department of Agriculture's nutritional information. If you divide it into eight servings, that works out to 666 calories per person — about a third of what a person is supposed to eat in a given day.

Maybe the "good for you" bit is a joke? Maybe it's more of in the "you'll enjoy eating this" sense? Who knows. But it's definitely clear that, however delicious this mousse may be, it is definitely not health food.

Correction: An initial version of the graph in this story incorrectly called Nancy Pelosi's recipe one for "Chocolate Mouse." Neither Vox nor the minority leader endorse or suggest eating rodents for dessert.

Social media has certainly become a part of all our lives. It is the communication tool that children have been brought up with, but it is still illegal for a child under the age of 13 to have a social media page.

This is a shame when you consider the learning opportunities that social media offers. At our school, Vernon Christian Elementary School in Vernon, B.C, I can see how it provides children with the chance to learn how to communicate appropriately and effectively. If they want their friends to follow them or re-tweet their messages, they must write them creatively in an interesting and amusing style, attach relevant picture, and ask questions to invite a response.

So is the social media age restriction unnecessarily restrictive? Not really.

The Social Age study by knowthenet.org.uk revealed that approximately 59 per cent of children have already used a social network by the time they are 10, and 43 per cent have messaged people they didn't know by the age of 12. Although carried out by a British organization, these figures highlight a global situation.

Advisers call on parents to manage and educate their children about the dangers of social media, but other research shows that parents are either unwilling or are unaware of what they are. Elementary schools cannot shy away from the responsibility to protect their students. Over the past 28 years teaching in British Columbia, with the last 14 years being at Vernon Christian School, I have focused on computing, and am therefore very aware of the negative aspects that lure and ruin innocent lives. However, I strongly believe that exposing students to the etiquette of social media will equip them to be wiser to the pitfalls lurking there.

Thankfully, this need has already been recognized by education sector suppliers. We use a program called Petra's Planet for Schools, but there are several social media style systems available, designed specifically for elementary schools.

Our social media platform has a teacher's dashboard where all activity can be monitored. On one occasion we had an incident where a boy wrote hurtful comments about another student in a pigeon post message. After a discussion with him about why it is wrong to send hurtful emails, he was embarrassed and apologetic. While no names were mentioned, we then had a class discussion to understand the hurt and damage that this type of action can cause. While an unfortunate incident for the two people involved, it offered a perfect opportunity to introduce this vital lesson.

Moving aside from teaching children about the dangers and ethical use of social media, it also offers up outstanding educational opportunities.

I usually give the students ideas or a theme to start their chats off. They use the blog feature to keep a daily journal about something that interests them, and suddenly they appear to love writing and constructively critique each other's work.

We have also considered setting up a social media page for someone from history. For example, setting up a personal account for George Washington, with everyone in the class having a part to play: his slaves, cooks, friends, governors, or even William Fairfax.

The fact is, in these times of massive change, ICT and digital learning content have become the new currency for learning; children need to learn in a way that will prepare them for the world they are going to live and work in -- and social media is a part of this.

In the future, we will be looking to use the system's Twinning feature so the students can communicate with children from other schools around the world.

Social media offers a relevant 21st Century teaching tool that engages elementary students. More importantly, as we can no longer ignore the fact that elementary children are using social media, it provides the opportunity to educate them into the safe and ethical use of this communication platform.

Courtney shared this story from Super Opinionated.

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Courtney shared this story from Super Opinionated.

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Original Source

a-laluna:

couldn’t not reblog this.

[olsettres]

He’s the hero Thanksgiving needs. -knumbknuts

This is the note that was included with some LEGO doll house sets in the 70's, reminding parents that it's okay for girls to want to play with rocketships and boys to build dollhouses. It's weird to think some parents actually needed to be reminded of that. I had a Cabbage Patch Doll growing up. And a My Little Pony. It was pink with blue hair. I bet my mom still has it. Plus a jar full of my baby teeth. Ooh -- and my rat-tail. I know for a fact she has my rat-tail in an envelope somewhere. Thanks to Luis, who agrees there's nothing wrong with a boy wanting a Polly Pocket playset (I had two of those too).

This is a video of Sadie Robertson from Duck Dynasty and her professional dancing partner Mark Ballas performing a Super Mario inspired routine for their freestyle performance on Dancing With The Stars (technically, Dancing With People I Had To Google). It was a real FEAST FOR THE SENSES. Just not the eyes or ears. I'm kidding, it's fine. Kidding again, I couldn't get the video to play. Keep going for the video.

Swedish concrete manufacturer Skansa and architecture firm Foster + Partners have teamed up to create the first 3D-printing concrete robot. The team is using the technology to print high-performance concrete, which could someday be used to construct buildings. The project stands to save time and money while giving architects the ability to create almost any structure imaginable.

Read the rest of Skanska and Foster + Partners are Creating the World’s First 3D Printing Robot

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Post tags: 3d printer, 3D printing, 3D printing architecture, 3D printing concrete, 3D Printing Robot, Foster + Partners, Foster + Partners 3D printing robot, Norman + Foster 3D Printing, Norman Foster, printing concrete, Skanksa 3D robot, Skanska, Skanska 3D printing, Skanska concret

There seems be every type of yoga class out there: hot yoga, laughing yoga, prenatal yoga, and now, naked yoga.

Katherine Medina teaches what's believed to be the first clothes-free, co-ed class in Calgary. She says naked yoga is a great way to build self-confidence, adding that removing clothing is a symbolic way to represent removing restrictions.

The instructor initially started with a women's-only naked yoga class, as a way to empower and teach them to accept their bodies. But soon after, she received inquiries from men asking "What about us? We have body image issues too," which then led to the creation of the co-ed classes, Medina explained in an interview with The Huffington Post Alberta.

She said the Naked YYC class at Like Minded People Studio has zero tolerance for anyone acting rude or making others feel uncomfortable. The first general public co-ed nude class was held last week.

"It’s not about sex. If people are coming looking for an orgasm, they’re in the wrong place. I run a yoga class," said Medina.

She brushed off criticism from other yogis who believe this is all just "some marketing gimmick."

Medina is considering expanding classes, based on requests from cancer patients looking for classes tailored for them.

Naked co-ed yoga has been offered in other cities like New York, Vancouver, and Winnipeg.

Check Naked YYC for upcoming classes.




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Here's the cover of next week's New Yorker magazine, drawn by Bob Staake:

(The New Yorker)

Staake, who lived in St. Louis for 17 years, writes about how he decided on the image for the New Yorker's culture blog:

I wanted to comment on the tragic rift that we’re witnessing...At first glance, one might see a representation of the Gateway Arch as split and divided, but my hope is that the events in Ferguson will provide a bridge and an opportunity for the city, and also for the country, to learn and come together."

This isn't the first time the New Yorker has tackled Ferguson on its cover. The magazine produced a haunting "Hands Up, Don't Shoot" image for the edition that came out the week after Michael Brown's death.

A nor'easter hit the East Coast today, playing havoc with Thanksgiving travel plans on the most popular travel day of the year. More than 200 flights have been cancelled, and roads are expected to be snarled as heavy morning rain turns to evening snow.

It could be a lot worse, though. This video shows Russian travelers having to push-start their own plane after its landing gear became frozen at an airport in the Siberian town of Igarka:

CNN reports that the passengers, who can be heard yelling "let's go" as they push their plane, were successful in getting it moving. The plane was able to take off, and landed safely several hours later in the town of Krasnoyarsk.

That's right: they not only push-started their own plane in sub-freezing conditions, they then got on the plane and flew to their destination. Remind me again how America ever managed to win the cold war?

The designers at toilet empire Kohler want to make your poop smell like… avocados. In addition to an entire toilet system, Kohler has come up with a smart seat that can be bought piece meal to transform any toilet into a deodorizing system. For $90, the Purefresh seat can disguise your leavings with an aroma that mimics a garden waterfall, fresh laundry or, yes, an avocado spa.

Read the rest of Kohler’s New Toilet Seat Makes Your Poop Smell Like…Avocados?

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Post tags: avocado toilet, deodorizing toilet, eco design, green design, Kohler toilet, Purefresh toilet, sustainable design

You'll never forget to check the batteries in your smoke alarm after watching these firefighters pole dance.

B.C.'s Langley City Fire Rescue Service busted out some impressive moves in their latest fire safety video (watch above).

Set to a reworked version of Pharrell's "Happy," firefighters shimmy while cooking, and even incorporate poles and hoses into their routine. Oh. My.

But the message is clear: "Working smoke alarms save lives. We want you to test yours every month. Make us happy. Really happy."

The video is the brainchild of the department's administrative assistant and it's her niece singing the song, according to Global News.

Amazingly, this isn't the first catchy music video from Langley firefighters. Last year, they reminded people to "put a lid on it" during a kitchen fire — set to Beyonce's chart-topper, naturally.

(The dancing starts at the 0:52 mark in the video below.)



It's currently Fire Prevention Week in B.C.

This raw shredded brussels sprouts salad is so simple to make, even a 4 year old can do it (with Mommy's help). Tossed with a little olive oil, lemon juice salt and pepper, it makes a wonderful side dish to any meal, and my family loves it!


Pictured above with crispy oven fried pork chops that I am sharing tomorrow, look out for them, they are so good!

I'm just going to put it out there and say this recipe was developed by my youngest daughter Madison. She loves her veggies raw and loves a raw cabbage salad so one day while I was cutting my brussels sprouts preparing to saute them, she started picking at it. Then she asked me to give her oil and vinegar (she likes making her own salads) and I realized she was onto something. I really love to let her invent and do her own thing in the kitchen, even if sometimes her ideas are a bit... lets say overly creative.

I never knew how good Madison was in front of the camera until yesterday when I thought it would be cute to film her making this after school – she's a natural and may be taking over Skinnytaste someday, who knows! Sometimes she does this with lime, and apple cider vinegar, and sometimes all of the above. Here she wanted to use all three.



This salad is vegan, paleo, dairy-free and gluten-free.
Click Here To See The Full Recipe...

The GOODS from Curious Oyster

Vancouver, BC | West coast oyster season is here. To mark the occasion, Curious Oyster is teaming up with Racine Wine Imports to host Bon Hiver, a casual evening of food and drink at the beautiful Le Marché St. George on November 28th. Guests will enjoy some of BC’s most gourmet indulgences, such as oyster varieties grown by Outlandish Shellfish Guild’s family-run farms, and delicious sausages and terrines from Oyama Sausage Co. served with artisanal breads. To pair, Brian and Ramona of Racine Wine Imports will serve a Muscadet and a sparkling wine from organic wine producers Domaine de la Pépière. Bon Hiver will transport guests to a French Winter Market in one of the city’s most special neighbourhood settings, Le Marché St. George.

After enjoying the freshly shucked oysters, small bites and Loire Valley wine, guests can meander over the Winter Pop-Up Shop in the next room. Event guests will get a sneak preview of Le Marché’s Winter Shop, which opens the next morning and features fine goods, such as linens, clothing, photography and ceramics from local and international artisans.

Bon Hiver is a Curious Event, a series of collaborations between Curious Oyster and exceptional artists, artisans and food producers in memorable spaces. Tickets include open oyster bar, food and one glass of wine (Stand-up cocktail service is additional). Tickets are limited — reserve now and get all of the delicious details after the jump…

Bon Hiver: A French Winter Market by Curious Oyster, Racine Wine Imports & Le Marché St. George
When: November 28, 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
Where: 4393 St. George Street (@ East 28th Avenue), Vancouver
Cost: $65, available at curiousoyster.ca/bonhiver

DETAILS

“A loaf of bread” the Walrus said,
“Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
Are very good indeed –
Now if you’re ready, Oysters dear,
We can begin to feed.”

– “Walrus and the Carpenter,” Alice in Wonderland

Telephone: 778-988-4699 | Web: www.curiousoyster.ca | Email: info@curiousoyster.ca

GALLERY

THE PEOPLE

Richard Boucher tasted his first oyster in his 20′s and it inspired a passion. His goal is to connect oyster lovers with local and sustainable producers through innovative catering and Curious Events. For a quote or for more information, send an email to richard@curiousoyster.ca.

About The Curious Oyster Catering Co.

The Curious Oyster Catering Co is a company of oyster connoisseurs introducing a unique catering experience to Vancouver. We arrive with a customized selection of fresh oysters, a signature bar, antique serving ware, and a bowtie or two.

Whether it’s a humble backyard affair, ample corporate event or special celebration — we might be that little bit of indulgence you’re looking for.

Like wine, there is a story behind each oyster. Its unique flavour, colour, salinity, sweetness and texture are the marks of its origins. You’ll taste that our oysters are sourced from the finest farmers in Canada. We serve only sustainable seafood, hand-harvested upon request, then shipped directly to us for your event, guaranteeing unparalleled freshness

Each oyster is shucked to order, so our guests will enjoy in the tastes of the ocean at its absolute best. We also offer a little companionship with our oysters—secret-recipe mignonettes and wine pairings are available at your request. Curious minds won’t leave hungry either; we enjoy every opportunity to discuss what we do.

When your event is over, we clean up and leave without a trace.

Curious Oyster will add impeccable service and clever charm to your:

• Cocktail receptions
• Dinner parties
• Corporate functions
• Summer evenings in the garden
• Weddings, big and small
• Holiday gatherings
• .. and any other excuse to indulge

For more information on Curious Events* visit: curiousoyster.ca/upcoming-events.

A Canadian woman's Hawaiian vacation came with an unexpected surprise: a $950,000 medical bill when her water broke two months early.

Jennifer Huculak-Kimmel, a resident of Saskatchewan, ultimately spent six weeks on bed rest at the hospital before giving birth. Her daughter, born premature, stayed in the hospital for two months. And Saskatchewan Blue Cross — a private insurer in Canada that sells travel policies, which cover medical emergencies abroad — has declined to pay the nearly $1 million bill. It says that "her medical emergency is excluded from coverage under the terms of her pre-existing condition provision."

Hucklack-Kimmel's experience is uniquely expensive; most births in the United States do not cost anywhere near $1 million. But at the same time, having babies in America is still way more expensive than anywhere else.

Data from the International Federation of Health Plans shows that it costs, on average, $10,002 to have a normal delivery in the United States and more than $17,000 for a C-section. That's more than any other country the group looked at.

Pre-term births can be especially costly. The Institute of Medicine estimated in 2005 that each pre-term birth requires an average of $33,200 in medical costs. That's much lower than Hucklack-Kimmel's bill, but also well above what many American families can afford to spend on a medical emergency.

On Tuesday, the 15th woman to accuse Bill Cosby of sexual assault came forward.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, former supermodel Janice Dickinson said that Cosby sexually assaulted her in 1982. She recounted a dinner they had in Lake Tahoe, where she said Cosby gave her a "pill, which she asked for because she was menstruating and had stomach pains."

"Before I woke up in the morning," she told ET, "the last thing I remember was Bill Cosby in a patchwork robe, dropping his robe and getting on top of me. And I remember a lot of pain."

This follows on an essay published Saturday in Hollywood Elsewhere where Joan Tarshis, a music industry publicist and journalist, claimed that the comedian drugged and raped her in 1969, when she was 19 years old, and chronicled the alleged encounter in graphic detail. "[A]s more and more of his rape victims have come forward, all telling similar stories, the time is right to join them," she wrote.

On Sunday, Cosby's attorney denied the Tarshis and other recently rehashed allegations, calling them "decade-old, discredited" claims. The fact that women are making the allegations, he said in a statement released to the Associated Press and posted online, "does not make them true."

But why are the "old" and "discredited" rape allegations suddenly in the spotlight? Why are "more and more" alleged victims coming forward in 2014?

It's not because Mark Whitaker's biography of Cosby is out this year. It's not because Bill Cosby 77, a comedy special that promises to offer the 77-year-old's humor related to "relationships, marriage, and children," will be released on Netflix November 28. It's because of a quick riff comedian Hannibal Buress did during a show in Philadelphia:

The result is people are suddenly paying close attention to what women have been saying about Cosby for years.

This focus, 10 years after rape allegations about Cosby first went public, raises questions about how we treat women who say they were sexually assaulted, and why so many of us ignored the allegations against "America's favorite dad" for so long.

What is Cosby accused of?

Janice Dickinson's Entertainment Tonight interview was the 15th sexual assault allegation made against Cosby over many years.

That's a lot of stories, and they can be hard to keep track of. If you want to know who exactly said what, Gawker's Tom Scocca and Vulture's Max Giles have helpful guides.

But here are the basics on the stories that began surfacing about a decade ago: in a 2005 Today show interview, a woman named Tamara Green said Cosby had assaulted her in the 1970s. This was after another woman, Andrea Constand, filed a lawsuit in 2004 accusing Cosby of very similar offenses.

The women accuse him of drugging them with a laced drink or pills before sexually assaulting them.

Constand's lawyers produced 11 more women who claimed Cosby had assaulted them, bringing the total number of accusers to 13. The suit was eventually settled, and, as part of that agreement, the plaintiff agreed not to discuss her allegations publicly.

Taken together, the allegations paint a disturbing — and consistent — picture. The women accuse him of drugging them with a laced drink or pills and then sexually assaulting them. Cosby denies all the allegations.

Some of the women called as witnesses in Constand's case have spoken out since, sharing their allegations against Cosby with Philadelphia Magazine, People, the Daily Mail, and the Washington Post. None of them stand to gain anything from coming forward, as the statute of limitations has made it impossible for them to personally sue Cosby.

If this all happened so long ago, why is it in the news now?

The story has reached a fever pitch because of a combination of factors, but it all started with a comedy routine. In October, a clip of comedian Hannibal Buress brutally criticizing Cosby over the allegations in a standup routine went viral.

In an interview with Howard Stern, Buress said he had been doing the bit for months — not in response to any particular piece of recent news about the allegations against Cosby. "It's just a lot of stuff. I just read some stuff and researched. Anybody can get that information," he said.

"Only when a male comedian called Cosby a rapist did the accusation take hold."

About a week after the Buress clip made the rounds, the Daily Mail published an interview with a woman named Barbara Bowman, who said that Cosby, whom she called a "monster," had "drugged and raped" her in 1985, when she was 17. She told a similar account in a November 13 essay she wrote for the Washington Post. Bowman questioned why it took "30 years for people to believe my story" and noted, even more pointedly, that "only when a male comedian called Cosby a rapist did the accusation take hold."

In the midst of all this, on November 10, Cosby's team invited the public to create memes using the actor's face. The meme generator was quickly mocked as a "massive social media fail" for its poor timing, as Twitter users took advantage of the tool provided on his website to criticize Cosby over the newly resurfaced rape allegations.

Oh Cos! #Cosbymeme @BillCosby pic.twitter.com/ahFX7LFgVg

— Trill Withers (@TylerIAm) November 10, 2014

How has Cosby responded?

When Cosby was asked about the accusations in a November 15 interview on NPR's Weekend Edition, he remained silent, shaking his head in response to questions.

But Cosby, who has never been prosecuted, has done more in the past than just silently shake his head at the sexual assault allegations. Over the years, he has  — most often in statements through his lawyers, but sometimes in his own words — completely denied them.

After Tamara Green was interviewed on the Today show in 2005, Cosby's lawyer issued the following statement: "Miss Green's allegations are absolutely false. Mr. Cosby does not know the name Tamara Green or (maiden name) Tamara Lucier, and the incident she describes did not happen. The fact that she may have repeated this story to others is not corroboration."

When Newsweek ran an interview with Green in 2014, Cosby's representative said, "This is a 10-year-old, discredited accusation that proved to be nothing at the time, and is still nothing."

Cosby admitted to having sex with Constand, another accuser, but said it was consensual. His lawyer told CNN that her rape allegations were "utterly preposterous" and "plainly bizarre."

"Looking back on it, I realize that words and actions can be misinterpreted by another person, and unless you're a supreme being, you can't predict what another individual will do," Cosby told the National Enquirer in March 2005. But he hinted that Constand was trying to "exploit" him because of his celebrity status.

Most recently, on Sunday, John P. Schmitt, a lawyer for Cosby, made the following statement, which he said would be the last on the topic:

"Over the past several weeks, decade-old, discredited allegations against Bill Cosby have resurfaced. The fact that they are being repeated does not make them true. Mr. Cosby does not intend to dignify these allegations with any comment. He would like to thank all his fans for the outpouring of support and assure them that, at age 77, he is doing his best work. There will be no further statement from Mr. Cosby or any of his representatives.

Why hasn't Cosby ever been prosecuted?

Constand's lawsuit against him settled out of court. That's the legal reason for the resolution of her claims.

But there are other, more complicated factors that explain why Cosby hasn't had to go before a court to defend himself. For one, at least one of his alleged victims said she held back because she didn't feel her claims would be taken seriously.

At least one of his alleged victims said she held back because she didn't feel her claims would be taken seriously.

"As a teenager, I tried to convince myself I had imagined it. I even tried to rationalize it: Bill Cosby was going to make me a star, and this was part of the deal," Bowman wrote in her Washington Post piece.  And, in a CNN interview, she said she'd approached a lawyer in 1989 for a consultation on potential legal action against Cosby, but, "he laughed me right out of the office."

At that point, Bowman said, she "just gave up," when it came to seeking justice through the legal system.

How has Cosby's fame informed the response to this?

Of course, 15 allegations of sexual assault against anyone — famous or not — would be disturbing.

But Cosby's public image seems to have colored the reaction to the allegations against him in a couple of ways.

The fact that the allegations against him are so shockingly incongruous with Cliff Huxtable, the wholesome, good-natured, beloved dad he played on The Cosby Show, could partly explain why there was so little attention paid to them for so long.

According to this theory, Americans simply weren't willing to hear information about sexual assault allegations that risked tarnishing our image of the man. (However, people have known for some time that Cosby wasn't a real-life Cliff Huxtable: married for 50 years to wife Camille, he's publicly admitted to infidelity).

He took to using his platform to admonish African-Americans and broadly criticize black culture.

A very different set of public impressions of Cosby also help to explain the recent attention to the allegations against him. In his post-Cosby Show years, he has used his platform to admonish African-Americans and broadly criticize black culture. He wasn't widely hated for it, but he was no longer uniformly adored.

Critics said this commentary — characterized by his disgust for backward hats, sagging pants, traditionally African-American names, and what he saw as misplaced priorities — was irresponsible and out of touch, promoting dangerous ideas about black pathology that obscured the role of systemic racism in people's lives.

And it was this very sentiment about Cosby that inspired Buress' comedy bit —  the one that brought all of the allegations back into the public eye in October.

The younger comedian took aim at the hypocrisy behind what he called Cosby's "smuggest old black man public persona":

It's even worse because Bill Cosby has the fuckin' smuggest old black man public persona that I hate. He gets on TV, "Pull your pants up black people, I was on TV in the '80s! I can talk down to you because I had a successful sitcom!" Yeah, but you rape women, Bill Cosby, so turn the crazy down a couple notches. "I don't curse on stage!" But yeah you're a rapist, so... I'd take you saying lots of "motherfuckers" on Bill Cosby himself if you weren't a rapist.

Cosby's decades worth of performances also offer plenty of material to scrutinize for evidence of an inclination toward the type of conduct the 15 women accuse him of. And it turns out he did joke about spiking women's drinks on his 1969 LP, It's True! It's True! The bit, which was uncontroversial at the time, takes on more more somber meaning in light of the allegations against him.

How does all this fit into a larger conversation about rape culture?

The new attention to the allegations against Cosby comes against the backdrop of a quickly evolving conversation about rape and rape culture.

Discussions around the allegations ... have highlighted a culture that can discourage women from coming forward.

The FBI has broadened its definition of rape to ditch the word "forcible." A new California law that attracted national attention makes active consent the standard for sex on college campuses — meaning sex with someone who is too intoxicated to give their permission, like many of Cosby's accusers say they were, is characterized by schools as assault.

Those changing attitudes could be part of what's fueled widespread scorn toward Cosby: there's Buress' harsh bit on him, all of the mocking memes, and the two publications running his accuser's story back-to back.

And Bowman's observation hangs over all of this: "Only when a male comedian called Cosby a rapist did the accusation take hold."

If nothing else, discussions around the accusations against Cosby — even if the discussions are a decade late — have highlighted a culture that can discourage women from coming forward with sexual assault allegations. And not just in cases where the alleged attacker is "America's favorite dad."

In the quest to maximize the brain's capacity, scientists at McGill University may have taken another step, discovering a molecule that temporarily halts brain processing in mice and leaves the brain more functional, with improved memory recall when it reengages.

"Our findings show that the brain has a key protein that limits the production of molecules necessary for memory formation," says RI-MUHC neuroscientist Dr. Keith Murai, the study's senior author and Associate Professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery at McGill University. "When this brake-protein is suppressed, the brain is able to store more information."

Spring-boarding from previous research that suggests it's necessary to produce new molecules for storing memories in the brain, Dr. Murai and his colleagues used a mouse model to examine how changes in brain cell connections produce new memories.

What suppresses the production of molecules required for creating new memories, they found, is a protein called FXR1P (Fragile X Related Protein 1).

Upon selectively removing FXR1P from certain parts of the brain, new molecules emerged that strengthened connections between cells, which correlates with improved memory and recall for mice.

"The role of FXR1P was a surprising result," says Dr. Murai. "Previous to our work, no one had identified a role for this regulator in the brain. Our findings have provided fundamental knowledge about how the brain processes information."

The study was published in the journal Cell Reports.

ALSO ON HUFFPOST:

Oslo-based design company Neue has just won the competition for the design of Norway’s new passport. The winning entry is sleek, minimalist and captures the country’s gorgeous natural environment. Landscapes drawn on the pages transform under UV light to reveal vistas of the Northern Lights in the night sky. The competition jury praised the design for its simplicity and distinctive look.

Read the rest of Norway’s Gorgeous New Passport Reveals a Hidden Secret Under UV Light

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Post tags: Design Competition, Graphic Design, Neue Design Studio, norway, Norway passport, norwegian design, oslo, oslo designers, passport design, Scandinavian design

Earlier this year we mentioned Thomas Yang over at 100copies used the prints from bicycle tire treads to create a poster of the Empire State Building. Yang has since explored three additional landmarks around the world that merge his passion for cycling and architecture including depictions of the Eiffel Tower, the Tower Bridge, and China’s Forbidden City. While it appears the individual prints are sold out, they are still available as a full set. (via Arch Atlas)

flowisaconstruct:

onceuponamirror:

lwyllastorch:

tsundeanre:

thealycorn:

revstrychninetwitch:

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xxmickeydxx:

This is how many children that died in their Hunger Games, without even being mentioned throughout the three books. All these children were under 18. All these children had parents. All these parents’ hearts sank to their knees during their child’s reaping. All these parents saw their terrified child off at the train station. All these parents heard the sound that signified their child’s death. All these parents received their cold, dead child in a wooden box. All these parents’ lives ended there. All these parents could say or do nothing. All these parents were merely thanked that they gave up their child. Thanked.

And the media focuses on the love triangle.

All these children and all these parents aren’t real

Yeah, sure, I guess that’s true. None of these people were real.

But let’s focus on what this series, and this fact, say about our society.

In the series, the Capitol’s media focuses entirely on the ‘fun’ of the Games- the fashion, the plot twists, the favorites, the strategies, the romance. And the entire time, they completely overlook the fact that 1,678 children between the ages of 12 and 18 have died. Usually brutally murdered by other 12 to 18 year old children.

And how does our real-life media react to this story when news of a movie adaptation reaches them? They talk about the romance. This tragic story of a girl who must choose between her long-time best friend and her new love. Even if she chooses Peeta, they still must fight to the death. The star-crossed lovers of District 12. And many readers of the original novels saw the books through the same lens. You would tell them that you read/ were reading the books and their first reaction was, “Are you Team Gale or Team Peeta?”

Meanwhile, children are fighting to the death.

The fact that our media, and many every-day people reacted to the Hunger Games the same as the Capitol media scares me.

I don’t want this world to be anything like the Capitol. I don’t think any of us do.

And the fact that most of us (including myself) never really considered how many children had died in the games also scares me. But, hey, it didn’t happen now/ in the current story, so it doesn’t matter, right?

I’m not sure about that math though. I think it’s MORE.

Let’s talk about just the first 73 games, ok? Every year before Katniss and Peta. 

24 Tributes (1 girl + 1 boy x 12 districts)= 1 Victor + 23 Dead Every year

23 x 73 = 1,697

EXCEPT, the 50th games (The games Haymitch competed in) had DOUBLE the number of tributes. An extra 24 kids died that year.

1,703. 

Now, 22 kids died in Katniss and Peeta’s first game, because they both live.

1,725. 

In 74 years, the brutal, violent murders of 1,725 children aired on TV in Panem, and in both the Capitol, and on the red carpet in our world, the first question people want to ask it “Team Peeta?” Damn.

i’m not even in this fandom, but damn, that’s scary

And here we have people who GET the hunger games.

#until this moment#i didn’t realize there were still people who haven’t figured out that our reactions to media are an important indicator of our values#it doesn’t matter that they aren’t real#our reaction on a story primarily about children killing each other#was to focus on the romance#it wasn’t a romance#it’s a story about a tyrannical governemt sentencing children to death as a means of intimidating the sectors into submission#and we reacted to the games exactly the same way the capitol did

you can be as meta as you can but you can never be this meta

this is why not the media’s focus on JUST the love triangle is important—because it goes beyond that. Maybelline released a “Hunger Games” themed make up campaign. Barbie dolls were made of Katniss. T shirts. Plastic jewelry.

This is the real lesson.

The movie does a good job of using the capitol as a stand-in for the empty stupidity of some of our own current culture. That’s on purpose. The fact that someone decided to sell merchandising rights that completely subverted the message is just typical movie studio greed, and I’m sure nobody in the business of making these toys a reality cared one whit for the message of the film.

cubebreaker:

In his series, The Good Badlands, photographer Guy Tal seeks to show us that though it is often hidden, and may only appear briefly, there is delicate and subtle beauty in abundance for any viewer with patience and desire.