the-grey-areas-blog
'We're a grey area in a world that doesn't like grey areas'
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Latest Posts by the-grey-areas-blog
Me at work: wow I can’t wait to go home and take a shower and make some food and wash my clothes and learn advanced biology and apply for NASA and make a breakthrough in modern physics Me: *Gets home and falls asleep on the door handle*
Alzheimer's Disease linked to the metabolism of unsaturated fats
A new study published in PLOS Medicine’s Special Issue on Dementia has found that the metabolism of omega-3 and omega-6 unsaturated fatty acids in the brain are associated with the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder, which causes impaired memory, executive function and language. It accounts for 60 - 80% of total dementia cases worldwide, with over 46 million people suffering from the disease worldwide. The number of patients is estimated to rise to 131.5 million by 2050.
Currently it is thought that the main reason for developing memory problems in dementia is the presence of two big molecules in the brain called tau and amyloid proteins. These proteins have been extensively studied and have been shown to start accumulating in the brain up to 20 years prior to the onset of the disease. However, there is limited information on how small molecule metabolism in the brain is associated with the development and progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
In this study, researchers from King’s College London and the National Institute on Aging in the United States looked at brain tissue samples from 43 people ranging in age from 57 to 95 years old. They compared the differences in hundreds of small molecules in three groups: 14 people with healthy brains, 15 that had high levels of tau and amyloid but didn’t show memory problems and 14 clinically diagnosed Alzheimer’s patients.
They also looked at three different areas in the brain, one that usually shows little tau and amyloid, one that shows more tau and another that shows more amyloid. The main molecules that were different were six small fats, including omegas, which changed in abundance in different regions of the brain.
They found that unsaturated fatty acids were significantly decreased in Alzheimer’s brains when compared to brains from healthy patients.
Co-lead author of the study, Dr Cristina Legido Quigley from King’s College London said: “While this was a small study, our results show a potentially crucial and unexpected role for fats in the onset of dementia. Most surprisingly we found that a supposedly beneficial omega3, DHA, actually increased with the progression of the disease.
“It is now important for us to build on and replicate these findings in a larger study and see whether it corroborates our initial findings.”
Actually a really good example to wake you up from this is what you picture in your head when I say terrorist. And then remember that white people have been terrorising the world for a lot longer than the people who you probably imagine.
I struggle to understand why other white people refuse to realise they’re racist. You can be at every rally, supporting every cause, it doesn’t matter. We were raised to be inherently racist, and the sooner you face up to that the sooner you can actually work on solving the problems.
Prejudice is automatic in most of our upbringings, and if you’re living your life saying ‘oh but I’m not racist’, you’re never actually gonna get rid of those prejudices.
I struggle to understand why other white people refuse to realise they're racist. You can be at every rally, supporting every cause, it doesn't matter. We were raised to be inherently racist, and the sooner you face up to that the sooner you can actually work on solving the problems. Prejudice is automatic in most of our upbringings, and if you're living your life saying 'oh but I'm not racist', you're never actually gonna get rid of those prejudices.
apply for jobs you’re not qualified for! audit upper-level classes! get drunk with your TAs! see that poster advertising that lecture series? go there take notes and ask questions! thank the presenter for talking about this topic you love! if the class is full before you register, email the professor and ask if they can squeeze you in! RAISE YOUR HAND! tell the disability accomodation office to do their goddamn job! ask for help! file complaints! go to class in your pajamas and destroy the reading! you got this! you KNOW you got this! be arrogant enough to learn EVERYTHING! take your meds! punch a velociraptor in the dick! fear is useless and temporary! glory is forever! shed your skin and erupt angel wings! help out! spread your sun!
i had a really good morning! you deserve a really good morning! kill anyone who says you don’t and build a throne from their bones!
Why are people so surprised north korea was able to build a weapon of that range. That's literally their main point of funding. Maybe if the USA and Europe stopped underestimating other countries out of their own supremacist values, we wouldn't be in this position
“Quantum physicists discovered that physical atoms are made up of vortices of energy that are constantly spinning and vibrating; each atom is like a wobbly spinning top that radiates energy. Because each atom has its own specific energy signature (wobble), assemblies of atoms (molecules) collectively radiate their own identifying energy patterns. So every material structure in the universe, including you and me, radiates a unique energy signature. If it were theoretically possible to observe the composition of an actual atom with a microscope, what would we see? Imagine a swirling dust devil cutting across the desert’s floor. Now remove the sand and dirt from the funnel cloud. What you have left is an invisible, tornado-like vortex. A number of infinitesimally small, dust devil–like energy vortices called quarks and photons collectively make up the structure of the atom. From far away, the atom would likely appear as a blurry sphere. As its structure came nearer to focus, the atom would become less clear and less distinct. As the surface of the atom drew near, it would disappear. You would see nothing. In fact, as you focused through the entire structure of the atom, all you would observe is a physical void. The atom has no physical structure—the emperor has no clothes! Remember the atomic models you studied in school, the ones with marbles and ball bearings going around like the solar system? Let’s put that picture beside the “physical” structure of the atom discovered by quantum physicists. No, there has not been a printing mistake; atoms are made out of invisible energy not tangible matter! So in our world, material substance (matter) appears out of thin air. Kind of weird, when you think about it. Here you are holding this physical book in your hands. Yet if you were to focus on the book’s material substance with an atomic microscope, you would see that you are holding nothing. As it turns out, we undergraduate biology majors were right about one thing—the quantum universe is mind-bending. Let’s look more closely at the “now you see it, now you don’t” nature of quantum physics. Matter can simultaneously be defined as a solid (particle) and as an immaterial force field (wave). When scientists study the physical properties of atoms, such as mass and weight, they look and act like physical matter. However, when the same atoms are described in terms of voltage potentials and wavelengths, they exhibit the qualities and properties of energy (waves). (Hackermüller, et al, 2003; Chapman, et al, 1995; Pool 1995) The fact that energy and matter are one and the same is precisely what Einstein recognized when he concluded that E = mc2. Simply stated, this equation reveals that energy (E) = matter (m, mass) multiplied by the speed of light squared (c2). Einstein revealed that we do not live in a universe with discrete, physical objects separated by dead space. The Universe is one indivisible, dynamic whole in which energy and matter are so deeply entangled it is impossible to consider them as independent elements.” - Bruce H. Lipton, The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness
Chameleon colours ‘switched by crystals’:
Swiss researchers have discovered how chameleons accomplish their vivid colour changes: they rearrange the crystals inside specialised skin cells.
It was previously suggested that the reptiles’ famous ability came from gathering or dispersing coloured pigments inside different cells. But the new results put it down to a “selective mirror” made of crystals. They also reveal a second layer of the cells that reflect near-infrared light and might help the animals keep cool. Reptiles make colours in two ways: they have cells full of pigment for warm or dark colours, but brighter blues and whites come from light bouncing off physical elements like these crystals: so-called “structural colours”. These colours can also be mixed. A vibrant green might arise from a structural blue overlaid by yellow pigment.
In early 1971, Kay Brown, Dindga McCannon, and Faith Ringgold gathered a group of black women at McCannon’s Brooklyn home to discuss their common frustrations in trying to build their careers as artists. Excluded from the largely white downtown art world, as well as from the male-dominated black art world, the women found juggling their creative ambitions with their roles as mothers and working heads of households left little time to make and promote their art.
Out of this initial gathering came one of the first exhibitions of professional black women artists. “Where We At”—Black Women Artists, 1971, opened at Acts of Art Gallery in the West Village that June. Adopting the show’s title as their name, the collective began meeting at members’ homes and studios, building support systems for making their work, while assisting each other with personal matters such as childcare.
Influenced by the Black Arts Movement, members worked largely in figurative styles, emphasizing black subjects. While the group engaged politically with racism, their work also spoke to personal experiences of sexism, and members contributed to publications including the Feminist Art Journal and Heresies. Though the group’s mission was not explicitly feminist, Where We At recognized the power of collectivity—empowering black women by creating a network to help attain their professional goals as artists.
Keep reading
http://www.sciencemadesimple.co.uk/news-blogs/wendy-awarded-an-mbe
Science getting recognised, and I’m so happy. The second link is Wendy Sadler who is being awarded an MBE. She’s the founding director of science made simple, a Welsh program to help get kids involved and excited by science after they realised our education system tended to have the opposite effect. According to her colleagues, she’s not only an amazing scientist but incredibly dedicated to inspiring a new generation to follow their curiosities.
The only good thing I can see coming out of Brexit (if they actually deliver beyond a speech)
Anatomical Illustrations from Edo-Period, Japan.
Japan’s second human dissection, 1758 // First human female dissection, 1759
In 1758, a student of Tōyō Yamawaki’s named Kōan Kuriyama performed Japan’s second human dissection (see illustration on left). The following year, Kuriyama produced a written record of Japan’s first dissection of a human female (see illustration on right). In addition to providing Japan with its first real peek at the female anatomy, this dissection was the first in which the carving was performed by a doctor. In previous dissections, the cutting work was done by hired assistants due to taboos associated with handling human remains.
u know what … i changed my mind… all u scientists out there who worked ur butts off just to have your research purposefully ignored by the government… do your science thing and bring back the dinosaurs… catch them ignoring you when a velociraptor is our next president…. like ding dong what’s that? it’s science, it doesn’t care about your silly ignorant opinion… it’s back with a vengeance… and it’s hungry, bitch
Don’t despair, be there! facebook.com/events/379999075690608
Cernan was the commander of Apollo 17 in December 1972 – the last lunar mission and one of the final Apollo flights. When Cernan stepped out from lunar module “Challenger” he became the 11th person to walk on the moon. His lunar module pilot, Jack Schmitt, was the 12th. But as commander, Cernan was the last to re-enter the lunar module it give him the designation of being the last person to walk on the lunar surface.
His words would not become as famous as Neil Armstrong’s first sentence spoken from the moon, however, Cernan’s final goodbye to the moon was just as poetic. “America’s challenge of today has forged man’s destiny of tomorrow, and as we leave the Moon, we leave as we came and, God willing we shall return, with peace and hope for all mankind. Godspeed the crew of Apollo 17"
R.I.P Commander Cernan 1934 -2017 More here and here
Image of the Week - December 26, 2016
CIL:38938 - http://www.cellimagelibrary.org/images/38938
Description: Scanning electron micrograph of the inside of a cancer cell. This cell originates from a squamous cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer. The cell has been frozen and split open to reveal its nucleus.
Author: Anne Weston
Licensing: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 UK: England & Wales (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 UK)
![Different States Of Matter: [submission]](https://64.media.tumblr.com/0047b9a21a91265fce9bae54fb2e5fe6/tumblr_oisvocVZu91v2useeo1_400.gif)
![Different States Of Matter: [submission]](https://64.media.tumblr.com/f5e9ba2dc3162323e4c17d19895c69a6/tumblr_oisvocVZu91v2useeo2_500.gif)
![Different States Of Matter: [submission]](https://64.media.tumblr.com/a1cbaf94e9b0d210a5beb5328909d54b/tumblr_oisvocVZu91v2useeo3_500.gif)
![Different States Of Matter: [submission]](https://64.media.tumblr.com/f193a9a1ab556d027b2736af0b648ae7/tumblr_oisvocVZu91v2useeo4_500.gif)
It could also be the development of dermatillomania, a condition said to be characterised as a form of OCD. See these sites:
OCDLA
Skinpick
NHS
PSYCHOLOGY FACT #396
Biting the skin around your nails or pulling the top layer of skin off your lips are signs of developing anxiety disorders.
Read more psychology facts Here
The solar eclipse of December 22, 1870. Observed from Syracuse, Sicily, by Captain G. I. Tupman, R.M.A.
You can learn more about the surprisingly long history of the SR-71 over at Gizmodo.
Our irrefutable improvement in the last two hundred years. For data source, interactive graphics and details in the data processing see below:
Max Roser (2016) – ‘A history of global living conditions in 5 charts’. Published online at OurWorldInData.org.
High-res
Thanks so much for your questions. Do not forget the Syrian people. Or all the others that are oppressed. Stay engaged. Your voices matter. Your actions matter. Raise awareness. Raise funds. Raise your knowledge level. Beware of false prophets. Do what you can, when you can, with whatever you can. Stay woke. Be true. -Adnan Zulfiqar
Fusion to Air Special ‘The Naked Truth’ Report on Standing Rock Movement
Special Includes Interview with Actor and Activist Mark Ruffalo
‘The Naked Truth: Standing Rock’ Reported by FUSION’s Nelufar Hedayat Airs Tonight, December 22 @ 10PM
In a new special report ‘The Naked Truth: Standing Rock,’ FUSION takes an in-depth look at the Native American activists who have have been boldly standing up to a large energy company and the government to prevent the construction of an oil pipeline under the Missouri River. After months of protests, as the world watched, the self-described ‘water protectors’ accomplished a momentary victory when the Obama administration announced it will not allow the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) to move forward. Actor and activist Mark Ruffalo, one of the strongest supporters of the #NoDAPL movement, sits down with FUSION’s Nelufar Hedayat to discuss the challenge of transforming a momentary gain into a long-standing victory, considering the potential threats from the incoming Trump administration. “The Naked Truth: Standing Rock” will air Thursday, December 22 @ 10PM on FUSION (channel listings).
“Corporate and state power has come so close together that people are at a moment where they don’t feel like their voices are being heard. And so the last thing that’s left for us is to assemble, is to gather together and to protest – or protect,” Ruffalo said to Hedayat.
“People think that Bismarck moved the pipeline because they wanted to protect the white people. In fact what I would tell you is that that’s bullshit,” the Mayor of Bismarck Mike Seminary told FUSION. “The city of Bismarck never was involved in the process… ever. We didn’t have a role in it.”
“It’s my home. It’s my water. My home is right there - my house on the hill. My son is buried there. My father is buried there. Who would put a pipeline next to your son’s grave?,” Ladonna Brave Bull Allard told FUSION.