It’s been a rainy week in New York City, and my office next to our front porch and my container garden has me thinking about that ubiquitous wetness. It’s been soaking my plants, and after a quick errand on Friday afternoon, its dampness lurked for hours on the hem of my jeans. It’s easy to…
Over the last several months I’ve gotten press releases just about every week about Vitamin D, usually talking about studies that show health problems connected to Vitamin D deficiencies. A lot of this discussion about “the optimal dose” of Vitamin D is still under debate, though. The main problem is that it is possible to get too much.…
I had so much fun with the Official May Blogathon Guest Post Day last Thursday that Webb of Science is doing another Guest Post Day today. This week I’m hosting Jennifer L.W. Fink of Blogging ‘Bout Boys. One of the treats of this month long blogaganza has been making new friends and reading their work.…
The molecule of the week is actually a collection of 209 different possible versions of this molecule that have multiple chlorine atoms connected in different combinations along the hexagonal segments of the structure– like charms on a bracelet. Though these chemicals are highly heat resistant (used as flame retardants in electronics manufacturing until the late…
You have it, I have it. Many viruses are based on it. It’s RNA, which stands for ribonucleic acid. It’s DNA’s chemical cousin with just a few slight differences. While DNA serves as life’s genetic blueprint. RNA is more of a multitasker. DNA stores information in a kind of vault, and the cell makes RNA-based…
Okay, so I’m officially geeking out with a new idea for a regular blog feature. But here it is, Molecule of the Week! What you see before you is a ball and stick model of oseltamivir, the drug Tamiflu, your friendly neighborhood antiviral drug for influenza, including H1N1. How does this bad boy work? Flu…