Are electric scooters the next mega-extinction event on Earth?
I suppose you have seen the latest techno-phenomenon, namely electric scooters (“Electric scooters are invading. Bird’s CEO leads the charge“). Now you can go to work on them by just getting their app and unlocking the contraption. They are supposed to be leading to reductions in traffic and maybe they even are. When I go to China I […]
Does mindfulness hurt business performance?
Mindfulness is hot. Google is a big proponent of mindfulness training, so that gives it the ultimate good management seal of approval? Nothing to question, right? You know I’ve got to respectfully disagree. So what if a couple of respected researchers have evidence that mindfulness training reduces motivation? Check this out: “Hey Boss, You Don’t Want Your […]
Can AIs suffer from mental health issues?
So the movie “2001 – A Space Odyssey” has just been re-released. I saw it when it was first released and I didn’t understand it even then. No doubt I will be none the wiser this time around. But one thing still sticks in my mind; HAL, the mission computer had a bad case of mental […]
What if exercise and brain training don’t help Alzheimer’s?
I recently read an obituary of someone the town in which I live. He had died from complications of Alzheimer’s at the age of 73. What had caught my attention and stimulated my curiosity was that he had been a runner. I’m a runner too so I read the lengthy obituary just out of curiosity […]
Are viruses the biological equivalent of dark matter?
Did you get the flu? I was so lucky, I got it twice! So lots of stuff about influenza in the news. Other than that, how could you ever get excited about it? Influenza is a virus. Everyone knows that too. Nothing exciting there either, right? But what if there were many more of the […]
Exercisers are the new 1%
So many articles about how good exercise is for you that it’s become positively nauseating. Even a confirmed curmudgeon like me can’t find anything wrong with it. Yet the CDC says that only 20% of adults actually meet their do-good exercise guidelines (both aerobic and muscle-strengthening activity). That means that 80% of Americans don’t do enough (sorry […]
We urgently need a Manhattan Project for Alzheimer’s!
Here’s some really bad news. Pfizer has just terminated its work in developing a drug to cure Alzheimer’s. Obviously Pfizer has thrown in the towel. Here’s some more grim news: Axovant has just announced that’s its Alzheimer’s drug just failed its trials. There have been a long series of failures in this area (“The List of Failed […]
Alcohol causes cancer – and the news gets even worse
A true shock! Alcohol causes cancer. No, it’s not a fake news story. It’s been validated by respected cancer researchers internationally as well as UK government committees. It causes cancer in at least 7 sites – oropharynx, larynx, esophagus, liver, colon, rectum and breast. And it’s likely that it also causes cancer of the skin, prostate […]
Are smartphones an even bigger aging and health threat than obesity?
We’re so worked up about obesity (rightly so, though) that we forget about all the many other things that are out to get you. Count amongst these your trusty computer and your indispensable smartphone. The big problem is that we are either hunched over our computers at work or over our smartphones everywhere else. I’m […]
Wagbits Revolutionizes How Pets Feel About Their BMI!
Obesity is old news these days. But what about our pets? It’s now become the topic du jour. naturally they’re getting fatter, just like we humans. The scientists are getting in the act, coz pet obesity (hereafter PO) is now big business, and of course we need to work out its genetics. Now the race is on […]