/oss/taxonomy/term/1882/all en /oss/article/medical-critical-thinking-you-asked/debunking-detox-your-colon-doesnt-need-cleaning <hr /> <p><em>This article was first published in</em> <a href="https://skepticalinquirer.org/exclusive/the-fact-and-fiction-of-physiological-phenomena-volume-i/"><em>The Skeptical Inquirer.</em></a></p> Fri, 01 Sep 2023 18:40:28 +0000 Ada McVean M.Sci 9617 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-did-you-know/why-poop-brown <p>A certain amount of the muddy colour can be attributed to the different colours of food we eat. Like mixing all the paint colours together, the result is a dull brown. But, much bigger factors for humans' brown poop are bilirubin and bile. Bilirubin is a yellow substance found in the liver, the product of the breakdown of old red blood cells. Bile is dark brown or green and is produced by the liver to help digest fats. Both of these substances are secreted into the small intestine during digestion, and slowly make their way into poop, bringing with them a dark brown hue.</p> Tue, 23 Aug 2022 19:00:00 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 9207 at /oss /oss/article/general-science/unbearable-poopness-bookstores <p>Imagine you have been walking the aisles of your favourite bookstore for an hour, letting your gaze gaily hop from one spine to the next. You smell the ink and the paper. You hear the dulcet tones of a piano over the PA system.</p> <p>And then it hits you, like a cannonball dropping in your lower abdomen.</p> <p>The acute, undeniable urge to evacuate your bowels.</p> <p>As you make a run for the nearest public washroom, you think to yourself, “Not again!”</p> Sat, 22 Jan 2022 09:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 9000 at /oss /oss/article/covid-19-history-general-science/bat-poop-accused-crimes <p>COVID has not been kind to bats. They have been accused of harbouring the SARS-CoV-2 virus and transferring it to people via an animal vector. But this is not the first time that these flying mammals have hit the headlines. Back in 1993, newspaper readers were stunned by this one: “Holy Blam, Batman! Bat Dung Brews Methane; Park Building Explodes!”</p> Fri, 09 Jul 2021 18:32:34 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8781 at /oss /oss/article/general-science/bats-stand-accused <p>No, the original cause of COVID-19 was not someone eating bats in China. That is a myth. But bats are not off the hook because there is a chance that the SARS CoV-2 virus did originate in bat poop from where it migrated to an animal, likely the pangolin, from where it jumped to humans. Interestingly, this is not the first time that bat droppings have been accused of crimes against humanity.<br /> <br /></p> Wed, 30 Sep 2020 20:40:14 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8431 at /oss /oss/article/health-nutrition/why-does-coffee-make-you-poop <p>If you're anything like me, you can't start your day without a cup of coffee. However, if you're anything like me, about 20 minutes after that first cup has been drained, you can be found sitting on a porcelain throne, taking your first poop of the day.</p> Fri, 26 Jun 2020 18:00:07 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 8314 at /oss /oss/article/health-nutrition-videos/right-chemistry-benefits-high-fibre-diet <p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-1"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" id="media-youtube-e7e7ix1el-g" width="640" height="390" title="Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the benefits of a high-fibre diet" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/E7e7ix1EL_g?wmode=opaque&controls=&enablejsapi=1&modestbranding=1&playerapiid=media-youtube-e7e7ix1el-g&origin=https%3A//www.mcgill.ca&rel=0" name="Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the benefits of a high-fibre diet" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the benefits of a high-fibre diet</iframe> </div> </p> Fri, 01 Feb 2019 15:25:30 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7567 at /oss /oss/article/videos/right-chemistry-science-managing-sewage <p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-2"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" id="media-youtube-x7gnqv8yolc" width="640" height="390" title="Dr. Joe Schwarcz: The science of managing sewage" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/X7gNqv8yOLc?wmode=opaque&controls=&enablejsapi=1&modestbranding=1&playerapiid=media-youtube-x7gnqv8yolc&origin=https%3A//www.mcgill.ca&rel=0" name="Dr. Joe Schwarcz: The science of managing sewage" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz: The science of managing sewage</iframe> </div> </p> Mon, 18 Jun 2018 15:10:45 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7140 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know-technology/spaceships-recycle-everything-except-astronauts-poop <p><span>Astronauts inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide, just like you and me. On Earth, where exhaled air warmed by our bodies naturally rises away from us, the possibility of inhaling too much carbon dioxide isn’t usually a worry. But for astronauts, </span><a href="https://m.esa.int/Our_Activities/Human_Spaceflight/Astronauts/Daily_life">it’s a major one</a>. Without the ventilator fans installed in shuttles and stations, carbon dioxide would accumulate around an astronaut.</p> Wed, 30 May 2018 19:37:31 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 7121 at /oss /oss/article/health-nutrition-history-quackery/enigmatic-dr-kellogg <p>It must have been quite a scene.  The little man, no more than five foot four, dressed completely in white, center stage, playing pitch and catch with a chimp.  But there was no ball in sight.  Dr. John Harvey Kellogg was tossing pieces of steak at the monkey who threw them right back.  Then the good doctor repeated the comic event, using a banana.  This time his co-star didn’t return the toss.  To the applause of the throng who had filled the great hall at the Sanitarium in Battle Creek, Michigan, the chimp happily ate the banana.</p> Wed, 13 Jun 2018 15:00:01 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7133 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know/rabbits-eat-their-own-poop <p><span>Rabbits are foraging herbivores, eating mostly grass and weeds. But this fibrous, cellulose rich diet isn’t the easiest to digest, and by the time their dinner has make it through their intestines it still contains many of the nutrients the bunnies need. </span></p> Fri, 30 Mar 2018 21:49:27 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 6982 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know/wombats-poop-squares <p>Wombats are <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wombat#Characteristics">surprisingly aggressive</a> and territorial given how adorable they look. They will fight to defend their burrows and offspring, a feat especially important considering they reproduce only <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/c/common-wombat/">once every 15 months</a>.</p> Tue, 06 Feb 2018 17:02:00 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 6915 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know/why-do-we-poop-more-our-periods <p>The menstrual cycle of humans is complicated. It consists of a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luteal_phase" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">luteal</a><span> and </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Follicular_phase" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">follicular</a><span> phase, follows a roughly 21-day cycle, and has many effects beyond the shedding of the uterine lining.</span></p> Tue, 28 Nov 2017 16:04:24 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 6834 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know/dung-theory <p>Perhaps you may remember the scene in Jurassic Park III where the dung-covered main characters attempt to retrieve a satellite phone from a gigantic heap of dinosaur dung. It seems the dung saved these characters’ lives! Once the Ceratosaurus sniffed the smelly dung-covered humans, it simply walked away.  Is there any real science here? Interestingly enough, there may be an evolutionary connection between dung and the fight or flight response. There’s a theory that in times of danger, the fight or flight response physiologically causes urination and diarrhea.</p> Sun, 21 May 2017 18:05:37 +0000 OSS 2465 at /oss /oss/article/food-health-news-you-asked/you-asked-it-true-coffee-beans-are-being-fed-animals-sumatra-another-country-removed-their-deposits <p>Kopi Luwak, or Civet Coffee is made from coffee beans that have been put through a special machine-a living machine, called the Javan civet cat. The luak is a species of civet cat found only on the island of Java in Indonesia. Like all civet cats it possesseses anal scent glands which secrete a fluid with a characteristic odor. In a concentrated form it smells terrible but when diluted it has a pleasant musky odor and can be used in perfume manufacture. The luak apparently loves coffee. But it is very particular in its taste. It only eats the choicest beans.</p> Sun, 11 May 2014 00:34:10 +0000 Joe Schwarcz 2142 at /oss