/oss/taxonomy/term/2173/all en /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-did-you-know-general-science/lactose-free-milk <p>Ice cream, milk, cheese, yogurt, cream, butter and all other dairy products haunt the dreams of people with lactose intolerance. Over 68% of the world’s population has some degree of lactose malabsorption which is the inability to properly digest lactose, the sugar found in dairy products. Until the introduction of lactose-free milk, these unfortunate souls had to take Lactaid pills just to be able to indulge in some of their favourite treats.</p> Fri, 03 Jan 2025 02:08:44 +0000 Angelina Lapalme 10218 at /oss /oss/article/history-did-you-know/bubbling-new-year <p>So, you celebrated the new year with a glass of the bubbly. But was it the right kind of glass? A little background first. Champagne is produced mainly from black grapes in the Champagne region of France. From the moment the Pinot noir grapes are pressed in the vineyard, where almost fanatical care is taken to ensure that not even a trace of black skin ends up in the white juice, to the moment the cork pops, champagne receives more care and attention than any other wine in the world.</p> Tue, 31 Dec 2024 20:54:39 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10216 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-did-you-know/why-do-fruitcakes-last-so-long <hr /> <p><em>This article was first published in <a href="https://skepticalinquirer.org/exclusive/are-all-snowflakes-really-unique-is-nutmeg-a-hallucinogen-why-do-fruitcakes-seem-immortal-and-other-festive-science-questions/#:~:text=Why%20Do%20Fruitcakes%20Last%20So%20Long%3F">The Skeptical Inquirer.</a></em></p> <hr /> <p>It comes down to the high sugar content of fruitcake and the not insignificant amount of booze included in many recipes.</p> Fri, 27 Dec 2024 18:52:33 +0000 Ada McVean M.Sc. 10215 at /oss /oss/article/history-did-you-know/santa-and-his-high-flying-reindeer <p>Let’s talk about flying reindeer. And to start, let’s travel to the snow covered fields of Lapland and Siberia, where the legend of Santa Claus may have originated. Hundreds of years ago the inhabitants of these barren lands tried to domesticate reindeer. But herding these animals was not a simple task, at least not until the herders found a most unusual ally in the form of a little red and white mushroom. Reindeer, it seems, just loved <i>Amanita muscaria</i>, or Fly Agaric, as it is better known.</p> Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:07:20 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10212 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-history-did-you-know/peanut-butters-history-goes-back-incas <hr /> <p><em>This article was first published in <a href="https://www.montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/article561786.html">The Montreal Gazette.</a></em></p> <hr /> <p>Slap a tariff on peanuts!</p> <p>That was the decision arrived at by the U.S. Congress in 1921 after hearing testimony about how American peanut farmers were being undercut by imported peanuts from China. The witness was George Washington Carver, who also expounded on all the uses to which peanuts could be put.</p> Fri, 20 Dec 2024 21:04:02 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10209 at /oss /oss/article/critical-thinking-environment-did-you-know/good-old-dihydrogen-monoxide <p>You have probably heard about people who have actually signed a petition to ban dihydrogen monoxide. The petition states that this chemical is found in cancerous tissue, accelerates corrosion, can cause suffocation, can result in blistering burns in its gaseous form, contributes to global warming, and for those who have developed a dependency on it, complete withdrawal means almost certain death. Usually, the aim of circulating this petition is to demonstrate scientific illiteracy by drawing attention to people not recognizing that dihydrogen monoxide is just the chemical term for water.</p> Wed, 18 Dec 2024 17:50:36 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10205 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know-general-science/smelly-truth-about-fragrances <hr /> <p><em>This article was first published in <a href="https://www.montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/article561182.html">The Montreal Gazette.</a></em></p> <hr /> <p>Can a “fragrance-free” product have a smell? Absolutely. Can an “unscented” product contain any ingredients that have a smell? Yes. It’s all a matter of semantics, although there are no universally recognized definitions here.</p> Fri, 13 Dec 2024 19:38:53 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10198 at /oss /oss/article/history-did-you-know-general-science/it-all-comes-out-wash <p>Unless you are in the habit of reading the ingredients list on your laundry detergent, you are not likely to be familiar with sodium carbonate. Yet this industrial chemical of great importance has a fascinating history. So important that in 1775 the French Academy of Sciences offered a prize to anyone who could develop an efficient process for producing this substance, commonly known as “soda.” </p> Wed, 11 Dec 2024 22:11:46 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10195 at /oss /oss/article/health-and-nutrition-contributors-did-you-know/story-sushi <p>What is more romantic than an evening of sushi for two? Although this traditional Japanese dish has only become popular in the West relatively recently, the history of this culinary art with its unique zests and colourful presentation dates back to around 700 AD. It all started with a way to preserve fish! Raw, cleaned and salted fish was placed on a layer of hand-pressed rice that was allowed to ferment, meaning that naturally occurring microbes in the rice proceeded to convert some of the carbohydrates in the rice into lactic acid, an effective preservative.</p> Fri, 06 Dec 2024 05:51:01 +0000 Melody Ko MD 10190 at /oss /oss/article/medical-history-did-you-know/murder-most-foul <p>One of my favorite detective stories is Agatha Christie's "The Crooked House." The plot revolves around an elderly tycoon who requires daily insulin shots. He also suffers from glaucoma for which he has been prescribed eyedrops. Everything is fine until someone in the "Crooked House" switches the eyedrops with the insulin. Murder most foul!</p> Thu, 05 Dec 2024 18:25:23 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10189 at /oss /oss/article/student-contributors-did-you-know-general-science/turns-out-you-cant-let-cold <p>I’m sure you have been told or have even been the one to tell someone to “close the door” because they were “letting the cold in”. While efforts to keep the house warm are noble, the advice is not supported by science. Cold cannot be let in because it doesn’t exist! Well, sort of.</p> Fri, 29 Nov 2024 15:20:43 +0000 Angelina Lapalme 10182 at /oss /oss/article/medical-health-and-nutrition-did-you-know/acne-and-diet-ambiguous-association <p>You have probably heard that drinking milk and eating chocolate causes acne or, at the very least, that they make it worse. Diet is often blamed for a teenager’s pimply skin, but is there good evidence behind this accusation?</p> Fri, 22 Nov 2024 22:14:36 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 10174 at /oss /oss/article/medical-history-did-you-know/bite-science-venoms <p>You are likely aware of the large number of drugs that have been developed from chemicals found in plants, including aspirin from willow bark, atropine from deadly nightshade, and both morphine and codeine from the opium poppy. Indeed, more than a hundred-twenty, or over one-quarter of all drugs that currently exist, are derived from plants, although many of these have been chemically modified from their original form so as to improve potency and/or reduce unwanted side effects.</p> Fri, 22 Nov 2024 16:02:03 +0000 Patricia Brubaker, Ph.D., F.R.S.C. 10173 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know-general-science/acrylic-fingernails-harbour-interesting-chemistry <p>I was queried via email “if there are chemicals in acrylic fingernails.” I imagine the question was really about the safety of the ingredients because for many the term chemical has become synonymous with toxic substance. Well, yes there are chemicals in acrylic fingernails, just like in everything except in a vacuum. As far as safety goes, it is possible to have an adverse reaction to some of the ingredients but that is not common. What there is for sure in acrylic fingernails is a lot of interesting chemistry.</p> Wed, 20 Nov 2024 21:17:57 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10169 at /oss /oss/article/medical-history-did-you-know/sometimes-luck-serves-springboard-science-0 <hr /> <p><em>This article was first published in <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/columnists/the-right-chemistry-sometimes-luck-serves-as-a-springboard-for-science">The Montreal Gazette.</a></em></p> <hr /> <p>It is a lifesaver, stocked in every emergency room! N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is amazingly effective as an antidote to acetaminophen poisoning.</p> Fri, 15 Nov 2024 22:57:27 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 10165 at /oss