/oss/taxonomy/term/496/all en /oss/article/critical-thinking-history/ancient-memory-technique-still-puzzles-scientists <p>Spend enough time watching fictional geniuses on television and you will undoubtedly see the trope of the mind palace. Brainiacs, we are told, have mind palaces, ornate libraries that live solely in the mind, cataloguing their exceptional knowledge.</p> Fri, 12 Jan 2024 11:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 9795 at /oss /oss/article/health-videos/right-chemistry-dangers-nicotine <p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-1"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" id="media-youtube-pfv8rvba9jy" width="640" height="390" title="Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the dangers of nicotine" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/PFV8rVba9JY?wmode=opaque&controls=&enablejsapi=1&modestbranding=1&playerapiid=media-youtube-pfv8rvba9jy&origin=https%3A//www.mcgill.ca&rel=0" name="Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the dangers of nicotine" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz on the dangers of nicotine</iframe> </div> </p> Mon, 29 Jul 2019 15:15:27 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7841 at /oss /oss/article/controversial-science-environment-health-news-toxicity/vitriolic-attacks <p>In the Sherlock Holmes story, The Case of the Illustrious Client, a former paramour seeks revenge on the dastardly Baron Adelbert Gruner by splashing the Baron’s face with sulphuric acid, which at the time was commonly known as vitriol.  The effect was accurately described by Conan Doyle, which is not surprising, given that the author of the Sherlock Holmes stories was a physician: “The vitriol was eating into it everywhere and dripping from the ears and the chin. One eye was already white and glazed. The other was red and inflamed.</p> Tue, 09 Sep 2014 01:21:14 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2194 at /oss /oss/article/history/sherlock-holmes-and-curare <p>In the film “Sherlock Holmes and the Game of Shadows,” Holmes identifies the poison on a dart that had instantly paralyzed a victim by sniffing it. “Curare!” he says. Curare is a very real poison but identifying it by smell is pure fiction. In the form of an extract made from the root or stem of a certain species of climbing vine, known today as Chondodendron tomentosum, it was used by native South Americans to tip their arrows long before the Europeans arrived. There were stories about how the lethal brews were secretly mixed.</p> Sat, 24 Mar 2012 22:13:46 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1670 at /oss