Month: September 2020

Art, Curiositys, History, Media&CultureLeave a comment

These Are The 10 Most Sublime Landscape Paintings of All Time

Fernando Kaskais

Sublime landscape paintings are one of art history’s most enduring and iconic subjects, from the dreamy spires of the Renaissance to swirling 19th Romanticism and the experimentation of contemporary times. ByRosie Lesso Sublime landscape paintings are one of art history’s most theatrical and emotive subjects, combining beauty, drama, and devastation in equal measure. The term ‘sublime’ was defined by the philosopher Edmund Burke’s A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful in 1757 as beauty laced with something extra, a certain danger, fear or horror, or what he called: “whatever is in any sort terrible or is … Continue reading These Are The 10 Most Sublime Landscape Paintings of All Time

Brain, Health, Psychology, ScienceLeave a comment

3 Things to Do If You Want a Brain That’s 10 Years Younger

Fernando Kaskais

A neuroscientist opens up about his struggles to turn back the clock on his brain after years of abuse. BY JESSICA STILLMAN You know your age, but do you know your brain age? By examining physical changes in the brain that are associated with advancing age, scientists can assign a number that captures how well your brain functions. A healthy, active 65-year-old might have a brain that looks 40 years old. The brain of a 40-year-old who is struggling with mental or physical challenges might appear to be 65.  And it isn’t just possible to figure out your brain age. It’s also possible to turn … Continue reading 3 Things to Do If You Want a Brain That’s 10 Years Younger

Brain, Curiositys, Media&Culture, PsychologyLeave a comment

Subtle Ways Your Language Shapes the Way You Think

Fernando Kaskais

How language influences the person you become. by David Ludden Ph.D. You spend almost all of your waking hours—and even some of your non-waking hours—using language. Even when you’re not talking with other people, you’re still running a monologue in your head much of the time. And you also frequently use language when you dream. Given the degree to which you use language not only for communicating with others but also for thinking to yourself, it comes as no surprise that the language you speak shapes the kind of person you are. In the first half of the twentieth century, … Continue reading Subtle Ways Your Language Shapes the Way You Think

Big Pharma, Freak U.S.A, Health, Money, Politics, ScienceLeave a comment

THE TERRIFYING TRUTH ABOUT YOUNG PEOPLE AND COLON CANCER

Fernando Kaskais

by Lauren Vinopal  Chadwick Boseman’s death shed light on the spiking rates of early onset colon cancer. But the reality remains that our healthcare system is not set up to catch these cases when they’re actually curable Only three days after Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman died of stage IV colon cancer, Nathan, a 37-year-old UPS worker from Long Island, was diagnosed with the same disease. Looking back, he had symptoms leading up to the diagnosis, but he attributed them to a combination of Crohn’s disease — which he’s had for 20 years — and a bad case of food poisoning at the … Continue reading THE TERRIFYING TRUTH ABOUT YOUNG PEOPLE AND COLON CANCER

Living, Media&Culture, Philosophy, PsychologyLeave a comment

On tact in dark times

Fernando Kaskais

Far from a social luxury, tact becomes imperative when life is cheapened. We exercise it to show gentle respect for another Corina Stan is associate professor of English and comparative literature and co-director of the Representing Migration Humanities Lab at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. She is the author of The Art of Distances (2018).  Edited by Marina Benjamin ‘As far as the education of children is concerned,’ wrote Natalia Ginzburg in 1960, ‘I think they should be taught not the little virtues but the great ones.’ Not thrift, caution, shrewdness or a desire for success, but generosity, courage, frankness and a … Continue reading On tact in dark times

Art, Curiositys, Media&Culture, Philosophy, PsychologyLeave a comment

How an Artist is Like a Tree: Paul Klee on Creativity

Fernando Kaskais

“Nobody would affirm that the tree grows its crown in the image of its root. Between above and below can be no mirrored reflection.” BY MARIA POPOVA Since we first came down from the trees, we have been looking at them and seeing ourselves, seeing lush metaphors for our own deepest existential concerns — metaphors for the secret to lasting love, metaphors for what it means to live with authenticity, metaphors for finding infinity in our solitude. Trees have been of especial enchantment and self-clarification to artists. “The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a … Continue reading How an Artist is Like a Tree: Paul Klee on Creativity

Brain, Health, Living, ScienceLeave a comment

The neural regulation of cancer

Fernando Kaskais

by Humsa S. Venkatesh Cancer has been called the “emperor of all maladies” (1). An estimated 40% of us will be diagnosed with it at some point in our lives (2). We have all witnessed the irreverent brutality of this disease that seems to know no bounds. Like weeds in a garden, cancers emerge suddenly and proliferate aggressively by co-opting vital systems necessary for survival. Although current treatment approaches have targeted the vascular and immune systems as well as cell-intrinsic growth mechanisms, the nervous system’s role in cancer growth has been largely underrecognized. My research aims to combine principles of … Continue reading The neural regulation of cancer

Big Food, Curiositys, Manipulation, Media&CultureLeave a comment

FIVE LIES YOU’VE BEEN TOLD ABOUT WINE

Fernando Kaskais

Should you drink it like James Bond? Is Taco Bell wine ridiculous? Let’s find out the truth. by Mike Rampton The world is full of lies, and it’s hard to get through life without taking a few on board. Luckily, we’re here to sort the fact from the fiction, and find the plankton of truth in the ocean of bullshit. This week: Wine! Can you buy the cheap stuff? And just what time is wine o’clock? Let’s uncork a vintage bottle of truth as we explore wine myths and reality! LIE #1: KNOWING ABOUT WINE IS REALLY SOPHISTICATED, YOU KNOW, … Continue reading FIVE LIES YOU’VE BEEN TOLD ABOUT WINE

Curiositys, Health, Science, Sex1 Comment

What Is Oral Sex?

Fernando Kaskais

By Elizabeth Boskey, PhD  Oral sex refers to a range of sexual activities where people use their mouth and tongue to stimulate a partner’s genitals. Oral sex can be fun for people of any sexual orientation and gender identity. Many people enjoy both giving and receiving different types of oral sex. Some people like one but not the other. Still others prefer that oral sex not be on the sexual menu at all. As with all sexual activities, it’s important to make certain you have your partner’s consent before engaging in oral sex. Types of Oral Sex The types of oral … Continue reading What Is Oral Sex?

Big Food, Eco, Health, Media&Culture, ScienceLeave a comment

Junk Food Is Bad For Plants, Too

Fernando Kaskais

How a steady diet of fertilizers has turned crops into couch potatoes. BY ANNE BIKLÉ & DAVID R. MONTGOMERY Most of us are familiar with the much-maligned Western diet and its mainstay of processed food products found in the middle aisles of the grocery store. Some of us beeline for the salty chips and others for the sugar-packed cereals. But we are not the only ones eating junk food. An awful lot of crops grown in the developed world eat a botanical version of this diet—main courses of conventional fertilizers with pesticide sides. It’s undeniable that crops raised on fertilizers … Continue reading Junk Food Is Bad For Plants, Too