Welcome to Sott.net
Sat, 16 Oct 2021
The World for People who Think

Health & Wellness
Map

Gear

Animal Screams Manipulate Movie Audiences

Jennifer Viegas
Discovery News
Tue, 01 Jun 2010 12:07 UTC
Image
© Getty Images
A screaming macque.
One reason why The Exorcist and The Shining scared audiences so much is that both had a lot of animal screaming in the soundtracks.

From screaming meerkats to roaring lions, animal distress calls and other animal vocalizations are being included, or copied by instruments, in film soundtracks to influence human emotions on a primal level.

The musical manipulation works because humans and other vertebrates are predisposed to be emotionally affected by animal yells, human baby cries, and other noises that may sound harsh and are unpredictable, according to a new study published in the latest Royal Society Biology Letters.

As a result, snakes, lions, hippos, birds, whales, dolphins and even fish are now being recorded for film soundtracks, or are being emulated by musicians. In the future, more such sounds will likely be included in movie scores, which will probably do a better job at influencing audience emotions since the science behind the process is coming to light.
      Read More...
Magnify

Anxiety is a Killer Distraction on Our Roads


PhysOrg
Tue, 01 Jun 2010 06:00 UTC
Image
© Getty Images
Driving while stressed can be as distracting and dangerous as talking on your mobile phone, according to a study by Queensland University of Technology (QUT).

Ides Wong, from QUT's Centre for Accident Research & Road Safety - Queensland (CARRS-Q), studied 75 drivers aged 17 to 47 to investigate the negative impact anxiety had on driver performance.

"Being anxious makes drivers unable to fully focus their attention on the road, particularly in urban areas, where there are plenty of distractions and when time pressured," said Ms Wong, whose research was awarded the top RACQ Road Safety Prize.

She said urban environments also posed an increased threat because there were significantly more distractions, such as billboards and increased traffic levels, for drivers to deal with.
      Read More...
Magnify

Diet Drug Alli Linked to Severe Liver Damage

David Gutierrez
NaturalNews
Tue, 01 Jun 2010 00:00 UTC
Image
© GlaxoSmithKline
The FDA has started an investigation into whether the diet drug orlistat, marketed as both Alli and Xenical, has been causing serious liver damage in some patients.

Prescription-strength Xenical was approved by the FDA in 1999. Half-strength Alli was approved as the first (and to date, only) over-the-counter weight loss drug in 2007.

Since 1999, there have been 32 adverse event reports linking orlistat to severe liver damage. Twenty-seven patients have been hospitalized for liver problems, and six suffered from outright liver failure. Both of the cases involving Alli took place within the United States, while the other 30 cases, involving Xenical, all took place in other countries.

The FDA discussed its concerns with orlistat at an April meeting of the agency's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research Drug Safety Oversight Board, then eventually decided to further investigate the issue. It is also reviewing data on other potential cases of liver damage submitted by GlaxoSmithKline, which markets Alli, and Roche, which markets Xenical.
      Read More...
Magnify

Learn the importance of winning the candida battle

Paul Fassa
NaturalNews
Tue, 01 Jun 2010 00:00 UTC
What type of infection ranges from a female problem to a cause of cancer? Candida albicans is responsible for vaginal yeast infections and, according to Italian oncologist and author of Cancer is a Fungus, Dr. Tullio Simoncini, Candida is the breeding ground and source for all cancer.

Somewhere between these two extremes are a variety of miseries that Candida delivers. But anyone can handle most over grown yeast buildups once detected. Everyone has some of that fungus among us. But when the Candida albicans overwhelms the healthy bacteria or intestinal flora, this yeast takes over unabated.

Insufficient intestinal flora can be due to antibiotic use or poor digestion from an extended bad diet heavy in sugar and starch and lacking digestive enzymes.

Comment: See other articles on Candida:

Apple Cider Vinegar is Effective Treatment for Candida

Fight Candida and Yeast with Natural Olive Leaf Extract

Using Probiotics to Prevent or Eliminate Candida

Treat Candida with Garlic Supplements

High Carbohydrate Diets Named as a Cause for Candida

      Read More...
Bad Guys

U.S. Culture of Greed is Threat to World

David Gutierrez
NaturalNews
Tue, 01 Jun 2010 00:00 UTC
Image
© Reuters
The world is doomed to environmental catastrophe unless the threat posed by U.S. consumption culture is directly addressed, warns the Worldwatch Institute's annual report.

"Until we recognise that our environmental problems, from climate change to deforestation to species loss, are driven by unsustainable habits, we will not be able to solve the ecological crises that threaten to wash over civilization," said project director Erik Assadourian.

The report, produced by a team of 35 researchers, notes that the average U.S. resident consumes more than his or her weight in products every single day. The average family in a Western nation spends more money on its pet in one year than a human being in Bangladesh does on all his or her expenses.
      Read More...
Vader

They're trying to control the entire food chain: Monsanto claims it invented meat


GM Watch
Wed, 28 Apr 2010 20:17 UTC
Image
No Patents on Seeds, Press release, 27 April 2010

Multinational seed corporations are following a consequent strategy to gain control over basic resources for food production. As recent research shows not only genetically engineered plants, but more and more the conventional breeding of plants gets into the focus of patent monopolies: International patent applications in this sector are skyrocketing, having doubled since 2007 till end of 2009. Further on the multinationals expand their claims over the whole chain of food production from feed to animals and food products such as meat. In a pending patent application from Monsanto even bacon and steaks are claimed: Patent application WO2009097403 is claiming meat stemming from pigs being fed with the patented genetically engineered plants of Monsanto. A similar patent is applied for fish from aquaculture in March 2010 (WO201027788). Far reaching patents on food are even already granted: Monsanto received a European patent (EP 1356033) in 2009, which the chain of food production from seeds of genetically engineered plants up to food products such as meal and oil are covered.
      Read More...
Light Saber

US Court Rules in Favour of Free Speech on Health Claims


Alliance for Natural Health
Mon, 31 May 2010 12:36 UTC
Image

Will this precedent influence European policy on health claims for foods and food supplements?

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lost its bid to overturn a health claim for selenium-containing dietary supplements last Thursday in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. District Court Judge Ellen Huvelle ruled unconstitutional the FDA's censorship of selenium dietary supplement claims relating to the reduction of cancer risk. Jonathan Emord of Emord & Associates on behalf of the plaintiffs in the case (including lead plaintiff Alliance for Natural Health USA (ANH-USA); Durk Pearson and Sandy Shaw; and the Coalition to End FDA and FTC Censorship). The verdict, unless reversed on appeal, protects the First Amendment right of dietary supplement manufacturers to provide "qualified health claims", which accurately communicate the state of science concerning dietary supplements. This is a remarkable seventh victory over the FDA by the Emord firm (six of which invalidated FDA health claim censorship).
      Read More...
Health

Pollution Linked to High Blood Pressure

Ernest Gill
Earth Times
Sun, 30 May 2010 23:23 UTC
Hamburg - Big-city air pollution may contribute to higher blood pressure levels being observed among city residents, as compared to people who live in less polluted areas, according to a team of German researchers.

The researchers from the University of Duisburg-Essen studied more than 4,000 people and found long-term exposure to high-particulate air pollution appeared to increase blood pressure, even when other key factors were considered.

Dr Barbara Hoffmann, head of the environmental and clinical epidemiology unit at the university, and colleagues from several other sites analyzed the effects of air pollution exposure on blood pressure using data from the Heinz Nixdorf Recall Study.

That ongoing population-based cohort study, which involves 4,352 people, focuses on the development of heart disease.

The researchers assessed yearly average fine particulate pollution and coarse particulate pollution exposure using a dispersion and chemistry transport model and measured participants' blood pressure.

The average arterial blood pressure rose with exposure levels to fine particulate matter, which tends to come from traffic, heating, industry and power plants. Increases in blood pressure were greater in women than in men.
      Read More...
House

Domestic Detox: Extreme Home Cleaning

Penelope Green
New York Times
Wed, 26 May 2010 20:34 UTC
Image
When Matthew Waletzke appeared at the door of my East Village apartment to evaluate my home for what he calls "toxic exposure" - the alternative world's catch-all phrase for potential health hazards like mold, indoor air pollution, household chemicals and electromagnetic radiation (beware your Wi-Fi!) - I half-expected to see a guy in an "Andromeda Strain"-era hazmat suit.

Mr. Waletzke, however, was dressed casually enough, in a polo shirt and khakis. But the aluminum suitcase he carried was all business, filled with an impressive array of meters, probes and other devices that he proceeded to unpack onto my dining room table.

Mr. Waletzke is a "building biology" consultant, which means he has trained for a year with the Institute for Bau-Biologie & Ecology, a Florida-based, mostly online school that teaches its students to test water, air and building materials for a checklist of toxins and then prescribe a cure. (They will also vet the cleaning products under your sink and the lotions and cosmetics in your medicine chest.)
      Read More...
Attention

Roundup Kills More Than Weeds

Amanda Kimble-Evans
Motherearthnews.com
Sat, 29 May 2010 18:50 UTC
Image

A farmer mixes Roundup prior to application. Roundup is widely used in yards and gardens across North America, and U.S. farmers spray millions of acres of crops with it each year.
Alarming new research on the health hazards of Roundup weed killer is shining a harsh light on a regulatory process that was meant to protect us.

To protect our health, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets maximum legal residue levels for every pesticide, for dozens of crops. But a new study in the respected journal Toxicology has shown that, at low levels that are currently legal on our food, Roundup could cause DNA damage, endocrine disruption and cell death. The study, conducted by French researchers, shows glyphosate-based herbicides are toxic to human reproductive cells.

The potential real-life risks from this are infertility, low sperm count, and prostate or testicular cancer. But, "Symptoms could be so subtle, they would be easy to overlook," says Theo Colborn, president of The Endocrine Disruption Exchange. "Timing is of critical importance. If a pregnant woman were to be exposed early in gestation, it looks like these herbicides could have an effect during the sexual differentiation stage. They really lock in on testosterone." The bottom line is more research is needed before we can fully understand the effects of glyphosate exposure.
      Read More...
Amazon Smile
Revolt! T-shirts