Not only do our armpits create odors, it turns out they can also detect odors. In fact, skin cells throughout our bodies have chemical receptors much like some of those in our noses. These receptors detect certain chemicals, triggering healing, defense, and other responses. This is yet another amazing way that our bodies interact with... Continue Reading →
Practice Unhygiene
A note from Poppa: I currently have 31 tabs open in my Google Chrome browser, and another few in Safari. A plurality of these are articles from Science Magazine - when I come across something interesting, or when I'm doing research, I'll keep the tab open until I can incorporate it into a post or otherwise... Continue Reading →
Passenger Pigeons: Why Extinction Matters
I had a dream last night that I was keeping dodo birds the way one might keep chickens. They had been resurrected, phoenix-style, through DNA lab work. I was excited to tell my stepmom - this would be a great bird to add to her life list. In the category of birds that have run afoul of man's... Continue Reading →
You Are an Ecosystem
You are not yourself today. In fact, you are not yourself any day. Neither am I. We are collectives of trillions of selves, and most of these selves are not our selves: of the 130 trillion or so cells that make up our bodies, about 30 trillion are human and the other 100 trillion are bacteria,... Continue Reading →
Five Ways to Improve the World Cup
Back in the heady summer of 2002, I spent many late nights and early mornings chasing World Cup soccer games around Boulder County - the Cup was in South Korea and Japan that year. I found games at beerless bars and at various friends' houses. I joined a gaggle of bleary-eyed soccer fans at a bar in south Boulder... Continue Reading →
How Not to Drive: The Top 15 Dick Driving Moves
Americans drive an average of over 9000 miles a year per capita, or 25 miles per day.* I used to be closer to the national average when I had a painting company - some of the guys that worked with me even called me Sir Drivesalot. These days, because most of my work and projects are... Continue Reading →
How to Lose Weight in One Simple Step
If you'll recall from the timeless post How to Be Happy, one of the steps to achieve happiness is to Be Healthy. As it happens, Poppa's been working on just that (with occasional lapses*). One of the primary barometers of health is girth, of which most of us in the U.S. could stand to lose a little. We... Continue Reading →
How to Be Happy
When I was about 12, I excitedly told my brother and grandfather, Gramps, that I had figured out what the purpose of life was: to have fun! Gramps said that was fine, but added the caveat that one also has to avoid hurting others while having all this fun. In high school, I changed "fun"... Continue Reading →
Poppa's Cottage 