Category Archives: Science And Society

What Happened To All The Hurricanes?

Al?

The crazy 2004 and 2005 seasons were supposed to be the new normal. Pretend scientists like Al Gore said global warming was here, and we had better listen to him because he had all the answers. People pay Al Gore $200,000 to speak, but that doesn’t mean he knows anything.

I hope this is another bubble. We’d be better off paying him that much not to speak.

Worse Than You Thought

There’s long been a known correlation between heart disease and belly fat. This may be the reason why:

Scientists are reporting new evidence that the fat tissue in those spare tires and lower belly pooches — far from being a dormant storage depot for surplus calories — is an active organ that sends chemical signals to other parts of the body, perhaps increasing the risk of heart attacks, cancer, and other diseases. They are reporting discovery of 20 new hormones and other substances not previously known to be secreted into the blood by human fat cells and verification that fat secretes dozens of hormones and other chemical messengers.

Does this imply that we should be removing it via liposuction as preventive medicine, and not just cosmetic surgery? Having too much weight is apparently self reinforcing, not just because it makes it harder to exercise (and increases damage to joints in the hips and knees), but perhaps also because of the hormonal effects. Have there been any studies to see whether lipo patients’ health improved afterward, as well as their looks, or do they just put it back on?