- After a month of holiday-related gatherings and the
requisite amount of cookies, fudge and other treats being consumed, too many
people across the United States must now figure out how to shed those extra
pounds they added during the month of December. Thankfully, science is here to
help…or at least pretend to help. A newly published study by researchers at the University
of California, San Francisco have furthered the understanding of the so-called “food clock” that
determines how the human body responds to sudden changes in eating habits. The
project identified a particular molecule that resets an individual’s food clock
every time he or she changes their eating habits. Researchers named the newly
identified protein PKCy and believe it could prove key to new weight-loss
strategies. In their report, the researchers explain that when a person begins
eating to excess or eating at unusual times, the food clock, or “food-entrainable oscillator,” becomes
unsettled. That throws off a person’s metabolism and makes it much more
difficult to avoid overeating and weight gain. Lead researcher and UCSF
neurologist Dr. Louis Ptacek explained how he and his team were able to pinpoint
a mechanism by which a major change in schedule can affect how much an
individual eats and how those eating habits affect weight gain. He described
the effects of a “desynchronized
food clock,” saying that the network of biochemical processes known as the food
clock anticipates meal times and tells our bodies what to do with the nutrients
about to be ingested. According to the study’s findings, when PTCy binds with
another protein called BMAL, stabilizes BMAL, which then shifts the clock. Mice
were used for the study and researchers compared how mice that lacked the PTCy
protein reacted to being fed at night versus how normal mice reacted. Those
normal mice woke up to eat, while mice without PTCy slept through their
feedings). Based on what they learned, Ptacek and his team believe the greater understanding
the molecular action of PTCy could lead to new ways to control the food clock
and regulate metabolism regardless of external influences. Or people could eat
less junk and get off the couch for exercise on a daily basis………
- In a time when no pop album could truly be considered
risky, none other than Lady Gaga is trying to drum up hype for her new
album by claiming that it is "very risky.” Speaking in an online
conversation with her fans on her Little
Monsters social networking site, Gags said that her upcoming album
“ARTPOP” is risky because it was important to her to break boundaries with the
project. “My favorite things about 'Born This Way' album is that it was risky
and its own thing. 'ARTPOP' is very risky. If you're not taking a risk you're
not breaking any boundaries,” she explained. Part of the reason the creative
process took so long, she added, was due to her insistence on writing all her
own material and not accepting songs written by other people. "I feel so
bad. I know you all wanna kill me," she said. "But nobody writes my
songs for me. Every single song you've ever heard by me, I created from nothing
with friends. So it takes some time. New inspiration. New sounds. New
experiences.” The entire chat eventually morphed into one big love-in between
the singer and her rabid followers, although there was the interesting
revelation that “ARTPOP” was not a weed-fueled effort. "No weed on
'ARTPOP. No," she joked. "Weed in the bathtub though. Hahaha."
That
chat was part of a busy week in which Lady Gaga also announced she is currently
making a documentary-style movie with famed photographer Terry Richardson. That
came on the heels or her showing up on stage with The Rolling Stones during the band's final date of their 50-year
anniversary gigs at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J………
- Wise move, Venezuelan
opposition leaders. While your ailing dictator is in Cuba undergoing more
treatment for his recurring battle with cancer, slide in with a request to his government
to consider amnesty for 125 people in prison or exile. Dictator Hugo Chavez is recovering
from cancer surgery in Havana, but opposition lawmaker Edgar Zambrano announced that he submitted case files Friday on
80 people in exile and 45 others listed as "political prisoners" to
the office of Vice President Nicolas Maduro, Chavez’s hand-picked successor. Making
the request now is wise because a) a prompt response is unlikely with Chavez
laid up in Cuba, allowing the opposition to claim the government is dragging
its feet and b) if Chavez does respond, maybe his own adversity will soften his
stone heart a bit. The names on the list are people such as Pedro Carmona, a
business leader who temporarily took over the presidency during a failed coup
against Chavez in 2002 and later fled to Colombia, and Maria Lourdes Afiuni, a
judge under house arrest for freeing a banker from prison while he was awaiting
trial on charges of flouting currency exchange controls. Securing their freedom
will be difficult in large part because the government continues to deny that Venezuela
has political prisoners. Maduro announced Friday night that he was
traveling to Cuba to visit Chavez, so maybe the two of them will have a
thoughtful discussion about this very important issue. Venezuela’s
second-in-command made the announcement during the inauguration of a state
governor, adding that he and other government officials would fly to Cuba and
leave Energy Minister Hector Navarro in charge of government affairs in the
meantime. Chavez had remained out of public view since undergoing his fourth
cancer-related surgery Dec. 11 and there is growing speculation that he may not
be able to return in time for his scheduled Jan. 10 inauguration for the new
six-year term he “won” with rigged elections earlier this year………
- Bitter down, Donovan McNabb, bitter down. McNabb
was much-maligned during his time with the Philadelphia Eagles and was even
booed on draft day by the very fans for which he was going to play. He led the
team to five NFC championship games during his 11 years in an Eagles uniform,
but only reached the Super Bowl once and came up small in that one shot at the
big game. He was eventually released, gained a lot of weight and bounced around
the league before reluctantly ending his career when it became clear no one
wanted a 36-year-old, overweight quarterback. Wait…..what’s that? McNabb still
thinks he can play and is hoping another team will sign him? Well, for now he’s
an analyst for Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia and with the Eagles poised to cap
a truly forgettable season with a meaningless game this Sunday, McNabb was asked
what Andy Reid's legacy will be in the city assuming the team does the expected
and fires him after the season. The Eagles are 4-11 and after owner Jeffrey
Lurie announced prior to the season that Reid needed to do better than last
season’s 8-8 record or he would likely be terminated. "You look at
everything he's been able to accomplish, I think it outweighs what you've seen
the last two years," McNabb said before turning his attention to the fans
who so often maligned him as a player. "Making it to the NFC Championship
is not easy, and I think they're starting to see that right now, that getting
to the playoffs and going to the NFC Championship consistently, it's just not
that easy.” He ultimately arrived at his central point, namely that the he and
the coach shouldn't be judged unfavorably because they weren't able to win a
title. It’s good to know that at least McNabb doesn’t still have a colossal
chip on his shoulder…….
- Because everyone wants a cheap flight from Lebanon, N.H. to Boston or New York,
discount airline Cape Air is taking action. That taxing trip of 268 miles (or
121 miles to Boston) typically costs about $130 round-trip, but for the final
few days of 2012, fares will be a mere $12 each way from Lebanon Airport to
Manhattan or Boston. “Your trip to New York City is really neat. You can fly
from here to White Plains (in an) hour and a half. Included in the fare is
ground transportation to Manhattan, which takes about an hour. So, door-to-door
from where we are standing here to Midtown Manhattan, two and a half hours,”
said Rick Dyment, the Lebanon Airport manager. That’s right, ground transportation
from the airport into Manhattan is included in the offer. It’s a great deal and
not just because it allows people to get the hell out of Nowheresville, N.H. in
the middle of the winter. But why would any airline offer such a sweetheart
deal to travelers? Because it’s part of an effort to boost the number of
passengers flying out of the airport for the year to 10,000, that’s why. Of
course there’s an ulterior motive because no one in any business takes any
action unless it nets them more profits of valuable positive PR. By reaching
the 10,000-passenger mark for the year, the airport will be awarded an
additional $850,000 in funding from the FAA that can be used for airport
projects. “Runway repaving, tree-clearing, safe areas off the end of the runway
to make sure those are smooth to FAA-designed criteria, and projects like
that,” Dyment added. The airport and Cape Air are teaming up for the lower
fees, which are essentially free because the $12 covers fees and taxes. Airport
officials say they are just a few dozen passengers away from hitting the FAA's
threshold and to meet demand for the über-cheap flights, Cape Air has
temporarily added several additional daily flights to New York and Boston………
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