Dec 15, 2014
Eggnog is a holiday treat, but it contains — surprise! — eggs. So how come it’s okay for us to drink it? Here are a few questions and answers about eggnog and food safety.
Dec 5, 2014
The USDA says a fruitcake will last two to three months in the refrigerator without spoiling. But how long will it really last? We asked a scientist.
Sep 23, 2014
Anything that touches your food can be a source of contamination and foodborne illness – including cutting boards. Learn what you can do to limit the risk of foodborne illness.
Jun 4, 2014
Ah, summer. People are outside enjoying the warm weather, swimming, playing, or just soaking up that glorious, skin-damaging, high-energy UV radiation from the sun. We know that prolonged sun exposure damages skin – the sun is a nuclear reactor, after all. But how does our body respond to and repair this damage at the DNA…
May 21, 2014
Baking soda has only one ingredient: sodium bicarbonate. Sodium bicarbonate is a base that reacts when it comes into contact with acids, like buttermilk, yogurt or vinegar. This reaction produces carbon dioxide (CO2) in the form of bubbles (think of the grade school experiments involving fake volcanoes, vinegar and baking soda). When making baked goods,…
Aug 21, 2013
I have a friend whose young son gets incredibly excited when he can see the moon during the day. After several excited shouts of “day moon!” the youngster asks his mom why he can sometimes see the moon when the sun is up, and not just at night. Good question. Objects in the sky appear…
Jun 19, 2013
Last weekend, my daughter asked me how bees made honey, and I realized that I didn’t know the answer. How do bees make honey? I did some homework, and can now explain it to her – and to you. Different honey bees have different jobs. Some of these bees are “forager” bees, which collect nectar…
Jun 17, 2013
This is the fourth post in a series called “Cretaceous Cold Cases” in which the science of taphonomy, or prehistoric forensics, is explained by fascinating cases from the files of Terry “Bucky” Gates, a research scientist with a joint appointment at NC State and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. The graveyard shift in Madagascar…
Jun 3, 2013
Are four-leaf clovers becoming more common? That was the question put to me by a reader recently. Apparently her kids are finding four-leaf clovers on a daily basis as they walk home from school. What gives? While it is possible that her children are simply amazing four-leaf clover finders, it’s more likely that the “four-leaf…
May 16, 2013
This is the third post in a series called “Cretaceous Cold Cases” in which the science of taphonomy, or prehistoric forensics, is explained by fascinating cases from the files of Terry “Bucky” Gates, a research scientist with a joint appointment at NC State and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. One brisk fall day in…
May 1, 2013
This is part one of the second post in a series called “Cretaceous Cold Cases” in which the science of taphonomy, or prehistoric forensics, is explained using fascinating cases from the files of Terry “Bucky” Gates, a research scientist with a joint appointment at NC State and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. Part 2…
Apr 16, 2013
This is the first post in a series called “Cretaceous Cold Cases” in which the science of taphonomy, or prehistoric forensics, is explained and exemplified by fascinating cases from the files of Terry “Bucky” Gates, a research scientist with a joint appointment at NC State and the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. Summer, 2001. It…
Apr 11, 2013
Editor’s Note: You may hear about fatality rates or percentages when media report on new and dangerous flu strains, and often times the reports are conflicting. In this post, Barrett Slenning, an epidemiologist at NC State, explains how these fatality rates are calculated, and why the numbers may fluctuate. A previous post on H7N9 flu can…
Apr 10, 2013
The new strain of avian flu – known as H7N9 – has only been on scientists’ radar for a couple of weeks, but that’s been long enough to raise some questions. NC State epidemiology expert Barrett Slenning, who spends a lot of time looking at the ways in which pathogens transfer from animals to people, was…
Jan 28, 2013
An Abstract reader recently sent me this question: “Why doesn’t plastic dry in the dishwasher? Or why doesn’t it dry as quickly/easily as glass? This drives me totally nuts.” Good question! That phenomenon drives me nuts too. The answer appears to have a lot to do with the amount of energy (in the form of…
