Lise's Ramblings

Belly buttons are far more than lint traps. According to scientists , we collect tons of bacteria there too. In fact, the bacterial combination you find in your belly button may be as unique to you as your fingerprint. No need to be grossed out. Most bacteria is good for us. Besides, think how much fun you had collecting all that bacteria, especially if most of it is stockpiled drool, trapped there from zerbert-fests (slobbery raspberries on bare bellies). As children, we heard that unscrewing belly buttons led to dire consequences; bums would fall off. Instead of horrifying us, that statement made us giggle. Yes, i nnies and outies alike fascinate us. Gazing at, swabbing and playing with our own navels isn't always enough either. Some people even encourage extra attention by adorning belly buttons with piercings, bling and tattoos. Having an umbilical scar that can identify us, entertain and so much more... ...

When it comes to vaccines, have you ever whined about a bruised arm, long lines at a clinic, a tiny blood speck on your shirt sleeve, or inconvenient opening hours at your doctor's office? I know I'm guilty, but I encourage you to stop for a minute to ponder how fortunate we are to live during a time when vaccines exist. Or for that matter, in a country where vaccines are available to us, in many cases, even covered under health care plans.  As adults, we tend to think about vaccines when we face potential harm. Step on a rusty nail and you wonder, "When was my last tetanus shot?" You're taking a trip and realize you should get to a travel clinic early for a Hepatitis A/B needle. Or, fall arrives, bringing seasonal influenza along for the ride.   And what a ride! The flu pulled a hit-and-run on my hubby this week. It's sobering to see what the flu can do to someone who eats well, is fit and has more get-up-and-go than the En...

Last night, NASA had a lot riding on the Curiosity Mars Rover landing. That made it surprising and refreshing to see humour in the mission’s official tweets.  Too small? Click for bigger version. Kudos, NASA. After Curiosity's nearly 570-million-kilometre, 36-week journey hurtling towards the Red Planet, the rover needed to land safely in the Gale crater and beam data from Mars back to Earth via the Odyssey satellite. That’s exactly what happened at 1:32 a.m. EDT today (Monday, August 6, 2012). Amazingly, just seven minutes before touchdown, Curiosity was traveling 17 times faster than the speed of sound (for perspective, that's approx. 21,000 km/h). This mission required ingenuity, dedication and collaboration on the part of the engineers, scientists, project teams and management. Lots could have gone wrong between the research, the design and build phases, last November's launch and today's landing. Advance to the 4:40 mark of this embedded video to ...