Archive | July 2013

1 year in…

Jul17

I remember the year when I had no results, the bad part about it was that i was receiving a weekly paycheck.

Evolution 101

Absolutely zero results. Absolutely zero results. These three words are often mutterings of a hysteric PhD student other symptoms including: PhD wrinkle onset, grey hair infiltration and insane caffeine levels in bloodstream. Their diagnosis: stress induced delirium. Their medication: a good ould glass of suck it up.

I think it’s quite usual for first year PhD students to become daunted by the transition from undergraduate to postgraduate level studies – I was no exception. The spoon feeding stops, the memorization of  facts ceases which allows one to explore unchartered scientific terrain. I found this fact exciting but undeniably frightening. For me, coming from a wet bench genetics undergrad to a computational dry bench PhD was difficult. The amount I had to learn was staggering – from evolutionary theory and graph theory to phylogenetics and programming langauges. More importantly I had to deal with feeling stupid EVERY day, something that an undergrad definitely doesn’t prepare you for…

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Health Benefits of Scented Candles for Aromatherapy

Jul10

Read about the health benefits of scented candles.

Kharma Creations

One of the numerous advantages you can get from making use of scented candles is Aromatherapy. In meaning, aromatherapy is actually a type of choice medicine that uses distinct types of botanical oils in treating or avoiding a sickness.

Aromatherapy is being broadly used to treatment some sicknesses such as rheumatoid arthritis, stomach upset, and menstrual cramps. Even migraine can be cured by inhaling perfumes from certain important oil. Probably the most frequent use of aromatherapy is to relieve the intellect and entire body of strain. In the processes, unhealthy toxins, developed by stress which can result in several illnesses, are introduced. Moreover, aromatherapy aids in a person’s relaxation, and it can even increase his or her stamina.

In most cases, necessary oils such as those taken out from fruit, rose, citrus, or eucalyptus, are utilized in aromatherapy. Some people inaccurately think that scented herbal oils are the ones that…

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Popped a Molly, I’m Sweating woo!

Jul4

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“Popped a molly, I’m sweating woo

Popped a molly , I’m sweating woo”

Lyrics from a well-known rapper Trinidad James.

Molly, short for molecule, is the pure form of MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine) a chemical found in ecstasy. Although molly seems to be the new girl on the block, she was actually patented by Merck pharmaceuticals in 1914 and did not make much noise until the 1980’s. In the 80’s MDMA was known as Adam, he was not a very popular boy because of the cocaine epidemic. Later in the 90’s MDMA in the pill form known as ecstasy became very popular at Raves and parties. Now lets fast forward to the present where Molly takes center stage, she is talk about in most rap songs and it seems so normal just to pop a molly.

Now you should be asking yourself why would Merck patent this highly addictive drug, initially the drug was given to patients in a psychotherapeutic setting to reduce fear and anxiety. But just like any happy drug the masses start to abuse it and the short-term effects can be detrimental. So what is this Molly all about?

MDMA floods the brain with neurotransmitters serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine giving an intense feeling of euphoria and diminishes anxiety. But once you come down from this high the psychological effects are also intense such as depression, confusion, paranoia and anxiety. The short-term physiological effects are tremors, muscle cramps,dry-mouth/thirst and a high dose can interfere body temperature resulting in a sharp increase in body temperature. A study was done recently and showed that the long-term use of Molly can cause Parkinson’s disease later in life.

So before you pop a molly and start sweating think about the risk and the long-term effects, anything that spikes your body temperature is a big no-no aka do not pass go aka the sign that says stay awake when driving back from atlantic city! Just don’t do it, and if you want to feel elated exercise or dance to your favorite song.

Stay safe during this holiday weekend!

Peace and Blessings