OK merry Christmas to all Christmas-celebrating readers. For those of us who are not celebrating, though, what are we supposed to do all day long with our children? It is a little cold outside for extensive outdoor play, although for some reason kids never get as cold as adults under the same conditions. Why is that, I wondered? It turns out that science can explain this too – kids generate more body heat naturally because they are so much more active than adults. However, th

Most wonderful time of the year....or most stressful time? It turns out that visiting family members over the holidays can be super stressful for large fractions of the population, and that this stress can result in excess drinking and drug overdoses, car accidents, violence, and lots of other nastiness that is definitely not in the holiday spirit. What does science think about this? Well, science recognizes the stress of family, and notes that the fact that family-related st

It’s MOTHER’S DAY this weekend, so for those people who have living mothers (or who are mothers), chances are, you will be busy doing something related to that day on Sunday. In honor of that, here are some facts you may not have known about this special day: 1. Mother’s Day was established as a national holiday in the United States in 1914. 2. More phone calls are made on Mother’s Day than on any other day of the year. 3. Mother’s Day has its origins in “Mothering Sunday,” a

Valentine’s Day is tomorrow, and in honor of that, let’s talk about favorite Valentine’s Day ideas. 1. Do nothing. For real, just remember, doing nothing is always an option. Remember also that the history of Valentine’s Day is kind of dark, with executions and middle ages and such (http://www.history.com/topics/valentines-day/history-of-valentines-day), so in some ways it’s kind of odd to be celebrating with flowers and romance and chocolate. 2. You can celebrate Galentine’s

One week away from Thanksgiving, so let’s talk about turkey. First, true confessions: I do not actually like eating turkey. I don’t like its taste, or the texture, or even the smell to be honest. STUFFING, on the other hand. Sweet potato pie. Cranberry sauce. Pumpkin everything. These are all the foods I can eat forever. But what about the turkey? Is it true that it makes you tired? More or less tired than other foods you might eat? Well, turkeys do contain the amino acid try

Three weeks into September, and we are now smack in the middle of the Jewish High Holiday season, which includes the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah; Wikipedia primer on the day is located HERE), the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur; see link HERE), and in October time, Sukkot and Simchat Torah (Wikipedia links HERE and HERE). One of my favorite Jewish New Year traditions is the eating of honey (yum!), which is meant to signify having a sweet new year, and is eaten with challah br