#209 How do statins work?
I learned this today. Statins work by blocking a substance that our bodies need to make cholesterol. What is cholesterol? Cholesterol is a waxy, whitish-yellow fatty substance that our bodies…
I learned this today. Statins work by blocking a substance that our bodies need to make cholesterol. What is cholesterol? Cholesterol is a waxy, whitish-yellow fatty substance that our bodies…
I learned this today. Cows combine nutrients from their blood, sugar, fat, and water in their udders to produce milk. All mammals, except for monotremes (like the duck billed platypus)…
I learned this today. The gambler’s fallacy is the belief that a random event is more or less likely to happen based on the outcome of a previous event. For…
I learned this today. Different things have different tastes because the taste buds in our mouths can react to different chemicals in different ways. There are basically five tastes. Those…
I learned this today. The first postage stamp was issued by the post office in Britain on May 1st, 1840. Like most inventions, the postage stamp was invented to solve…
I learned this today. A nuclear electromagnetic pulse is a burst of electromagnetic radiation produced by a nuclear explosion. The electric and magnetic fields it produces can damage electronics. A…
I learned this today. A pacemaker works by using electrical stimulation to make the heart muscles contract and the heart pump blood. A pacemaker is used to alter the rhythm…
I learned this today. Sumerian cuneiform was the world’s first proper writing system. It started in about 3300 BC. The name “cuneiform” comes from the Latin cuneus, which means wedge-shaped.…
I learned this today. Fish that live in saltwater have evolved to draw in large amounts of water through osmosis to replace the water that they lose because of the…
I learned this today. Plants are green because they absorb light in the wavelengths that are red and blue, while reflecting light in the wavelength that is green. Plants create…