Health

Could An Ingredient In Spicy Foods Make Your Beer Belly Disappear?

There’s evidence that adding more spiciness in your diet can help curb your appetite. Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston are taking that idea to a whole different level—one that requires anesthesia. They’ve found that surgically manipulating the vagus nerve by applying capsaicin, the active component inside a chili pepper responsible for its…

Health Leslie Horn May 9

Portable Bidet Takes Plastic Water Bottles To New Depths

Not every bathroom in the world is civilized enough to have a bidet. And so you never have to find yourself in a position where you’re reaching for toilet paper, the Hygienna Solo turns any plastic water bottle into a handheld portable bidet. How—um—practical? It sounds a little gross, and quite frankly, it kind of…

Health Andrew Liszewski May 9

Medical predictions for the 21st century from 1955 were equal parts inspiring and gut-busting

It’s fun to reflect on the past’s starry-eyed visions of the future. We all know this. But reviewing retro-futuristic predictions in the field of medicine is always especially entertaining. https://gizmodo.com/what-is-retro-futurism-5908064 Many predictions for the future from the 1900s are positive, but few are as hopeful and confident as those pertaining to medicine. Many are quick…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez May 9

Everything you need to know about crapping at the opera before 1830

In case you were wondering how people evacuated their bowels at the London theater in the 19th century, Dr. Michael Burden of the University of Oxford has you covered with his new paper, “Pots, privies and WCs; crapping at the opera in London before 1830.” In this edifying study of sanitation in a more fragrant…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar May 9

One in Six Cancers Are Caused By Treatable Infections

Cancer is a scourge on our society and, while scientists continue to work on treatments, many people view it as an inevitable truth. New research, however, suggests that as many as one in six cases of cancer are a result of infections—which are either preventable or treatable. A report to be published in Lancet Oncology…

Health Jamie Condliffe May 8

Alert: It Is Utterly Unsafe To Fly If You’re Fat

Listen here, America: Stop double-fisting those Quarter Pounders and go for a run. Otherwise, you might never get to do some amazing things—like taking an elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, or riding a gondola down the canals of Venice, or really going anywhere at all. Because flying is far more…

Health Leslie Horn May 8

This Intensive Care Art Installation Thinks It’s Alive

While many artworks might require you sell an organ to afford them, at least with this one you could survive: The Immortal is an installation made up of life-support machines, designed to makes us contemplate our dependence on medical technology. Put together by Revital Cohen, The Immortal features a Heart-Lung Machine, Dialysis Machine, an Infant…

Health Jamie Condliffe May 8

This is the rock-climbing wall of the future

Many sport climbers have entertained the idea of building a climbing wall in their own homes — but few of them ever actually pull it off. Building your own climbing wall can be time-consuming, and it generally requires some basic woodworking experience, not to mention tools. Plus, where are you going to put it? Set…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez May 4

Get off your email! You might live longer.

Want to lower your stress level and stay focused at work? Maybe you should give email a rest. In an “urban office setting”, UC Irvine and U.S. Army researchers monitored worker heart rates and how often workers switched windows. Workers that checked their emails hit a state of “high alert” more often — and stayed…

io9 DrRubidium May 4

Have we learned how to use taxes to keep people from getting drunk?

The British Government is about to push through a law that requires a minimum price of 40p per unit of alcohol to try and stop binge drinking — but one expert argues that taxing sin has done little to curb it in the past. Top image: Ewan M. on Flickr. Cambridge University’s Dr Philip Withington…

io9 Tim Barribeau May 4

Silk scaffolding could help rebuild your bones

We’ve already learned recently that spider silk could help your computers stay cool — but now it looks like it could help you heal from broken bones as well. Newly published research explores the idea of using silk proteins as a nanoscaffold, to help bones knit and repair. They created a biodegradable silk scaffold that…

io9 Tim Barribeau May 4

Emotion Is Reversed in the Brains of Left Handers

Psychologists have always assumed that the way emotions are organized in the brain is the same for all of us. But now, a new study suggests that left-handers process emotion in the opposite side of the brain to right-handers—which could change the way we think about and treat mental disorders. The research, carried out at…

Health Jamie Condliffe May 3

Could garlic extract prevent food poisoning?

Diallyl sulfide is what gives garlic its characteristic smell and flavor, and is a latter day miracle compound, linked to everything from stopping colon cancer to blocking mold. Now you can add another use to that list. It’s been discovered to be an incredibly effective way to fight Campylobacter, the bacteria that cause a huge…

io9 Tim Barribeau May 2

The Most Mathematically Perfect Playlist for Running (Updated)

Last week you learned about the best headphones for running, and now you’re going to hear what you ought to pump through them. This isn’t just about taste. The right music can improve your form, optimize your heart rate, and lower your risk of injury. Listen up. Welcome to Fitmodo, Gizmodo’s gym for your brain…

Health Brent Rose May 2

New study could put anti-aging pill back on the shelf

New research coming out of the National Institutes of Health and the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research is contradicting a 2010 claim by the National Institutes for Aging that resveratrol does not extend lifespan. The NIA research had dashed hopes for the development of an anti-aging pill, but it now appears that resveratrol — a…

io9 George Dvorsky May 2

Midnight pee-breaks ruining your sleep? Your genes could be at fault.

When it’s two in the morning, there’s nothing in the world more frustrating than being awakened by the urge to pee. Now, for the first time ever, researchers have shown that urination patterns are regulated by circadian rhythms (the molecular clock that controls your sleep/wake cycle, among other things.) Plus a specific protein that controls…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez May 1

Too Little Sleep Activates Genes That Make You Fat

People that sleep a lot are fat and lazy, right? Nope: toss that old idea out right now, because a new study suggests that sleeping for less than seven hours promotes genetic influences associated with weight gain. We’ve known for a while that there are genetic influences that can contribute to obesity; things like glucose…

Health Jamie Condliffe May 1

New Blood Test Could Predict Breast Cancer Years in Advance

A new blood test which identifies a genetic change that doubles the risk of breast cancer could allow doctors to identify women at high risk of the disease years before they develop a tumor. The research, which is published in Cancer Research, analyzed blood samples from 1,380 women of various ages, 640 of whom went…

Health Jamie Condliffe May 1

Facebook Makes Organ Donation Social

This morning, Facebook announced that it’s making organ donation social. From today, you’ll be able to declare that you’re an organ donor on your timeline—something that Zuckerberg hopes will drive more people to sign up to donate. The Facebook initiative will provide links with every Timeline post which will enable friends and family to sign…

Health Jamie Condliffe May 1

Oxford Doctors Can Prevent Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder With… Tetris?

In recent years, the military’s top brass have funded some truly bizarre approaches – from neck injections to Reiki – in an effort to treat symptoms of post-traumatic stress afflicting today’s soldiers. Turns out, they could’ve just equipped troops with Game Boys. At least according to one research team out of Oxford University, who claim…

Health Katie Drummond - Wired May 1

Could An Ingredient In Spicy Foods Make Your Beer Belly Disappear?

Portable Bidet Takes Plastic Water Bottles To New Depths

Medical predictions for the 21st century from 1955 were equal parts inspiring and gut-busting

Everything you need to know about crapping at the opera before 1830

One in Six Cancers Are Caused By Treatable Infections

Alert: It Is Utterly Unsafe To Fly If You’re Fat

This Intensive Care Art Installation Thinks It’s Alive

This is the rock-climbing wall of the future

Get off your email! You might live longer.

Have we learned how to use taxes to keep people from getting drunk?

Silk scaffolding could help rebuild your bones

Emotion Is Reversed in the Brains of Left Handers

Could garlic extract prevent food poisoning?

The Most Mathematically Perfect Playlist for Running (Updated)

New study could put anti-aging pill back on the shelf

Midnight pee-breaks ruining your sleep? Your genes could be at fault.

Too Little Sleep Activates Genes That Make You Fat

New Blood Test Could Predict Breast Cancer Years in Advance

Facebook Makes Organ Donation Social

Oxford Doctors Can Prevent Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder With… Tetris?

Popular Musician Loses Life Savings Through Malicious Crypto Wallet in Apple’s App Store

Peter Capaldi’s Biggest ‘Doctor Who’ Regret Was That He Couldn’t Be a Little Bit Miserable

Some Good News About the Upcoming Atlantic Hurricane Season

Scientists Discover Potential Path to Treating Down Syndrome

Astronomers Just Nailed Down the Universe’s Expansion Rate… and Now They Have More Questions

This BLUETTI Power Station Drops 51%, All-in-One Solution for Camping, Road Trips, Outages, and Home Backup for Less

Of Course That ‘Leaked’ 2026 ‘Winds of Winter’ Release Date Is Fake

On ‘Maul: Shadow Lord’, Not Everyone’s Willing to Learn a Lesson

Anker’s EufyMake E1 Finally Brings Printers Out of the Dark Ages

This Loud-Ass Party Speaker Almost Got Me High AF

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: Start Considering Snapdragon on PC, for Real

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

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