I was happy to read that the Mediterranean diet, newly repurposed as the MIND diet, is said to help prevent dementia. To no one’s surprise, it emphasizes fresh fruit and veggies, whole grains, olive oil, fish, etc.
I can’t help wondering, though, why no one is touting the MINDLESS diet, which has been proven to help prevent depression.
This classic meal plan, first discovered during those critical, formative teenage years, is equally helpful in attaining mindless hedonism in adulthood. Its key components are:
1 bag of chips per day
1 pint of ice cream twice weekly (do not substitute ice milk or frozen yogurt); extra benefit from additions such as chocolate chips, fudge, and salted caramel
2 cocktails per evening
1 bottle of wine per dinner (serves 2)
French fries (actually, fried anything)
Include plenty of fresh bread, cookies, pies, cakes and pastries
Level up to vegetable stir fry or tempura – so much more festive than raw or steamed veggies
Remember the 3 P’s: Pasta, Potatoes, Pizza
At least monthly: savor an ample cheese board with brie, goat cheese, Stilton, cheddar (may substitute grilled cheese on buttered bread as desired)
Dessert twice daily, preferably with whipped cream
SINGAPORE — Move over carrots, grapes may also benefit your eyes as well, according to new research.
Researchers, supported by the California Table Grape Commission, say eating just a few handfuls of grapes daily for four months appears to enhance significant indicators of eye health. The reason? Eye degeneration is attributed to oxidative stress, and grapes are rich in antioxidants.
Researchers from the National University of Singapore conducted a study involving 34 adults. Participants were divided into two groups: one consuming one and a half cups of grapes daily, while the other ate a placebo over a span of 16 weeks.
The group that consumed grapes exhibited a notable increase in macular pigment optical density (MPOD), plasma antioxidant capacity, and total phenolic content, compared to the placebo group. Conversely, those who did not consume grapes witnessed a significant rise in damaging ocular advanced glycation end products (AGE) in their skin.
The study highlights that oxidative stress and elevated levels of AGE are primary risk factors for eye diseases. AGEs, in particular, can harm the retina’s vascular components, compromise cellular functions, and amplify oxidative stress.
Being a natural reservoir of antioxidants and polyphenols, grapes can curtail oxidative stress and obstruct the formation of AGEs. This could lead to potential benefits on the retina, such as an uplift in MPOD.
“Our study is the first to show that grape consumption beneficially impacts eye health in humans which is very exciting, especially with a growing aging population. Grapes are an easy, accessible fruit that studies have shown can have a beneficial impact in normal amounts of just 1 ½ cups per day,” says Dr. Jung Eun Kim, the study’s co-author, in a media release.
Q (me): So, what I want to know is, how many glasses of wine is that?!
A (Internet): Alas, there is no straightforward answer. It depends on everything from varietal to winemaking technique. This answer isn’t as satisfying as we’d like, however, so we’ll go with a safe average of about 80 grapes in a glass of wine and 400 grapes in each bottle.
I don’t normally address politics in this blog but this is too important to ignore. The writer addresses some uncomfortable truths we all need to understand. I’ve highlighted some key points.
Hamas’ charter needs to be taken seriously, it calls for the obliteration of Israel and its replacement with an Islamic state and the obliteration of Jews.
By DAVID BREAKSTONE The destruction caused by Hamas Militants in Kibbutz Be’eri, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, October 11, 2023. (photo credit: OREN BEN HAKOON/FLASH90)
I just checked. For anyone harboring any doubts, the horror of 9/11 was perpetrated by terrorists. Every American newspaper and news station reported it that way. Curious, then, that so many of the world’s most respectable news outlets, including CNN and The New York Times, are now reporting that the barbarism recently visited upon Israel was perpetrated by militants.
Militants: those intensely devoted to a cause, promoting their beliefs with the full power of their convictions, but not generally violent. I may not be totally objective, but that doesn’t sound to me a particularly fitting description of those who indiscriminately butcher babies, rape women, slaughter young festival goers, murder children in front of their parents and parents in front of their children, pile handcuffed civilians upon one another and burn them alive, and ruthlessly abduct infants and the infirm along with everyone in-between.
The savagery and the numbers are staggering. The more than 1300 dead, 3600 wounded, and 199 hostages are proportionally far greater than the casualties of the heinous attack on the Twin Towers. Ten deaths for every million Americans back then; 140 for every million Israelis today. Why, then, the refusal to call out Hamas for being the heinous terrorist organization it is? Antisemitism is too easy an answer. There may be an element of that in the equation, but it is far from a sufficient explanation.
The reason may be better attributed to the inconceivably lingering perception of Hamas as a humanitarian organization, concerned with the welfare of the Palestinian people, which is how it presented itself to the world when it came to power in Gaza in 2007. That, along with the persistent perception that it is Israel and its policies that are the root cause of the sadistic violence that has now erupted with unprecedented depravity. As casualties in Gaza continue to mount and as the humanitarian crisis there continues to deepen, demands that Israel explain itself are going to become increasingly strident. That might not be fair, but it’s already happening.The destruction caused by Hamas Militants in Kibbutz Be’eri, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, October 14, 2023. (credit: Omer Fichman/Flash90)
SOME QUESTIONS and answers, then, for those prepared to take on our detractors:
1. Isn’t Israel’s occupation of the West Bank the real reason for the Hamas invasion of Israel – and doesn’t the cycle of violence that Israel and Hamas have been caught up in for years suggest that one side is as much to blame as the other?
While Hamas indeed declares its aim is to end the “occupation,” the occupation it seeks to end is that of the entire State of Israel. Israel’s 1998 offer to withdraw from 96% of the West Bank as part of a comprehensive peace plan was summarily rejected by the Palestinians. Its 2005 unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, rather than being welcomed as a harbinger of peace, has been met with a 17-year barrage of tens of thousands of rockets targeting civilians.
Hamas’ charter needs to be taken seriously. It asserts that “Palestine is an Islamic Waqf, land consecrated for Muslim generations until Judgement Day” and calls for the obliteration of Israel and its replacement with an Islamic state extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea (Article 11), an objective fueled by vitriolic hatred of the Jew. “The Day of Judgment will not come about until Muslims fight the Jews, when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones and trees will say, ‘O Muslim, O servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him’” (Article 7), precisely the harrowing script played out on October 7.
Israel’s genuine desire for peace was signaled by its unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in 2005 and its ongoing efforts at rapprochement, which have been steadfastly rebuffed by Hamas who has remained true to its unequivocal declaration: “There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through armed struggle [and that] so-called peaceful solutions… are in contradiction to the principles of Hamas” (Article 13), decrying any attempt by Arab countries to enter into a peace agreement with Israel as a betrayal of Islam (Article 32).
In contrast, Israel has consistently advocated for a two-state solution to end the conflict. There is no case to be made for moral equivalency in judging the two sides joined in battle. Regardless, there is no justification for the war crimes committed by Hamas, deliberately targeting Israel’s civilian population while using its own as a human shield to deter Israeli retaliation.
2. Doesn’t Israel’s stranglehold on Gaza leave Hamas with no choice but to resort to violence?
After its 2005 withdrawal, Israel signed an Agreement on Movement and Access with the Palestinian Authority. It would have granted the Palestinians control over their own borders, allowed for imports and exports, and the construction of a seaport. Then came the 2006 elections in Gaza which brought Hamas to power after a bloody struggle that decimated the Palestinian Authority and rendered the accord obsolete. Nevertheless, Israel has continually facilitated the import of humanitarian aid and the supply of electricity and water. This continued even as Hamas channeled the massive amounts of building supplies and billions of dollars it received for construction of hospitals and schools into the construction of tunnels and the procurement of weapons for attacks against Israel’s civilian population rather than serving the needs of its own.
Still, right up until Hamas launched its brutal attack, Israel was allowing 18,000 Gazans daily to cross its border for work.
3. Even if Israel has a legitimate right to retaliate against the massacre of its citizens, doesn’t the death toll of Palestinians relative to the number of Israeli casualties indicate a disproportionate response on its part?
The death of every innocent Palestinian is a tragedy, and Israel, abiding by the rules of war, has been doing its utmost to avoid that. The problem is, that while Israel uses its weapons to defend its people, Hamas is using its people to defend its weapons. It not only launches rockets from schools, hospitals, and mosques, but endeavors to prevent civilians from evacuating areas Israel has expressly warned them to leave.
What does proportionality mean?
As to proportionality, what would that mean? Killing the same number of civilians in Gaza as Hamas slaughtered in Israel? That would be tit-for-tat, revenge, retribution. Israel has no interest in that. It wants only to render Hamas incapable of inflicting any further casualties on its citizenry. Ever. Its resolve in this regard is ironclad. Hamas will have to decide how many of its own civilians it is prepared to sacrifice in its attempt to save itself. In the meantime, Israel is doing what it can to mitigate the suffering of Gaza’s civilian population, having established a corridor for the safe passage between Gaza and Egypt of civilians and the humanitarian aid they require. These are all things the world needs to know. Words matter.
The Hamas Charter matters. Hamas’s actions matter even more. Its members are terrorists, not militants, and the victims of the October 7 massacre, and the entire enlightened world Hamas threatens, deserves to hear the story told as it is.
The writer is currently engaged in establishing the Navon Center for a Shared Society. He previously served as deputy chair of the Jewish Agency and World Zionist Organization and was the founding director of the Herzl Museum and Educational Center. breakstonedavid@gmail.com
5,000-year-old wine jars in the tomb of Queen Meret-Neith in Abydos during the excavation. The jars are in their original context and some of them are still sealed. (Credit: EC Köhler
Cheers! 5,000-year-old wine collection discovered in tomb of ancient Egypt’s first female pharaoh
ABYDOS, Egypt — This gives a whole new meaning to “aging like fine wine.” Archaeologists from Germany and Austria have discovered a treasure trove of wine in the tomb of Egypt’s first female pharaoh.
The team, led by Christiana Köhler from the University of Vienna, was conducting an excavation of Queen Meret-Neith’s tomb when they found hundreds of large wine jars. Remarkably, some of these jars were in pristine condition, even preserving remnants of 5,000-year-old wine within them. Inscriptions discovered within the tomb further indicate Queen Meret-Neith’s significant influence, revealing her control over pivotal government sectors, including the treasury.
The tomb complex of Queen Meret-Neith in Abydos during excavation. The Queen’s burial chamber lies in the centre of the complex and is surrounded by the secondary tombs of the courtiers and servants. (Credit: EC Köhler)
Meret-Neith, a key figure around 3,000 BC, stands out not only as the most influential woman of her time but also as the sole woman to have her own monumental tomb in Egypt’s first royal cemetery at Abydos. The team’s new findings have reignited discussions about her unique place in history, as her true identity remains shrouded in mystery. It also hints at the possibility of Meret-Neith being the first female pharaoh of ancient Egypt.
Excavations in the tomb complex of Queen Meret-Neith in Abydos. (Credit: EC Köhler)
The expansive tomb complex of Meret-Neith in the Abydos desert is not limited to her burial chamber. It also encompasses the tombs of 41 courtiers and servants. Made primarily from unbaked mud bricks, clay, and wood, the intricate structure showcases multiple construction phases spanning a relatively extended period. Such evidence challenges earlier beliefs of human sacrifices accompanying royal burials during the 1st Dynasty – a concept frequently assumed but never definitively proven.
These excellently preserved grape seeds were found in the sealed wine jars in the tomb of Queen Meret-Neith in Abydos. (Credit: EC Köhler)
Köhler’s team is the result of a collaboration among multiple institutions, including the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the German Archaeological Institute in Cairo, the University of Vienna, the Vienna University of Technology in Austria, and Lund University in Sweden. Their work has been made possible through the support of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) and the German Research Foundation (DFG).
This weekend I enjoyed watching the movie Jules starring Ben Kingsley, Jane Curtin and Harriet Sansom Harris. So when I saw the following article I had to share it. (Apologies for wonky formatting issues.)
Do you find the idea of “aliens” alarming, comforting, or just good fun??
NASA can’t rule out ‘potential unknown alien technology’ in Earth’s atmosphere
But it says it prefers to call them UAPs – ‘unidentified anomalous phenomena’
NASA cannot rule out that ‘potential unknown alien technology’ is operating in the Earth’s atmosphere, a new report has concluded.
The study of flying saucers, UFOs, and claims alien spaceships are visiting the earth has long been the preserve of mavericks and the unhinged.
But yesterday, NASA said it wanted to dispel the ‘negative perception’ surrounding Unidentified Flying Objects and make it a scientifically respectable field of study.
As part of the effort to put the study of UFOs onto a more scientific footing, it said it preferred to call them UAPs – ‘unidentified anomalous phenomena’.
A NASA panel, comprising 16 experts in scientific fields and ranging from physics to astrobiology have compiled a report into UAPs which it called ‘one of our planet’s greatest mysteries.’
(Pictured: NASA Administrator Bill Nelsonspeaking recently.)
Above, a weather balloon careens through the air following its release from the Cape Canaveral weather station in Florida. NASA’s panel included this image in their report as an example of the striking, highly unusual objects that nevertheless have a terrestrial explanation.
The report said: ‘Observations of objects in our skies that cannot be identified as balloons, aircraft or natural known phenomena have been spotted worldwide, yet there are limited high-quality observations.
‘The nature of science is to explore the unknown, and data is the language scientists use to discover our universe’s secrets,’ the report said.
‘Despite numerous accounts and visuals, the absence of consistent, detailed, and curated observations means we do not presently have the body of data needed to make definitive, scientific conclusions about UAP,’ it added.
The report said there is ‘no reason’ to conclude existing UAP reports have an extraterrestrial source.
But it said if it is plausible that there are extra-terrestrial life forms in the galaxy, it is also plausible that there is ‘potential unknown alien technology operating in Earth’s atmosphere’.
NASA has previously revealed the characteristics of the typical UFO, including the colour and the shape, velocity, and flight level.
Two ‘aliens’ were officially unveiled at Mexico ‘s Congress (pictured) as politicians held their first ever hearing on UFOs, but was everything as it seemed?
The report was not a review of previous UFO incidents but a ‘road map’ of how to scientifically study and evaluate UAPs in the future.
It also only referred to unclassified reports – with the report’s authors acknowledging that the US Military also has secret images and reports of UAPs not available to the public.
NASA said it would make a ‘concerted effort’ to scientifically study UAPs, using its satellites, as well as commercial satellites, as well as using artificial intelligence to analyse data.
The public could help too, using smartphone apps to take pictures of potential UFOs.
NASA said it had appointed a new director of UAP research – who it is not naming – who will be in charge of creating a ‘robust database’ for evaluation of future UAP.’
The director will not be named as members of the panel had received ‘harassment’ and ‘threats’ while working on the report, NASA officials said.
The report added that it was important to get to the bottom of UAPs as ‘the threat to U.S. airspace safety posed by UAP is self-evident.’
At a news conference yesterday one of the report’s authors, Dr Dan Evans, was asked why the report had to rely on unclassified material – while the US Department of Defense holds onto classified images and videos.
Dr Evans said: ‘One of the reasons we restricted ourselves this study to unclassified data is because we can speak openly about it,’ Dr Evans said. ‘And in so doing, we’re aiming again to alter the discourse from sensationalism to science’.
Navy 2021 flyby video of an unidentified aerial phenomena
The scientists were asked by to comment on a recent claim by a UFO expert, Jaimie Maussan, that he had discovered two ancient ‘non human’ alien corpses in Cusco, Peru in 2017, which are 1800 years old and are claimed to have 30 per cent DNA of an ‘unknown’ type.’ Dr David Spergel, who chaired the panel, said samples from the corpses should be made available to the wider scientific community.
NASA issued a watershed report in 2021 compiled by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in conjunction with a Navy-led task force encompassing numerous observations – mostly from military personnel of UAP.
The report included some UAP cases that previously came to light in the Pentagon’s release of video from naval aviators showing enigmatic aircraft off the U.S. East and West Coasts.
The report said defence and intelligence analysts lacked sufficient data to determine the nature of some of the objects.
British astronomer Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell was the first person to discover a pulsar in 1967 when she spotted a radio pulsar.
Since then other types of pulsars that emit X-rays and gamma rays have also been spotted.
Pulsars are essentially rotating, highly magnetised neutron stars but when they were first discovered it was believed they could have come from aliens.
‘Wow!’ radio signal
In 1977, an astronomer looking for alien life in the night sky above Ohio spotted a radio signal so powerful that he excitedly wrote ‘Wow!’ next to his data.
The 72-second blast, spotted by Dr Jerry Ehman through a radio telescope, came from Sagittarius but matched no known celestial object.
Conspiracy theorists have since claimed that the ‘Wow! signal’, which was 30 times stronger than background radiation, was a message from intelligent extraterrestrials.
Fossilized Martian microbes
In 1996 Nasa and the White House made the explosive announcement that the rock contained traces of Martian bugs.
The meteorite, catalogued as Allen Hills (ALH) 84001, crashed onto the frozen wastes of Antarctica 13,000 years ago and was recovered in 1984.
Photographs were released showing elongated segmented objects that appeared strikingly lifelike.
However, the excitement did not last long. Other scientists questioned whether the meteorite samples were contaminated.
They also argued that heat generated when the rock was blasted into space may have created mineral structures that could be mistaken for microfossils.
Behaviour of Tabby’s Star in 2005
The star, otherwise known as KIC 8462852, is located 1,400 light years away and has baffled astronomers since being discovered in 2015.
It dims at a much faster rate than other stars, which some experts have suggested is a sign of aliens harnessing the energy of a star.
Recent studies have ‘eliminated the possibility of an alien megastructure’, and instead, suggests that a ring of dust could be causing the strange signals.
Exoplanets in the Goldilocks zone in 2017
In February 2017 astronomers announced they had spotted a star system with planets that could support life just 39 light years away.
Seven Earth-like planets were discovered orbiting nearby dwarf star ‘Trappist-1’, and all of them could have water at their surface, one of the key components of life.
Three of the planets have such good conditions, that scientists say life may have already evolved on them.
Researchers claim that they will know whether or not there is life on any of the planets within a decade, and said: ‘This is just the beginning.’
The destruction caused by Hamas Militants in Kibbutz Be’eri, near the Israeli-Gaza border, in southern Israel, October 14, 2023. (credit: Omer Fichman/Flash90)
(Pictured: NASA Administrator Bill Nelson speaking recently.)
olderfatterhappierdotcom 