The Demise of Dr. Oz

Peter Janiszewski Public Library of Science
After some suave marketers used clips from Oz's TV show to sell bogus products, he faced a grilling from a panel of U.S. senators about his weight loss product claims. Oz then invited his Twitter audience, "What is your biggest question for me? Reply with #OzsInbox." Unfortunately for Oz, this strategy backfired. Horrendously. Immediately after Oz asked the question, Twitter gave Dr. Oz a hilarious slap across the face.

How Exercise Changes Our DNA

Gretchen Reynolds The New York Times
Exercise, a new study finds, changes the shape and functioning of our genes, an important stop on the way to improved health and fitness. More than 5,000 sites on the genome of muscle cells are altered by exercise.

Friday Nite Videos -- November 21, 2014

Portside
President Obama: Fixing Immigration. The Browning of America. The Case for Napping at Work. Cuban Music in the Streets. Documentary: The Other Side of Immigration.

The Case for Napping at Work

Most Americans don't get enough sleep. People are exhausted. It's time for a wake-up call. It's time to embrace the office nap.

Behind the Scenes: Big Beverage

Soda companies spend big money to influence public health initiatives meant to decrease sugary drink consumption. But policies like taxes on sugary beverages can encourage people to make healthier choices. The beverage industry is doing everything in its power to keep that from happening.

Get the latest research, news, and information about public health policies aimed at reducing sugary drink consumption here. 

Barbie Reincarnate – Only This Time She Looks Human

Kalliopi Monoyios Scientific American
Artist Nickolay Lamm, inspired by his own and his relative’s struggles with body-image issues, wondered what Mattel’s Barbie doll would look like if she weren’t such an anatomical freak.

Tidbits - October 2, 2014

Portside
Reader Comments - Ten Points Towards a Two-State Solution; Students Walk Out Suburban Denver Schools; Indiana Autoworkers and Two-Tier Contracts; Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism; War on Drugs Damages Black Social Mobility; Freelancer Economy; Transformative Utopias and Human Rights; Climate Change Rally; Banned Books; Texas Schoolbooks; ISIS, Iraq and Syria; Freedom University Georgia; Immigrants; Cuba Training World's Doctors

labor

The Worst Paying Fastest-Growing Job in America

Claire Zillman Fortune
Historical discrimination, demographics, and public funding have left home care workers at the very bottom of the American work hierarchy. The wages these workers earn are painfully low: the median salary for a personal care aide is $19,910 annually, or $9.57 an hour; a home health aide earns $20,820 or $10.01 per hour. On the Bureau of Labor Statistic's list of 30 fastest-growing jobs, personal and home care aides are the worst paid.
Subscribe to health