Osteoporotic candy bars
Human trabecular bone is the spongy-looking type of bone found inside the dense outer layers of cortical bone. (For a more complete explanation,
go here.)
Osteoporosis is a condition in which bone loses some of its density; this change is especially prominent in the trabecular bone. I read about a study by some Welsh medical professionals in which they compared Crunchie (top right) and Aero (bottom right) candy bars to normal and osteoporotic human trabecular bone, respectively.
No, really.
At first I was a little surprised that it was actually published, let alone that these people actually conducted and wrote up this study. When I took the time to actually read the paper, however, I came to admire the practicality.
The basic idea here is that when medical professionals discuss bone health with patients, particularly when explaining the risks involved with osteoporosis (most notable of which is increased fracture risk), it helps to have a visual aid. Apparently the authors of this study noticed that Crunchie and Aero bars were a popular teaching tool, and so they decided to test the validity of this comparison.
I won't go into the technical details here, but their test methods were surprisingly thorough. What they found, in the end, is that the mechanical properties of the candy bars don't really compare all that well to actual bone. However, for the purposes of providing a simple visual aid for describing bone structure, these candy bars are fine examples.
Read: P. Jones, S. Jones, D. Stone:
Accuracy of comparing bone quality to chocolate bars for patient information purposes: observational study. British Medical Journal 2007, 335:1285-1287.
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Labels: engineering, food, science
The Omnivore's Hundred
This list comes from the
Very Good Taste blog. As per
the given instructions, I have
bolded all the items I’ve eaten, and
crossed out any items that I would never consider eating.
1. Venison2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding -
I am repulsed by the very idea of this.7. Cheese fondue8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush11. Calamari12. Pho13. PB&J sandwich14. Aloo gobi15. Hot dog from a street cart16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes -
Home-brewed mulled apple mead, courtesy of Matt.19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream21. Heirloom tomatoes22. Fresh wild berries23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans25. Brawn, or head cheese26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper -
I like my taste buds just the way they are, thanks.27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters29. Baklava30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut35. Root beer float36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects43. Phaal -
What's the point of eating something if your tongue is scorched after the first bite?44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth $120 or more
46. Fugu (pufferfish)
47. Chicken tikka masala48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips61. S’mores62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or
funnel cake68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain70. Chitterlings, or andouillette -
I almost crossed this off, but 'never say never'... right?71. Gazpacho72.
Caviar and
blini -
I've had both, but not together73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill -
It would have to be extremely fresh roadkill.76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie -
Food of the gods, seriously.78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict83. Pocky84. Tasting menu at a 3-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash88. Flowers89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam92. Soft shell crab93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish95. Mole poblano96. Bagel and lox97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake
How much of an omnivore are you?
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Labels: everyday, food, my future, ponderings
Road trip report: spring break at Grand Canyon
For spring break this year, I drove to the Grand Canyon and back with two sixteen-year-old girls (which meant that I did
all of the driving).
What was I thinking? I was thinking it might be fun. Well, it turns out I was right. I only thought about killing them once or twice; the rest of the time, we were all too busy taking pictures and laughing at each others' lame jokes. The photo highlights (and all of the hundreds of other pictures we took) can be found at
my Flickr site.
Our traveling roadshow:
Day 1, Tuesday: Boulder, CO, to Blanding, UT (440 miles): via I-70 and US-191We hit the road with a box full of canned goods (ravioli, green beans, corn, peaches, pineapple, etc.), plenty of bottled water, a huge music selection (ran the gamut from Kanye West to Madonna to Paul Oakenfold to AC/DC to the Backstreet Boys), and other assorted supplies (especially pretzels).
The first day was the biggest, mileage-wise; we hoofed it all the way out to Utah and then a good ways south, with room for sightseeing stops on the way. We stopped in Glenwood Canyon for a lovely picnic lunch of cold canned ravioli and green beans.
At a scenic rest area off I-70 in Utah, we took another break, took lots more pictures, and my gravity-defying little sister topped out on a picnic shelter and later somersaulted over a concrete retaining wall. (Actually, she says, she was attempting to vault it at a run, but her foot slipped, and she recovered by throwing her shoulder down and going into a roll. I wasn't paying very close attention, so from my perspective it looked cooler than that sounds.)
Farther down the road, just north of Moab, we drove through Arches National Park, which was gorgeous. That night, somewhere out on the open highway north of our destination, we stopped on the side of the road to look at the stars and debated over what was or wasn't the Big Dipper or Little Dipper.
Day 1 photos:
Hitting the roadEastern UtahArches National ParkDay 2, Wednesday: Blanding, UT, to Flagstaff, AZ (262 miles): via UT-95, UT-261, US-163, US-160, and US-89
We headed west from Blanding to Natural Bridges National Monument. The drive there was beautiful: blue sky, bright sun, rolling hills, towering roadcuts, surprising vistas. The park itself was chock full of picturesque sandstone. We drove the nine-mile loop road, stopped to look and take pictures at every overlook, did some meandering on foot.
Then we headed south for the Arizona border. We knew that we were coming up to a small section of road called Moki Dugway; the park ranger at Natural Bridges said it was a series of switchbacks, descending more than 1000 feet over 3 miles of road surface. Then we came to a pull-off, beyond which the road disappeared over a rise.
We stopped and walked out to the edge of a sandstone overlook, where I had a monumental "whooooaaaaaaa" moment as the view opened up in front of us. Far below, the highway zigzagged off into the distance across the wide country.
Moki Dugway, as we discovered when we finally got back in the car and continued down the road, is a narrow, side-winding gravel lane that twists back and back on itself to eke down the side of Cedar Mesa. I drove slowly, enjoying the view, and the girls screamed like it was an amusement park ride around every hairpin curve.
A little further down the highway, just north of Mexican Hat, Utah, we did some off-roading near Mexican Hat Rock. I was feeling adventurous, the girls were yelling encouragement in my ear, and I went for some of the more exciting tracks. My Subaru Forester handled it all with aplomb; I love my car.
North of the Utah-Arizona border, US-163 crosses Monument Pass; from a distance, this view struck me as particularly iconic of the great American Southwest.
Late in the afternoon we drove into Sunset Crater National Monument. It was pretty, but not terribly exciting or spectacular. We had fun clambering through a lava field.
Dinner was in Flagstaff, at a restaurant called Dara Thai that served up delicious and spicy Thai cuisine. Highly recommended!
Day 2 photos:
Southern Utah 1Natural Bridges National MonumentMoki DugwaySouthern Utah 2Sunset Crater National MonumentDay 3, Thursday: Flagstaff, AZ, to Kayenta, AZ (230 miles): via US-180, AZ-64, and US-160Once again, we were blessed with warm, sunny weather.
We cut northwest from Flagstaff through the mountains, which was a pretty drive, and then continued northward to Grand Canyon National Park.
We visited Mather Point and Yavapai Point, then did a picnic lunch in the parking lot at the park headquarters. From there we left the car for the shuttle buses, and rode up to Hermit's Rest, with a few stops at overlooks along the way.
We provided our own additional entertainment by engaging in bizarre arguments (how to best conduct and cover up a mob hit) and pointless ruminations ("if my leg muscles could speak, what would they say?"), as usual, at a volume certain to be overheard by other tourists.
Returning to the car, we drove eastward along Desert View Drive on our way out of the park, with plenty more scenic overlooks and lots of photos along the way. We made one more stop outside the park, at the Little Colorado Gorge, where we hiked in a little ways from the road and went venturing off the beaten path.
In Kayenta, the hotel desk clerk's dinner recommendation was a small local place called the Blue Coffee Pot. There, we discovered a nice family atmosphere and a down-home-style menu that featured Navajo dishes and other southwestern fare.
Day 3 photos:
Grand Canyon 1Grand Canyon 2Days 4-6, Friday-Sunday: Kayenta, AZ, to Gunnison, CO (317 miles), and Gunnison to Boulder (212 miles): via US-160, US-491, CO-145, CO-62, US-550, US-50, and US-285On Friday we headed for familiar territory. We pulled off the road at Four Corners, intending to stop and take a couple of pictures, but they wanted to charge us $3 admission per person, so we got right back on the road and kept going.
Lunch was another canned picnic, parked roadside amidst the snowbanks, somewhere in the mountains of southwest Colorado. Over the course of the afternoon we played in the snow, complained at other drivers riding their brakes downhill from the mountain passes, and ate lots of pretzels.
Towards evening, we made a little detour off US-50 west of Gunnison, up a little dirt track called Alpine Plateau Road No. 867. Thanks to the tire tracks worn into the mud and snowpack, and the hefty snowbanks to either side of the road, I had fun rumbling up and down the hills and sliding around turns. (No sarcasm, either -- I love my car!)
Friday night my parents rolled into Gunnison, a couple of hours after we did; on Saturday we went to the local climbing competition, which my little sister competed in and my dad helped run. We also hung out some with friends from the Colorado-New Mexico region who were in town for the same competition.
Sunday we drove home.
We pulled off at Kenosha Pass on US-285, and went hiking a little ways into the woods up another mud road. Then, while my parents wandered around the parking area with the dog, I took the girls in the Subaru for a spin up the same mud road. My car came back muddy;
I was duly pleased. We did lunch at Coney Island, a hot-dog-shaped hot dog stand tucked away among the evergreens just off US-285 east of Bailey, Colorado.
Days 4-6 photos:
Driving homeStatistics:1461 highway miles
742 photos/videos
4 states (US-160 actually cuts through New Mexico for about a mile)
4 national parks/monuments
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Labels: everyday, food, travel
Clam chowder as it was meant to be
In my travels last summer, I dined one evening at
Dooger's Seafood & Grill in Cannon Beach, Oregon. The first-course soup was their own homemade clam chowder; it was amazing, perfect, melt-in-your-mouth creamy and tender. This is what clam chowder was meant to be.
The most complete recipe I could find was on
Cooks.com. It sounds right, but the cooking directions are a tad vague. Does anyone want to give this a shot? Let me know how it turns out.
Dooger's Clam Chowder:
1 lb. boiling potatoes
1 c. half & half
1/2 c. whipping cream
26 oz. canned sea clams
1/4 tsp. seasoning salt
Dash of ground thyme
Dash of white pepper
Peel and boil potatoes. Drain and mash lightly. Put clams in pot and heat. Add potatoes and seasonings. Let simmer. Heat milk, add clam mixture. Add butter.
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Labels: food, travel
Culinary excellence
A little while ago, I had the opportunity to enjoy dinner at the
Flagstaff House Restaurant here in Boulder. I was impressed by many things: the location, the food, the service. This was a dining establishment the likes of which I had never experienced previously, and it may be a long time before I do so again.
The one thing which struck me most, however, was our waiter; he was a perfect gentleman, and unlike any waiter I had ever encountered in real life. Maybe "handler" was a better descriptor for his role. Regardless, what really impressed me was his commentary on every single menu selection we made: "Excellent." I'd say, "I'd like the quail, please," and he'd respond with, "Excellent." My sister would say, "Can I have the rabbit loin?" and he'd reply, "Excellent." Every single time. It seemed so very high-society, and sort of quaint in a very classy way.
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Labels: food, imagine yourself here, ponderings
I went to Salt Lake City and all I got was...
- Dry, irritated eyes and nasal membranes (really, their air quality isn't great)
- Bigger sleep deficit (Discovery Channel in the hotel, and not sleeping in my own bed)
- Up-front, standing-room-only view of Chris Sharma's awesome whipper off the top crux move of the USA Climbing men's national final route
- Bad case of nerves from seeing a bunch of tractor-trailers and RVs blown sideways off of I-80 by strong cross-winds in Wyoming
- A new perspective on pantry management
It's really the last item that I'm here to talk about. When we were in town in late January, the local supermarket chain Macey's was having their annual "Family Preparedness Sale." They were advertising great sale prices on gallon-deep cans, five-gallon buckets, and ten-pound (and larger) sacks of freeze-dried blueberries, dried beans, rolled oats, cracked wheat berries, instant milk powder, powdered eggs, and myriad other items, pretty much all you could hope for.
I don't have anything against Mormons personally; I'm not going to tell anyone what they should or shouldn't believe. However, there are two things I really admire about the whole Mormon culture: this preparedness thing (if the apocalypse ever comes, the world will be rebuilt afterward by Mormons, and by fortified back-country mountain folk and the paranoid freaks who have fully-stocked fallout shelters in their back yards), and their work ethic. There's a lot to be said for a serious work ethic, too.
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Labels: everyday, food, philosophy, ponderings, travel
Comfort food
I'm not sure if this is an American thing or what. And what defines "comfort food" anyway? Is it creaminess? Fond associative recollections? Proteins? Fat?
I don't know. My list of comfort foods is too eclectic to be satisfactorily defined by any of the above.
Macaroni & cheese
New England-style clam chowder
Homemade chicken soup
Chili
Hot chocolate
Cookies (sugar, butter, chocolate chip, peanut butter, pecan, Oreo, you name it) dunked in milk
Pie
Pudding
Chocolate chip cookie dough
Good farmer's homestyle scrambled eggs
Lasagna
Eggplant parmesean
Mashed potatoes & gravy
Biscuits and scones
Strawberry shortcake
Tuna salad sandwich
Pancakes with syrup or cinnamon & sugar
Mmm... Now I'm hungry. Lunchtime. Chili mac & cheese!
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Labels: everyday, food, ponderings
Mornings
I wish there were more hours in a day. Then I could get everything done that I do now, and I'd be able to get in my required 8 hours of sleep. I like mornings, as long as I'm well-rested.
That's right, I'm a morning person. When I have the time. I love my bedroom in the summertime, when I leave my window and curtains open to the sunrise. There is nothing quite like waking up, sans alarm, to warm sunlight on your face and a cheery birdsong drifting on the air.
I think my perfect morning would happen like this:
I wake up, comfortable, well-rested, before my alarm goes off, with the pleasant realization that I have no obligations for the next few hours. Winter or summer, the temperature in my room is perfect: I'm not shivering, but it's just cool enough that I'm happy to wrap myself in a light fleece pullover and step into a pair of cozy slippers. The sun is barely risen, the house is blanketed by that peaceful quiet of early morning. In the kitchen, I turn on the coffee maker and set the oven to preheat. There are biscuits, ready-made, waiting in the fridge. I stand in front of the sink and stare out the window at the lightening sky. Hopefully there are some birds poking around a feeder in a tree. My dog (or cat) comes wandering into the kitchen after me and settles down on the floor at my feet after a brief pet on the head. When the oven *dings* (yes, I like ovens that *ding*) I slide the pan of biscuits in and set the timer (which also *dings*). By now the coffee is done, so I pick my favorite mug out of the cabinet and pour myself a nice steaming cup of hazelnut. One spoonful of sugar and a dash of milk (or cream?) later, it's perfect. So I stand against the counter and smell my coffee (mmm, hazelnut) for a few minutes while I stare out the window some more and watch the birds. Right about now, someone (mom? dad? sister? husband, someday...) comes into the kitchen, lured by the smell of hazelnut coffee and baking biscuits. I get a hug and a "Good morning."
Why can't all my days start like this?
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Labels: everyday, food, imagine yourself here, ponderings
