Interestingly, it turns out there’s a species of mouse called the edible dormouse. The second word, edible, indicates that they were commonly eaten for a long time and were considered a delicacy, and they are still consumed today — in Slovenia and Croatia, though mainly during festivals. For example, in the suburbs of Rijeka (mostly in Kastav) as well as on the islands of Brač and Hvar.
Poor little mice.
Yesterday, we arrived to refuel at the Tesla supercharger v4 325kW, which is the fastest one. We plugged the hose into the car, and a loud gurgling sound began to come from the stand. “The current is flowing,” says Nadya. It seems to be some sort of liquid cooling. Inside the car, the battery is also intensely cooling during charging, because 48 amps is quite a lot.
But while we were charging, we saw a very strange scene. Next to us, there was a Tesla being charged from an outdoor outlet of a nearby building with a very long cable. I mean, it’s certainly possible, but it takes an hour to charge the battery by 1% (which is about 5km). Well, at least it’s free. People do the oddest things;-) and the funny thing is, they could have parked right next to the outlet, but no, they park at the supercharger and charge from an outlet across the street;)
I stumbled upon 15 examples where evidence-based medicine has shifted its stance over time. Truly intriguing; there was a lot I didn’t know.
1. Cholesterol: “bad vs “good
Originally, total cholesterol was considered the main risk. Nowadays, it’s more important to look at LDL (“bad) and HDL (“good) in the context of inflammation and overall metabolic state. High levels of LDL (“bad)—a confirmed risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, especially when HDL (“good cholesterol) levels are low.
2. Saturated Fats
Long considered a cause of cardiovascular diseases. Modern studies have proven: trans fats are indeed harmful, but natural saturated fats in moderate amounts are permissible. In the USA, as I understand, there has been a complete ban on adding artificial trans fats to food products since 2021, while in Russia, as I found, there is a limit of 2% trans fat content in certain products, but no total ban and less stringent control measures are in place.
3. Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)
HRT was long believed to protect against cardiovascular diseases in women. The WHI study (2002) showed an increased risk of heart attacks, strokes, and breast cancer with combined therapy.
4. Vioxx (rofecoxib)
This drug was heavily advertised as safe for joints. In 2004, it was withdrawn from the market due to an increased risk of heart attacks. It was found that the manufacturer had hidden side effects.
5. Antiarrhythmics Post-Heart Attack
Drugs like flecainide were used post-heart attack. The CAST study (1989) showed: such drugs increased mortality.
6. Low-Fat Diets
Fats were once considered the main culprits of obesity. Today, it’s clear that replacing fats with sugar and fast carbohydrates only intensified the epidemic of diabetes and metabolic syndrome.
7. Infant Weaning
Solid foods used to be introduced at 2–3 months. Today, WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding until 6 months.
8. Stomach Ulcer and Helicobacter pylori
Ulcers were once linked to stress and diet. Now, it’s known that the main cause is H. pylori infection. Treatment involves antibiotics. Upon my arrival in the US, it was immediately detected and treated.
9. Antidepressants and the “Serotonin Theory
Depression was formerly explained by a lack of serotonin. Nowadays, this theory is not supported, and the effectiveness of antidepressants is critically assessed.
10. Omega-3
Omega-3 supplements were once regarded as a panacea for the heart. Major studies (e.g., VITAL, 2018) found no benefits in healthy individuals. Eating fish continues to be considered beneficial.
11. Vitamin D
Its deficiency was associated with many diseases. However, meta-analyses have shown: vitamin D supplements do not prevent cancer, diabetes, and heart attacks unless there is a deficiency.
12. Aspirin for Prevention
Aspirin used to be prescribed to many healthy individuals. Today, its use is limited to high cardiovascular risk due to the risk of bleeding.
13. Statins
Previously prescribed widely, including for moderately elevated cholesterol. Now prescribed selectively, based on overall risk assessment.
14. “Safe Opioids
In the 1990s, it was claimed that OxyContin did not cause addiction. This triggered the opioid crisis in the USA—one of the biggest challenges to the healthcare system.
15. PSA Testing for Prostate Cancer
Mass PSA screening led to overdiagnosis and unnecessary surgeries. Nowadays, its use is individualized, after discussion with the patient.
Walking around the house with Yuka, it’s like a whole zoo here. But nature is treacherous indeed. Just the other day, one trail with ticks resulted in a vet visit, and now I’m off to the emergency room. We both got bitten, only Nadya got off lightly. One lesson shines through: in tick-infested places, you should march like she did with bare legs, so all those parasites are in plain sight during the assault on the fortress. I was in jeans, and they took full advantage of that.
How intriguing. These are all shark eggs. They are also called “Mermaid’s Purses”—tough leather-like capsules that protect the embryo and often have tendrils for clinging to seaweed or rocks. The horny shells of shark eggs are made up of roughly the same materials as our nails and hair. Their sizes vary from a few centimeters to about the size of a palm, and the development of the embryo takes months. After hatching, the empty capsules can be found on beaches. At the moment the egg emerges into the world, it has enough food supplies for the upcoming period. How they hatch: as soon as the right time comes, the shark egg slightly opens at the bottom, and the young shark slowly acclimates to the conditions in which it will live. After acclimation, it breaks through the egg’s shell and enters the open world.
Liza has finally graduated from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and now we have a certified architect in the family! Over here, a graduation ceremony is called a “Commencement,” which translates from English as “beginning.” Today, there was a formal diploma presentation ceremony. However, they don’t actually hand out diplomas but something like a voucher for a diploma, which can be converted into a diploma as long as you don’t have any “tails” left. Because the ceremony is a thing unto itself, and of course, no one is going to move or adjust it. The actual diploma will be sent by mail.
Today and tomorrow, our entire family, including our menagerie, is in Blacksburg—the place where the huge university campus is located, seemingly taking over the entire little town in southern Virginia. Nearly 40,000 students study here alongside about 13,000 staff members. It’s a whole universe, its branches shining even in our parts: campuses and research centers are not only here in Blacksburg. But this place is the “core.”
Well, now Liza, learn to drive! You won’t manage to get to work on public transportation around here; it’s very fragmented, slow, and unreliable. All in all, we are very happy. Tomorrow is the main event at the big stadium, and then, onto new tracks!
It seems like it was only yesterday. 2020, masks, COVID. But they let you study “in-person.” With a lot of restrictions, but at least not from home. You chose architecture, and people constantly asked us if we had architects in the family? Of course, we do, that’s me, except, well, I’m not really about houses and bridges. But now we have the full spectrum!
If the standard bachelor’s diploma in the States is obtained in four years, at Virginia Tech it takes five years to study architecture—and that’s still not a master’s degree. Initially, we were all worried about how we were going to afford this. When you apply to the institute, you show them all your income and expenses, and some smart system made up of a mix of people and computers tells you, for example, you’re poor but smart, so the university will charge you little, not a lot. Or it says, “you can afford it, I see,” so they give you the full load, tighten your belts. We didn’t quite meet the necessary level of poverty, and the numbers were initially scary, but somewhere along the way educational loans helped, and we also grew over time and started to get scared less.
And just like that, five years have flown by, and now Liza will start earning her own money. A big deal. From mid-June, Liza starts her first job—the one that had already offered her several internships in summer and winter. So there probably wasn’t even a question of whether to hire her full-time or not.
Lizochka, congratulations again! And wishing you success!
P.S. Also, today is Yuki’s birthday—he’s 4 years old. He sadly watched from the window as we loaded our suitcases into the car. Nadia quietly said, “Yuki, we’re going to Liza and Levchik,” and he, skidding his claws on the floor, charging at full speed, with skids on the turns, dashed to the door and sat next to it! And that’s considering how we usually have to shove him out the door to walk him—he’s a real homebody. Literally: you push him down the steps toward the door and he moves as long as you push him, reluctantly gets dressed in his harness, then he starts his half-hour pond avoidance program. But this time, he totally lost his mind! He understands us somehow.
By the way, have you ever wondered how ticks, those slow, wingless creatures, end up on a human body so quickly? And not just on humans. It turns out the answer to this question emerged quite recently — in 2023.
Sam England and Katie Lihou hypothesized that ticks can sense and react to the electric fields emitted by all living beings, including humans. To test this, they collected ticks and placed them on a specially grounded surface that mimicked a plant. Then they passed a 750-volt electrode over them — approximately the amount emitted by a typical mammal. The ticks immediately “jumped towards the electrode. The same thing happened when the scientists used a charged rabbit’s paw.
In general, it was discovered that ticks do not jump, fly, or even crawl deliberately towards humans. They are simply attracted to us because of the electrostatic charge — like dust or hair to a charged balloon.
I just read that Mulholland Drive was named after William Mulholland, who on one hand provided Los Angeles with water, but on the other hand buried 431 people after the St. Francis Dam he built collapsed, merely twelve hours after he and his assistant had inspected it. Essentially, it was the worst technological disaster in the US of the 20th century.
So, he truly did supply the county with water. Initially through good engineering, and then again through bad.
Incidentally, it serves as a good example of why it’s improper to name things after living individuals.
I started reading a very good book, Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker. It states that the caffeine in coffee operates by clogging up the receptors of adenosine, which accumulates throughout the day and contributes to sleep pressure—the growing urge to sleep. However, what the book doesn’t mention, and what I’m curious about, is why people drink coffee in the morning when there is minimal adenosine in the body to begin with. Well, theoretically, caffeine could linger for several hours, but usually, adenosine doesn’t build up enough within a few hours to cause drowsiness.
Interestingly, in the evening or at night, coffee works—but as they say, there’s a catch. Caffeine temporarily blocks the adenosine receptors, making you feel alert. Yet, adenosine continues to accumulate in the background, and by nighttime, there’s a ton of it. As soon as the caffeine level drops, all the accumulated adenosine molecules “crash onto the receptors. This causes a sharp wave of sleepiness and fatigue—and that’s the infamous “crash.
Is there an explanation for morning coffee? Or is it just tradition?
Check out this cool story on the Veritasium channel about a critical flaw discovered in the Citicorp skyscraper after the building was finished.
The incident occurred 46 years ago, in 1978, just a year after its inauguration, when structural engineer Bill LeMessur discovered a critical error in the design of one of New York’s most ambitious skyscrapers — Citicorp. The 59-story building was constructed on stilts that were positioned at the center of each side rather than at the corners, as is typical, to preserve an old church that stood at one corner. This unusual decision required a unique system of diagonal braces (chevrons) that redistributed the loads. However, it was later revealed that due to the substitution of welded joints with bolted ones, under diagonal wind — initially not accounted for in the calculations — the building could completely collapse from a hurricane with just 110 km/h winds, creating a real threat to the city with a shocking probability of 1/16. Had it fallen, the surrounding skyscrapers would have toppled like a house of cards.
Recognizing the scale of the threat, LeMessur clandestinely began overnight repair operations named Project Serene, literally sealing every vulnerable joint in the structure with metal ‘patches’ while office workers went about their day undisturbed. Neither the employees nor the citizens were aware of the danger in order to avoid panic. A covert evacuation plan for ten city blocks was even developed. Despite the patches, everything depended on a tuned mass damper — a massive 400-ton concrete slab installed on the roof of the building, which oscillated out of phase to dampen swaying movements. It was so critical that if the power went out, the system would stop working, and the building could almost certainly collapse in strong winds. The patches did help.
For a long time, it was believed that a Princeton student named Diana Hartley brought attention to the building’s problem. However, in 2011, architect Lee DeCarolus, who was a freshman architecture student at the New Jersey Institute of Technology at the time, claimed that he was the one who called William LeMessur in the spring of 1978. His interest in the building’s unique design and a remark from his professor, who doubted the project’s reliability, prompted his call. But, there still are doubts about who the real hero was. Well, it’s clear as mud.
Hi, I'm Rauf Aliev. 