By David Kohn, The Washington Post Kari Alitalo had studied lymphatic vessels for more than two decades. So he knew that this network, which carries immune cells throughout the body and removes waste and toxins, didnt extend into the brain: This had been accepted wisdom for more than 300 years. Nobody questioned that it stopped at the brain, says Alitalo, a scientist at the University of Helsinki in Finland. Three years ago, Alitalo wanted to develop a more precise map of the lymphatic system. To do this, he used genetically modified mice whose lymphatic vessels glowed when illuminated by a particular wavelength of light. (The mice had been given a gene from a species of glowing jellyfish.) When viewing the modified mice under the light, Aleksanteri Aspelund, a medical student in Alitalos laboratory, saw something unexpected: The heads of the mice glowed. At first, he suspected that there was something wrong with the animals, the lighting or the measuring equipment. But when Alitalo and Aspelund repeated the experiment, they got the same result. It seemed that the lymphatic vessels extended to the brain after all. This was surprising, to say the least: In the 21st century, major findings involving basic … Continue reading →

James Snook-USA TODAY Sports Will a trade happen? Maybe. Is there a trade rumor? No. Well, yes. Now. May 22 2017 11:15 am Despite the rampant speculation over the weekend, the Sixers have shown little to no indication they are in the process of trading up to No. 1 in the NBA Draft to select Washington point guard Markelle Fultz. At least not yet. The Sixers have a ton of valuable trade pieces both in picks and players so for the next month every basketball pundit and fan and talk show host worth a damn is going to spend more time on this potential trade than the Sixers and Celtics probably will. (That includes us.) This isnt about a trade as much as its about how one sports guy speculating about a trade on his popular podcast can turn into a full-fledged rumor. Lets be clear: This is not a rumor. A rumor is something overheard (or leaked) by one of the teams involved (or one the agent of a player that could be involved in a deal) that is spread through unnamed reports, off-the-record verifications and good ol fashioned sleuthing. Bill Simmons saying the Sixers should trade up for … Continue reading →

MAY 22, 2017 TO BEGIN WITH the obvious question: Does the world need a more or less 800-page book on food phobias? Beats me. But the answer is in any case moot because, despite his subtitle, Alexander Theroux has written something rather different, more interesting and grander than that. A phobia is generally considered (Im quoting Merriam-Webster here) an exaggerated usually inexplicable and illogical fear of a particular object, class of objects, or situation, and certainly Theroux writes about those who suffer from (and lets face it, sometimes celebrate) this condition, though he also tries to explain the inexplicable. Moreover he demonstrates that the distinctions between phobia, dislike, simple preference, aversion, obsession, and mere squeamishness are inevitably blurred. Hes concerned with food fetishes, fixations, fashions, food snobbery, and inverted snobbery, with food as a marker of class, status, and self-definition. He presents a parade of faddists, would-be revolutionaries, nutritional autocrats, cranks, and a few well-meaning folk with dubious ideas. Inevitably the book contains a good deal of what we might call food trivia, although Im sure the author would rightly insist that these matters are anything but trivial. This is a serious book. But that doesnt mean we cant have … Continue reading →

Lets state the obvious: Food specials and happy hours are a great deal for diners, but what about the restaurateurs? Do discount nights actually do anything for their bottom line? According to a few food fixtures in town, the answer is yes, but you need to play the long game. Normally, there isnt a ton of sales volume from 5 to 6, says Jay Bayer, co-owner of Saison. The Jackson Ward restaurant offers $2 off drafts, cocktails and small plates from 5 to 7 p.m., Tuesday through Friday. If you can generate any sort of revenue that didnt already exist through discounted pricing, it gets people in the door, and hopefully they can stay a little longer to buy some more food. Kendra Feather adopted a date-night strategy at Garnetts Cafe in The Fan to gain traction. Garnetts is so tiny, it has always been a bit of a secret squirrel. And it took years for it to break even because so many people just blinked and missed it, she says. So the main reason we started doing Date Night was to attract customers in the evenings. Often, discounted food and drink cuts into businesses overhead, with several restaurant workers … Continue reading →

Welcome to the Anatomy of a Goal, where each week we dissect one goal (or near goal) from Columbus Crew SCs previous match. For match 13 of the 2017 MLS Season, we take a look at Ola Kamaras 20th minute half volley that put Crew SC up 1-0 as part of the 2-1 loss to the New England Revolution on Sunday. Here is a look at the finish from the Crew SC striker. The Black & Gold had a fast start to Sundays match against New England, using a high press to disrupt the Revolution and getting the fullbacks involved in the attack. On defense, Columbus employed the typically rigid banks of four, as you can just see breaking up in the image below. On first glance, Olas goal looks like the result of two moments of brilliance: an incredible pass by midfielder Wil Trapp and an incredible strike by the Crew SC striker. However, this goal provides us with an opportunity to dissect how the Black & Gold can successfully pass out of a high press. In the image above, and the next few images, I have placed a triangle around the three Crew SC players involved in passing … Continue reading →