Kinesiology: The Myotomes

Image by Tamityville via Flickr

Today I will introduce a series of posts entitled "Kinesiology:" which will deal with the interesting facts and information that I've learned throughout my years in university. If you could, give me your opinions whether you liked this post, and whether you would like similar in the near future in the comments section.

   I have finished a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and Health Science program, and know a reasonable amount of background information on the subjects pertaining to health and physical activity. Today I will start  off with a brief introduction to Myotomes and their testing.

   Myotomes are defines as a groups of muscles supplied by a single nerve root. It also has to be noted that spinal nerves come in pairs, one from the left side and the other from the right side. So an injury to a single nerve root (either right or left) is associated with muscle weakness (a.k.a. incomplete paralysis) of the myotome (left side or right side muscles) supplied by that nerve root. When testing a myotome, key muscles are tested for weakness, not pain.

Image by EUSKALANATO via Flickr

If It Were My Home

   The lottery of birth is responsible for much of who we are. If you were not born in the country you were, what would your life be like? Would you be the same person?

   IfItWereMyHome.com is your gateway to understanding life outside your home. Use our country comparison tool to compare living conditions in your own country to those of another. Start by selecting a region to compare on the map to the right, and begin your exploration. Aside from giving you a categorized comparison of countries, this website also displays a brief history of the chosen country. Here is some background information about my country - Canada:

Image via Wikipedia

A land of vast distances and rich natural resources, Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has developed in parallel with the US, its neighbor to the south across an unfortified border. Canada faces the political challenges of meeting public demands for quality improvements in health care and education services, as well as responding to the particular concerns of predominantly francophone Quebec. Canada also aims to develop its diverse energy resources while maintaining its commitment to the environment. 

The land now occupied by Canada was first inhabited approximately 16,000 years ago by aboriginal peoples. Starting in the late 15th century the British and French explored and settled along the eastern seaboard. The 19th century saw a rapid influx of European immigrants as the westward push that characterized the continent's development continued. 

The beginning of the 20th century saw Canada's early involvement in World War I due to British control of its foreign affairs. In 1919 Canada joined the League of Nations independently of Britain taking control of its own foreign policy. Canada declared war on Germany during World War II three days after Britain, with the first Canadian Army units arriving in Britain in late 1939. 

Today, Canada is characterized by its socially democratic programs such as universal health care, the Canda Pension Plan, and Canada Student Loans. In 2006 The Economist ranked Canada the third most democratic nation in its Democracy Index, ahead of all other countries in North and South America.

via: IfItWereMyHome.com

Top 10 Most Extreme Substances Known on Earth

Here is a nice top 10 list of awesome Earthly substances, ranging form super-hot to the most darkest and the most magnetic to the super-fluid. So without any further adieu

10. The Darkest Substance Known to Man

What do you get when you stack carbon nanotubes on their ends and sandwich them together? A material that absorbs 99.9% of the light that touches it. The microscopic surface of the material is rough and uneven, which breaks up the light and makes it a poor reflector. Then add to that carbon nanotubes act as superconductors in certain arrangements, which makes them excellent light absorbers, and you have a perfect storm of black. Scientists are really excited about the potential applications of the substance; since virtually no light is “wasted”, it would be used to improve optical tools like telescopes, and even be used to make nearly 100% efficient solar collectors.

Keep your mouth shut about your goals and plans.

When you have some great aspirations in your life, shouldn't you announce them to your family and friends?
Isn't it good networking to tell people about your upcoming projects?
Doesn't the “law of attraction” mean you should state your intention, and visualize the goal as already yours?
Nope.

Tests done since 1933 show that people who talk about their intentions are less likely to make them happen. 

Announcing your plans to others satisfies your self-identity just enough that you're less motivated to do the hard work needed. 

In 1933, W. Mahler found that if a person announced the solution to a problem, and was acknowledged by others, it was now in the brain as a “social reality”, even if the solution hadn't actually been achieved. 

NYU psychology professor Peter Gollwitzer has been studying this since his 1982 book “Symbolic Self-Completion” (pdf article here) - and recently published results of new tests in a research article, “When Intentions Go Public: Does Social Reality Widen the Intention-Behavior Gap?”
Four different tests of 63 people found that those who kept their intentions private were more likely to achieve them than those who made them public and were acknowledged by others. 

Once you've told people of your intentions, it gives you a “premature sense of completeness.”
You have “identity symbols” in your brain that make your self-image.Since both actions and talk create symbols in your brain, talking satisfies the brain enough that it “neglects the pursuit of further symbols.”

 At first you might feel unable to hold all your goals and aspirations only to yourself, but you should try and do it gradually to see the most benefit from it. If you can't hold off telling someone your goal then try rephrasing it into a way that will not give you any social satisfaction or gratification. For example, instead of saying: "I've joined a gym and bought running shoes. I'm going to do it!" say something like: "I want to get into shape and become more fit, and if I slack off you should kick my ass or not talk to me for a while". That way you will be dissatisfied with your statement to a friend and will still be compelled to do your hard work to reach that goal later on.

Inception, the movie in 60 seconds

An entertaining idea has been born on the YouTube - 60 second videos that try to depict full length movies in only one minute. YouTube user DISS2011 has compiled a big collection of these 1 minute movies over at his channel.

Here is the short 1 minute video for "Inception":

Art meets science in a stem-cell exhibit

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the discovery of stem cells by Canadian scientists James Till and Ernest McCulloch, thus the Ontario Science Centre !dea Gallery has brought together scientists and artists to explore the intersection between art and the cutting-edge science of stem cell research.

This collaboration has inspired student artists and designers from a remarkable diversity of disciplines -including fashion design, science and medical illustration, and visual and textile arts - to respond with their personal visions of what stem cells are and what they mean.

Watch the animation made for this exhibition to find out more about stem cells.

via: OntarioScienceCentre

Japan - 3 Months after the Catastrophe

Japan continues to struggle with the effects of 9-point earthquake and ensuing tsunami that occurred three months ago on the northeast coast of the country. Local authorities are still trying to deal with the consequences of accidents at nuclear power plants, Fukushima. Workers continue to dismantle obstructions, while the approaching rainy season, which may increase the risk of spreading diseases. Collected here are photos taken over the past week - three months after the devastating catastrophe in the land of the rising sun, as well as photos of individual areas before and after the disaster.

The following are 30 high resolution pictures of Japan now. For a higher resolution make sure to click on an image.

1. Cars drive through the destroyed area for three months and two days after the 9-pointearthquake and tsunami, June 13, Natori, Miyagi Prefecture. The Japanese governmentis trying to deal with the consequences of disasters and problems of nuclear power plantaccident at Fukushima. The authorities are preparing for an increased risk of spread ofviral and infectious diseases as we approach the rainy season, which also hamper the work of raking debris. (Kiyoshi Ota / Getty
Images)

SmartphOwned - Fail Autocorrects and Awkward Parent texts

Smartphowned is a humor site featuring autocorrection fails and awkward parent texts. Users can upload images or share their conversations using our unique iPhone message builder.

Here are some notable funny texts:

Interactorium, the coolest 3-D molecular visualizer

The Interactorium is a platform built to visualise very large interactome datasets. Developed in collaboration with the School of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of New South Wales, it is adapted from the Skyrails Visualisation Engine, which was originally developed by Yose Widjaja.

The Interactorium functions as an atlas of known protein-protein interactions. The current distribution uses the yeast protein-protein interaction dataset by Bertin et al.

A groundbreaking visual presentation of a microscopic organism at a molecular level such as this, encompasses such a great amount of detail and interactivity, its mind-boggling. This project should be adapted to other organisms and eventually to human beings, possibly to study the life around us in a more grandiose fashion and to understand all the little minute changes that happen at a the molecular level.

via: Interactorium

Soichi Noguchi's Top 15 Most Beautiful Photos, Tweeted From The Space

Soichi Noguchi is a Japanese aeronautical engineer who is currently a part of the Soyuz TMA-17 crew and Expedition 22 to the International Space Station and it seems that he is one of the first scientists who got an excellent idea to share what he sees from space with internet users.

Soichi recently started tweeting from the space and he decided to show us some of his best photos taken from there which he shares with us almost every day via Twitpic. Here you can see the list of some of the most beautiful photos taken by Soichi Noguchi from International Space Station.

Amazon River, Brazil, photo taken on February 6, 2010

Aruba Antiles near Venezuela, photo taken on February 6, 2010

Magnetic Movie

The secret lives of invisible magnetic fields are revealed as chaotic ever-changing geometries. All action takes place around NASA's Space Sciences Laboratories, UC Berkeley, to recordings of space scientists describing their discoveries. Actual VLF audio recordings control the evolution of the fields as they delve into our inaudible surroundings, revealing recurrent 'whistlers' produced by fleeting electrons. Are we observing a series of scientific experiments, the universe in flux, or a documentary of a fictional world? 

Money Art

Some people might call this government property defacement, other might call this an art form. I'm pretty sure many people have seen some amazing drawings that alter paper currency into an art. Be it with a slight reference to X-Men, Tron, Star Trek or Avatar all of them are awesome. But wait, this is not what this post is going to be about. An artist by the name of Dan Tague creates a different kind of money art. Unlike many money-artistes, he folds currency to align the letters on the bills so that they spell out some intriguing messages and other common sayings. The Following exhibition of this unique art form is titled: "Live Free or Die"

Akinator - The ultimate character guessing internet genie

Akinator is a little fun website that can guess a person, character or anything for that matter. It is an Artificial Intelligence program that can find and learn the best questions to be asked by the player. All you have to do is answer around 20 questions honestly about who you are thinking about and the answer will magically appear by the magical powers of the Akinator.

Go ahead and try to think of something or someone that this internet genie will not be able to guess.

via: Akinator

Cannabis - what it actually does to your brain

   Scientists have known for a while that the active ingredient in cannabis was a chemical called delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC for short. Ingesting or smoking THC has a wide range of effects, from the psychoactive "getting high" to the physiological relief of pain and swelling. It also acts as both a stimulant and depressant. How could one substance do all that?

Manhattan in Motion

Here is yet another timelapse video of New York City from Midnrelic, the creator of the 

Awesome Timelapse of New York City. This video was filmed from the top of high-rise hotel rooms in Manhattan from March to April this year. Enjoy these stunning time-lapse segments of this magnificent city.

Mindrelic - Manhattan in motion from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

2012 Pole Shift: Prophecies of the Maya & I Ching

This Discovery channel show presents good coverage of the general subject of 2012. However, the subject goes far deeper than this and goes to include two predominant theoretical predictions to the end of the world. Those two being: the Ancient Mayan civilization, and the Chinese I Ching book.

via: YouTube

So what do you guys think will happen on the December 21 2012? Is it just another useless prediction of the end of time like the recent one by Harold Camping, or is there some truth to this date?

Tips for getting a better night's sleep

I've been having some trouble sleeping for a couple of days, and so I've have searched for some sleeping tips. Here is what I've found form the National Sleep Foundation. Hope this helps other sleep-deprived souls out there as well

• Maintain a regular bed and wake time schedule, including weekends. Our sleep-wake cycle is regulated by a "circadian clock" in our brain and the body's need to balance both sleep time and wake time. A regular waking time in the morning strengthens the circadian function and can help with sleep onset at night. That is also why it is important to keep a regular bedtime and wake time, even on the weekends when there is the temptation to sleep in.

Plexus Productions Opener

An amazing animation done by Tim Borgmann for a German company called Plexus Productions. This work is very visually appealing and starts off with an ordinary cube floating around, and then it slowly starts to evolve into something magnificent. The accompanying musical score is full of epicness and works very well with the video.

Plexus Productions Opener from Tim Borgmann on Vimeo.

Happy guys finish last, says new study on sexual attractiveness

We've heard it before: nice guys finish last. And when it comes to sexual attraction, it appears the rule holds. Women find happy guys significantly less sexually attractive than swaggering or brooding men, according to a new University of British Columbia study that helps to explain the enduring allure of "bad boys" and other iconic gender types.

Although some of you might be saying that everyone knows that women are more likely to be attracted to a bad-boy attitude, but here is some actual research to back that claim up. The University of British Columbia researchers who worked on the study say there's an inherent contradiction in this finding.