Surprising Science — November 19, 2009

Facing Fat

Some morbidly overweight people don’t realise they’re obese according to the findings of a new report.

“Some obese individuals don’t realize they have a weight problem, a new study finds. That could be an unhealthy attitude as these same people tend not to exercise and have many risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The study, based on survey data collected in Dallas, found that one in 10 participants — all of whom were classified as obese — were satisfied with their body size and didn’t think they needed to lose a few. ‘That is a sizeable percentage who don’t understand they are overweight and believe they are healthy,’ said lead researcher Tiffany Powell, a cardiology fellow at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. Either way, obesity packs many negative health effects, including increased risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and hypertension.”

a computer generated image of a human brain.

Thinking

The great free will debate featuring Michio Kaku and Steven Pinker

Who — or what — really controls your mind?

Building destroyed by the Halifax Explosion. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

The Past

The largest accidental explosion of all time

More than a century ago, Halifax suffered an accidental blast one-fifth the size of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

a collage of photos of a man with a hat and a book.

High Culture

6 great books with wildly unreliable narrators

Dive into the twisted truths and concealed realities told by literature’s most unreliable narrators.

a group of five matches on a pink background.

The Well

Signs you’re burned out — and how to bounce back

If you don’t feel better after the weekend, the “burnout paradox” could explain why.

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7 min

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with

Laurie Santos

Starts With A Bang

The trick to instantly identifying JWST images

If you can identify a foreground star, the spike patterns are a dead giveaway as to whether it’s a JWST image or any other observatory.

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Culture & Religion

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