Laughter Therapy in Postpartum Women

The study looked at formal laughter therapy in postpartum women and found that those who engaged in the laughter therapy had significantly different levels of sIgA levels in breast milk. The authors conclude that laughter therapy can be applied as a complementary and alternative medicine intervention.

Comment: This study has a control group, but not a control treatment, so the Hawthorne Effect cannot be excluded as a cause for the differences found. However, the Hawthorne Effect is somewhat less likely in patients with a measurable change in sIgA. So, this study is hypothesis generating but not very good evidence that laughter therapy affects sIgA. It could be that simply socializing caused the difference in sIgA, or just getting out of the house; we just cannot conclude that the laughter therapy was the causative factor. 

J Altern Complement Med. 2015 Dec;21(12):781-8

How blockchain-timestamped protocols could improve the trustworthiness of medical science.

Blockchain technology can create an immutable record of transactions, a valid ledger of events. Using a blockchain to verify that scientific data is not being manipulated may help advance scientific integrity. F1000Res. 2016;5:222

Comment: Sadly, scientists have been known to manipulate data in an effort to gain fame, notoriety, or job advancement. An independent blockchain has the capability to provide proof of endpoints in clinical trials, and potentially strengthen the value and accuracy of medical research.

Users Polarization on Facebook and Youtube.

Social media users tend to select information and contacts that support their beliefs, creating polarized echo chambers. Computer automated customized content drives the emergence of echo chambers. PLoS One. 2016 Aug 23;11(8):e0159641.

Comment: The lesson here seems to be that on social media platforms, in order to be exposed to diverse views and ideas, we need to intentionally follow or become friends with people that think differently than us. Simply having a diverse group of friends or followers based upon gender, sexual orientation, or skin color is not enough. We need to seek out diverse opinions and contrarian views in order to avoid getting caught up in a self-imposed echo chamber.

Networks and Games for Precision Medicine.

Computational game theory combined with Boolean networks may improve the characterization of the interplay between disease and drugs in individual patients, creating more precise and individualized medical therapy. Biosystems. 2016 Aug 16.

Comment: There is an important role for computer scientists in developing precision medicine. Computers will continue to play an increasingly large role in the practice of medicine with time.

Two

Falling in love again
With the girl of my dreams.
I'm going head over heels again
Looking forward to brand new things

That we are gonna
see from a different view
and do all the things
we've wanted to

I'm going head over heels again
I'm going one-on-one with you
All over again.

It's through and through.
Two.

The Success Indicator

Napolean Hill called it the power of habit force. My swimming coach when I was a teenager simply used it to keep track of how far team members swam. Benjamin Franklin used one.  So did W Clement Stone and Jerry Seinfeld.

All you have to do is make a grid. Each row contains an important action item, that you must do regularly if you want to accomplish your goal. Each column contains a date. On a regular basis, check the box corresponding with the action you took, and the date. With time, you will clearly be able to tell whether you will succeed, or fail.

If your grid is full, you will succeed at that objective. The full grid is your "success indicator." If your grid is empty, it becomes a "failure indicator," and you will fail at that particular objective.

By using this grid, you develop habits, and over time, your habits will determine your major results in life.

What Will Happen If You Boil a Cola?

This is an interesting experiment to show you visually how much sugar there is in soda.