A few nice facts about animals images I found:
Know Your Fats
Image by Earthworm
As indicated by the tittle this is a comprehensive guide to fats, particularly fats we consume. The most significant thing about this book is that the author, Dr. Enig, who is a nutritional science researcher, felt she had to write the book herself despite her dearth of writing skills, because every time she entrusted a writer with her material, they would inevitably make stuff up when they didn't understand something because they thought they already knew the answer. They relied on conventional wisdom which is full of the very misinformation that the author was trying to refute. Thus the book lacks a narrative force to help the reader figure out what is important, but it is encyclopedic in scope. Some of the information is scattered due to the way it is organized.
I also found what she had to say about research in general to be a useful insight. So I'm quoting it in full: "Today, in the food/nutrition/health research market, any researcher who finds results that are contrary to the current, government supported consensus, has a most tricky task. The researcher has to publish everything very carefully in a manner that supports the current consensus in such a way that he/she will continue to receive funding and at the same time report the findings the way they came out.
Some people are very clever at this kind of doublespeak. They repeat the going hypothesis, as if it was valid and written-in-stone, early in the introduction section of their scientific or clinical paper; then they discuss the meaning of the going hypothesis in the discussion section of the paper, the summary section, and/or the abstract; and after this has been published, they apply for the next grant from the appropriate industry or government agency."
This book is now 13 years old. It predates Gary Taubes "Good Calories Bad Calories". It has now been taken up by paleo nutritionists and traditional foods people. Dr. Enig is one of the experts behind the Western Price foundation.
Dr. Enig is chiefly noted for her contribution regarding trans fat and hydrogenated fats and health problems related to these man made fats. In this book she compiles facts about all fats, their original source and a little history of their use in cooking and eating as well as some background information on how the government and the public got so mixed up about saturated fats being so bad. It is interesting that she notes that Ancel Keys, who was the doctor who so adamant about heart disease being related to saturated fats, later switched to targeting hydrogenated fats which prompted the makers of said fats to insist that it was only the saturated fatty acids was the problem and they would solve it by going to partially hydrogenated fats which was just as bad. This is the basis of margarines.
She also names the Center For Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) as an organization whose activism was responsible for much of the demonization of palm oil and other saturated tropical fats resulting in the replacement of these healthy natural oils with hydrogenated vegetable oils. Some of us remember how popcorn oil (coconut oil) in movie theaters was thus demonized in the '80s. The problem with the scientific research at the time was that it did not distinguish between trans fat and saturated fat regarding the connection between fats and heart disease. And so the anti-saturated fat campaign stuck for another 30 years. Good saturated fats include tropical oils (palm and coconut), lard, animal fats. See next slide.
The oil that is problematic is polyunsaturated oils, i.e. seed oils (see slide after next). Part of the problem with these oils is the way hexane is used to extract them from the seed. But the main problem with them is that they are unstable and go rancid easily so must be refrigerated. And because they are so unstable the digesting of them creates free radicals which may attack the artery wall. They also become rancid if you cook with them, which pretty much renders them useless in my eyes. Those that can still be used for cooking according to Dr. Enig is corn oil, peanut oil, olive oil, high oleic safflower oil, high oleic sunflower oil. More current information in newer books cautions against cooking with these oils since the problems begin at a certain high heat.
The main health benefit of eating saturated fats is to supply the body with building material for cell walls (it helps to stiffen the cell walls) and to assist in the absorption of fat soluble vitamins.
Running away from fireworks
Image by rynde
Just as I came out on my parents balcony on New Years eve to shot some of the fireworks, a rabbit came running frightened and disoriented because of the terrifying sound from the fireworks. And as the rabbit ran across the front of the balcony I just instinctively raised my camera and shot off a series of panned shots with the aim of capturing his movement through the night.
I think it came out nice though it´s very blurry. But that´s the charm with this image plus the fact that you can sense his rabbit legs pacing about like an ancient steam engine...
