Science gets a grip on wrinkly fingers

By Samantha R. Selman

Scientists think that they have the answer to why the skin on human fingers and toes shrivels up like an old prune when we soak in the bath. Laboratory tests confirmed a theory that wrinkly fingers improve our grip on wet or submerged objects, working to channel away the water like the rain treads in car tires.

People often assume that wrinkling is the result of water passing into the outer layer of the skin and making it swell up. But researchers have known since the 1930s that the effect does not occur when there is nerve damage in the fingers. This points to the change being an involuntary reaction by the body’s autonomic nervous system — the system that also controls breathing, heart rate and perspiration. In fact, the distinctive wrinkling is caused by blood vessels constricting below the skin.

In 2011, Mark Changizi, an evolutionary neurobiologist at 2AI Labs in Boise, Idaho, and his colleagues, suggested¹ that wrinkling, being an active process, must have an evolutionary function. The team also showed that the pattern of wrinkling appeared to be optimized for providing a drainage network that improved grip. But until now, there was no proof that wrinkly fingers did in fact offer an advantage.

In the latest study, participants picked up wet or dry objects including marbles of different sizes with normal hands or with fingers wrinkled after soaking in warm water for 30 minutes. The subjects were faster at picking up wet marbles with wrinkled fingers than with dry ones, but wrinkles made no difference for moving dry objects. The results are published today in Biology Letters².

“We have shown that wrinkled fingers give a better grip in wet conditions — it could be working like treads on your car tyres, which allow more of the tyre to be in contact with the road and gives you a better grip,” says Tom Smulders, an evolutionary biologist at Newcastle University, UK, and a co-author of the paper.

Hold tight

Wrinkled fingers could have helped our ancestors to gather food from wet vegetation or streams, Smulders adds. The analogous effect in the toes could help us to get a better footing in the rain.

Changizi says that the results provide behavioural evidence “that pruney fingers are rain treads”, which are consistent with his own team’s morphological findings. What remains to be done, he adds, is to check that similar wrinkling occurs in other animals for which it would provide the same advantages. “At this point we just don’t know who has them, besides us and macaques.”

Given that wrinkles confer an advantage with wet objects but apparently no disadvantage with dry ones, it’s not clear why our fingers are not permanently wrinkled, says Smulders. But he has some ideas. “Our initial thoughts are that this could diminish the sensitivity in our fingertips or could increase the risk of damage through catching on objects.”

 

References

1. Changizi, M., Weber, R., Kotecha, R. & Palazzo, J. Brain Behav. Evol. 77, 286–290 (2011).
2. Kareklas, K., Nettle, D. & Smulders, T. V. Biol. Lett. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2012.0999(2013).

100Feed: How to Safely Photograph Sunday’s Eclipse

On Sunday, May 20, the western half of the United States will be treated to a spectacular annular eclipse as the sun sets in the western sky.
This 4 1/2-minute-long “ring of fire” as the moon blocks the sun will be visible to observers along a narrow track that stretches from Northern California to the Texas Panhandle.

The last time an annular eclipse was widely visible in the United States was May 10, 1994. After Sunday, the next one to be seen in the country won’t occur until Oct. 14, 2023.

If you’re planning to shoot this weekend’s eclipse with a digital camera, particularly a digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera, here are a few pointers to increase your chances of success:

1. Use a proper solar filter: Never look at the sun with your naked eyes, or through a telescope, binocular or camera viewfinder without a safe solar filter. Failure to do so can result in serious eye injury or blindness.

Use a No. 14 welder’s glass filter, or purchase special solar filters from companies such as Thousand Oaks, Kendrick Astro Instruments, or Orion Telescopes & Binoculars, and fit them securely in front of your equipment.

2. Use a telescope or telephoto lens with a focal length of 400 millimeters or more: This helps to get detailed, close-up shots of the eclipse. This will give you a reasonably large image of the sun’s disk in the frame.

3. Use a sturdy tripod or mount: Make sure your tripod and head are strong and stable enough to support your camera gear. Keep your setup as portable, light and easy to assemble as possible in case you need to relocate in a hurry to escape clouds.

4. Set the camera to its highest resolution: To record as much detail and color information as possible, use your camera’s highest-quality (least-compressed) JPEG setting or “lossless” (uncompressed) image formats, such as TIFF or RAW.

5. Use a high ISO setting: Set your camera to ISO 400 (or higher) to keep exposures very short and prevent blurring from vibrations.

6. Switch to manual: Set your camera to “manual” (M) so you’ll be able to control its focus as well as exposure and white-balance settings.

7. Focus carefully: Don’t let poor focus ruin your images. If possible, prefocus your camera the night before the eclipse using a bright star.
Otherwise, focus carefully on the sun’s edge (or on sunspots, if some are visible). Place a piece of adhesive tape on your telephoto’s focus ring (or lock the telescope focuser) to keep it from accidentally being moved during the eclipse. Be sure to recheck your focus as the eclipse progresses and refine it if needed.

8. Minimize vibrations: The mirror slap in DSLRs can cause blurred images. If possible, use the camera’s mirror lock-up feature before each shot to keep vibrations to a minimum. You should also operate the shutter with an electronic cable release to eliminate camera shake. Lastly, choose an observing spot that is shielded from the wind.

9. “Bracket” your exposures: It’s a challenge to determine the correct exposure beforehand, so shoot the eclipse at various shutter speeds.
10. Use a fresh battery: DSLRs can easily drain their batteries, especially if you use the LCD screen continuously. Make sure you have a fully charged battery right before the eclipse begins, and have a spare one handy, just in case.

11. Test your imaging setup: Be sure to try out your actual setup before the eclipse. This will reveal any potential problems with focusing and vibrations, as well as internal reflections or vignetting in the optics. Take some test shots of the sun to give you an idea of what exposure to use with your solar filter.

12. Try to shoot the sun in hydrogen-alpha: Unlike “white light,” the plain, visible light from the sun, H-alpha is the red light given off by hydrogen atoms in the sun’s atmosphere. A portable H-alpha telescope offers a wealth of stunning details of the sun at a wavelength of 656.3 nanometers.

13. Process your images: Since the camera’s output is already in digital format, it’s easy to enhance the images’ brightness, contrast, sharpness and color balance using image-editing software such as Adobe Photoshop. You can also “stitch” the frames together to create a movie.
Shooting the Eclipse with Video

As with digital cameras, you need a proper solar filter over your camcorder when recording the sun.

Today’s camcorders have zoom lenses with up to 40x (or more) optical magnification. To videotape the eclipse, simply mount the camcorder on a tripod and zoom in on the filtered sun to the lens’s highest power. (Hand-holding the camcorder can result in shaky footage.) High-end camcorders have manual controls for adjusting the gain, f-stop and shutter speed so you don’t overexpose the sun’s disk.

Again, it is best to test your setup before the eclipse. On the day of the event, be sure to use a fully charged battery and bring a spare one as backup. Take two- to three-second clips every two to five minutes to produce a time-lapse sequence that compresses the eclipse’s hourlong partial phase into just under a minute.

High-end DSLRs are capable of shooting HD video. (Check your camera manual.) In a pinch, you also can use your cell phone camera to shoot video (or still images) through a filtered telescope. Low-cost webcams can also be useful.

Good luck on E-Day!

100Feed: Solar Eclipse on May 20, 2012

When the sun vanishes behind the moon for the first time over the United States in this century, what better place to enjoy the view than from one of the 154 national parks that stand in its path?

Astronomy lovers in the United States will be treated to a partial disappearance of the sun behind the moon this Sunday (May 20). Only the Eastern Seaboard will be totally exempt. The eclipse will occur in the late afternoon or early evening of May 20 throughout North America, and May 21 for observers in Asia.

Over the course of the solar eclipse, the sun won’t vanish completely, but will remain as a ring around the moon for what is known as an annular eclipse. When the eclipse occurs, the moon will be near its most distant point from Earth, making it appear smaller in the sky and thus unable to block the entire sun. But it will still be a stunning sight.

Thirty-three national parks will see the full effect of the moon’s interference. Many western parks will be offering an array of events for their guests, ranging from placing telescopes out for viewing up to a full-scale astronomy festival.

“We’re lucky that so many parks happen to lie within the path of the annular eclipse,” Grand Canyon park ranger Marker Marshall told OurAmazingPlanet.

The Grand Canyon park staff, along with the help of the Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association, will be setting up solar telescopes and helping people safely view the eclipse. NASA scientists will be present to talk about the eclipse, as well as recent lunar findings. They will also have eclipse glasses for sale and will demonstrate how to use binoculars to safely set up a projection of the eclipse on a piece of paper. After the eclipse, the park will host a star party.

Marshall noted that, like other national parks, the Grand Canyon boasts signs warning people not to look directly at the sun, or to view the sun through telescopes, binoculars or cameras without a solar filter. Doing so will damage your eyes.

At Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah, the annual Astronomy Festival has been moved to coincide with eclipse weekend. Great Basin National Park in Nevada will hold a pre-eclipse party Saturday night with a presentation by an actor playing Galileo, and a special program on Sunday. Several parks will instruct guests on how to make a pinhole viewer of their own to safely observe the eclipse. Several other parks are receiving assistance from their local amateur astronomy clubs to help the public safely watch the show.

Visitors should bring flashlights and jackets, especially if they plan to stay after the eclipse concludes.
“People come to parks to enjoy a dark night sky, and see things like the Milky Way,” Marshall said.
“We can really facilitate people seeing even daytime events,” she added.

But Marshall warns that, while the eclipse will make an interesting image, it won’t necessarily make a great photograph.

Aiming a camera at the eclipse unprotected could damage it. Hopeful photographers need to add a solar filter to their setup, which will wash out the view of the landscape.

“The casual photographer won’t be able to get a photo of the eclipse over the canyon,” she said. Instead, she urges people to enjoy the image captured in their memory.

And there will be plenty of memories made. According to Marshall, all of the campgrounds and hotels around the Grand Canyon that take reservations are booked. Though the first-come, first-serve campgrounds are still available, she anticipates that they, too, will fill quickly, leaving hopeful visitors with a drive of more than an hour to the nearest hotel.

Although only a handful of western parks will receive the full effect of the eclipse, another 125 parks lay along the path of the partial eclipse, where they will provide a stunning view to those not fortunate enough to see the complete show. From Alaska to Minnesota, national parks will catch a partial eclipse or a partial view.

“Astronomy generally is the kind of thing people look for in national parks, so we’re glad to help people celebrate it here,” Marshall said.

100Feed: Light from Alien Super-Earth Seen for First Time

Light from an alien “super-Earth” twice the size of our own Earth has been detected by a NASA for the first time in what astronomers are calling a historic achievement.

NASA’s infrared Spitzer Space Telescope spotted light from the alien planet 55 Cancri e, which orbits a star forty-one light-years from Earth. A day on the extra-solar planet lasts just 18 hours.

The planet 55 Cancri e was first discovered in 2004 and is not a habitable world. Instead, it is known as a super-Earth because of its size: The world is about twice the width of Earth and is super-dense, with about eight times the mass of Earth.

Until now, scientists have never managed to detect the infrared light from the super-Earth world.

“Spitzer has amazed us yet again,” said Spitzer program scientist Bill Danch of NASA headquarters in Washington in a statement today (May 8th). “The spacecraft is pioneering the study of atmospheres of distant planets and paving the way for NASA’s upcoming James Webb Space Telescope to apply a similar technique on potentially habitable planets.”

Spitzer first detected infrared light from an alien planet in 2005; that world was “hot Jupiter,” a gas giant planet much larger than 55 Cancri e that orbited extremely close to its parent star. While other telescopes have performed similar feats since then, Spitzer’s view of the 55 Cancri e is the first time the light from a rocky super-Earth type planet has been seen, researchers said.

Since the discovery of 55 Cancri e, astronomers have pinned down increasingly strange features about the planet. The researchers already knew it was part of an alien solar system containing five exoplanets centered on the star 55 Cancri in the constellation Cancer (The Crab).

The Alien super-earth 55 Cancri e stood out because it is ultra-dense and orbits extremely close to its parent star; about 26 times closer than the distance between Mercury and our own sun.

The new Spitzer observations revealed that the star-facing side of 55 Cancri e is extremely hot, with temperatures reaching up to 3,140 degrees Fahrenheit (1,726 degrees Celsius). The planet is likely a dark world that lacks the substantial atmosphere needed to warm its nighttime side, researchers said. To top it all off, the planet is oozing.

Past observations of the planet by the Spitzer Space Telescope have suggested that one-fifth of 55 Cancri e is made up of lighter elements, including water. But the extreme temperatures and pressures on 55 Cancri e would create what scientists call a “supercritical fluid” state.
Supercritical fluids can be imagined as a gas in a liquid state, which can occur under extreme pressures and temperatures. On Earth, water can become a supercritical fluid inside some steam engines.

The previous studies of 55 Cancri e were performed by analyzing how the light from its parent star changed as the planet passed in front of it, a technique known as the “transit method.” In the new study, astronomers used the Spitzer Space Telescope to determine the infrared light from 55 Cancri e itself.

Spitzer’s new look at 55 Cancri e is consistent with supercritical-fluid waterworld theory. The planet is likely a rocky world covered with water in a supercritical fluid state and topped off with a steam blanket, researchers said.

“It could be very similar to Neptune, if you pulled Neptune in toward our sun and watched its atmosphere boil away,” said the study’s principal investigator Michaël Gillon of Université de Liège in Belgium. The lead author is Brice-Olivier Demory of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge.

The research is detailed in the Astrophysical Journal.

NASA’s $770 million Spitzer Space Telescope launched in 2003 and is currently in an extended mission to study the universe in infrared light. During that extended mission, telescope engineers modified several settings on the observatory to optimize its alien planet vision, NASA officials said.

The space agency’s next major infrared space observatory, the James Webb Space Telescope slated to launch in 2018, could potentially reveal even more details about 55 Cancri e and other similar super-Earth planets.

“When we conceived of Spitzer more than 40 years ago, exoplanets hadn’t even been discovered,” said Michael Werner, Spitzer project scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California “Because Spitzer was built very well, it’s been able to adapt to this new field and make historic advances such as this.”

100Feed: Diamond Pet Food Recalled After Salmonella Outbreak

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it’s looking into a salmonella outbreak in humans that may trace back to Diamond Pet Foods’ dog food. The affected food was manufactured in South Carolina, but the illness has sickened 14 people across nine states overall. CDC investigators believe it’s possible that those who have fallen ill with the rare strain of salmonella got sick via contact with dogs who had eaten the tainted food.

The recall has expanded since April, when Diamond, whose website touts its products as “holistic” and “all-natural,” and gives pride of place to its purified-water cooking process, pulled just three brands. Now, as a precaution, the company has broadened the recall to nine brands, thanks to information gleaned from those sickened; seven of 10 of those stricken had had contact with a dog in the week prior, and five of the sick people remembered the type of dog food they’d had contact with as well.

The nine states with reported cases are Alabama, Connecticut, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia. However, the food is distributed in as many as 16 states and in Canada, which is also subject to the recall.

How did the salmonella jump from dog-food bowls to the people who came down with the strain? The CDC is still tracking the outbreak, but said there could be a handful of explanations: people touching the dog food, then their own food; contact with bowls or utensils used to serve the dog food that were not cleaned properly afterwards.

How to prevent it in your home? Washing your hands frequently and thoroughly with hot soapy water is the best way to fend off any illness. Also wash your hands before and after contact with pet food, including treats; after petting or handling pets (and especially their poop); before preparing your own meals, and before eating them. Children are less able to fight off food-borne illness, so don’t let them near the pet food bowls, and keep an eye on those photogenic dog kisses, which could spread disease as well.

In this case, the easiest preventive measure you can take is checking your pantry for suspect kibble, getting rid of any recalled brands immediately, then cleaning the surfaces and storage containers it had contact with.

This isn’t the first time kibble has caused an extended salmonella outbreak among humans. The years 2006 and 2007 saw salmonella passed around 70 people in 19 states due to contaminated kibble. If you think you have salmonella (whose symptoms often resemble a garden-variety stomach bug: fever, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, GI pain), call your doctor promptly. The symptoms look pretty similar in pets, so if you think your dog or cat is affected, contact your veterinarian.

100Feed: 100 Best Health Foods

Brain Food

1. Shellfish: Shellfish contains Vitamin B12, iron, magnesium and potassium which are great for brain function.
2. Low-fat foods: Psychology Today reports that a diet rich in saturated fatty foods can lead to depression and cancer.
3. Salmon: Salmon is full of omega-3 fatty acids, which are good for the heart and brain.
4. Canola oil: Cook with canola oil instead of corn and sunflower oils to up your intake of omega-3s.
5. Avocado: Avocado is full of the good kinds of fatty acids, and it’s also supposed to be good for your hair and nails.
6. Good carbohydrates: To keep your glucose levels at the right level, eat vitamin-rich, whole grain cereals, toast and crackers when your energy is low.
7. Eggs: Eggs contain choline, a type of B vitamin that is good for memory and stress management.
8. Almonds: Almonds are often touted as a good brain food, giving you lots of energy. They also contain choline.
9. Fruits and vegetables: Fruits and vegetables have many great health benefits, and the brain especially loves green, leafy veggies.
10. Lean beef: Lean beef and beef liver also contain choline.

Bone Health

1. Fortified milk: Make sure the milk you’re drinking is fortified with Vitamin D.
2. Kale: Kale is rich in Vitamin K and contains calcium.
3. Cottage cheese: Cottage cheese is estimated to have between 318 and 156 mg of calcium.
4. Fortified orange juice: Fortified oj is also a great source of Vitamin D.
5. Cabbage: Cabbage raises estrogen levels, which is good for aging women.
6. Calcium-fortified cereal: WebMD suggests having 1 cup of calcium-fortified cereal for a bone-healthy breakfast.
7. Calcium-fortified soy milk: If you’re lactose intolerant, try soy milk, which contains between 80 and 500 mg of calcium if it’s fortified.
8. Collards: Just 1/2 a cup of collards contains about 20% of your recommended daily value of calcium.
9. Dandelion: Add dandelion to your recipes to get heaping doses of boron and a good share of calcium.
10. Yogurt: One cup of yogurt contains between 300 and 400 mg of calcium.

Dental Health

1. Raisins: ScienceDaily reports that the “compounds found in raisins fight bacteria in the mouth that cause cavities and gum disease.”
2. Water: Water is essential to good oral health.
3. Raw broccoli: Raw broccoli is rich in magnesium, which teeth love.
4. Cooked spinach: Cooked spinach is another good source of magnesium.

Avoiding Empty Calories

1. Peanut butter: In moderation, peanut butter is a good snack because it lower cholesterol and your risk for cardiovascular disease. Peanut butter also keeps you full longer, so you won’t keep reaching for more snacks.
2. Dark chocolate: “Dark chocolate is healthy chocolate,” according to WebMD, and in small servings, it’s a great alternative to heavier desserts.
3. Milk: Milk has calcium and Vitamin D, and it’s also good for weight loss.
4. Nuts: Unsalted nuts are a great snack, and even though they may have a higher calorie content than a few potato chips, they’ll keep you full longer and will give you much needed nutrients.
5. Banana: Eat a banana for a snack or for dessert instead of a piece of cake that’s packed with nothing but sugar and has no nutrients. Bananas are also softer fruits, which can be ideal for some people with dentures or weaker teeth.
6. Fiber-rich foods: Foods with a lot of fiber will keep you fuller longer and are better for your digestion.

Antioxidants

1. Carrots: Carrots are rich in beta-carotene, which is an antioxidant. Steam carrots if raw ones are too crunchy.
2. Spinach: Raw and cooked spinach are both good sources of lutein.
3. Sweet potatoes: Sweet potatoes are soft and have lots of beta-carotene and Vitamin A. Be careful of extra sugary yams, however.
4. Tomatoes: Eat tomatoes to get the antioxidant lycopene.
5. Blueberries: Blueberries are considered good brain food and are rich in antioxidants.

Low-Sugar

1. Diet, caffeine-free soda: If you’re a soda-oholic, try a diet, caffeine-free version. Water is best, though.
2. Whole grain breads: Multigrain, whole grain and mixed grain breads have a lower glycemic index than most other breads.
3. Apples: If your teeth are strong enough, cut up some apple, which has a lower glycemic index than oranges, peaches and bananas.
4. Low-fat yogurt: Instead of ice cream, have some low-fat yogurt for a snack, which has a glycemic index of 33.
5. Vegetables: Snack on fresh veggies for sugar-free and low-sugar snacks.

Digestion and More

1. Red beets: Red beets are said to help constipation symptoms.
2. Non-greasy foods: Greasy foods are harder to digest and can give more sensitive tracts heartburn and discomfort.
3. Cranberry juice: Drink 100% cranberry juice (not cranberry juice concentrate) to ward off urinary tract infections.
4. Cod liver oil: Rich in Vitamin A and Vitamin D, cod liver oil is also good for the digestive tract.
5. Green tea: Some believe that green tea helps ease Inflammatory Bowel Disease, and it’s also good for the heart.
6. Raw foods: Raw and unprocessed foods are best for warding off colon cancer.
7. Barley: Soluble fiber, which does not create excess gas, is found in barley.
8. Prunes: Prunes are an excellent source of dietary fiber, which helps digestion and bowel movements.
9. Oat bran: Oat bran is another source of soluble fiber.
10. Turnips: Include turnips in your meals to get even more dietary fiber.

Low-Salt

1. Lima beans: A 3.5 oz. serving of canned lima benas only have 1 mg of sodium.
2. Brussel sprouts: Enjoy brussel sprouts at just 10 mg of sodium per 3.5 oz. serving.
3. Fresh coconut: Fresh coconut has a moderate amount of salt but is a good snack alternative to chips.
4. Blackberries: Blackberries just have 1 mg of sodium per 3.5 oz. serving.
5. Roast beef: Roast beef without extra sauces only has 60 mg of salt per 3.5 oz. serving.
6. White bean and roasted bell pepper hummus: This low sodium recipe is recommended by the American Heart Association.
7. Colorful Tuna Pasta Salad: This entire meal has 320 mg of sodium per 1 1/2 cup serving.
8. Okra and Tomatoes: This hot veggie dish is still low sodium.
9. Apple sauce: If sodium is a major issue for you, make or buy a low-sodium apple sauce to snack on.
10. Herring: Herring can be a low-sodium dinner alternative.

Whole Grains

1. Whole grain cereal: Whole grain cereal is an easy breakfast or snack option that provides lots of fiber and vitamins.
2. Whole wheat pasta: Your body can break down whole wheat pasta better than white pasta.
3. Whole grain sandwich bread: Whole grain bread is not made up of refined carbohydrates, which are harder to digest and pack on pounds.
4. Whole wheat tortillas: Whole wheat tortillas are better for you than flour or fried versions.
5. Whole wheat flour: Look for whole wheat flour when comparing nutrition labels.
6. Whole grain or wheat English muffins: You don’t have to give up your English muffins if you’re afraid of starches and refined sugar and carbohydrates. Just pick a whole grain or whole wheat version instead.
7. Bulgur: Bulgur is a cracked wheat ingredient that satisfies a whole grains servings requirement.
8. Brown rice: Brown rice is good for you and will keep you full longer, so you’re getting the most out of your calorie intake.
9. Quinoa: If you’re tired of rice, make quinoa for another whole grain side dish.
10. Bran: Bran cereals or granola bars are good for digestion and for keeping you full.

Fruits and Veggies
At all ages, raw fruits and vegetables or lightly steamed vegetables are the best choice for getting the most vitamins and minerals per bite. Read below for some of our suggestions.

1. Kiwi: Kiwi is one of the few fruits that contains riboflavin, which helps release energy from carbs.
2. Peas: Peas are another food that can help your body get energy from carbohydrates more easily. Raw peas work well in salads.
3. Mushrooms: Mushrooms are an excellent low-calorie food that have more potassium than oranges, can lower blood pressure and may decrease tumor size.
4. Asparagus: Asparagus is a great source of Vitamin A, which helps cell reproduction and is good for the immune system.
5. Corn: Cook with fresh corn to get enough Vitamin B3, or niacin, which is good for the digestive system.
6. Cauliflower: Eat cauliflower for a faster metabolism, which slows as you get older.
7. Watermelon: Watermelon has a lot of sugar, but it’s low in calories and contains B6, B3, B1, and Vitamin A. Enjoy in small samples.
8. Summer squash: Summer squash is easy to prepare and works well with all kinds of dishes. It’s also a good source of niacin.
9. Strawberries: Strawberries have antioxidant benefits and Vitamin C.
10. Cucumber: Add cucumber to your salads for an extra dose of Vitamin C.
11. Peppers: Peppers are another easy and versatile vegetable, and they are an excellent source of Vitamin A, beta-carotene and Vitamin C. They also contain potassium and iron.
12. Artichokes: Artichokes are another source of niacin.
13. Red cabbage: Good for stews and soups, red cabbage contains iron, Vitamin A and lots of Vitamin C.
14. Brown onion: Add brown onion to your meals for a good source of Vitamins B1, B6 and C.
15. Leeks: Eat leeks to get a good serving of folate.

Vitamins, high-nutrient foods

1. Calcium: Healthlink, The Medical College of Wisconsin reports that seniors need between 1200 and 1400 mg of calcium daily.
2. Vitamin D: Seniors need 600 international units of Vitamin D, according to Healthlink.
3. Antioxidant vitamins: If you don’t get enough of the right vegetables and fruits that have antioxidants, take a supplement.
4. Fiber: Fiber helps digestion and prevents diverticulosis.
5. Vitamin C: Vitamin C supplements are easy to find and can help boost your immune system.
6. B12: If your breakfast cereal and milk is not fortified with B12, take a supplement.
7. Vitamin K: Vitamin K helps prevent blood clotting and keeps bones strong, and it may even help prevent Alzheimer’s.
8. Zinc: Zinc is considered to be an antioxidant but isn’t found in large amounts in enough foods.
9. Bioflavonoids: Give your immune system more power by taking a bioflavonoid supplement.
10. Folate: Harvard School of Public Health reports that folate may prevent some types of cancer and heart disease.

Eyesight

1. Garlic: Garlic contains a lot of sulfur, which produces a kind of antioxidant for the eye called glutathione.
2. Lutein: Foods with lutein, like kale and spinach, are good for eyesight.
3. Onions: Onions are also rich in glutathione.
4. Low sugar foods: The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that high sugar diets and foods might make AMD, or age-related macular degeneration, worse.
5. Fish Oil: Fish oil found in mackerel, salmon, flax seed and walnuts, help preserve eyesight.

100Feed: One-Hundred Easy Ways to Increase Brain Function

This list contains 100 ways you can increase brain function. These are simple, everyday things that just about anyone can do. They will make you feel happier and help you focus. How appropriate for a first post?

1. Solve puzzles and brainteasers
2. Learn mind mapping
3. Block one or more senses (for example, wear earplugs)
4. Find intersections between unrelated topics (remember six degrees of Kevin Bacon?)
5. Ask “what if?” questions
6. Turn pictures or paintings upside down
7. Become a critical thinker
8. Use the scientific method
9. Draw, scribble and doodle. It doesn’t matter what you draw as long as you draw
10. Learn to play an instrument
11. Learn to juggle
12. Write at least 1000 words per day. Once again, it doesn’t matter what you write about
13. Eat “brain foods”
14. Be slightly hungry
15. Exercise. In the morning after you wake up, consider doing ten pushups and ten sit-ups to “get going”
16. Use good posture. Sit up straight.
17. Stay hydrated
18. Practice deep-breathing
19. Laugh
20. Vary activities… don’t follow a strict schedule.
21. Sleep well; take naps.
22. Listen to music
23. Stop procrastinating!
24. Stop using computers and cell-phones for at least 24 hours.
25. Change clothes. Go barefoot
26. Talk to yourself. (Do it in private, though! if you do it in public it may look a little… creepy.)
27. Simplify, simplify, simplify. Practice simplifying equations, for example.
28. Play chess
29. Create a list of 100
30. Tell a joke
31. Have an idea quota
32. Write down creative thoughts and ideas on post-its.
33. Engage in “theme observation”. Try to spot the color red as many times as possible in a day
34. Keep a journal.
35. Learn a foreign language
36. Eat at different restaurants
37. Learn a programming language
38. Spell long words backwards. sdrawkcab sdrow gnol llepS
39. Change your environment. Move furniture around.
40. Write poetry
41. Start a blog
42. Learn sign language
43. Visit a museum
44. Study how the brain works
45. Learn how to speed-read
46. Throw away your calendar. Try to mentally estimate the passage of time.
47. Guesstimate.
48. Learn calculus and trigonometry; make math your best friend
49. Have sex
50. Memorize people’s names and faces
51. Meditate for at least an hour a day
52. Watch movies from different genres
53. Turn off the TV
54. Improve your concentration
55. Practice mental math. (Quick! What is five percent of twenty? Work problems out in your head.)
56. Change the speed of certain tasks.
57. Do one thing at a time. Multi-tasking is your brain’s worst enemy.
58. Put yourself in someone else’s shoes. What would it be like to be a journalist?
59. Adopt an attitude of contemplation.
60. Take time to relax.
61. Commit yourself to lifelong learning.
62. Travel abroad.
63. Have imaginary friends.
64. Get competitive.
65. Associate with people with different beliefs. If you are Republican, consider talking to a few Democrats. Discuss your differing opinions, but do it in an accepting and open fashion.
66. Brainstorm.
67. Collect quotes.
68. Change the media you’re working on. If you’re a writer, use lined paper instead of a word processor.
69. Read classic novels. (Mark Twain, O. Henry and Somerset Maugham for example).
70. Summarize books and articles.
71. Develop self-awareness.
72. Say your problems out loud.
73. Describe one experience in painstaking detail.
74. Learn braille.
75. Buy a piece of art that disturbs you (nude portraits are a good place to start).
76. Try different perfumes and colognes.
77. Mix your senses. (What does the color red sound like?)
78. Ask “stupid” questions.
79. Argue.
80. Allocate time for learning.
81. Have your own mental sanctuary (a bedroom, for example).
82. Be curious!
83. Challenge yourself.
84. Develop your visualization skills.
85. Take notes of your dreams.
86. Learn to lucid dream.
87. Invent your own words.
88. Find metaphors.
89. Eliminate stress.
90. Obsess over “random”. Visit random sites using StumbleUpon. Learn about a random topic. Say “Hello, how are you?” to a stranger. Read random magazine articles.
91. Take different routes to work each day.
92. Install a different operating system on your computer.
93. Improve your vocabulary.
94. Give one-hundred and ten percent. Give more than what is expected.
95. Get to know your friends or family members better by asking odd questions (If you could have any job in the world, what would it be?)
96. Read blogs (like this one).
97. Play video games.
98. Memorize the lyrics of songs.
99. Constantly work on improving and adding to your skills.
100. Devote an hour a day to being alone and writing, reading or meditating.