Science | The Burgundy Zine

May 8, 2021

Planet-Friendly Agriculture: It’s “Farming,” not “Harming”

Beyond the “modern-day necessities” — cars, gas, electricity, and TikTok — the historically fundamental necessity, farming, contributes to a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions globally. These emissions arise from agricultural practices, forestry, and land-use changes.

… Oh, and cow farts (or rather, their burps). Lest we forget the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reported that 14.5 percent of GHG emissions come from livestock, with cattle contributing to more than half of those emissions.

Since not-farming is not an option (and we can’t expect cows to never be gassy, even with dietary interventions), it’s high time for a sustainability overhaul of the agricultural industry: planet-friendly farming.

April 30, 2021

Vegetables Aren’t Real

By now, we’ve all heard the age-old argument about whether tomatoes are a fruit or a vegetable. Although the U.S. Supreme Court ruled tomatoes were a vegetable for “tax purposes” in 1893, a botanist would tell you that vegetables aren’t real and that tomatoes are actually a berry.

While we’re at it, cucumbers, peppers, avocados, pumpkins, pomegranates, watermelons, oranges, lemons, limes, grapes, and bananas are all berries, too. Strawberries and raspberries, however, are not. They’re “accessory fruits.”

April 17, 2021

3 Surprising Ways Poor Indoor Air-Quality Could Affect Your Kids by Jeremy Bowler

Writer Jeremy Bowler teaches us how poor indoor air quality can severely impact your children’s health.

March 5, 2021

How Cannabis Industry Leaders Like Curaleaf Will Serve New Jersey’s Recreational Market

After a three-year legislative battle, Gov. Phil Murphy (D-NJ) signed three bills that legalize up to six ounces of cannabis in New Jersey last week.

“In addition to the estimated $126 million in annual tax revenue by the NJ State Legislature, the adult-use market will now open-up a lot of new economic opportunities across the state,” Patrik Jonsson, Curaleaf Regional President, Northeast, explained to us via email.

Although medical marijuana was initially legalized in the Garden State in 2010, Jonsson noted that this shift to the adult-use market will open these opportunities in a way that supports communities that have been negatively impacted by the War on Drugs.

“This legislation will establish an industry that brings equity and economic opportunity to our communities while establishing minimum standards for safe products and allowing law enforcement to focus their resources on real public safety matters,” Gov. Murphy said last week. “We’re taking a monumental step forward to reduce racial disparities in our criminal justice system, while building a promising new industry and standing on the right side of history.”

March 1, 2021

Review: Sad Animal Facts by Brooke Barker

New York Times-bestselling author Brooke Barker delights and depresses readers simultaneously with the zany, punchy, cartoony book, “Sad Animal Facts.”

February 17, 2021

Achieving Mental Clarity with CBD by Rachel Hudson

Therapist Rachel Hudson explores how CBD can improve your mental health.

February 4, 2021

NeuroCOVID: NIH Launches Database to Track Neurological Symptoms of COVID-19

A fever. Cough. Fatigue. Sore throat. New loss of taste or smell. By now, we’ve all learned to stay on guard and watch for the common symptoms of COVID-19.

Although COVID-19 is regarded as a respiratory disease, it can have a wide range of effects throughout your body: including effects on your brain.

In light of this, the National Institutes of Health recently announced the launch of “NeuroCOVID,” a database designed to track neurological symptoms associated with COVID-19.

February 1, 2021

Oral Microbiota: The Unforeseen Love Doctors Involved in “Intimate Kissing”

You don’t just share an intimate moment during a kiss; you also share millions of microbiota.

That’s right. As you lock eyes and greet each other with your slimy, beastly tongues, microscopic bacteria thrash about from your mouth to theirs for some mingling — and vice versa.

January 30, 2021

Curaleaf to Open its First PA Dispensary in Harrisburg

Nationally-recognized cannabis operator Curaleaf Holdings announced they’re opening the doors to their first Curaleaf-branded dispensary in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, Feb. 2.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held outside of the new dispensary at 7040 Jonestown Road in Harrisburg on Tuesday at 1:15 p.m.

January 23, 2021

The “SAD” Truth About How Cheat Days Could Impact Your Health

Added sugars. Saturated fats. Sodium. Mmm, tasty, right? These are the food groups The U.S. Department of Agriculture says our population is over-indulging in.

But hey, they can’t hurt in moderation, right? Alright, alright. If balance is key, then surely cheat days shouldn’t make too much of a difference, no?

Well, according to a study in the Neurobiology of Pain journal, eating healthy most of the time (five days a week) might not be enough to curtail the negative impact cheat days could have on your health.

More specifically — the impact cheat days could have on your ability to heal from inflammation, which is a staple of chronic pain.