I was listening to an older episode (15 Oct) of Votre Jardin, which is a radio show on the French station RMC. The show is available as a podcast. The were talking about a fungal disease of maple trees that also causes respiratory problems in people, especially people who work with wood and trees and people in Canada. I had never really thought of plant diseases as having such effects on people.

I also find it interesting that “champignon” can refer to any type of fungus. I have to say, listening to French Radio has definitely taught me some interesting new words, often ones that I can’t imagine would come up in a class.

Maple Leaf from Montreal Botanical Garden

I know it’s probably unlikely, but for those of you with some extra funds kicking around, New York Times Columnist Nicholas Kristof has some charitable suggestions.

This year, I decided to give away some found money. Some of it went to Philabundance, and another portion went to City Kitties. Both are organizations that serve the Philadelphia area. The last portion went to one of Kristof’s susggestions: Sustainable Health Enterprises or SHE.

SHE’s goal is to provide low cost menstrual pads to girls in developing countries in an attempt to keep them in school. Apparently, many girls miss school during their periods because of inadequate menstrual supplies. I chose this program over the one Lunapads is associated with because—while I like the Lunapads products—SHE pointed out that the absence of clean water and soap is often a problem in the developing world. The lack of clean water makes reusable pads or menstrual cups a potential source of infection.

As at least one study has pointed out though, providing girls with menstrual supplies may not be enough to keep them in school. The comments on Kristof’s blog post about the article provide some hypotheses as to why.

Despite this study, I’ve chosen to donate to SHE because I think it’s important to talk about and to reduce the stima surrounding menstruation.

I’ve recently found a few things that have helped make my iPod Touch a bit easier to use. The first is this set of tips for the iPod touch keyboard. It’s actually helped a lot, especially the ability to type accents.

The other useful item I found is the Wordpress 2 app in the iTunes app store. That’s how I generated the recent test post, which means I can now post on the go, even if I don’t have my laptop with me.

Oh, and if you’re wondering how my NaNoWriMo project went… let’s just say I didn’t do so well.

Testing post from ipod.

I’ve been reading a lot of interesting news tidbits, and thought I’d share. Today’s edition is mostly about food.

Kraft wants to take over Cadbury.

I also stumbled accross an article saying that high protein, low carb diets may contribute to Alzheimers Disease. It’s intriguing and surprising—but also just one study in mice, so the results should be interpreted with caution.

For a new spin on urban farming, look at Detroit. While I’m not moving to detroit anytime soon, the article is a fascinating read, and some of the arial photos are astounding. [Found via the NYT Idea of the Day Blog.]

Maybe the US is just as bad as everyone else when it comes to those who are different.

Problems with racism in South Korea: Fascinating and disappointing. Most days I am very happy I live in a diverse country.

On meat and greenhouse gases: A more nuanced look at how food production affects greenhouse gas emissions. Eating local, traditionally farmed meat might be better than eating non-local but vegetarian products.

As you probably noticed, I’m not including the full references for these, as it’s beginning to seem a bit excessive in a blog post. I think you can figure it out.

Today marks the start of this year’s National Novel Writing Month. In case you hadn’t noticed, I am already procrastinating.

How many of you are participating this year?

You’ve probably heard by now, but in case you hadn’t, the 2009 Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded to three Americans for the discovery of telomerase—something that helped pave the way for understanding cancer.

I remember learning about telomerases in college. I have to say, it’s really nice to have some idea about what this year’s prize was awarded for about without having to look up a lot of things.

By the way, this happens to be the 100th year that the Nobel Prize has been awarded, and coincidentally, it is the 101st post here on Two-Penny Words.

This post refers to:

The Associated Press. Three Americans Share Nobel Prize for Medicine. October 5, 2009.

My friend Neil is doing a comedy show on October 9th. If you have a chance, you should check it out.

Here’s a bit about the show in Neil’s own words:

Hi there! I’m excited to announce The Attack of the 1-4-5 Show, which invades Center City Philadelphia Friday, October 9. The show’s new venue is the Tuscany Café at 222 West Rittenhouse Square, at the intersection of Locust Street across from the Free Library. The ticket includes newcomer Mike Casey, 1-4-5 favorites Mike Eiswerth and Carolyn Busa, the amazing Joey Callahan, and of course, me.

Doors open at 8pm and admission is $10. Seating is limited so arrive early and, uh, often.

Hope to see you there!

Neil “Oh, not him again” McGarry

If it’s anything like his last show, it promises to be hilarious.