Playing football makes you shorter

Researchers report that repetitive blocking and tackling -- coupled with the weight of helmets and pads - can temporarily shave nearly half an inch off of players' heights.

They studied 10 high school football players -- lineman, defensive tackles, and others whose positions involved repetitive blocking and tackling. The average height of players before the game was 69.5 inches. Afterward, it was 69.2 inches.

Campbell says that it's well known that people shrink over the course of a day. "If you think of your body as an accordion, gravity squeezes you together as the day goes on," he says. Football, he says, accelerates the process in two ways.

Trying to have a boy? Eat more.

Women who eat more calories around the time of conception are more likely to have sons, according to a study. Researchers said it is the first evidence that a child's sex is linked to the mother's diet.

Teams at the University of Exeter and Oxford studied 740 women who were pregnant for the first time. They gave records of their eating habits and were then put in three groups based on calories consumed per day.

In the group that consumed the most energy, 56 percent had sons. In the group that consume the least, 45 percent had sons. Women who ate the most also were more likely to have higher levels of potassium, calcium and vitamins C, E and B12. » Article here

Candy-flavored cocaine hits the streets of America

Federal drug agents say candy-flavored cocaine is a new and troubling development and are hoping to keep it from spreading to the rest of the country after its recent emergence in California.

Drug rings have occasionally sold cocaine mixed with candy powder, but investigators said the new product was significantly more sophisticated and lucrative. Cocaine cut with an added flavoring is less potent, but the 1½ pounds seized last month were a full-strength powder into which strawberry, coconut, lemon and cinnamon flavoring had been chemically synthesized.

The flavored cocaine would command $1,100 to $1,400 an ounce on the street. » Full article here

Sex that lasts 1 to 2 minutes is 'too short,' say therapists

A survey of sex therapists concluded the optimal amount of time for sexual intercourse was 3 to 13 minutes. The findings, to be published in the May issue of the Journal of Sexual Medicine, strike at the notion that endurance is the key to a great sex life.

If that sounds like good news to you, don't cheer too loudly. The time does not count foreplay, and the therapists did rate sexual intercourse that lasts from 1 to 2 minutes as "too short." It's difficult for older men and young men to make sexual intercourse last much longer, said Marianne Brandon, a clinical psychologist and director of Wellminds Wellbodies in Annapolis, Md. » Full article here

Gas station owner sells winning lottery ticket, rewards customers

The owner of a Mobil gas station promises to funnel his $50,000 check for selling Tuesday's winning Mega Millions ticket to buy 9,000 gallons of gas. He plans to sell it at cost, about $3 a gallon, to share the windfall. "If you win something, you should do something with it. Don't be greedy," said Saad, 48, of Dearborn.

The winner of the 12-state jackpot plans to end the mystery at 3:20 p.m. today in Lansing. The lucky guy will walk away with a lump-sum payout of $84.1 million or about $62.7 million after taxes, said Andi Brancato, a spokeswoman for the Michigan Lottery. » Full article here

New collagen injection enhances women's G-spot

A collagen injection which is designed to enhance women's pleasure around the G-spot is being launched in the UK. The G-Shot, which is given under local anaesthetic and takes about half an hour, is being hailed as the latest lunchtime procedure.

A specially designed speculum is used to help direct the injection into the G-spot, with effects lasting around four months. This makes the G-spot easier to locate and highly sensitive, which it is claimed could enhance sexual arousal and gratification. » Full article here

A great story, and how to fix your cellphone soaked in water

This is a cautionary tale. It involves a BlackBerry in a toilet, a roommate with a hair dryer, a bowl of uncooked rice and a date who almost got stood up. And it has a happy ending -- sort of.

That's when I heard the clunk. My BlackBerry was in the toilet. Clean water, thankfully. I pulled it out as quickly as I could and shook it with all my might. The screen looked blurry, fading. I figured it'd be a good idea to pop the battery out. » Continue reading the full article here

Falling asleep on the job can improve memory

Falling asleep on the job for a few minutes can improve your memory and mental performance, according to a team of German researchers. Dr. Olaf Lahl at the University of Dusseldorf, Germany, has shown that simply falling asleep does more than refresh the brain - it can improve recall and mental efficiency.

In fact, a six-minute nap can have the same effect as nighttime sleep on memory. Dr. Lahl's team asked students to memorize a list of vocabulary and tested their ability to recall the list after an hour of playing solitaire. The researchers found that those who had been allowed to nap displayed "superior recall" in the memory test compared to those who stayed awake. » Full article here

1/3 of people catch up on sleep at work.

The survey of 1,000 people found participants average six hours and 40 minutes of sleep a night on weeknights, even though they estimated they'd need roughly another 40 minutes of sleep to be at their best.

Roughly one-third of those surveyed said they had fallen asleep or become very sleepy at work in the past month. Just how big a deal that is depends, of course, on your job.

Last week, the chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission acknowledged it should have done more to investigate a tip that security guards routinely took naps while on the job at a Pennsylvania nuclear plant. It wasn't until a videotape of guards sleeping in a "ready room" at the Peach Bottom plant in south-central Pennsylvania surfaced several months after it got the tip that the NRC announced in September a special investigation.

While sleepy workers know they're not performing as well as they could during the day, work is what's keeping them up nights, according to the survey, which found workdays are getting longer and time spent working from home averages close to four-and-a-half hours each week.

The average wake up is at 5:35 a.m. and it's followed by about two hours and 15 minutes at home before heading out to work, according to the survey. Average bedtime is 10:53. » Article here

Say it all in six words.

Brevity: a good thing in writing. Exploited by texters, gossip columnists, haikuists. Not associated with the biography genre. But then—why shouldn’t it be? Life expectancies rise; attention spans shrink. Six words can tell a story. That’s a new book’s premise, anyway. “Not Quite What I Was Planning.” A compilation of teeny tiny memoirs. The forebear, it’s assumed, is Hemingway. (Legend: he wrote a miniature masterpiece. “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” Slightly sappy, but a decent sixer.) » Full article here

What happens when the woman proposes?

The type of woman who proposes today - who, according to Dr Jacobson, “is likely to be confident, assertive and risktaking ... and, psychologically, likely to be resilient, since it takes a lot of courage to go against widespread practice”, will realise that she doesn't stand a chance and plump for some beta male (“he's so calm”) who works in a Majestic wine store.

But all this sniggering is really just to cover up the fact that, in truth, all proposals are made by women. “I haven't come across any instances where a woman has formally proposed,” says Dr Jacobson, “though I have heard of women inducing a proposal. In these cases it has been an explicit nudge for the man to get on with proposing.”

Anyone who has ever been in a relationship of more than a couple of years knows this. After a couple of dates, she works out whether you're boyfriend material (you usually are) and can be forced to watch the Hollyoaks omnibus. After 12 months, she decides that it's time for you to cohabit. And after two to three years, it's a ring or you're out. » Read the full article here

Google is giving free telephone numbers to the homeless

Internet giant Google announced on Wednesday a plan to partner with all the homeless shelters in San Francisco and offer free phone numbers and voice mail accounts to homeless individuals, giving people the ability to distribute their own phone numbers and retrieve voice mail messages left for them whenever and from wherever they choose.

Having phone service is something most people take for granted, but for a homeless person it's a luxury that could lead to better circumstances, said Mayor Gavin Newsom, who was on hand for Wednesday's announcement at Project Homeless Connect, a bimonthly event at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium where the homeless can show up and receive free services. » Full article here

Women think about sex at work 34-times-a-day

Women think about sex up to 34 times in an average working day, according to a survey. That works out at the equivalent of once every 14 minutes.

The amount of time spent fantasising is perhaps less surprising given that one in three women complained she does not get enough action between the sheets. More than 1000 women were quizzed for the survey to reveal the level of sexual satisfaction.

Nearly half said they were dissatisfied with their sex life, prompting them to think about sex during their working day. And 53 per cent admitted to a crush on someone at work, while 36 per cent said every girl should have an "office object of affection" to while away the hours at work. More than one in three single women confessed to having someone they can call for no-strings-attached sex. » Full article here

Coming soon: 'lickable ads' in magazines

Madison Avenue thinks a tasty approach will give new life to Welch's grape juice. Welch's is taking out full-page print ads in People magazine this month that give readers a chance to sample its grape juice by licking the ad. The front of the advertisement shows a huge bottle of the juice, while the back has a strip that peels up and off, with text that reads: "For a TASTY fact, remove & LICK."

Marketers are excited about the prospects for lickable ads, but also have to deal with the "ick" factor. Since magazines are often passed from reader to reader (think doctors' offices) there is a good chance that saliva could be left on the ad. Readers are supposed to peel off the entire sticker on the Welch's ad before licking, says First Flavor, the company that developed the technology used in the ad. If someone doesn't rip off the whole sticker, First Flavor says, the flap can't reseal, giving people an easy way to know whether the ad has already been licked. » Full article here

Iowa has more Cell Phones than Landlines

A report from Iowa's Utilities Board has found that at the middle of last year, the number of cellphone users in the US state exceeded the number of landlines by a total of 400,000. The report says that the total number of wireless connections in Iowa as of June 30, 2007, is 1,943,334. Wireless carriers are serving at least 97 percent of all Iowa communities. » Full article here

Double dipping is more dangerous than you'd think.

Ever wonder about the dangers of double dipping? Remember that Seinfeld TV episode? It inspired one researcher to find out if double dipping is bad for you.

The study that will appear in the Journal of Food Safety found, on average, three to six double dips transferred about 10,000 bacteria from one eater's mouth to the remaining dip. The kind of dip made a difference.

Salsa picked up higher initial numbers of bacteria than cheese or chocolate because it was runny. The thicker the dip, the more the bacteria stuck to the chip.

Researchers say double dipping appears unlikely to be a major public health threat, but it's good to be aware that sharing a bowl of dip can mean sharing more than you'd like. » Article here

One in four people facing bankruptcy blame porn, lap dancers or brothels for it

One in four people who contacted a debt helpline last year admitted that some of their financial problems were caused by spending money on sex, a report showed today.

The UK Insolvency Helpline said sex industry spending was now the third most common reason for people to get into debt after spending on alcohol and drugs and having a shopping addiction.

The group said 10,251 clients, the equivalent of one in four people aged between 25 and 49, it helped between January and September last year admitted they had paid to see pornography or visited a lap dancing club or brothel. » Article here

University gets $590k to study belching cows?

A Swedish university has received $590,000 in research funds to measure the greenhouse gases released when cows belch.

About 20 cows will participate in the project run by the Swedish University for Agricultural Sciences.

Cattle release methane, a greenhouse gas believed to contribute to global warming, when they digest their food. Researchers believe the level of methane released depends on the type of food the eat. » Full article here

Chewing gum can cause extreme weight loss?

Sorbitol, a sweetener used in sugar-free products such as chewing gum, can cause intestinal problems and severe weight loss, according to a report in BMJ, formerly the British Medical Journal.

Researchers said it has laxative properties and is poorly absorbed by the small intestine. In at least two patients, that led to chronic diarrhea, pain and up to a 20 percent loss of body weight.

The authors of the study said that people with intestinal problems may not think of sweeteners because possible side effects are usually found only within the small print on food packages. » Article here

Monkeys are as smart as humans at math?

Monkeys performed about as well as college students at mental addition, U.S. researchers said on Monday in a finding that suggests nonverbal math skills are not unique to humans.

The research from Duke University follows the finding by Japanese researchers earlier this month that young chimpanzees performed better than human adults at a memory game.

Prior studies have found non-human primates can match numbers of objects, compare numbers and choose the larger number of two sets of objects. » Full article here