Henry Jay Forman's Blog, page 6
November 14, 2013
News about Poisonous ScienceI wrote a guest blog about th...
News about Poisonous Science
I wrote a guest blog about the novel on my friend Jerry’s blog site: http://rogerandsuzannemysteries.blogs... Jerry writes interesting and fun murder mysteries that mostly take place in South America. My blog is at http://freeradicalbiologist.blogspot.com
Initial sales of my first novel are pretty good. 25 downloads in the first 3 days. It’s at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GK7VDL2 for $2.99.
For somewhat more due to costs of printing, Poisonous Science is now also available in a soft cover edition at my online bookstore in CreateSpace: https://www.createspace.com/4520979 or on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_nos...
It will also be available soon in print version on other sites in the next several weeks.
I wrote a guest blog about the novel on my friend Jerry’s blog site: http://rogerandsuzannemysteries.blogs... Jerry writes interesting and fun murder mysteries that mostly take place in South America. My blog is at http://freeradicalbiologist.blogspot.com
Initial sales of my first novel are pretty good. 25 downloads in the first 3 days. It’s at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GK7VDL2 for $2.99.
For somewhat more due to costs of printing, Poisonous Science is now also available in a soft cover edition at my online bookstore in CreateSpace: https://www.createspace.com/4520979 or on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_nos...
It will also be available soon in print version on other sites in the next several weeks.
November 9, 2013
Murderous fun in academia - Poisonous Science
My first novel
My novel, "Poisonous Science," is available in print or digital form at Amazon. Click on this link.
What it's about- When Professor Stanford Smith's grant proposal is unfairly reviewed, people start to die. But, there is also humor and romance. A fast ride through the strange world of academic science without any boring technical details.
Hope you enjoy it.
Henry
My novel, "Poisonous Science," is available in print or digital form at Amazon. Click on this link.
What it's about- When Professor Stanford Smith's grant proposal is unfairly reviewed, people start to die. But, there is also humor and romance. A fast ride through the strange world of academic science without any boring technical details.
Hope you enjoy it.
Henry
First novel published
"Poisonous Science" is now available for $2.99 at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GK7VDL2
If you don't have a Kindle, you can down a free Kindle app for PC, Macs, iPhone, iPad, Android, others at:http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000493771
Hope you enjoy it.
Henry
If you don't have a Kindle, you can down a free Kindle app for PC, Macs, iPhone, iPad, Android, others at:http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000493771
Hope you enjoy it.
Henry
November 4, 2013
Are you seeing nonsense about free radicals and antioxidants on TV?
Are you seeing nonsense about free radicals and antioxidants on TV?Yes, but....
Mom said to eat your fruits and vegetables. She was right. Over time scientists investigating what components of the fruits and vegetables were good for you made many important discoveries that have stood the test of rigorous examination. This included vitamins, understanding which sugars were good for you and which were bad, and that there seemed to be an association between resistance to oxidative stress and a large number of substances in the fruit and vegetables. A number of these compounds and other synthetic compounds were then shown to be able to protect against oxidation in test tube experiments and also found to be effective in protecting food by incorporating them into the packaging. They acted as scavengers of free radicals. In other words, they removed dangerous molecules that are responsible for oxidation.
Then, a large number of model studies with cells in culture or animals demonstrated effectiveness of dietary and synthetic antioxidants in protecting against oxidants. With the help of these miraculous compounds, cells and animals stayed alive, DNA remained undamaged, and cell and organ functions remained intact. Unfortunately, this hasn't translated well into clinical trials as most have failed. This is possibly due, in part, to the fact that most people have enough of these compounds in their diet to maximize their effects while the animal and cell studies were controlled with a deficient diet or cell culture media. But, the failure is also due to having not paid attention to the rules of physical chemistry, which would have predicted failure of these compounds to act in the assumed role of free radical scavenger in the context of a biological system.
The main obstacle is to these compounds acting in biology the way they do in a test tube is that they cannot reach a concentration that is effective. But, then why are fruits and vegetables good for you? It is because the same compounds thought to act as free radical scavengers actually do other things that are mostly beneficial to health. This includes maintaining enzymes (proteins that facilitate reactions in biology) that remove oxidants, but also maintaining the signaling pathways that cells use in their normal functions.
I have attempted here to provide an answer to the question about free radicals and antioxidants in lay terms. So, there is far greater complexity than what I've provided here in this brief explanation. More esoteric explanations can be provided if anyone out there is interested.
Mom said to eat your fruits and vegetables. She was right. Over time scientists investigating what components of the fruits and vegetables were good for you made many important discoveries that have stood the test of rigorous examination. This included vitamins, understanding which sugars were good for you and which were bad, and that there seemed to be an association between resistance to oxidative stress and a large number of substances in the fruit and vegetables. A number of these compounds and other synthetic compounds were then shown to be able to protect against oxidation in test tube experiments and also found to be effective in protecting food by incorporating them into the packaging. They acted as scavengers of free radicals. In other words, they removed dangerous molecules that are responsible for oxidation.
Then, a large number of model studies with cells in culture or animals demonstrated effectiveness of dietary and synthetic antioxidants in protecting against oxidants. With the help of these miraculous compounds, cells and animals stayed alive, DNA remained undamaged, and cell and organ functions remained intact. Unfortunately, this hasn't translated well into clinical trials as most have failed. This is possibly due, in part, to the fact that most people have enough of these compounds in their diet to maximize their effects while the animal and cell studies were controlled with a deficient diet or cell culture media. But, the failure is also due to having not paid attention to the rules of physical chemistry, which would have predicted failure of these compounds to act in the assumed role of free radical scavenger in the context of a biological system.
The main obstacle is to these compounds acting in biology the way they do in a test tube is that they cannot reach a concentration that is effective. But, then why are fruits and vegetables good for you? It is because the same compounds thought to act as free radical scavengers actually do other things that are mostly beneficial to health. This includes maintaining enzymes (proteins that facilitate reactions in biology) that remove oxidants, but also maintaining the signaling pathways that cells use in their normal functions.
I have attempted here to provide an answer to the question about free radicals and antioxidants in lay terms. So, there is far greater complexity than what I've provided here in this brief explanation. More esoteric explanations can be provided if anyone out there is interested.
Are you seeing nonsense about free radicals and antioxida...
Are you seeing nonsense about free radicals and antioxidants on TV?Yes, but....
Mom said to eat your fruits and vegetables. She was right. Over time scientists investigating what components of the fruits and vegetables were good for you made many important discoveries that have stood the test of rigorous examination. This included vitamins, understanding which sugars were good for you and which were bad, and that there seemed to be an association between resistance to oxidative stress and a large number of substances in the fruit and vegetables. A number of these compounds and other synthetic compounds were then shown to be able to protect against oxidation in test tube experiments and also found to be effective in protecting food by incorporating them into the packaging. They acted as scavengers of free radicals. In other words, they removed dangerous molecules that are responsible for oxidation.
Then, a large number of model studies with cells in culture or animals demonstrated effectiveness of dietary and synthetic antioxidants in protecting against oxidants. With the help of these miraculous compounds, cells and animals stayed alive, DNA remained undamaged, and cell and organ functions remained intact. Unfortunately, this hasn't translated well into clinical trials as most have failed. This is possibly due, in part, to the fact that most people have enough of these compounds in their diet to maximize their effects while the animal and cell studies were controlled with a deficient diet or cell culture media. But, the failure is also due to having not paid attention to the rules of physical chemistry, which would have predicted failure of these compounds to act in the assumed role of free radical scavenger in the context of a biological system.
The main obstacle is to these compounds acting in biology the way they do in a test tube is that they cannot reach a concentration that is effective. But, then why are fruits and vegetables good for you? It is because the same compounds thought to act as free radical scavengers actually do other things that are mostly beneficial to health. This includes maintaining enzymes (proteins that facilitate reactions in biology) that remove oxidants, but also maintaining the signaling pathways that cells use in their normal functions.
I have attempted here to provide an answer to the question about free radicals and antioxidants in lay terms. So, there is far greater complexity than what I've provided here in this brief explanation. More esoteric explanations can be provided if anyone out there is interested.
Mom said to eat your fruits and vegetables. She was right. Over time scientists investigating what components of the fruits and vegetables were good for you made many important discoveries that have stood the test of rigorous examination. This included vitamins, understanding which sugars were good for you and which were bad, and that there seemed to be an association between resistance to oxidative stress and a large number of substances in the fruit and vegetables. A number of these compounds and other synthetic compounds were then shown to be able to protect against oxidation in test tube experiments and also found to be effective in protecting food by incorporating them into the packaging. They acted as scavengers of free radicals. In other words, they removed dangerous molecules that are responsible for oxidation.
Then, a large number of model studies with cells in culture or animals demonstrated effectiveness of dietary and synthetic antioxidants in protecting against oxidants. With the help of these miraculous compounds, cells and animals stayed alive, DNA remained undamaged, and cell and organ functions remained intact. Unfortunately, this hasn't translated well into clinical trials as most have failed. This is possibly due, in part, to the fact that most people have enough of these compounds in their diet to maximize their effects while the animal and cell studies were controlled with a deficient diet or cell culture media. But, the failure is also due to having not paid attention to the rules of physical chemistry, which would have predicted failure of these compounds to act in the assumed role of free radical scavenger in the context of a biological system.
The main obstacle is to these compounds acting in biology the way they do in a test tube is that they cannot reach a concentration that is effective. But, then why are fruits and vegetables good for you? It is because the same compounds thought to act as free radical scavengers actually do other things that are mostly beneficial to health. This includes maintaining enzymes (proteins that facilitate reactions in biology) that remove oxidants, but also maintaining the signaling pathways that cells use in their normal functions.
I have attempted here to provide an answer to the question about free radicals and antioxidants in lay terms. So, there is far greater complexity than what I've provided here in this brief explanation. More esoteric explanations can be provided if anyone out there is interested.
October 23, 2013
My first blog - why now?
Poisonous Science
After more than 40 years as an academic scientist in the field of free radical biology, I've done something really radical. My first novel is finished. It's called, "Poisonous Science." Right now it's on the computers of a few friends. I want their comments before I commit to putting it out there. But to hopefully entice some of you to read it, here's the prologue (edited by my old friend Bob Cooper):
Scientists, like professional athletes, are highly competitive people operating in a "dog eat dog" world where revenge is not an uncommon response to a perceived slight or a legitimate grievance. The ivory towers of academia are just as likely to produce "cheap shots" as a NFL stadium on a Sunday afternoon. The world of toxicology research provides the milieu for this story, but similar events could occur anywhere we find poisonous minds.
Visit this blog again to see when and how to get the book.
Henry
After more than 40 years as an academic scientist in the field of free radical biology, I've done something really radical. My first novel is finished. It's called, "Poisonous Science." Right now it's on the computers of a few friends. I want their comments before I commit to putting it out there. But to hopefully entice some of you to read it, here's the prologue (edited by my old friend Bob Cooper):
Scientists, like professional athletes, are highly competitive people operating in a "dog eat dog" world where revenge is not an uncommon response to a perceived slight or a legitimate grievance. The ivory towers of academia are just as likely to produce "cheap shots" as a NFL stadium on a Sunday afternoon. The world of toxicology research provides the milieu for this story, but similar events could occur anywhere we find poisonous minds.
Visit this blog again to see when and how to get the book.
Henry
