Author: Knowable Magazine

Like many in her age range, Sylvia McGregor, a 97-year-old in Sydney, Australia (not the woman in the photo above), deals with her share of maladies — in her case, arthirtis, osteoporosis, hearing loss, macular degeneration, lung disease, hypothyroidism,, chronic kidney disease, heart disease and two total knee replacements. But unlike most nonagenarians, she does intensive strength training twice a week. She credits the exercises, which she’s been doing for 12 years, with allowing her to live independently. “I still live by myself, and I take care of myself,” she says. “It was only when I was in hospital last…

If you’re lucky enough to live to 80, you’ll take up to a billion breaths in the course of your life, inhaling and exhaling enough air to fill about 50 Goodyear blimps or more. We take about 20,000 breaths a day, sucking in oxygen to fuel our cells and tissues, and ridding the body of carbon dioxide that builds up as a result of cellular metabolism. Breathing is so essential to life that people generally die within minutes if it stops. It’s a behavior so automatic that we tend to take it for granted. But breathing is a physiological marvel…

PODCAST: Serendipitous discoveries led to drugs like Prozac and to new insights into the physical basis of this debilitating disorder. But scientists continue to search for deeper understandings and therapies that will bring relief to those who still struggle. (Season 2, Episode 6) By Adam Levy 4.26.2022 Knowable Magazine · How antidepressants changed ideas about depression Listen on:  Amazon Music |  Apple Podcasts |  Deezer |  Google Podcasts |  LibSyn |  Player.FM |  Soundcloud |  Spotify |  Stitcher TRANSCRIPT: How can you treat what you don’t understand? How can a medication’s side effects improve the lives of millions? And how can a chemical substance bring light to someone’s…