Alex Blasdel, writing in The Guardian, waxes eloquent about methods old and new: “Bowel movement: the push to change the way you poo— Are you sitting comfortably? Many people are not – and they insist that the way we’ve been going to the toilet is all wrong.” Blasdel describes in depth the commercial rise of […]
Tag: Defecation
“Why does coffee make you poop?” Four videos.
Several organizations try to answer the same question (a question that is laden with assumptions): “Why does coffee make you poop?” Discovery News: Nickipedia: ACS Reactions: Nathan and Rose: (Thanks to Vaughn Tan for bringing this to our attention.)
The Self-Acupressure-to-Overcome-Constipation Experiment
There is (people say) more than one way to skin a cat. So too are there multiple ways to overcome constipation. Here’s a newly documented way: “Effect of Perineal Self-Acupressure on Constipation: A Randomized Controlled Trial,” Ryan Abbott, Ian Ayres [pictured below], Ed Hui, and Ka-Kit Hui, Journal of General Internal Medicine, 2014, pp. 1-6. (Thanks […]
Dog excretion accretion as indicator of Earth’s magnetic field
This study gathered and assessed evidence of the possible effects of the Earth’s magnetic field on the tangible output of dogs: “Dogs are sensitive to small variations of the Earth’s magnetic field,” Vlastimil Hart [pictured here], Petra Nováková, Erich Pascal Malkemper, Sabine Begall, Vladimír Hanzal, Milo¿ Je¿ek, Tomá¿ Ku¿ta, Veronika N¿mcová, Jana Adámková, Kate¿ina Benediktová, […]
Beware the frumious numbat and its artifically colored deposits
An experiment with numbats: “Eliminative Behavior of Captive Numbats, Myrmecobius fasciatus (Mammalia; Marsupialia): Pattern and Identification of Fecal Deposits,” Lindsay A. Hogan, Allan T. Lisle, Stephen D. Johnston, Zoo Biology, epub February 5, 2013. The authors, at the University of Queensland, and at the Perth Zoo, report: “This study examined the spatial defecation patterns of […]
Owl pellets for the discerning
If you care about the genuineness of your owl pellets, obtain them from a reputable source (or directly from an owl). These owl pellets are offered for sale by the firm Educational Innovations. They are advertised as being “Made in USA”.
Fun with numbers: Coffee, Sex, Stroke
A new study in the journal Stroke is triggering lots of exciting news stories about sex, coffee, defecation, and other activities. Here are two fairly typical headlines: Common Activities Such As Sex, Coffee Can Cause Stroke [SmartAboutHealth.net] Sex and coffee ‘trigger stroke’ [BBC News] You might enjoy looking at the study itself, and asking yourself […]
Treating Defecation-Induced Orgasm
Interdisciplinary research is on display in this paper from Teaching Hospital Deventer, the Netherlands: “Seminal Vesiculectomy to Resolve Defecation-Induced Orgasm,” D.K.E. Van Der Schoot and A.F.G.V.M. Ypma, British Journal of Urology International, 2002, 90, 761-762. (Thanks to Kristine Danowski for bringing this to our attention.)