Buckyballs – My Favorite XMas Toy

I made all these shapes from the tiny 216 rare earth magnets you get with Buckyballs. I’ve been addicted to them. My Mom got them for me after hearing a geek XMas shopping list on NPR. I gave up trying to figure out how to make a cube and found plenty of video instructions and other demonstrations. You can get Buckyballs here. It’s named after Fullerenes, which is named after R. Buckminster Fuller.

Brazil Nuts Are Radioactive!

Actually all foods have radiation. But Brazil nuts have 1000 times more than most. That’s a lot for a food. But you’d have to eat a pound to get the radiation of 1 x-ray or 2 flights across the Atlantic. In fact, doctors generally agree that the health benefits of Brazil nuts out weigh the risk of their radiation. To me, this is similar to the issue of mercury in tuna. The tuna is better for you than the mercury is bad. The moderation doctors have been recommending lately is 2 to 3 cans a week (or some other fish).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazil_nut#Nutrition
http://www.orau.org/PTP/collection/consumer%20products/consumer.htm