; Phantoms and Monsters: Pulse of the Paranormal

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Just the Facts?: Zombie Attack Warning -- Coffee Drinkers Live Longer? -- Hey Barack, What's Up With ET?


Canadians warn to prepare for zombie attack

If you're in Canada this summer, and you don't want to die, then listen up. If you're ready for a zombie attack, then you're ready for just about anything.

That's the message British Columbia is sending tourists and citizens in a website it launched this week, which provides tips on about how to prepare for a fake zombie apocalypse.

The vast province on Canada's west coast has initiated a surprise preparedness campaign to help people take precautions in the event of any disaster -- even a zombie attack.

The campaign is fake of course, but the website and its message about safety is not.
Emergency Info BC is using the faux preparedness tips to promote readiness for natural catastrophes which could strike the region.

"While the chance of zombies a-knockin' on your door is pretty slim, we do believe that if you're ready for zombies, you're ready for any disaster," the website said.

Its campaign is like a "blog about surviving a zombie attack" and is meant to be completely "fictional."

It includes guidelines in case of an epidemic that transforms people into zombies, a map of risk zones in British-Columbia and instructions for what to include in one's survival kit. The site also makes use of links to real resources for real disasters.

According to Emergency Info: "Other than zombie attack, your region may be susceptible to flooding, earthquakes or tsunamis. Find out and get prepared." - smh

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Coffee drinkers may live longer

Drinking coffee might help you live longer, a new study suggests.

Results show that death rates over a 13-year period among men and women who drank coffee decreased with a greater number of cups per day, up to six. The trend was seen for deaths from any cause, and from specific causes such as heart disease, respiratory disease, stroke and diabetes. This relationship, however, was not seen for those who died of cancer.

"We observed associations between coffee-drinking and a range of different causes of death, and across a number of different groups," said lead author Neal Freedman, of the National Institutes of Health. "The effect was seen in both men and women, those of different body weights, and in both former and never smokers."

Still, while high coffee consumption was previously thought to have adverse health effects, this study adds to the growing body of recent findings that show higher coffee consumption is not harmful, and in some cases may have health benefits, said Jeanine Genkinger, an epidemiology professor at the Columbia University School of Public Health in New York City, who was not involved in the research. Genkinger emphasized that the greatest benefits may come from black coffee — cream, sugar and additives may be detrimental to health.

The study will be published Thursday (May 17) in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Coffee's Perks

Researchers looked at the coffee drinking habits of 402,260 members of the American Association of Retired Persons. Participants completed a detailed dietary, lifestyle and demographic questionnaire at the study's start, when they were between ages 50 and 71. During the study, 52,515 participants died.

The association between drinking coffee and mortality was seen among different races and education levels, and in a very large group with a large number of deaths — this type of analysis was not done in previous studies, said Esther Lopez-Garcia, of the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the Autonomous University of Madrid in Spain.

The new study also removed the possibility of smoking and alcohol as confounding factors, said Edward Giovannucci, a nutrition and epidemiology professor at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston. "One of the concerns about studies of coffee is that coffee drinkers often tend to be smokers and alcohol drinkers."

The limitations of the study included that participants reported their own coffee consumption, and only at the beginning of the 13-year study, Lopez-Garcia said. In addition, researchers did not gather data on the specific types of coffee consumed, except whether it was caffeinated.

A previous Mayo Clinic study showed that drinking four or more cups of coffee daily causes headaches, stomach upset, restlessness and a racing heartbeat — all attributable to caffeine. Some health conditions such as insomnia, anxiety and hypertension can worsen with too-frequent consumption.

"The potential effects on cardiovascular disease are complex, because some may be beneficial and some adverse, but the results from this study suggest that the benefits may outweigh the adverse ones," Giovannucci said.

Coffee contains many chemicals, including antioxidants and compounds that can prevent mutations."Some of the components in coffee are among the strongest and most abundant antioxidants in our diets," Giovannucci said.

Coffee may also be good for the brain. Neuroscientists have shown that coffee drinkers have a lower risk of brain disorders as they age. In fact, brain benefits may come with drinking decaf: A study of Type 2 diabetes patients showed those who drank decaf had a lower risk of mental decline than those who did not drink coffee. The researchers attributed the mental benefits to compounds called polyphenols, which have been linked with improved cognitive skills.

The True Health Benefit?

"Coffee, but not caffeine, is a very positive aspect of the diet, and in my opinion, it reduces the risk of many diseases, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes," said Terry Graham, a nutrition professor at the University of Guelph in Ontario. Graham said he recommends people at risk for Type 2 diabetes drink decaffeinated coffee.

Lopez-Garcia noted that coffee drinking may also be a marker of other healthy habits. "In the Mediterranean countries, people go to coffee shops to drink coffee, so this consumption is associated with leisure time and socializing," said Lopez-Garcia. She said that while biological mechanisms have been suggested to explain coffee's benefits, researchers should also look at environmental factors associated with coffee drinking. - discovery

Keurig B70 Platinum Brewing System- I HIGHLY RECOMMEND the Keurig B70 Platinum Brewing System...been using it for six-months - Simply fantastic! Lon

Gloria Jean's Coffees, Hazelnut Coffee, K-Cups for Keurig K-Cup Brewers (Pack of 50)- My favorite flavor!

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Rocks catch fire in woman's pocket

Authorities in Southern California are investigating what appears to be the spontaneous combustion of rocks scooped from a San Clemente Beach that left a woman with third-degree burns.

Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Marc Stone tells City News Service the woman's children collected the rocks Saturday and she tucked them into her pocket.

Stone says at some point the rocks caught fire, burning the woman's right thigh and knee.

Her husband also suffered second-degree burns to his hand trying to put out the flames.

Authorities didn't provide any details about what would have caused the rocks to ignite. Stone says it should take health authorities a week to complete their investigation. - THP

NOTE: the rocks were likely coated with white phosphorus (same chemical found in tracer rounds) which can occur naturally as well as introduced into the environment when industries make it or use it. The friction of the rocks moving around in her pocket probably caused the ignition...Lon

Thanks to Mark for the heads up!

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Close Encounter - Alberta, Canada

7-10-06 AUTAUGA, ALBERTA, CANADA - 1:30am - My husband and I were stargazing at a park near our house. We sat on a hillside, overlooking the park, and at the edge of someones yard. The sky was bright and full of stars, but there were some low clouds covering the western sky, which were getting closer to us. I was looking almost straight up. The edge of the clouds were right above us. Suddenly below the clouds a boomerang shaped craft "appeared". It was getting closer to us, coming at us, and getting bigger. It seemed like it dropped out of the cloud. It descended towards us for a couple seconds, then it stopped. It started moving south east in a slightly curved line and then it suddenly stopped made a 90 degree rotation (the whole craft turned like a steering wheel- staying flat)and then turned back (the turn seemed to give it propulsion to take off at an incredible rate of speed.) There is only 1 tall building in town. It disappeared behind the building, but got noticable smaller (further away) as it did so. As I was watching, I tried to get my husbands attention, but I was in awe and by the end he was saying "what?" but it was already over.. The whole thing lasted maybe 10 seconds but that was long enough to get a good look. I thought it was a smaller craft at first, but I calculated the distance of the cloud cover and realized if it was truely that far away (about 1000ft feet) then it must have been huge, for me to see the details I saw. It blended in to the night sky. The texture reminded me of what you would see on a movie space ship. Metal came to mind. I think the inner side, but it may have been the outer side, as it was 6 years ago and what looked like a trap-door in the middle. The "lights" were not turned on. Like I said, the whole thing seemed to blend in with the sky. I tried to discount it as a plane, but planes don't move that fast or turn the way it turned. Afterwords, I said to my husband "did you see that?". He said "see what?" so at first I thought maybe I was hallucinating. I explained to him as we walked home. I was now losing the awe and calm and excitement of the initial sighting and I began to get scared. It came down right on top of us, so I entertained thoughts that it wanted to abduct me. I was so terrified after that, I slept with the lights on for 4 days. Only about 10 people knew about this, until now. I decided to tell before the memories get too hazy. NOTE: The above image is a rendering. - MUFON CMS - Ken Pfeifer - World UFO Photos

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Will Smith: My son asked Obama about ‘the aliens’

Actor Will Smith says he recently found himself in a “not cool” situation when his 13-year-old son, Jaden, asked President Barack Obama about the existence of extraterrestrial aliens.

“I was at the White House with my family and we were getting a tour and, you know, Barack and Michelle and Sasha and Malia,” Smith recalled to BBC Radio 1 host Chris Moyles on Wednesday. “And it’s me, Jada and the kids and we’re walking through the White House. And the night before Jaden had said to me, ‘Dad, I got to ask the president about the aliens.’ I was like, ‘Dude, no.’ It’s not cool. It’s not cool. It’s embarrassing.”

“You have to take that opportunity,” Moyles observed.

“I was like, ‘Jaden, do not ask the president,’” Smith continued. “So we get into the Situation Room and Jaden gets the look in his eyes and he leans over and says, ‘Dad, what’s my punishment?’ And I was like, ‘Jaden, do not.’ And you know, Barack is talking about the Situation Room and Jaden says, ‘Excuse me, Mr. President.’ I was like, ‘Hey, Barack, man…’ And Barack said, ‘Don’t tell me.’ And in perfect form, and this is why he’s the president, and he stopped and looked at Jaden said, ‘The aliens, right?’”

“And he said, ‘I can neither confirm nor deny the existence of extraterrestrials, but I can tell you if there had been a top-secret meeting and if there would have had to have been a discussion about it, it would have taken place in this room.’”

Smith, who stars in the upcoming Men in Black III and other classic science fiction movies like Independance Day, added that he didn’t really need confirmation from the president.

“I already have the top-secret information,” the actor said. “I just can’t share it. You don’t think that I’ve made all of these movies and not been briefed by the White House. Of course, I know. I just can’t tell you.”

Smith and his family visited the White House in April to take part in Easter celebrations.

In response to a “We the People” petition asking the Obama administration to “formally acknowledge an extraterrestrial presence engaging the human race,” the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy in September officially denied any knowledge of alien life.

“The U.S. government has no evidence that any life exists outside our planet, or that an extraterrestrial presence has contacted or engaged any member of the human race,” Phil Larson said in an official White House statement. “In addition, there is no credible information to suggest that any evidence is being hidden from the public’s eye.” - RawStory

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