Nnedimma's blog

Happy New Year!

Here's hoping that you all understood my Clue reference. (Best board game EVER!)

So last time, I was able to infuse some much needed pop culture references into the blog post thanks to Schmidt and New Girl.

However, coming up with something funny this week  was a bit more challenging. How does one make jokes about the liver and enzymes?? 

I remember when I wrote my first post for this blog, I googled "funny chemistry jokes" and I was able to find some funny chemsitry cat jokes. But no luck this week, so hopefully this opening will prove somewhat amusing........

AAAAAAAAAND back to #Tungsten.

Hello again! The terrible beast called school and final period had me in its terrifying grip for the past 3 weeks. But fear not! I survived…(until I see my grades that is…)

Anyway, to more light hearted things! My group and I finished our #tungsten project!!!! ( yes I am hashtagging, quickest way to inject cool to any subject).

We had the oral presentation, which went really well and we handed in the final paper about 2 weeks ago. Somewhat of bitter sweet moment, because I am going to miss my #tungsten buddies very much and I will of course miss #tungsten…

Thankfully, I was watching New Girl last Friday, and witnessed  Cece giving  Schmidt a #tungsten carbide bracelet because, as my dear Schmidt put it, #tungsten  is a “badass metal”. You can only imagine how excited I was; #tungsten in pop culture! It made me feel exceptionally relevant and hip.

In last week’s post I left you with a question…

What would you do if you were exposed to a potentially toxic environmental agent?

In this post I am going to elaborate a bit more on tungsten’s health impact in the mammalian organism, in rats specifically.

From these rat studies we will then  try to draw some conclusions about  tungsten's bio-reactivity   in the human body.

this feels soooo awkward, its like talking to a long lost friend again. I have to apologize for my absence..

I remember when I came to Rosanne with the idea i had for this blog. I wanted to find a fun and user-friendly manner of  vocalizing science in way that was accessible. This in my head was essential, because how are women expected to make informed decisions about the issues that concern them the most, if the literature isn't presented in a manner that is accessible to them?

MissRepresentation Screening 08/03/2012; Breast Cancer Action Montreal (BCAM), Girls Action Foundation (Foundation filles d’action), Simone de Beauvoir Institute, Department of Communication Studies, Concordia University, FemmeToxic

On the occasion of the 8th Annual Lanie Melamed Memorial Event on Thursday 8th March 2012, BCAM and its partners hosted a screening of MissRepresentation.

The film challenges the media’s limited and often disparaging portrayals of women and girls. The screening was followed by a panel discussion led by Erika Jahn (FemmeToxic), Liz Miller (Department of Communication Studies, Concordia University), and Tatiana Fraser (Girls Action Foundation/ Foundation filles d’action)

Below are my reflections on a splendid night and an eye-opening documentary.

school, school, SCHOOL. Midterms to be exact, have been occupying all of my attention and i have been unable to continue my epic  organic chemistry tale. But here's a quick teaser of what's to come via Jezebel.com.

The brazialian blowout (hair straigthening method)  scandal will draw everything together hopefully ( mainly the link between formaldehyde and cancer).

AFTER brought to you by MR.FORMALDE(HYDE); ALWAYS LOOKING OUT FOR YOUR BEST INTERESTS RESPIRATORS ARE OPTIONAL OF COURSE

 Happy New Year!!!

And what better way to usher in the New Year than by reuniting with our dear, dear friend Dr. Formalde Hyde, who, has you now know, was indeed very present in the past year. So to quickly recap, last time I briefly introduced formaldehyde’s historic and current situation. From its dark precedents as a mutagen to the recent scandal surrounding Johnson& Johnson shampoos. In this post I shall touch upon formaldehyde’s fate in the environment and the ensuing implications for human health.

Firstly, I hope you are all enjoying your holidays!  

Before I get back to the fascinating world of formaldehyde, I would first like to address something that has been plaguing me all through the Holiday season. I, like any other self-respecting university student, vowed not to engage in any intellectually demanding activity (besides shopping of course) during Christmas break.  It was a vow that I held very dear to my heart and I undertook it with all the seriousness and solemnity that it deserved.  (Preach!) However, as you shall see as I delve into the manner of my betrayal... it was a vow that I could not fulfill.

I’m proud to present our newest FemmeToxic.com segment; the FemmeToxic Fact Sheets!  

My name is Nnedimma Nnebe and I am the resident Science Gal (so to speak :P) at the FemmeToxic Headquaters.

In weekly posts, through the FemmeToxic Fact Sheets, you ( the readers) and I will explore high risk compounds currently found in cosmetics.  I will present both the scientific and societal backgrounds of these compounds. For the most part, I will be discussing compounds currently on the Health Canada Hot List (be sure to check out the Hot List; a useful ally for informed consumers!).

So first on the list this week is formaldehyde, a compound long associated with high school dissections and CSI.