Friday, April 20, 2012

Strange, strange, and strange...

The answer: the chicken came first, but the mother had to die

A claim was made by a vet in Sri Lanka that a hen gave birth to a live chick. Here's the AFP story:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iN--4Pg0z9Fd6X9Lpg-ubN3bfyVQ?docId=CNG.e8d1886f78b581b6ea47bac91bd2345f.561

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Another sad if strange story... Death by cola?

Wellington, New Zealand (Associated Press) – A New Zealand woman’s two-gallon-a-day Coca-Cola habit probably contributed to her death, an expert said. That conclusion led the soft-drink giant to note that even water can be deadly in excessive amounts.

Natasha Harris, a 30-year-old, stay-at-home mother of eight from Invercargill, died of a heart attack in February 2010. Fairfax Media reported that a
pathologist, Dr Dan Mornin, testified at an inquest Thursday (19 April) that she probably suffered from hypokalemia, or low potassium, which he thinks was
caused by her excessive consumption of Coke and overall poor nutrition.

Symptoms of hypokalemia can include abnormal heart rhythms, the U.S. National Institutes of Health had said.

Dr Mornin said that toxic levels of caffeine, a stimulant found in Coke, also may have contributed to her death, Fairfax said. Harris’ partner, Chris Hodgkinson, testified that Harris drank between 8 and 10 liters (2.1 and 2.6 gallons) of regular Coke every day.
“The first thing she would do in the morning was to have a drink of Coke beside her bed and the last thing she would do at night was have a drink of Coke,” Hodgkinson said in a deposition. “She was addicted to Coke.”

Hodgkinson also said Harris ate little and smoked about 30 cigarettes a day. In the months before her death, he said, Harris experienced blood pressure problems and lacked energy.

Karen Thompson, a spokeswoman for Coca-Cola Oceania, said in a statement that its products are safe. “We concur with the information shared by the coroner’s office that the grossly excessive ingestion of any food product, including water, over a short
period of time with the inadequate consumption of essential nutrients, and the failure to seek appropriate medical intervention when needed, can be dramatically symptomatic.”

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One more strange song lyrics... Men At Work's Land Down Under 

The recent death of the Aussie band's flautist, Greg Ham, reminded me of the song. Here is a YouTube clip which has the lyrics (Greg Ham comes in solo during the vocal pauses):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEIAhwHCVUM

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