Neatorama » heart

Five Animals with Extra Heart

Miss Cellania — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 16:52:03 +0000

Just about the only thing that can make a cute baby animal cuter is to be born with markings that say “love”. See five creatures who have their heart showing, including this ox with a forehead heart. Link

(image credit: L.A.Times)

Guinness Is Actually Good For You!

Alex — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 07:55:51 +0000

The old ad slogan "Guinness is good for you" may actually be true: a study showed that drinking just over a pint of Guinness at mealtimes may help reduce the blood’s ability to form dangerous clots that may lead to heart attacks.

Drinking lager does not yield the same benefits, experts from University of Wisconsin told a conference in the US.

Guinness were told to stop using the slogan decades ago – and the firm still makes no health claims for the drink.

The Wisconsin team tested the health-giving properties of stout against lager by giving it to dogs who had narrowed arteries similar to those in heart disease.

They found that those given the Guinness had reduced clotting activity in their blood, but not those given lager.

Link (Image: spleeney [Flickr])

Previously on Neatorama: Stories Behind 7 Famous Beer Logos

Heart Birdhouse by Josh Coulas

Alex — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 02:56:23 +0000

If you [heart] birds, then Josh Coulas has the birdhouse for you! Here’s Heart For Bluebirds, a wooden holed heart structure he built for a competition/fundraiser at the Toronto Botanical Gardens.

Check out the complete showcase of entries here: Link – via MoCo loco

Machine Keeps Heart Beating Outside of Body

Alex — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 12:16:51 +0000

Researchers at the North Carolina State University has developed a machine that can keep a heart beating outside the body. The potential medical benefit is huge, though for whatever reason I kept on thinking about Dr. Frankenstein:

"Researchers can obtain pig hearts from a pork processing facility and use the system to test their prototypes or practice new surgical procedures," says Andrew Richards, a Ph. D. student in mechanical engineering at NC State who designed the heart machine.

The computer-controlled machine, which operates using pressurized saline solution, also allows researchers to film the interior workings of the pumping heart – enabling them to ascertain exactly which surgical technologies and techniques perform best for repairing heart valves.

Link – via jwz

Oh, there’s a video all right:

[YouTube Clip]

Steampunk Heart Anatomy

Queuebot — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:38:45 +0000

Here are some hilarious pictures of handmade steampunk hearts, created out of polymer clay by Kimberly of Monster Kookies (Don't miss the gallery).

Link

From the Upcoming Queue, submitted by 3oltan.

Anatomical Heart Plushie

Stacy — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 02:00:56 +0000

Just in time for Valentine’s Day – surprise your loved one with an anatomical heart they can cuddle up with! Well, you don’t have to stick with a heart. There are also seven other plush organs to choose from, including a “heart of gold.” Maybe I’ll get my husband the plush pancreas for Valentine’s Day, since his doesn’t work.

If you were hoping for a plush uterus, though, you’re out of luck – they’ve recalled the uterus due to choking hazards. True story.

Link via Dump Trumpet

Girl Survives 118 Days Without a Heart

Alex — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 18:33:29 +0000

When Dzhana Simmons’ heart became weakened and enlarged so it couldn’t pump blood, she underwent a heart transplant. But when that heart failed, doctors scrambled to hook her up to a machine: she survives 118 days without a heart!

Doctors scrambled to come up with a way for Simmons to survive until a new donor heart became available. A custom-made artificial heart was the solution. It looked like a large, complex machine, and Simmons was attached to it for 118 days.

"It was like I was a fake person, like I didn’t really exist. I was just here," Simmons said. "Now, I know that I really was here and I did live without it."

"It was scary," said Simmons’ mother, Twolla Anderson. "I didn’t know from day to day how she was going to turn out or if it would’ve been fatal or what. Thanks to my buddies, the transplant team — I love them for everything they’ve done for her — I couldn’t be happier."

On Oct. 29, Simmons received another donor heart and a kidney, as well.

Link