What is the Reason Specific Plants to Trap Animals? – Science 18

I have posted about event of swap plants in our city garden. You may read the previous post:

- Swap Plants at Our City Botanical Garden

Image 1- One of Carnivorous plants

One of plants is interesting for me, called as “carnivorous plant" with scientific name Sarracenia sp.

One of well-known species in Louisiana is Sarracenia alata. There are at least 8 species in the USA, some of them are:

- yellow plants with scientific name Sarracenia flava.
- sweet trumpets, Sarracenia rubra.
- purple pitcher plants, Sarracenia purpurea.
- pale trumpets, S. alata.

Image 2- Crowd in the city garden

What make me wonder is that What is the “main reason” Specific Plants to Trap Animals?

Image 3- Picture of carnivorous plants

After searching through internet that the reason is to consume them. Generally, we know that animals eat plant, we call it “herbivorous.”

Then, why?

It is because soil “can’t support” their live. In evolutionary process, the plants then consume animals for nutrients they require for surviving.

Some nutrients taken from animals are:

- sulfur
- phosphorus and nitrogen

Finally, have you seen carnivorous plants nature?

# Previous postings:

- Could Avocado Reduce Metabolic Syndrome? - Part 2 - Healthy Life 21
- Buy One Get One Free of Frappuccino – Part 1
- Knock Out to Understand Human Diseases – Part 2 – Science 14
- Crape Myrtle Blooming in the Summer – Nature 28

Why Should not We Take Aspirin Daily? - Part 1- Healthy Life 24

As you know that there are a lot of non-prescription drugs sold through Over the Counter (OTC).

Image 1- Aspirin sold as an OTC drug in Walmart

We might be familiar with OTC drug called as “aspirin,” since its commonly used for medication of:

- reduce fever
- relieve pain.

Then, Aspirin may relieve from light to medium pains such as:

- common cold, headaches
- muscle aches, toothaches
- arthritis

Image 2- Abandoned bike tied to the fence

Image 3- Over the Counter medicines at pharmacy store

Another use of Aspirin is to prevent blood clot in the artery. The clot obstructs the flow of blood which may cause:

- heart attacks
- strokes (due to disturbance of blood flow in the brain)

The facts, based on reported from Annals of Internal Medicine (2019) that millions of people in the USA take Aspirin daily, strangely even they don’t have heart diseases.

Then, why do they take Aspirin every day?

# To be continued to Part 2

## Previous postings:

- Giant Hibiscus Flowers are Found in Walking Trails – Nature 26
- Knock Out to Understand Human Diseases – Part 1 – Science 14
- Shredded Rotisserie Chicken with Purple Bell Peppers – Food 15
- A Juvenile Woodpecker Hit a Glass Window – Nature 27

A Simple Steamed Layer Cake – Food 22

This cake is popular in many Southeast Asian countries, they call its as a “kue lapis,” usually consumed as a snack.

Image 1- Steamed Layer Cake

The countries that you may find this snack as a traditional dish are following:

- Singapore
- Vietnam
- Indonesia
- and Malaysia

We may be lucky to see its at here in America sold in ethnic groceries such as Vietnam shops or Asian market.

Image 2- Ten layers of cake

Since the “Steamed Layer Cake” is not always available in groceries, we try to make its by ourselves.

Sure, we may adjust sweetness, colors and thicness of layers based on what we desire.

Image 3- Ready to consume

We collect the following important ingredients:

- rice flour
- tapioca flour
- coconut milk
- granulated sugar
- and other ingredients

Then, we just follow instruction from internet. After a while done. The result could be seen at Images 1, 2 and 3.

Have you tasted “Steamed Layer Cake”? What do you think?

# Previous postings?

- Why are We Getting Obese Nowadays? - Part 2 – Healthy Life 20
- Why Passion Flowers could Attract Butterfly? – Science 13
- The Mutant Genes in the Early Onset Familial Alzheimer's – Part 2 - Alzheimer's 6
- Could Avocado Reduce Metabolic Syndrome? - Part 1 – Healthy Life 21

Is America a Wine Exporting Country? - Part 2

You may read previous post (Part 1):

- The Rainbow Before Evening : Is America Wine Exporting Country? - Part 1

Image 1- Imported wines from France

I went to a grocery a few days ago, surprising me more that a lot of imported wines come from the countries I never knew as wine exporters such as:

- Israel
- United Kingdom
- Austria
- Spain
- Portugal
- Argentina
- New Zealand

Image 2- Polka dots plant, just for illustration

Why does America Import as well as Export Wine?

First, the simple answer that American demands more wines than supplies it.

Image 3- Wine glasses, just for illustration

Second, some countries love American’s wine due to several factors, include:

- price
- taste
- familiar with some brands of American wines.

Just to let know, the countries which import American wines most are:

- Canada
- United Kingdom, Denmark
- Japan and Hong Kong

Finally, did your country wines exporter or importer or both?

# Previous postings:

- The Gloomy in the Beginning of the Year of Rat – Part 1
- The Gloomy in the Beginning of the Year of Rat – Part 2
- The Mutant Genes in the Early Onset Familial Alzheimer's – Part 1 - Alzheimer's 6
- Purple Bell Peppers in the Farmer Market – Food 14

Learning a New Language Against Alzheimer's Disease – Part 1 - Alzheimer's 9

Can you speak more than one language?

Here, in my community, one of activities of churches and libraries is to facilitate communities to learn new languages.

Image 1- CD to learn several foreign languages, illustration only

This service is free, and everybody can join them. A chapel on campus serves not only English (English Second Language) but also:

- Spanish
- and Chinese.

How fun!

For children, many of them grow up exposed to two different languages from an early age.

Image 2 – Customers at a vendor

Image 3- A book cover, illustration

It does not hard for them to learn more than one language at the same time, even they tend to borrow one word from another.

We still remember the concepts in the past about bilingual. It said that bilingual was bad for brain.

By then, many scientists have conducted research about bilingual and multilingual.

The research had been done for bilinguals in all levels of ages, from bilingual in baby to bilingual in elderly. Many amazing findings about them.

# To be continued to Part 2

## Previous postings:

- The Gloomy in the Beginning of the Year of Rat – Part 1
- Diet of Rose breasted grosbeak in Nature – Nature 25
- Tea Made of Hibiscus Flowers
- Have You Tried to Consume Any Forms of Coconut Products?

Purple Gallinule Visited Our Neighborhood – Nature 38

We are lucky, our neighborhood and even yard have been visited regularly by many wild critters such as foxes, turtles, squirrels, raccoon and birds.

Image 1- A Purple Gallinule bird visited our neighborhood

We have posted some of those critters:

- Declining of Golden Swamp Warblers Population – Nature 35
- The Four Weeks Old Baby Squirrel – Science 17
- Rose breasted grosbeak Comes to Our Neighborhood – Nature 23
- Crowned Heron Crawfishing Near Our Neighborhood – Part 1 – Nature 20
- Wild Animals and Birds in my Backyard – Nature 8a
- Alligator in the Nearby Neighborhood - Nature 7

Image 2- Hiding Purple Gallinule

Our neighborhood just saw Purple Gallinule, a kind of beautiful bird, many of us include me never seen before.

Image 3- Clear picture of Purple Gallinule from Google

A rare species seen in rural areas said some of my neighbors when they were childhood.

However, Purple Gallinule is not list as endangered species yet, but its population is decreasing from time to time.

The birds can be seen in the states or region or foreign country such as:

- South Carolina
- Texas
- Southeastern of USA and Argentina

Have you seen Purple Gallinule in nature?

# Previous postings:

- Do You Know American Native Ginseng?
- Countries which Export Coconut to America
- Blue Mirror Flowers Blooming Twice in a Season – Nature 24
- Why are We Getting Obese Nowadays? - Part 1 – Healthy Life 20

What does Hypertension Mean? - Part 2 – Cardiovascular 3

You may read previous post (Part 1):

- What does Hypertension Mean? - Part 1 – Cardiovascular 3

Image 1- A plant, just for illustration

It can be in pulmonary artery (pulmonary hypertension) or in aorta (arterial/systemic hypertension).

We will discuss in the next coming articles.

In term of level, we call hypertension when blood pressure reaches 140/90 mmHg or even higher.

Quite surprising fact that there is 1 of 3 person gets high blood pressure worldwide.

Image 2- Accessories, illustration.

The hypertension leads to many diseases include kidney diseases, stroke and heart attacks.

Image 3- A factory outlet, illustration

On the other hand, the lower blood pressure the lower risk to get these diseases.

At figure of previous post (part 1): What does Hypertension Mean? - Part 1 – Cardiovascular 3, there are simple ways to prevent hypertension without medication:

+ 1. Healthy diet such as low-fat products, fruit, vegetable and grains
+ 2. Physical activity (doing exercise regularly)
+ 3. Avoiding smoke (cigarette could increase blood pressure immediately)
+ 4. Avoid drinking alcohol; and 5. Managing stress (enjoy and relax).

# Previous postings:

- Summer is a Perfect Time to Ride a Motorbike
- Rose breasted grosbeak Comes to Our Neighborhood – Nature 23
- GUTSY WOMEN of Hillary and Chelsea – Part 2 – Reading 10
- Local Property Tax for Funding Our City Transport System