Called the PURE (Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology) study, this was a very large observational study looking at the link between fat and carbohydrate consumption and longevity in 18 countries across 5 continents. Running for 7 years and involving over 135,000 people, this was a very big study so its conclusions are right to take notice of. The key finding from the work that attracted the most media attention was that a high carbohydrate diet was linked with a higher risk of earlier mortality, whereas total fat and individual types of fat were related to a lower risk of earlier mortality. Digging deeper into the study, the research team found that global diets consisted of 61 percent energy coming from carbohydrates and 24 percent energy from fats. And while those in the highest carbohydrate consumption group (a whopping 77 percent of energy) had a higher risk of earlier death, it wasn't cardiovascular disease they were dying from. What those other causes of death were exactly is unclear. Perhaps getting hit by a car running for a Mars Bar was one of them as a recent commenter on my Facebook page theorised. A paradigm shift? Not quite Does this study turn on its head 'everything we knew about nutrition?' Not quite. And here's why. Before the PURE study, there were many studies showing the opposite link between carbohydrates and longevity. So, when a conflicting study comes along, this grabs the media spotlight for the day. Here is just one example a major systematic review and meta-analysis from 2013 involving 17 individual studies and over 242,000 people showing a higher risk of earlier mortality as carbohydrate intake decreased. And this is the problem at times with observational research in that two studies can give polar opposite results so the findings of the PURE study should be seen through this filter. I'm not going to pick apart the PURE study for its flaws. Such issues are consistent across all observational studies no matter if the conclusions support consensus views or not. What is of value to... How long did the study probably last? Pick the correct answer from the following options: A. 20 minutes B. 1 week C. not enough information D. over 7 years
D

Voting is underway in the southern U.S. state of Alabama in a tightly contested Senate election between Democrat Doug Jones and Republican Roy Moore, a campaign roiled by charges from women who accused Moore of sexual misconduct four decades ago when they were teenagers and he was in his 30s. Tuesday's special election was being watched nationally, both as an indicator of how midterm congressional elections might play out next November and also as a barometer of President Donald Trump's political clout. Trump endorsed Moore, who has denied the women's allegations, and called for the defeat of Jones, whom he said would be a political "puppet" of liberal Democratic lawmakers in Washington. The election winner will serve the last three years of the seat left vacant by Jeff Sessions when he joined Trump's Cabinet as attorney general, the country's top law enforcement position. If Moore wins, Republicans will retain their 52-48 majority in the Senate, but a Jones victory would pare the margin to 51-49, possibly further complicating Trump's efforts to pass his legislative agenda. Pre-election polls at various times have shown both Moore, 70, and Jones, 63, in the lead, but the history of elections in deeply conservative Alabama runs against Jones. No Democrat has won a Senate election in the state since Richard Shelby did in 1992, and two years later he switched parties to become a Republican. Still a senator, Shelby said Sunday that he voted absentee for "a distinguished Republican" as a write-in choice, but could not bring himself to vote for Moore after one woman, now in her 50s, said Moore abused her when she was 14. Moore, twice deposed as a state Supreme Court justice for failing to follow federal court rulings, has accused journalists, Democrats and establishment Republicans in Washington of trying to undermine his campaign. Some Republican lawmakers, a number of whom said Moore should drop out of the contest after the women's allegations surfaced, said they would try to expel him from the Senate if he won. Richard Shelby probably thinks Pick the correct answer from the following options: A. not enough information B. Roy Moore would be a good Senator C. Doug Jones is too conservative D. Roy Moore is a bad choice
D

In the cosmic scheme of things, this was relatively minor. But very annoying. I had met a woman. Actually, at 19, she was still a girl. I lived in Pittsburgh. She lived in London, Ontario. She was, to put it bluntly, hotter than hell. On top of that, she's one of the sweetest, nicest people you were ever going to meet. Needless to say, I was quite smitten, and quickly arranged to spend a week in London with her. When I showed up, she was wearing very interesting pajamas. At least for a few minutes. Unfortunately, my two cats, who had never spent a night in my home without me being there, were, less than impressed when I didn't show up by 5 PM the day I left, despite having arranged for one of my parents to come over each day to feed them and make sure they had water, etc. Playing with them was optional, but neither would show themselves during that week. Nothing looked amiss on the first floor to Mom or Dad. The food was eaten, the water, apparently drunk, etc. When I got home and went upstairs I found something quite different. There was a trail of toilette paper strewn all over the hallway. My pillow was in the bedroom door and shredded. My alarm clock was on the floor. The power cord had been pulled from the wall and chewed through. There were severaluhmmm "presents" in the middle of the bed, where they had pulled the sheets back. Some of them were still wet. I figure that trip cost me somewhere in the neighborhood of $1k to repair the damage. So I did what any 24 year old would do when faced with that situation. I cleaned up, went to bed, and went back to London a few weeks later. But I cat proofed the house first. (Yes, they still lived with me for another 12 years before passing away.) Like I said, she was wearing very interesting pajamas when I got to London. At least for a few minutes. After the story the parents probably Pick the correct answer from the following options: A. apologized to the writer B. not enough information C. went to meet the girl D. had a good laugh
A