Category: Science and Health

A new peer-reviewed study, published by Frontiers in Psychiatry has found that sleep can have a significant impact on physiological health. Insomnia, a problem whereby people struggle to fall or stay asleep, is estimated to impact 10-20% of the general population. Previous studies have found that sleep disturbances increase the likelihood of a person developing […]

“No matter what we’ve done, there comes a point when you think, ‘How did I get here? When are they going to discover that I am, in fact, a fraud and take everything away from me?’” – Actor Tom Hanks (NPR, April 26, 2016) “No matter what we’ve done, there comes a point when you […]

The Israeli market is saturated with imported and local milk substitutes, ranging from soy milk, almond milk, rice milk, coconut milk, oat milk and even hazelnut milk. Sometimes, creative recipes for plant-based milk show up online, such as a poppy-based milk alternative that says it’s the healthiest one out there. In general, it’s very important […]

“When Aaron enters the sanctuary, shall carry the names of the children of Israel on the breastplate of judgment over his heart, as a remembrance before God at all times.” (Exodus 28:29) This verse from Parashat Tetzaveh refers to the bejeweled breastplate worn by ancient Israel’s high priest. It had 12 different precious gems, each […]

It isn’t parents’ fault for giving their babies unusual names, with an evolutionary biologist saying there is actually an evolutionary reason behind it. The University of Michigan’s Dr. Mitchel Newberry is the biologist in question, turning his focus on naming trends. In particular, he wants to answer the mystery of how some names manage to […]

Today’s daf quotes a mishnah from Nega’im, the tractate that explores the halakhot of tzara’at, a disease described in the Hebrew Bible that is sometimes mistranslated as leprosy. (This mishnaic tractate, like much of Seder Toharot, has no Gemara, so we won’t be learning it together in our Daf Yomi journey). Mishnah Nega’im 14:4 teaches: […]

How do we know things? Philosophers distinguish between two major approaches to this question. One approach turns to tradition, to teachings passed down from sages of the past. The other approach turns to the evidence of the senses, what we see, hear, and experience ourselves — what today we call the empirical method. This distinction […]

Cancer diagnoses are not spread evenly in the country. There are localities where the rate is low and others where the rate is high. In recognition of World Cancer Day held last month, Jerusalem’s Taub Center for Social Policies published a study on “Trends and Gaps in Morbidity and Mortality from Cancer within Towns in […]

This Torah presents the nazirite’s prohibition from eating grapes as follows: Throughout their term as nazirite, they may not eat anything that is obtained from the grapevine, even seeds or skin. (Numbers 6:4) The final phrase of the verse, which could also be translated “from seeds to skin,” appears to be emphasizing the total ban: A nazir can’t […]

As we know, the nazir is forbidden from consuming grape products. The mishnah on which today’s conversation is based first attempts to quantify the minimum amount of grape products that, if consumed by the nazir, would trigger punishment. Next, it considers mixtures, quoting Rabbi Akiva who notes that even if the nazir only ate bread on which a few drops of […]