7 days. That was the shelf life of donated blood in the 1940s. And with millions of soldiers dead or dying on the battlefields of World War II, there was a massive need for more blood and more emergency blood transfusions. How did the father of the modern blood bank find a way to crack wide open that precious window of time?
How can scientists tell when a volcano is only blowing off steam or when its eruptions might swallow the next town over? Geologist Ken Hon weighs in from the slopes of Kilauea, one of the most active volcanoes in the world.
Although an annoying itch may seem simple, it’s anything but. Your body contains hundreds of nerve cells whose only message to your brain is that somewhere on your body is itching. Here’s how a pesky irritation goes more than skin deep.
About 70 people a year are struck dead by lightning each year in the United States. What happens to the hundreds of others who survive a lightning strike?
Can’t get enough of the Dr. Detective columns? You’re not alone. Open the case files on medical mysteries from scurvy to ulcers to the jake leg blues and more…
Sabrina McLaughlin Smith 