China visit

Back from China where I visited Shanghai and then Chongqin for my talk at the 5th annual meeting of the Chinese Society for Reproductive Medicine. China was so impressive that I cannot wait to return for another visit. China is in the midst of an incredible boom and the people in Shanghai have trouble keeping up with all the marvelous changes happening around them. Some say that this change is proceeding at an uncomfortably fast pace.

Diet soda and cardiovascular disease?

New research that links diet soda consumption with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke has doctors urging caution about the controversial and preliminary results.
According to a study of more than 2,500 people presented today as a poster at the American Stroke Association International Stroke Conference in Los Angeles, people who drank diet soda daily had a 61 percent increased risk of cardiovascular events compared to those who drank no soda, even when accounting for smoking, physical activity, alcohol consumption and calories consumed per day.

http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/lat-heb-dietsodastrokeheartattack20110209,0,4324389.story

Eggs and Embryos Bar Coded?

In an exciting development, a team in Barcelona, Spain, was able to bar code eggs and embryos so that the chance of mixing or loosing them becomes nil. The government of Catalonia has granted the team permission to tag eggs and embryos for fertility centers in Spain

 http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2010/11/theres-something-in-my-eggs.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news