The Wake

Soap. Shampoo. Toothpaste. Lotion. Foundation. Deodorant. Almost everyone uses at least one, if not all, of these products on a daily basis, but do we ever think about what they are made out of? It is surprising how little we know about these familiar bottles and tubes. According to the Green Guide Web site, which is hosted by the National Geographic Society, the average adult uses nine personal care products a day, with roughly 120 chemicals spread among them, many of which are incompletely tested for toxicity.

The cosmetics industry is possibly one of the most unregulated industries. Major loopholes in federal law allows chemicals to be put into personal care products without any monitoring of health effects, almost no labeling requirements and no required testing.

According to the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Cosmetics and …

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Illustration by Oakley Tapola

Chocolate is everywhere! Holidays such as Halloween and Valentine’s Day make it a staple in everyone’s diet for at least two weeks surrounding the actual day. Songs, such as the infamous YouTube classic “Chocolate Rain,” have wormed their way into our brains. Chocolate is so popular that unsavory creatures, like ants and grasshoppers, covered in the creamy goodness are considered a fine delicacy. It seems like chocolate surrounds us and is something we are all familiar with, but do we really know what it is?

Doctor Gary Reineccius does! He is a food chemist and professor in the College of Food Sciences and Nutrition at the University of Minnesota and has been studying chocolate and its …

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Illustration by Sarah Morean

Artificial sweeteners have been a boon to the diet foods industry, allowing companies to market foods to a weight obsessed populace with an insatiable sweet tooth. In the U.S. artificial sweeteners are a $1.5 billion market. “Diet Dr. Pepper tastes more like regular Dr. Pepper,” the TV tells us. “Zero calories!” the bottle of Coke Zero screams at us from the shelf. “Drink as many as you want!” But should we?

Most of the concern over artificial sweeteners stems from their possible carcinogenic properties. The most commonly used artificial sweeteners in the U.S. are aspartame (Equal), saccharin (Sweet ‘n Low), and sucralose (Splenda). Aspartame and saccharin have a long history of controversy over their carcinogenic potential. The …

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Illustration by Ben Alpert

Building 14 of 2010 East Hennepin Ave SE looks abandoned. Like the other buildings on the large cement lot, its cracked foundation is made of dark brown bricks and features unlit, grimy windows. The collection of some 15 buildings was once owned by General Mills, but now play host to a variety of businesses, artists and artisans. The only evidence of life is the few hand made signs posted on the exterior walls: “Zelle Glass Studio,” “Deco Catering,” and “Yeowww! Brand Catnip,” just to name a few. While Building 14 is devoid of any business signs, within a few seconds of walking through its doors, the intense aromas provide only one conclusion: chocolate.

Brian McElrath, founder of …

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Illustration by Anders Carlson

Engineering students are trading in their graphing calculators for cordless drills and bandanas. Engineers Without Borders is a nonprofit organization that constructs engineering solutions to humanitarian dilemmas in the developing world. Spearheaded in 2000 by charismatic leader Dr. Bernard Amadei and $14,000, EWB has grown to include over 250 professional and student chapters, including a University of Minnesota chapter that recently completed a project in Ghana.

The roads in the rural Ghanian village of Amponasah Akroase are unpaved and lined with open sewers, according to literature from EWB-UMN. “Any local water source likely holds Guinea Worm larvae, which grow to three feet long inside the villager’s intestines, then emerge through a painful blister in the skin.”

Last …

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Illustration by Dixon Bordiano

When you drink a big glass of water from the tap, you probably don’t assume that it’s 100 percent pure H2O; you know there is fluoride in there for healthy teeth and other various chemicals used to kill bacteria and improve taste. What you don’t know is that you are probably also drinking a big, cold glass of the remnants of someone else’s medicine.

On March 9, the Associated Press released a report finding traces of pharmaceuticals including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers, and sex hormones in the drinking water of 24 major cities including Minneapolis. In Minneapolis, only caffeine was detected in the tested tap water; however, caffeine is a common contaminant that many scientists use as …

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For the first installation of our How-To column, here are a few recipes for non-toxic cleaning supplies that will make your home look pretty - and are good for the environment.

Window cleaner

¼ cup white vinegar
½ teaspoon liquid soap or detergent
2 cups water

Combine ingredients in a spray bottle and shake to blend.

Carpet spot remover

Blot the stain immediately. Sprinkle with baking soda, cornstarch or borax and let dry. Wash with club soda and vacuum.

Bathroom Cleaner (tile, bathtub, sink)

½ cup baking soda
Enough liquid dish soap or detergent to make the mixture a frosting-like consistency
5 to 10 drops essential oil (lemon, lavender or peppermint work well)

Place baking soda in a bowl and slowly pour in the liquid soap, stirring continually. Add essential oil. Use a sponge to apply, and rinse clean with water.

All-purpose cleaner

¼ cup white vinegar
2 teaspoons …

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Science Debate 2008 is a very simple concept: A debate between the presidential candidates that focuses entirely on science. Some of the biggest issues of the next century will be affected by scientific advancement, so it seems reasonable to expect the incoming president to know what is going on in that department.

Global warming is arguably the defining issue of our generation and much of what we are doing to try to slow it down is based on science. Science is now becoming one of the largest sources for jobs and money. One only has to look overseas to India or China to see the huge effect that scientific advancement can have on the economy of a country. There have also been reports on the diplomatic powers of science, noting the fact that it can …

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Photo by Bruce Silcox

As lids stretch down, eyelash meeting eyelash, peace falls over an audience hidden in darkness to the sound of steady drumming. Amidst chants of “rain, rain” echoing between the figures on stage, one might forget that this is only a play.

But is it?

A whirl of top hats, hard hats, cell phones and dancing sewer pipes might suggest otherwise. Booming announcements followed by uproarious applause, monsters made of plastic bottles, and the little bags of popcorn provided for each audience member should make it clear.

Beneath The Surface, the most recent mainstage performance at In The Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre in south Minneapolis, was not “just” anything.

The performance, themed after a big …

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Illustration by Srijon Chowdhury

The photos are the toughest part to get through. Reading about the German eugenics movement in the early part of the 20th century is one thing; seeing the visual documentation of the experiments and plans to eradicate those with unfit genes is another.

Through May 4, the Science Museum of Minnesota is hosting an exhibit from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race tells the story of the Nazi eugenics movement of the 1930s and 1940s.

Meticulously recorded and collected, photos of the subjects of Nazi medical experimentation reveal the astonishing dehumanization of the eugenics movement. The victims, many of them children, stare blankly back at the viewer, …

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For this week’s How-To guide, The Wake exploits a secret of the supermarket.

Tomato soup is a great addition to sandwiches of all sorts, especially grilled cheese. Instead of buying individual cans of soup, a large jug of V8 can become a delicious and cheap alternative.

Buy a large bottle of tomato juice,

Pour a good amount into a pot and heat,

Add a cube of beef bouillon if desired,

Squeeze in a lemon and garnish with parsley.

The main modifier here is the addition of lemon, which totally rad-ifies the flavor. Serve the soup with a grilled sandwich of your choice and enjoy (grilled cheese and avocado is my personal favorite.)

Illustration by Ben Alpert

An estimated 2,500 people in Minnesota are living with the HIV disease and do not know they have been infected.

In 2006, 318 new cases of HIV were reported in Minnesota, a five percent increase from the previous year.

Eighteen percent of these cases were reported among young people between the ages of 13 and 24.

A new case of the HIV disease is reported in Minnesota about every 27 hours.

These facts all come from the 2006 Profile of the HIV Epidemic from the MN AIDS Project, the most current look into virus data until the 2007 profile …

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Photo by Ben Lansky

Nalgene water bottles are a fun, fashionable way to carry water and other potables, keeping students happy and hydrated. In the past few years, Nalgenes have become so popular that it is impossible to walk fifty feet across campus without seeing a plethora of shatter resistant plastic water bottles. Now, after this widespread distribution we are realizing that everyone and their brother drinking out of these things may not be such a great idea.

One of the key building blocks of Lexan, the rigid, clear, shatter-resistant polycarbonate plastic that Nalgene bottles are made of, is a compound called bisphenol-A. This compound mimics estrogen and is known as an endocrine disruptor, binding to estrogen receptors, causing alterations …

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We ask a question that gets to the very fabric of human existence. What’s more important to you: Art or Science?

Art Vs. Science

Dark Matter Music Box at the University of Minnesota

Read the article here.