I'm excited to announce that I've been named an associate editor for a new high profile journal, Chocolate Pudding Letters Review. Read below for our first call for papers:

CALL FOR PAPERS!

We are now accepting papers for the 1st issue of CPLR! DO NOT MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY! Leading scientists anticipate that CPLR will become the premier outlet for major breakthroughs in the study of chocolate pudding (CP) and other viscous edible creations (VECs).

Specific topics of interest include, but are not limited to, 1) theoretical reviews, 2) empirical works, 3) recipes, 4) novel appropriations of/ways to smear CP/VECs, 5) interesting pictures of CP/VECs, 6) implications of CP/VECs for genetic research, 7) mirror neurons and CP/VECs, 8) and the localization of CP/VECs in the normal adult brain.

Please send an email to either of the Editors (refer to UIUC psychology website for contact info) stating your affiliation and which type of article you are submitting: a) short report, b) confession, c) diatribe, or d) ad hominem comment on others' work(s). Type (d) submissions are especially welcome for the first issue, but we prefer to receive these before the target article is composed and/or submitted. Videos and other multimedia works are encouraged. Please send us your most sincere manuscripts only. For authors interested in hilarious mockery of academic literautre, we recommend "The Savory Biscuit Pudding Report", "Journal of Experimental Pudding: Learning, Memory, and Pudding", "Psychological Pudding", and "Sensory and Pudding Skills".

Accepted works will be published online in Volume 1, Issue 1 of CPLR. Authors are invited to a founders' ceremony in Rm. 837 of the Psychology Building one week after all acceptance notifications have been issued. Invitees must provide some variety of VEC and are encouraged to bring a wig, electric drill, and beach towel.

Editors:

A. Ksyusha Kittredge
Eric G. Taylor

Associate Editors:

Rachael Bild
Derek Devnich
Michael Diaz
J. Stephen Higgins
Agnieszka Konopka
Erica L. Middleton
Gary Oppenheim

Everyone thinks the printing press led to increased literacy among the average man in the middle ages, but that just might not be the case. Dr Marco Mostert a historian from Utrecht University is instead suggesting that the availability of cheap paper was the main reason more reading material became available. While this isn't surprising the source of the new cheap paper is. It seems that, according to Dr. Mostert,

"These rags came from discarded clothes, which cost much less than the very expensive parchment which was previously used for books. In the 13th century, so it is thought, as more people moved into urban centres, the use of underwear increased - which caused an increase in the number of rags available for paper-making."

For more random medieval literacy facts (none as exiting as this though) check out the EurekAlerts press release.

In case you're wondering what medieval underwear looks like here's an example.
This is a reproduction created by copying paintings by Antonello Da Messina and Piero della Francesca

Channel 4 in Britain has created a series documenting what goes on in Autopsies, but even more exciting is that they've made them available online for your viewing...pleasure?

I'm a pretty squeamish guy, which is one of the (many) reasons I didn't go to medical school. So if you're particularly grossed out by dead, cut open people then you should perhaps not watch these graphic videos. I'm about to force myself to check out the videos though! Wish me luck ;)

Here's a short description from the show webpage:

These clips contain scenes of a graphic nature demonstrating disections of the human body. All bodies dissected were formally dedicated to the Institute for Plastination, Germany and the donors consented to their remains being used for educational purposes.

And here's the videos!