As a new Roman emperor, your risk of death was high, but it declined as time went on, according to a new analysis. And over 70 rulers, the progression was predictable. 

Historical records show that of 69 rulers of the unified Roman Empire, 43 (62 percent) suffered violent deaths - assassination, suicide or combat. Historical accounts typically examine each death as a single, random event alongside individual contributing factors such as allegiances and wealth. The military got a bonus from a new Emperor so there were periods when turnover was linked to the financial effect, for example.

Though young people are able to obtain alcohol and drink it, their ability to buy alcohol at point of sale is almost nonexistent. That is not the case with recreational cannabis, where early adopter states have a shocking 37 percent rate of youth being able to purchase marijuana. In  recreational only cannabis stores, 71 percent were able to purchase without a valid ID showing they were of legal age. 

If you are an African-American hypertensive at high risk of developing associated cardiovascular disease, a new paper from Maharishi Institute - where yogic flying instructors get trained to levitate(1) - says Transcendental Meditation will prevent abnormal enlargement of your heart and reduce chronic heart failure.

This lovely specimen of Oncorhynchus nerka, a Pleistocene Sockeye Salmon, is from outcrops along the South Fork Skokomish River, Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, USA.
I'd expected to learn that the locality contained a single or just a few partial specimens, but the fossils beds are abundant with large, 45–70 cm, four-year-old adult salmon concentrated in a beautiful sequence of death assemblages.

Sperm quality can be reduced by several lifestyle factors, like obesity and related diseases such as type 2 diabetes, but a new examination of epigenetic phenomena - gene expression changing even if the DNA sequence is not changed -  finds that even diet can impact sperm quality, and in just two weeks.

The concern is that such epigenetic changes might be able to lead to properties being transferred from a parent to offspring via the sperm or the egg. 

Any time is a good time to start exercising but a great time to start exercising is today. Share this article on Facebook first, though. 

Don't be intimidated by those people who hiss about Crossfit or their Peloton, a new study shows you have the same ability to build muscle mass as highly trained master athletes of a similar age.

New survey results in the Journal of Media Psychology find that how much you enjoy or hate the new "Star Wars" movie will depend a lot on your expectations. Nothing shocking in that, but there is a twist.

And the twist is not that the new movie will make a fortune this week no matter what reviewers or the more rabid fringe of the fan base say. That is entirely predictable.

Navan Fort, the legendary capital of Ulster. has long been considered a site of ritual gatherings.  Excavations have uncovered a huge 40-yard diameter building and a barbary ape cranium, likely from at least as far as Iberiam along with remnants of pigs, cattle and sheepfrom across Ireland, perhaps being reared as far afield as Galway, Donegal, Down, Tyrone and Antrim. 

That means Iron Age communities were very mobile at holiday time, their own version of driving for Christmas. 

The anti-vaccine movement tries to portray itself as scrappy grassroots outsiders standing up to Big Pharma and Big Government, but it's nothing of the kind, finds a recent Washington Post exposé.

The National Vaccine Information Center, which claims to be the largest "awareness" non-profit opposing vaccines, actually gets almost half of its funding from corporations. And their largest corporate benefactor is the osteopath Joe Mercola, head of a $100 million empire that sells alternatives to medicine for nearly everything.  And who funds lots of groups opposed to science, from medicine to food.

December 25, as we all know, is Jesus Christ’s birthday, a Christian celebration in which the myth of three kings who travelled far and wide to give gifts to the “new born king” inspires the modern Christian tradition of gift giving. Early gifts used to be fruits or nuts, but as this act took on more importance, gifts became larger and less modest, and were placed under a tree.