In a world where reproductive choice is dwindling, a chronic health issue unexpectedly freed me from unwanted pregnancy. — If you have a uterus and are avoiding pregnancy — whether you’re choosing to be childfree or just delaying until a better time — witnessing the war on abortion happening here in the United States is terrifying. The governor of Oklahoma just signed a bill that intends to make abortion…

A few reasons to believe in yourself, from a woman who would have wanted you to. — When I woke up from surgery this past December, there was a text from my mom waiting for me: She’s not going to be with us much longer. She’s very near the end. My grandmother was dying, and I couldn’t be with her because I was in the process of…

January 2022 edition — Space farming aboard the ISS, controversial wage increases for foreign farm workers, the science of sweetness, and more. Welcome to Flask and Funnel’s first monthly collection of food science news and notable articles. Expect to see more collections like this throughout the year. Food for Thought Space farming? It’s happening — Astronauts grew and harvested these chile peppers for science (and an extra kick of flavor with their food) aboard the…

I stopped living my life through the internet’s eyes, and gained these specific things as a result. — Before leaving Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter last fall, I was a full-blown addict. I had thousands of followers and spent up to three hours a day online. …

For thousands of years, preserving food through fermentation offered safe harbor against the unknown. — The farmers of ancient Nepal feared invasion during times of war. Their fields and homes, and the food produced there, were liable to fall into the hands of their enemies. To protect against this, they fermented leafy greens to make gundruk and buried these preserved vegetables in pits covered by…

The medical system failed me for years. Now I have answers, and I was right all along. — When I went to the emergency room this past July suffering from severe dysmenorrhea, I received dismissive and unsympathetic care. I was under the impression that heavy bleeding, pain so excruciating you cannot speak or move that lasts for hours, and dizziness were cause for seeking help. While there, I…

Women have valid reasons for not choosing to put a baby up for adoption. Those who are against abortion won’t consider them. — Access to abortion in the United States is in jeopardy as a conservative-majority Supreme Court hears the “biggest abortion case in decades”, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. To summarize how high the stakes are, if judges overturn previous precedents set by the infamous Roe v. Wade, experts estimate it…