Men might feel like studs after
a few drinks but nothing could be further from the
truth, regrets Maria Burke
Desperate remedies
Having a hangover is no fun
at all. So why did Andy Coghlan get plastered four
weekends running?
Today's pick:
Wicked bubbly
Champagne gets its fizz from
tiny acid burns
High hazards
French government study concludes
alcohol is among the most dangerous of all potentially
addictive drugs
Your
good health...
It sounds too good to be true,
but alcohol helped rats repair their damaged livers
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How do you plan to see in the new millennium? Chances
are that whatever you do, it will include a glass
or two of colourless liquid produced by that star
among fungi, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We're talking
alcohol, and in this, New Scientist's special millennium
section, you'll find everything you ever wanted to
know about the stuff but were too drunk to ask. Marvel at the myth of the beer belly,
not to mention the way alcohol works its way with
our sexual desires. Then
there's our completely unscientific survey of hangover
cures--try them at your peril.
There are other issues, too. Alcohol
has featured in many cultures throughout history--take
a look at the Minoans 400 years ago. This year alone,
every adult in the developed world will quaff an average
of 10 litres of the stuff. Is this good or bad? Some
people see alcohol as an agent of the devil, encouraging
crime, violence and misery, a view that persuaded
the US to impose Prohibition in 1920. Certainly, society
pays dearly for the consequences of excessive drinking.
But how do we balance that cost against
the immense pleasure that alcohol brings? Most drinkers
practise moderation, enjoying the taste, intoxicating
effect and the company it brings. Stir in the fact
that alcohol seems to confer health benefits on some
people and the true complexity of the debate emerges.
Drink is neither demon nor angel, but, like us, something
in between.
However you celebrate the new millennium,
we wish you good health. But beware of overdoing it,
or your brain and judgement could go the same way
as Jane Tipple's in our feature, "Jane behaving badly"
(available on 3 December). Poor Jane. It could happen
to the best of us...
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The
strongest alcohol is an Estonian liquor distilled
from potatoes between the two world wars. It
is 98 per cent alcohol
Guinness
Book of Records 2000
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Sluggish and drunk
Could a slug live in a bottle
of wine?
White water
Why do anisette-based drinks
turn white when water is added to them?
Take the pils
Why you stumble to one side more
than the other when you've had a few drinks
Over the top
Why doesn't sparkling wine froth
when poured into a wet glass?
Fizz ice
Can beer really freeze as it's
taken out of the fridge and opened?
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