As classes get into full swing, your time is suddenly filled up with reading, late nights spent writing papers, and of course, eating. If you’ve been wondering why you’re always hungry when studying for History 210, researchers have an answer.
In a recent study done by Angelo Tremblay at his lab at the Universite Laval in Quebec, it was found that those performing mental tasks like trying to solve problems (e.g. Calculus 111), while working at a computer stimulated their appetite so much that they tended to eat more calories than their bodies actually burned while performing the task.
The psychological logic for the rise in appetite? According to the study, mental work “destabilizes” our levels of insulin and glucose, which in turn stimulates the appetite.
Is this why after a weekend of total dedication to homework, I suddenly find I’ve depleted me and my roommate’s entire snack supply?
According to Tremblay’s study, participants consumed far more calories after performing a mental task like reading for a class than relaxing for the same amount of time. In addition, they concluded that time spent surfing the Internet, as well as instant messaging, may very well be a significant factor in the obesity epidemic amongst college students.
So studying is really to blame for the freshman 15? Read More »





I was 14. My parents were getting a divorce. My father was also simultaneously dating a new woman. I was fighting with my brother all the time. So what did I do instead of properly dealing with my feelings? I internalized it and took it out on myself.
I scanned the menu of the dimly lit Thai restaurant where we had chosen to have lunch. It was really breakfast, being our first meal of the day. It was still only 11:30 in the morning.
There’s some foods that naturally go together. Like peanut butter and jelly. Or fries and ketchup. No one makes a weird gagging sound when they see you chowing down on some cheese and crackers. But sometimes chips and salsa gets boring and you realize that you crave something a little…more interesting.
Once upon a time, man survived by cooking his dinner over a fire. Then someone came along and invented The George Foreman Grill (I guess that someone would be George himself). And now? Now we don’t know how we could live without it.
The first date… those three words alone are enough to fill my soul with terror. The person likes you enough to go out with you, but did they just agree to be nice, or do they really like you? Do they mean to be friends? Have you just completely misjudged their advances? What if they act really overzealous? What if they act really uninterested?
The New York Times
Quick! What’s one food you could live off of? For me, it’s peanut butter. I dream of a peanut butter that’s fat-free, calorie-free, and sugar-free, so I can just eat scoop after scoop without feeling any guilt. Alas, that is probably a dream that will never come true; but it doesn’t stop me from eating scoop after scoop. And since I’m eating it anyway, I figure I may as well combine it with another delicious love of mine: chocolate.