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At first glance, rheumatoid arthritis and coronavirus have little in common. But an underlying pathological mechanism that involves an over-reactive immune response may allow a drug developed to treat arthritis to save the lives of coronavirus victims.

COVID-19 has spread across the media much faster than across the world. The uptick is seen in the articles we're bringing forward this week. But rather than concentrate on what to do -- which has already been amply covered -- we're sharing reflections on how we got here. And what we can do differently.

The global mortality rate from air pollution is estimated to be 8.8 million people per year. That's 18% higher than the 7.2 million lost annually from tobacco. Do you believe it? There is room for doubt. Let's take a look.

When I wrote about "Magic Aleve" -- a derivative of Aleve/naproxen that appears to be both G.I.-friendly and a more potent analgesic/antiinflammatory than Aleve itself -- a number of questions arose. Dr. John Wallace, CSO of Antibe, which is developing the drug called ATB-346, kindly agreed to answer them.

To ACSH advisor Dr. David Shlaes, the outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus in a nursing facility is scary but not surprising. He's appalled by the poor care of the elderly in our long-term care facilities, most of which are for-profit organizations.

For patients taking multiple medications, one extended-release pill increases their compliance in taking the medication, as compared with two immediate-release pills. So if we want to encourage compliance, why are extended-release pills more expensive than what they replace?

We are holobionts, those who thrive in a saline environment, crafting of at least two species living in close proximity with one another. The other species is our gut microbiome, those microbial communities residing in our bowels and providing us with nutrients and signals. There's no denying their importance. But not as much can be said for probiotics –- the live microorganisms marketed to us with claims to better our health.

The tenure of the World Health Organization's Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has been marred by incompetence and deference to dictators. The coronavirus pandemic is far too serious to allow Dr. Ghebreyesus to continue in his post. The WHO should be led by someone else.

Today's scientific discoveries take teams, and long times to come to fruition. And there seem to be fewer "aha" moments. Is it because we’ve found all the low-hanging fruit? Or were the words of Albert Michaelson, America's first Noble Prize winner in physics, correct? "The more important fundamental laws and facts of physical science,” he said, “have all been discovered." Or, even still, have we unintentionally distorted the marketplace of ideas?

There hasn't been a material advance in the pharmacological treatment of pain since the 1890s, when heroin and aspirin were invented. That may change if an experimental drug being developed by a Toronto-based drug company keeps performing in advanced clinical trials. This could be huge.

As the coronavirus continues to terrorize the world, people are pinning their hopes on companies that are doing vaccine and drug research to -- maybe -- get us out of this mess. Yet, many of the companies doing the work, especially Gilead Science, are "the bad guys." Except when we need them. Gilead's drug, remdesivir, is now in clinical trials in China so they're OK for now. Hypocrisy at its finest.

A lot remains unknown about how many people are infected with coronavirus. One of the few certainties is that far more people are infected than official numbers indicate. A rough calculation suggests anywhere from 150,000 to 3 million global infections.

Surgery is bad enough, but postoperative nausea and vomiting make it far worse. There's a "new" drug that has been shown to help prevent PONV. But how well does it work? Plus TWO quizzes for all you masochists out there.

There is a lot of malicious misinformation on the internet about glyphosate. Much of it comes from academia.

When COVID-19, aka the Wuhan coronavirus, first emerged, it seemed most likely that the virus would fizzle out. But as the disease continues to spread, that outcome now appears nearly impossible.

Facial recognition and both Carnival Cruises, and every journalists' current favorite, the Coronavirus. ... Is eating local inherently more "green?" ... And the most important science of all: Why Cheerios clump together in milk.

Would you like to learn how the "kinematics of wok-tossing" can impact fried rice quality? Or, do herpetic monkeys running around Florida concern you? Or maybe you're curious about what happens when you strap yourself to a rocket to prove that the earth is really flat? Then, strap yourself in, folks -- cause it's time for Bizzaro News!

We wrote a little over a month ago about the large number of institutions not reporting study results, as required on ClinicalTrials.gov. Now, Stat reports that a federal court has ruled that those reports must be filed, although the timeframe for compliance remains ambiguous.

There are many different ways to make a vaccine. Johnson & Johnson, Sanofi, Inovio, and Moderna are all taking different approaches to tackle COVID-19, the Wuhan coronavirus.

To err is human, but unfortunately, so is coping with mistakes and errors. A controversial paper on vaping, which has been retracted, demonstrates the more subjective, human side of science.

Over the past several years, as marijuana has gone from illegal to recreational, its use among seniors has increased by 700%. We shouldn’t be surprised. After all, those Boomer seniors use to be young when marijuana was less a gateway to hell -- and more a gateway to Woodstock Nation.

The purpose of the Facebook page "I Fu**ing Love Science" is to popularize science while remaining scientifically accurate. However, one of its posts was recently flagged as "fake news" by Facebook fact-checkers.

Are toxicologists medical doctors? And what does a person need to know to become a toxicologist? Dr. Michael Dourson, aka America's Toxicologist, and Dr. Bernard Gadagbui explain the field of toxicology.

Today, the only thing reliable about the collective media – both American and international – is how unreliable they are. Even on vital issues, like the coronavirus, they succumb to sensationalism and conspiracy theories. Is it any wonder, then, that more people are turning away?

Here's what's on tap this time: Is a midlife crisis an unavoidable part of being a social animal? ... Is there an underlying science to scaling an idea, device, or pharmaceutical from the lab to the real-world? ... And what can older companies teach us?