Yuletide Thoughts

Virgin Birth


As anyone who has ever attended a Nativity play well knows, Mary became pregnant through immaculate conception, she was the virgin mother to Jesus.

Virgin births are not an uncommon phenomenon in mythology and "creative" historical stories (religious or secular), in fact figures as varied as Mithras, Buddha and Genghis Khan were all at one point reported as being carried by a maiden girl.

Hypothetically, is it possible for a human to experience virgin birth?

For Mary (XX) to have a son (XY) would be impossible. However if Mary was in fact XY but displaying a condition called "testicular feminisation" (in which the genitals develop female due to a mutation on the X chromosome leading to a resistance to testosterone), then she would at least have the correct chromosomes to pass on. This would then require the mutation that left her appearing female to reverse to allow Jesus to pass as male.
Alternatively Mary could have eaten her brother.

Not literally of course, but if she had fused in the womb with a male twin, if would have left her a genetic mosaic, carrying both the XX chromosomes to make her appearance female, and the XY chromosomes to pass on to her offspring.

The chances of either of these scientific possibilities coming to pass and actually leading to a pregnancy are so low that such an occurrence could probably be seen as miraculous.

Christmas vs Xmas


This is more a personal bugbear of mine.

Use of "Xmas" to replace "Christmas" annoys many people. But is this a recent phenomenon, a sign of text-speak over taking the word and the commercialisation of Christmas?

No, not really. In fact the first use of "Xmas" dates back to the eleventh century where monks illuminating manuscripts would use the Greek letter _Chi_ to symbolise Christ (Χριστός).

Worried about the secularisation are not new either. In 1647, Cromwell and the Puritan government effectively banned Christmas, considering it a "a popish festival with no biblical justification". The ban in England was lifted by Charles II in 1660, though in the New England and most of America (at the time inhabited by some pretty extreme Puritans) Christmas was not legalised until 1681. Even in 1776, (the Declaration of Independence), Christmas in America was still a time of fasting and piety.

Christmas Science


Moving on to more important matters, what handy science tricks can we put to use this festive season?

With chances of a white Christmas looking slim, artificial snow to decorate your home with is becoming more popular. You can make this yourself by taking the absorbent liner out of a nappy, ripping it up and adding a little water. A can of the stuff cost the better part of a tenner, whilst nappies are 12 for £5 (yes dear readers, I just looked that up for you).

Needle droppage and general wilting is a big problem with real Christmas trees. This can be solved by either buying a reusable plastic one (eurgh) or concocting a "tree saving" growth potion for your new house plant.

All you need for this is about five litres of water, 500ml of golden syrup (a food source for the tree), 4 teaspoons of chlorine bleach (disinfectant to prevent mold, fungi, and algae from growing) and 4 teaspoons of lemon juice (to acidify the hard water which helps the plant take up water and food). Stir it all together, add a copper penny (to act as a further fungicide and acidifier) and make sure you keep your tree stand topped up, especially in warm rooms.

**NB** Do not mix the lemon juice and bleach directly together, they may produce chlorine gas, add them into the large volume of water.