If the snake in YouTube’s latest viral video could talk (and were still alive), it’d probably take a line from Mark Twain: “Reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” After it bit Israeli model Orit Fox’s fake breast during a photoshoot in Tel Aviv, it apparently died of silicone poisoning—which is a ridiculous rumor at best, though you can be the judge of that:
The snake did die, but it doesn’t take a snake biologist to explain that it probably wasn’t from silicone poisoning. I went ahead and talked to a snake biologist—University of Sydney scientist Rick Shine—anyway, who wrote in an email: “I’m skeptical—it’s hard to believe that it could have ingested any significant amount of silicone from the bite shown in the video clip.” And even if the snake did get a mouthful of silicone, there isn’t any evidence that medical-grade silicone can poison a snake, he added. (Though he did point out—with a laugh—that some snakes do eat mammals, and this one went straight for mammaries…)
With no official snake autopsy (shucks), we don’t know the true cause of death, but Universidad Central de Venezuela snake biologist Jesus Rivas thinks that it’s probably what happened to the snake after the bite that killed it. As he told me via email, “The film does not go far enough but it seems like they could have man-handled the snake a bit too hard to get her to release (with their hooking teeth releasing is not easy) and they might have killed the snake in that process.” Certainly more likely than silicone poisoning.
As for Fox, she was rushed to a hospital, jabbed with a tetanus shot, and left a few hours later. No word yet on the fate of the snake carcass.
It’s official, ladies and gentlemen: There’s nothing that athletes won’t try.
Here in the United States we’re inundated with stories of athletes doping with steroids and human growth hormone, as well as resorting to more… unusual forms of physical treatment, like when former Chicago Cubs outfielder Moises Alou once mentioned that he urinated on his hands to toughen them up. Europe, however, has some equally bizarre treatments and alternative medicine that have yet to enter the American sporting zeitgeist. Take Arsenal striker Robin Van Persie’s new hope of returning quickly from a recent injury: placenta massage.
The Dutch footballer tore ankle ligaments in a recent match against Italy. In hopes of returning in less than the standard six-week recovery period, Van Persie is off to Serbia for a procedure about which he knows almost no particulars. “She is vague about her methods but I know she massages you using fluid from a placenta,” he said. “I am going to try. It cannot hurt and, if it helps, it helps.”
Despite the lack of detail, Arsenal’s physicians consented to Van Persie receiving the placenta procedure. Why not? BBC News reports that there are health benefits associated with placenta, and besides, there’s no talking athletes out of something that has even the slimmest chances of improving recovery or performance:
England footballer Wayne Rooney used an oxygen tent prior to the 2006 World Cup to help him recover from a broken foot and six years ago runner Paula Radcliffe rubbed oil from the belly of an emu to ease injuries sustained in a collision with a cyclist.
No word yet, however, on whether Major League Baseball is considering a ban on placenta and emu oil.
Thirteen-year-old Nicholas Rossi took a nasty fall off his bike and hit his head. After picking himself up, he felt fine, so he went home. But when his mom spotted a large bump forming on his cranium, she rushed him to the nearest hospital in their rural Australian town.
The hospital didn’t have the necessary tool for proper brain surgery, so Carson went to the closet and nabbed a standard power drill. Before drilling into the boy’s skull, he phoned a Melbourne-based neurosurgeon for advice. He then performed the surgery, relieving enough pressure to save Rossi’s life.
Discoblog is DISCOVER's compendium of quirky, funny, and surprising science news from the edge of the known universe. It's written by Veronique Greenwood and Valerie Ross. Email tips and suggestions to vgreenwood [at] discovermagazine [dot] com.
It’s official, ladies and gentlemen: There’s nothing that athletes won’t try.
Thirteen-year-old 
