Word: dampen
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...year is high season for festive gatherings, which is fine if you're a guest but can be a nightmare if you're the host or hostess. If the thought of throwing a fancy party is enough to dampen your holiday spirit, you may be in the market for the crowd of new cookbooks coming just in time to take the stress out of party planning. Comedian Amy Sedaris, below right, leads the pack with a collection of edgy etiquette pointers and wacky wardrobe suggestions. Among the offerings from chefs and restaurateurs and magazine editors, there's a book...
That morning cup of coffee might smell better after you get up from bed. It has been shown that lying down can dampen such senses as hearing and spatial perception, and now researchers have found that reclining can also smother your ability to pick up odors. More than 60% of test subjects sniffing rose odor had decreased sensitivity to the smell when recumbent. The phenomenon could be the body's way of turning off potential distractions while you're trying to fall asleep, or it might be the result of fluids that rush through the brain while you're supine...
Statins have earned a reputation lately as a wonder drug. Not only do they protect against heart disease by controlling the amount of cholesterol the liver churns out, but they can also dampen the inflammatory flare-ups that contribute to everything from arthritis to heart attacks. Early studies even hint that statins may also work on the plaques and tangles that cause Alzheimer's disease. But all drugs have their limits. An analysis of 12 trials found that patients who had taken statins within two weeks of having a heart attack or angina did not reduce their risk of dying...
...seeing their city's famous skyline shrouded by smog. Now the haze could be casting a pall on the city's business climate as well. Last week, investment bank Merrill Lynch downgraded three of the city's biggest property companies, warning in a separate report that pollution could dampen demand for real estate and blunt the city's economic edge. "If we get to the point where it's so noxious you can't live here, people will start walking out the door," says Merrill Lynch strategist Spencer White...
...civilization - a campaign designed to divert attention from Iraq and wake his party's disaffected base from its slumber - Foley has given a few key segments of the Republican coalition a jaw-dropping reason to stay home. It's hard to conceive a piece of news more likely to dampen the turnout of social conservatives than predatory sexual practices by a closeted gay Republican leader. I also doubt that the Republican coalition-minders were pleased when Foley blamed his problems on an adolescent encounter with a priest; the last thing the G.O.P. needs is for Catholics to stay home...