ALL ABOUT OVULATION

Definition

Ovulation is the process in a female's menstrual cycle by which a mature ovarian follicle ruptures and discharges an ovum (also known as an oocyte, female gamete, or casually, an egg). Ovulation also occurs in the estrous cycle of other female mammals, which differs in many fundamental ways from the menstrual cycle. The time immediately surrounding ovulation is referred to as the ovulatory phase or the periovulatory period.

Key Facts of Ovulation

• An egg lives 12-24 hours after leaving the ovary

• Normally only one egg is released each time of ovulation

Read More..

A High-Tech USB Pregnancy Test? Really?

We live in a techie world where ovulation, pregnancy, even baby's diaper changes can be charted via a multitude of apps. So it's about time someone developed a pregnancy test that not only tells you whether you're about to put on 40 lbs. in the name of creation, but also gives you lots of other sophisticated, computer-driven data about your baby-to-be.

The cleverly named p-Teq USB Pregnancy Test Kit requires users to pee on a stick, just like all the other home pregnancy tests on the market. But that's where the similarity ends. Uncap the other end of the wand to expose a USB connector to insert into your computer.

"The power from your USB port starts the electrospray ionization process, creating a spectrograph of the various masses for your analysis," according to ThinkGeek, which advertises the pregnancy test on its website. "Get it? Your analysis? Urinalysis? *rimshot* Moving on."

According to ThinkGeek, the p-Teq's mass spectrometry software analyzes hormones including human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), which rises in pregnancy; hyperglycosylated hCG (hCG-H), which aids in detecting pregnancy before a missed period; and luteinizing hormone (LH), which helps predict ovulation.

Read More..