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Dear Lifehacker,
Every now and then I crack my knuckles and sometimes my other joints creak and pop too. I’m not even that old, really! Should I be concerned? Are my noisy joints bad?
Signed,
Creaky

Dear Creaky,
Cracking sounds on your joints can definitely sound—if not feel—alarming. It’s probably happened to all of us, though, whether from cracking knuckles on purpose or just hearing popping sounds when stretching. I talked to a few medical experts to find out what’s going on and whether or not all this noise is a sign of a medical issue. Here’s what they said.

It’s Usually Harmless

The common misconception that cracking your joints will cause arthritis is just that—a misconception. Dr. Levi Harrison, an orthopedic surgeon and the author of The Art of Fitness, says he’s often asked this question. He explains:

Commonly, joints make an audible cracking sound when the joint is stretched or manipulated due to gas inside the joint fluid or synovial fluid. Common gases in the joint are O2 (Oxygen) and N (Nitrogen). When you flex and stretch your fingers in order to "crack your knuckles", the capsule around the joint which contains this gas filled fluid causes the bubbles to burst which causes that sound. The sound may be loud or dull. Often, you have to wait a period of time before the sound can be heard again, if you manipulate the joint. It takes time for the gas bubbles to reform in the joint.

Dr. Michael Haley, owner of Agape Chiropractic, offers a few more insights—and strange medical terms (joint mice? crepitus?!) that describe the issue:

Sometimes the sounds are coming from muscle bellies. Other times they are coming from the deeper joint structures – tendons, ligaments, and discs. Sometimes the sounds aren’t "cracking sounds" at all, but rather, inflammation in the joints that is "squishing around" with movement. These are the noises someone might hear continuously when they turn their heads side to side. Ideally, turning your head does not make any noise. Joint mice may contribute to the sounds. These sounds are collectively usually referred to as "crepitus".

Based on clinical experience, it seems that tension builds up and allows for the joints to "crack" or release. Inactivity seems to increase the need… whereas frequent movement and stretching seems to not only decrease the need, but also even the possibility of of cracking the joints.

An interesting observation is that humans learn to disobey their need for movement. Cats and dogs seem to stretch out their bodies, with an emphasis on their spines, after every period of inactivity. Kids seem to stretch after inactivity too. But adults tend to get up and go about their sedentary days. No wonder their joints crack… or need cracking…

In other words, it’s a good idea to fit more movement into your day, if you’re not already doing so.

When You Might Want to Consult a Doctor

Those assurances aside, there are times cracking joints is more ominous. If you experience any pain with the cracking, it could be a sign of a medical problem. Dr. Harrison says:

Individuals who have painful grinding and creaking joints that started after an injury or trauma to their joints may have arthritis. This is not a good thing. Arthritis occurs when the protective cartilage lining of a joint has been damaged or eroded. This can occur from an injury, age, or an even inflammatory condition like rheumatoid arthritis.

If you have had an injury, for example to your hips or knee and experience significant hip and or knee pain, as well as popping of your joints, you may have arthritis in these areas. I recommend an evaluation by your healthcare practitioner. After an appropriate history and physical exam, they may order the necessary radiographic tests to evaluate the joint. Arthritis is common and pain with creaking and popping in any joint warrants proper evaluation by your doctor.

In the absence of pain, though, you probably don’t have to worry (but can check with your doctor if you’re still anxious about this). Dr. Harrison doesn’t recommend cracking your knuckles, neck, or anything else, but it’s still probably harmless. Consider this research noted by Dr. Amy Baxter, CEO of MMJ Labs (which makes a really cool pain blocker, Buzzy):

One really fun paper was what we call an "n of 1" study – some guy (Dr. DL Unger) decided to only crack one hand his whole life, and see what happened. He then published the result. Bottom line: the cracked knuckle was bigger, but none the worse for wear.

I also asked my sister, a family physician in Arizona, about this, and she said she gets this question a lot—strangely from young teenage patients. Her advice? It’s probably nothing…but if it bothers you, stop cracking your knuckles or neck. So there you go.

Love,
Lifehacker

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​Is It Bad If I Crack My Knuckles or Other Joints?

If you’ve resolve to learn to code this year, one of our favorite Lifehacker U courses is just starting up: Harvard’s CS50X. It’ll teach you the beginnings of computer programming from the ground up. You can audit it online or even try for a certificate for free. It’s happening now, so if you want to get involved, don’t wait.

Here’s what Harvard has to say about this course:

CS50x is Harvard College’s introduction to the intellectual enterprises of computer science and the art of programming for majors and non-majors alike, with or without prior programming experience. An entry-level course taught by David J. Malan, CS50x teaches students how to think algorithmically and solve problems efficiently. Topics include abstraction, algorithms, data structures, encapsulation, resource management, security, software engineering, and web development. Languages include C, PHP, and JavaScript plus SQL, CSS, and HTML. Problem sets inspired by real-world domains of biology, cryptography, finance, forensics, and gaming. As of Fall 2013, the on-campus version of CS50x was Harvard’s second-largest course.

Be sure to check it out soon (since you’ll miss it otherwise) and Lifehacker U for more ways to learn for free.

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We’ve seen a lot of standing desks, including those made from IKEA parts, but artist/designer Kelli Anderson managed to make one of the nicest convertible options yet. With IKEA storage furniture, Google Sketchup, and help from some friends, she was able to make this simple and stunning workspace with plenty of room for everything—regardless of how she wanted to work.

The desk started with the IKEA AKURUM cabinets stacked next to each other with one open space for a desk. Kelli then added a linear actuator, which lifts the desk up into standing position with a push of a button, so it could change heights based on how she wanted to work. As you can see above, the result is quite nice. You need a lot of space to fit a desk of that size, but could build a smaller version if you wanted as IKEA’s AKURUM series comes in many varieties. To learn about the entire process and how you could build one of these yourself, check out the full post (complete with many photos and some video) on Kelli’s blog.

A Stand-up Desk (Ikea hack) | Kelli Anderson via Swissmiss

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Cross-posted from

This year certainly had its share of ups and downs in terms of lawyerly antics, but in our minds, 2013 shall forever be known as the year of the snarky cease and desist response letter. Back in June, we broke the news of the now famous response to a cease and desist letter received from the Town of West Orange, New Jersey, which went viral worldwide thanks to the power of sarcasm. A few months later, we wrote about an equally entertaining response to a cease and desist letter received from the American Bankers Association, rife with Spice Girls lyrics and Valley girl lingo.

It’s been a while since we wrote about one of these treasures, so we figured we’d close the year out with a bang. We discovered yet another amazing response to a cease and desist letter, and this one may be the greatest of them all — if only because we think its author might have been drunk while writing it….

Jeff Britton, the owner of Exit 6 Pub and Brewery in Cotteville, Missouri, received a cease and desist letter from none other than Starbucks, specifically from Anessa Owen Kramer of Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn, over a beer named “Frappicino.” As the world knows, the lords of coffee sell a frozen drink (a coffee Slurpee?) by the name of “Frappuccino.” Yes, the names are similar, but to be confused enough to think you could order the nectar of mall-hopping teenage girls at a bar, you’d have to be pretty drunk.

Rather than cower in fear over the legal consequences threatened by America’s coffee monarch, Britton decided it would be in his best interests to write a response on his own, without the assistance of legal counsel, because he didn’t need no stinkin’ lawyer. Here’s what he posted on the Exit 6 Facebook page:

So quick little story. Last week I received a cease and desist letter from the attorneys at Starbucks. Apparently there was a beer on Untappd that someone named “Frappicino”. 3 people had checked into said beer. 3. Starbucks [didn’t] like that. So I got a letter. They wanted me to remove the beer and promise never to use their names again. They also wanted my written response and guarantee. Here is their letter. And also my response.

Needless to say, Britton’s response is amazing — he even threw in some legalese, despite the fact that he’s not a lawyer (oh yeah, heretofore, baby). Here are some highlights from his letter (all errors included in the original). You’d have to be drunk to write something like this, right? Who cares, it’s freakin’ awesome:

Exit 6 has proudly sold at least 38 drinks in Cottleville MO and has a strong presence in St Charles county, a suburb 40 miles outside the St Louis metropolis. It has recently come to Exit 6 Pub and Brewerys attention that there were 3 check ins to the beer with a very similar name to the “F Word”. Unfortunately it was only similar to the F Word because we meant to call it the same thing. Lucky for us, we’re poor spelers.

I would like for both Ms Owen Kramer and Mr Bucks to rest assured we meant no deception, confusion, or mistaking in the naming of the beer F Word. We never thought that our beer drinking customers would have thought that the alcoholic beverage coming out of the tap would have actually been coffee from one of the many, many, many stores located a few blocks away. I guess that with there being a Starbucks on every corner of every block in every city that some people may think they could get a Starbucks at a local bar. So that was our mistake.

Mr. Bucks isn’t Ms. Owen Kramer’s co-counsel; no, this “poor speler” is addressing Mr. Star Bucks himself, as if he were an actual human being. We imagine Britton was at least six Frapps in at this point.

We haven’t even gotten to the best part yet. To show Mr. Bucks just how sorry he really was, Britton enclosed a check in the amount of Exit 6′s profits made from its “Frappicino” beer to be applied to Ms. Owen Kramer’s legal fees, which he admits were “probably … more than Exit 6 made last year.” Here it is:

Behold: the legal equivalent of a mic drop. Cheers to you, Jeff Britton! We raise a glass in your honor.

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The Greatest Response To A Cease And Desist Letter, Probably Written While Drunk

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We’ve talked about the best ways to unclog a drain before, but these handy toilet-clearing tablets are helpful to have on-hand in case yours stops flushing the way it should. Plus, they’re really easy to make.

The folks at SavvySugar put a tried and true combination—baking soda and dish detergent—to good use in these tiny tablets that you can keep in a box or basket next to the toilet or under the bathroom sink. If your toilet starts flushing slowly or worse, doesn’t flush at all and is backed up, one oft hese should clear the way. Here’s what you’ll need:

• 2 cups baking soda
• 1/4 cup Epsom salts
• 8 to 9 tablespoons liquid dish detergent
• Muffin tin
• Muffin liners

Mix the baking soda and epsom salts together first, and try to mix them so you don’t get any clumps. Then add the dish soap one tablespoon at a time until the whole thing has the consistency of wet sand. Pop the liners (SavvySugar suggests silicone liners, since the tablets will be easier to remove) into your muffin tin, then fill each liner and pack it down tightly. You’ll need to let the whole thing rest and dry out overnight—preferably a little longer just so each tablet is completely dry and comes out of the liner easily.

Then, when it comes time to use one, grab a tablet, drop it into the toilet, cover with a few cups of hot water, and let the tablet dissolve for a few hours (or overnight, if you can wait that long). Then try flushing the toilet again. That’s all there is to it. It works like a charm, and there are no harsh, pipe-damaging chemicals involved. Hit the link below for more photos and the full walkthrough.

Unclogging Toilet Bombs | SavvySugar

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