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With the Zika virus running rampant through South America, outbreaks could pop up in several US cities. A study from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) estimated this hazard in the largest cities in the US, finding that the south and especially the southeast is quite vulnerable to the threat posed by Zika. Key […]
Recovering memories lost after Alzheimer’s can be as simple as flipping a switch – at least for mice. According to a new research, these memories aren’t lost, it’s just the retrieval of the retrieval mechanism that is impaired. Loss of long-term memory and some learned experiences is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s diseases. Despite the disease affecting millions of […]
Heavy marijuana users react to anxiety-inducing stimuli similarly to people diagnosed with anxiety disorders, a new study found. The results could help improve the accuracy of anxiety disorder diagnostics in the future.
The sounds you make while chewing have a significant effect on the amount of food you eat, a new study has found. The results suggest that people are likely to consume less if they can hear themselves eating.
Scientists trained healthy volunteers with good eyesight to read Braille and found the visual cortex was connected to the tactile cortex. Somehow, they supercharged their brains proving its extraordinary plasticity.
A lot of company nowadays offer genetic kits directly to consumers who can then have their genome sequenced on the cheap and get informed about any risk of contacting a genetic disease. If a person's genome suggests a risk of developing diabetes, would that person change his diet to reduce this risk? Oppositely, would that person think there's no use in changing behaviour since it's all 'written in stone'? University of Cambridge surveyed all the relevant studies they could find on the matter and found personal genetic information does little to nothing to alter behaviour.
People love Roald Dahl's creations (such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda) for their creativity and sense of humor, but Dahl had his own share of tragedy.
Evidence suggests mindfulness meditation reduces both emotional and physical pain. Concerning the latter, we still don't know the underlying mechanisms that cause meditation to have painkiller-like effects, but we're getting there.
A virus similar to SARS has been identified in Chinese horseshoe bats that may be able to infect humans without prior adaptation. Overcoming this genetic barrier could be the first step for an outbreak, according to a study at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Spiders' diets aren't limited to juicy insect bits. They spice up their menus with vegetarian courses too, zoologists from the US and UK have found.
Researchers have manipulated the genome of chicken embryos so that they develop dinosaur-like bones in their lower legs.
A new study measuring the forces that shape bacterial genomes determined that a difference in efficiency of hundredth of a percent is sufficient to determine the winners and losers in the evolutionary race.
Japanese researchers found a novel way to grow corneas in a dish starting from skin cells. The corneas were implanted in the eyes of blind rabbits, which could then see.
If you've always wanted a tattoo but never quite got around to it, now you have the perfect excuse: a study conducted by researchers from the University of Alabama, getting multiple tattoos can actually strengthen your immune system.
At a homeless shelter in Atlanta residents can grow their own vegetables. The shelter has a large rooftop garden that can yield a great amount of healthy greens.
More than half of American's calories come from ultra-processed foods, a new study finds. The data also indicates close to 90% of total added sugar intake can be traced back to these foodstuffs.
An international team has discovered that by inhibiting Gq protein production in adipose tissue, cells can be re-purposed from storing fat to burning it.
Rightfully touted for its many health benefits as an antioxidant, green tea doesn't really play well with iron.
Imagine spending half of your day chewing food like our cousins, the chimpanzees. You'd never get anything done. Strikingly, human teeth have evolved to become smaller over the past million years or so. This begs the question: how did we become such efficient eaters? There are two answers. For one, human ancestors started eating higher quality food (meat) and, secondly, they employed food processing. By applying tool use to anything outside slicing and cutting meat, these early ancestors may have opened the flood gates of innovation.
Mechanical engineers at Brigham Young University are combining the versatility of origami with mechanical know-how to produce the smallest surgical tools.
Looks matter a lot. One recent research suggests that short men and overweight women earn on average £1,500 ($2,100) less per year than taller men and slim women, respectively.
A series of experiments surprisingly found that sudden insight may yield more correct solutions than gradual, methodical thinking.
Researchers found a positive association between the amount of time spent playing video games and children's mental health as well as their mental and social aptitudes.
Mindset and learning go hand in hand. It's important to be confident in one's own abilities to learn new skills and meet goals. Overconfidence, however, can also hinder learning according to Washington State University researcher Joyce Ehrlinger.
Anxious people may be more prone to associate neutral environmental cues with emotional experiences. Psychologists call this over-generalization, and research into the matter might explain why a seemingly minor event can sometimes unleash a full blown anxiety episode. We might also learn more about the wiring of the anxious brain which fires in different patterns than the 'normal' brain.
A study made by researchers at Forida Atlantic University and Cleveland State University assessed the effects of paid sick leave, or lack thereof, had on employees' health. Those who didn't have this benefit were at a much greater risk of forgoing medical care, either to treat or prevent an illness or injury.
A meta-analysis of 29 previous studies has confirmed what many researchers were already suspecting: depression affects the entire body.
The bad intentions that precede doing harm to someone are visible in the brain, researchers claim.
One study estimates that over the next 35 years, nine African countries would have to spend $98 billion to $261 billion to buy drugs and prevent infections.
A new study confirms previous findings: the best way to fight peanut allergy is by consuming peanuts as an infant.
While they are often causes of embarrassment, varicose veins are more than just a cosmetic problem. They are also potentially indicative of significant health problems as well. They are often a sign of circulatory disease. Thankfully, severe varicose veins and their related problems are not particularly common and there are methods that you can use to treat […]
Awesome? Undoubtedly. Useful? Well, according to Kagome, which claims to be Japan's largest supplier of ketchup and tomato juice, people taking part in the Tokyo marathon really need this.
Scientists have known for quite a while that obesity increases the chances of colon cancer, but hey were unable to figure out why.
These predatory amoebas are usually very good at finding enough to eat by themselves, but when food is short they do something astonishing.
A new study of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), a deadly fungus which affects amphibians worldwide, found that it spreads by making males' mating calls more attractive to females. The pathogen alters the reproductive habits of different species of amphibians, explaining why frogs and related species continue to disappear across the globe.
Researchers found that the app misses high blood pressure in 8 out of 10 cases, giving patients a false sense of security.
Ignored for centuries, this vegetable might be slowly making a comeback in England.
A new study has mapped the genetic variations responsible for differences in the distribution, shape and colour of facial and scalp hair.
How long marijuana, cocaine, LSD, and other drugs stay in your urine, hair or blood.
Scientists in China have created a platform for generating sperm cells that could one day treat male infertility - in other words, they've created sperm in a dish.
President Obama will mark the start of a year-long precision medicine trial with a summit at the White House. 170 people are involved in the program, which aims to enroll 79,000 volunteer participants by the end of this year to supply personal data that will eventually be used to improve health and treat disease. Precision medicine is […]
A new gene-snipping enzyme was successful in removing strands of HIV genetic material in mice trials. If the enzyme can prove its reliability in human trials it might revolutionize how we fight the virus forever.
Research shows that those who exercise stand a far better chance of not getting getting cancer. Those who did get cancer, but recovered, can delay or completely avert cancer from showing up again by putting in hours in the gym.
Medicine has developed hugely when it comes to treating burn victims.
Out-of-towners using marijuana in Colorado are at a higher risk to end up in the emergency room, according to a new study.
Doctors are seeing a massive rise in the demands for the so-called vaginal seeding procedure, despite no evidence that this actually helps. Also called ‘microbirthing’, the process involves taking a swab from the mother’s vagina and rubbing it over the baby’s mouth, eyes, face and skin shortly after a C-section birth. The idea is that […]
A new paper from New York University researchers suggests that most people do hear an internal voice while they’re reading. The insights from this analysis lend some support to theories that say auditory hallucinations are inner voices that are incorrectly identified as not belonging to the self. So when you read something do you “hear” […]
The voracious reputation of sharks might soon change as marine biologists uncover that most coral reef sharks eat pray smaller than a cheeseburger.
A laboratory study on rats found that the animals that breathed Beijing's notoriously polluted air gained weight and showed sighs of cardio-respiratory and metabolic dysfunctions after three to eight weeks of exposure.
According to a 2009 report, around "60 percent of Americans live in areas where air pollution has reached unhealthy levels that can make people sick"
