Other Sciences News

Viruses are circulating in the atmosphere of our planet. Image credit: Arek Socha.

Study: Viruses are Circulating in Earth’s Atmosphere — and Falling from It

Feb 8, 2018 by News Staff

Viruses fall back to Earth via dust storms and precipitation, according to new research published in the International Society for Microbial Ecology Journal. Viruses...

African grass rats (Arvicanthis niloticus) exposed to dim lights (DLD) for four weeks experienced, on average, a 30% decrease in the number of ‘dendritic spine’ connections in their brains, which are the tiny protrusions near the solid green line, a dendrite. These rats performed poorly on a maze-like task. Rats exposed to bright light (BLD), on the other hand, had many more of the dendritic connections and showed superior performance on the task. Image credit: Michigan State University.

Dim Light Makes Us Dumber, New Study Suggests

Feb 7, 2018 by News Staff

According to a new study published in the journal Hippocampus, spending too much time in dimly-lit environment may change the brain’s structure and hurt...

Jedek is spoken by about 280 individuals in northern Peninsular Malaysia. Image credit: Lund University.

Previously Unknown Language Emerges in Malaysia

Feb 7, 2018 by News Staff

A team of linguists from Lund University in Sweden announced this week they have identified an endangered minority language known as Jedek that is spoken...

Parkinson et al show evidence for neural homophily -- neural responses when viewing audiovisual movies are exceptionally similar among friends, and that similarity decreases with increasing distance in a real-world social network. Image credit: Parkinson et al, doi: 10.1038/s41467-017-02722-7.

On the Same Wavelength: New Study Illustrates How Similar Neural Responses Predict Friendship

Feb 2, 2018 by News Staff

According to a study published in the January 30 issue of the journal Nature Communications, we are exceptionally similar to our friends in how we perceive...

Apple Computer 1, also known later as the Apple I, or Apple-1, a desktop computer released by the Apple Computer Company in 1976. It was designed and hand-built by Steve Wozniak. Image credit: Ed Uthman / CC BY-SA 2.0.

Researchers Develop Mathematical Model for How Innovations Emerge

Jan 31, 2018 by News Staff

An international team of scientists has developed a mathematical model for the emergence of innovations, in which cognitive processes are described as...

Aerobic exercise may mildly delay, improve Alzheimer’s symptoms. Image credit: Christian Northe.

Aerobic Exercise May Improve Cognitive Symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease

Jan 31, 2018 by News Staff

Exercise training may delay the decline in cognitive function that occurs in individuals who are at risk of or have Alzheimer’s disease, with aerobic...

According to Hamrick et al, language is learned, in specific ways, by general-purpose neurocognitive mechanisms that pre-exist Homo sapiens. This image shows functional areas of the human brain; dashed areas shown are commonly left hemisphere dominant. Image credit: Blausen.com staff, doi: 10.15347/wjm/2014.010.

Study: Language is Learned in Ancient General-Purpose Brain Circuits that Predate Humans

Jan 30, 2018 by News Staff

It has often been claimed that we learn language using brain circuits that are specifically dedicated to this purpose. Now, new evidence suggests that...

Oldest Modern-Human Fossil Outside Africa Found in Israel

Jan 26, 2018 by News Staff

An upper jawbone complete with teeth found at a site called Misliya Cave, part of a complex of prehistoric caves along the western slopes of Mount Carmel...

Perera et al find babies exposed in the womb to high levels of air pollution had shortened telomeres. Image credit: Chris LeBoutillier.

Study: High Levels of Air Pollution May Shorten Telomeres in Newborns

Jan 25, 2018 by News Staff

A new study, conducted before and after the 2004 closure of a coal-burning power plant in China, found children born before the closure had shorter telomeres...

A schematic showing the processes involved in deep-sea mining for the three main types of mineral deposit. Image credit: Design Studio, University of Exeter.

Deep-Sea Mining Could Destroy Marine Ecosystems, Study Says

Jan 23, 2018 by News Staff

Mining on the ocean floor could do irreversible damage to marine ecosystems, according to a new study from the University of Exeter and Greenpeace Research...

Mount Etna, with Catania in the foreground. Image credit: Ben Aveling / CC BY-SA 4.0.

Small Volcanic Crystals Could Help Predict Eruptions

Jan 23, 2018 by News Staff

Tiny crystals of clinopyroxenes that form deep in volcanoes may be the key for advance warnings before volcanic eruptions, according to a team of vulcanologists...

Haller et al tracked the brain as it generated an antonym: the brain required 2-3 seconds to detect (yellow), interpret and search for an answer (red) and respond (blue), with sustained prefrontal lobe activity (red) to coordinate all areas of the brain involved. Image credit: University of California, Berkeley.

Neuroscientists Track Thought’s Trip through Brain

Jan 22, 2018 by News Staff

A team of researchers led by the University of California, Berkeley’s Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute has tracked the progress of a thought through...

This study is the first to unveil a gut-brain connection linking high dietary salt intake to neurovascular and cognitive impairment. Image credit: Justin Kolenc.

Study: High-Salt Diet Causes Dementia in Mice

Jan 17, 2018 by News Staff

According to a new study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, a high-salt diet reduces resting blood flow to the brain and causes dementia in...

According to Seidlitz et al, morphometric similarity mapping provides a novel, robust, and biologically plausible approach to understanding how human brain networks underpin individual differences in psychological functions. Image credit: Gordon Johnson.

Novel Technique Reveals Relationship between IQ and Brain Connectivity

Jan 8, 2018 by News Staff

A simple technique for mapping the wiring of the brain — called morphometric similarity mapping — has shown a correlation between how well...

Easter Island, known as Rapa Nui to its earliest inhabitants, is one of the most remote inhabited islands in the world. Image credit: Yerson Retamal.

Study: Easter Island Had Supportive and Inclusive Community

Jan 8, 2018 by News Staff

An analysis of so-called pukao — colossal stone hats of monumental statues (moai) on Easter Island — provides evidence contrary to the widely...

Gerstner et al found that a mutation in the gene FABP7 is associated with fragmented sleep in humans. Image credit: Wok & Apix.

Lack of Sleep May Cause Anxiety, Depression, Experts Warn

Jan 5, 2018 by News Staff

According to a duo of researchers from State University of New York and Binghamton University, sleeping less than 8 hours a night is associated with repetitive...

A scientific illustration of the Upward Sun River camp in what is now Interior Alaska. Image credit: Eric S. Carlson / Ben A. Potter.

Ancient Beringians: 11,500-Year-Old Genome Reveals Previously Unknown Native American Population

Jan 4, 2018 by News Staff

Genetic analysis of DNA from a female infant found at the Upward Sun River archaeological site in Alaska has revealed a previously unknown Native American...

The process of how information reaches the amygdala. Image credit: Manos Kefalas / CC BY-SA 3.0.

Study: Danger Changes How Mammalian Brain Stores Innocuous Information

Jan 3, 2018 by News Staff

According to a study by University of New South Wales (UNSW) researchers, a mammal’s brain changes how it stores information about innocuous events depending...

This image shows a perineuronal net (green) surrounding a neuron. Image credit: Kristian Lensjø.

Researchers Find Way to ‘Erase’ Remote Visual Fear Memories in Rats

Jan 2, 2018 by News Staff

How the brain is able to store memories over long periods of time has been a persistent mystery to scientists. In a new study in rats, a research team...