HS-LS1-2
Develop and use a model to illustrate the hierarchical organization of interacting systems that provide specific functions within multicellular organisms.
- Brain
Nano air pollutants strike a blow to the brain
Most people think that air pollution poses the biggest risk to our lungs. In fact, pollution hits the brain too, sometimes by traveling a direct route — through our noses. These tiny pollutants can harm IQ and more.
- Brain
Scents may affect how appealing tobacco is
Menthol’s effects on the brain may make tobacco more addicting. In contrast, foul odors might help smokers quit. Two new studies show how.
- Health & Medicine
The secret of fast runners: symmetry
Science had shown that animals and people with symmetrical bodies tend to be stronger and healthier. Now researchers find they can predict the best sprinters by measuring the top runners’ knees.
- Animals
Germs explain some animal behaviors
The bacteria that people and other animals host in and on their bodies are invisible to the eye. Yet they can play a very visible role in behavior. It’s something scientists are just coming to appreciate.
- Animals
Elephants appear to be super sniffers
Elephants are not only massive, but also possess the most odor-detecting genes of any animal known, new research shows.
- Health & Medicine
Young blood: The elixir of youth?
Old mice show improved memory when blood from young mice circulated through their brains, a new study finds. Other studies suggest one ingredient in that young blood might be all it takes to deliver benefits.
- Science & Society
Dissect a frog and keep your hands clean
Dissecting frogs can be a fun and useful way to learn about anatomy. If you don’t have a frog on hand, here are three smartphone apps that allow you have your frog legs and dissect them, too.
- Animals
Cool Jobs: A whale of a time
Studying blue whales, spinner dolphins and other cetaceans demands clever ways to unveil the out-of-sight behaviors of these marine denizens.
- Brain
Hunger’s little helpers
Astrocytes were thought to be nothing more than support cells for neighboring nerve cells. A new study suggests they do much more. These brain cells may help control appetite, too.
- Health & Medicine
For better weight control, fiber up!
Certain types of fiber suppress appetite, at least in mice. Found in fruits, vegetables, oats and barley, this fiber breaks down in the gut to release acetate. That travels to the brain, where the chemical prompts the release of hunger-fighting hormones.
- Animals
Kangaroos have ‘green’ farts
The farts and belches of these animals contain less methane than do those from other big grass grazers. Microbes in their digestive tract appear to explain the ‘roos lower production of this greenhouse gas, a new study finds.
- Health & Medicine
Teen finds the ‘shape’ of our beating hearts
Kevin Lee used math to probe how the shape of a beating heart relates to electrical signals from the brain. He unveiled it at the 2014 Intel Science Talent Search.
