Life
- Brain
When Cupid’s arrow strikes
Scientists have begun dissecting what it means to be in love. They are finding that much of what we feel can be explained by the effects of a few key chemicals — and not just on our hearts and brains, but on our whole bodies.
- Brain
The weight of thought
Thinking heavy thoughts? Scientists have just put people on a balance and shown that the brain briefly gains blood — becoming a bit heavier — while concentrating.
- Animals
Dissecting the dog paddle
Scientists occasionally describe the dog paddle as a “trot,” but that’s not right. When dogs swim, their complicated leg motions look more like a frantic run.
- Brain
Memory lessons from a forgetful brain
Scientists have just begun probing the preserved tissue from “H.M.” Even five years after he died, this man’s brain continues to offer lessons on how people make — or fail to make — memories.
- Genetics
Blue eyes in the Stone Age
Genes from an ancient skeleton suggest that dark-skinned people may have been the first to evolve blue eyes.
- Health & Medicine
Bones: They’re alive!
This hard tissue is more than just a quiet scaffold for your organs and protective helmet for your head. It’s active and ‘chatty,’ influencing other tissues.
- Animals
Wild medicine
Few veterinarians are available to treat sick animals in their natural environment. Fortunately, some critters can doctor themselves.
- Animals
The bad-breath defense
The nicotine in tobacco that poisons some creatures can also act as a chemical defense — at least for some caterpillars. The bad breath it gives these insects repels natural predators, such as spiders.
- Brain
Erasing memories
Electroconvulsive therapy is used to treat severe depression, but the electrical jolt it sends into the brain also may erase bad memories.
- Animals
Why are bees vanishing?
Scientists find evidence that pesticides, disease and other threats are devastating bees. And that could hurt farmers big time.
- Genetics
Ancient DNA sparks new mystery
DNA from a 400,000-year-old leg bone found in Spain is by far the oldest recovered from pre-human ancestors. It also shows an unexpected link to later, Asian ‘kin.’
- Animals
How seahorses use their heads
A dwarf seahorse’s head may look funny, but its shape allows the creature to sneak up on fast-moving prey.
