Archives: The Scientist
Scientists Engineer Dreams to Understand the Sleeping Brain
Technologies such as noninvasive brain stimulation and virtual reality gaming offer insights into how dreams arise and what functions they might serve.
Zebra Finches Recognize the Calls of Over 40 Fellow Finches
Their ability to distinguish between individuals is strong evidence for fast mapping, a learning tool generally thought to belong only to humans.
Electric and Magnetic Field Treatments Lower Mouse Blood Sugar
The effects seem to be mediated by a reactive oxygen species in the animals’ livers.
Curiosity and Hunger Are Driven by the Same Brain Regions
Researchers tease out the effects of the two cravings by having participants gamble for the chance to satisfy them.
Brain Circuitry for Fear and Anxiety Is the Same on fMRI
A study in people fails to detect differences in the brain’s response to fear or anxiety, long thought to be controlled by different neural circuits.
The Peopling of South America
While questions still outnumber answers, new findings from archaeology, genetics, and other disciplines are revealing surprising insights into the early cultures of the most recently populated continent.
Studies Unable to Reproduce Results of Two Diabetes Papers
The original work found that an anti-malaria drug or the neurotransmitter GABA could increase the number of insulin-producing pancreatic cells in mice.
Rat Infestation Takes a Toll on Nearby Coral Reefs
A study shows that by killing off seabirds on islands, rodents slash the flow of nutrients into the ocean.
Epigenetic Inheritance in Nematodes
The memory of a temperature spike can persist for as many as 14 generations in C. elegans.
Warmer Temps Tied to Altered Microbiome in Lizards
Bacterial differences after three-month temperature hikes, modeled after global warming predictions, were evident one year later