Neuroscie
Brain Damage in Schizophrenia May Begin in Specific Neural Epicenters
Summary: New brain imaging research shows that structural damage in schizophrenia spectrum disorders may begin in specific “epicenter” regions before spreading across connected brain networks. Individuals with the condition showed…
Genes Behind Dog Behaviors Also Shape Human Emotions
Summary: Researchers analyzed the genomes and behavioral profiles of 1,300 golden retrievers and found that several behavioral traits—such as trainability, fear of strangers, and aggression toward other dogs—are shaped by…
Thought Begins Before We’re Born
Summary: New research using human brain organoids shows that early neural activity follows structured, time-based patterns long before sensory experience begins. These findings suggest the human brain comes preconfigured with…
Genetics Point to a New Type of Suicide Risk
Summary: New research shows that many people who die by suicide without prior suicidal thoughts or behaviors are not simply “missed cases”—they may have an entirely different underlying risk profile.…
Life
Nature
Newfound bat skeletons are the oldest on record
Two fossilized bat skeletons unearthed in western Wyoming represent a new species and are the oldest set of bat bones yet discovered, researchers say. The incredibly complete fossils of Icaronycteris…
Astronomy
Asteroid 2024 YR4 was Earth’s first real-life defense test
Artist’s depiction of an asteroid floating in space. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, N. Bartmann (ESA/Webb), Martin Kornmesser (ESA), Serge Brunier (ESO), Nick Risinger (Photopic Sky Survey) At this point in…
How do you fire someone into the sun?
Firing our villain straight at the Sun results in a big miss. Credit: Michael Brown, CC BY To point a rocket directly at the sun and hit would require great…
Cosmic ray puzzle resolved as scientists link ‘knee’ formation to black holes
LHAASO experiment. Credit: LHAASO Collaboration Milestone results released by the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) on November 16 have solved a decades-old mystery about the cosmic ray energy…
If the supernova standard candle is wrong, it could solve the Hubble tension
An illustration showing how Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAOs) expand with the universe. Credit: Gabriela Secara, Perimeter Institute CC-BY-4.0 Last time I wrote about new data that overturns the standard cosmological…
