Neuroscie
Cocktail Party Problem Decoded: Sound Location Is Key to Hearing in a Crowd
Summary: For decades, neuroscientists have wondered how humans can isolate a single conversation in a loud room—a phenomenon known as the “cocktail party problem.” Neuroscientists have finally provided a computational…
The Awake “Sleep” Loop: Why Attention Lapses Occur in ADHD
Summary: Have you ever felt your brain “flicker” off for a split second during a boring task? New researc reveals that these lapses are actually caused by sleep-like brain activity…
Most Insomnia Meds Don’t Worsen Sleep Apnea
Summary: Treating insomnia when a patient also has Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)—a condition known as COMISA—is a delicate balancing act. While sedative-hypnotics can help patients fall asleep, there has long…
Spectrum of Hyperarousal: Seven Distinct Types of Tension Identified
Summary: “Hyperarousal” is a cornerstone of many mental health conditions, from insomnia and ADHD to depression and PTSD. However, the term has historically been used as a “catch-all,” leading to…
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…
