Summary: It is a common belief that listening to music while exercising improves focus, elevates mood, and enhances mental performance. However, a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis suggests this isn’t…
Category: Life
Dusanka Vujanovic | Landscapes that choose their butterflies – Functional Ecologists
In this week’s ‘Behind the Paper’ blog post, author Dusanka Vujanovic discusses their new research article “Larval diet breadth and wingspan mediate landscape–richness relationship in butterfly communities“. Dusanka, a Research…
Vitamin K Refusal Puts Newborns at High Risk for Brain Injury
Summary: Newborns are naturally born with low levels of vitamin K, which is essential for blood clotting. To prevent life-threatening bleeding, infants are typically given a vitamin K shot at…
Nature Exposure Triggers Brain Reset
Summary: Spending time in nature isn’t just a pleasant pastime; it triggers a measurable physiological and neurological “reset” in the brain. A comprehensive review of over 100 brain-imaging studies demonstrates…
Here’s how honeyeaters and other birds thrive on sugary diets
To eat a sugar-filled diet, birds had to evolve some sweet genetic tricks. Birds that feed on nectar and fruits have important variants in genes that control metabolism, fat processing…
RFK, Jr.’s aversion to legislation raises the question: Will his revolution endure?
Over the course of his year in the Cabinet, Kennedy has racked up major wins for his Make America Healthy Again movement by pushing the limits of his executive authority.…
Brain Switch Identified for Unlearning Fear Faster
Summary: Unlearning a fear response—a process known as fear extinction—is essential for moving past a traumatic or threatening experience. A groundbreaking study reveals a specific “on/off switch” in the brain…
Climate change could threaten monarch mass migration
Climate change may threaten North America’s iconic mass monarch butterfly migration. Every fall, millions of monarchs (Danaus plexippus) travel thousands of kilometers over North America as they leave their breeding…
Keeping a beat wins caterpillars friends in low places
Some caterpillars speak ant by rocking to a beat. By jiggling like a cellphone receiving a call while on vibrate, the caterpillars cozy up to ants, reaping benefits for them both.…
Gut-Brain-Heart Axis: How Microbes Control Your Blood Pressure
Sumary: High blood pressure and heart failure might be managed through the gut. New research has identified a direct communication line between gut bacteria, the brain, and the heart. The…
