A Fresh Look at Free Will: Challenging the Libet Paradigm

Summary: A recent study challenges the long-standing Libet paradigm about free will. The team discovered that the EEG activity, dubbed readiness potential, registered before decision-making in Libet’s original experiment has…

Meet the beetles: Mealworms could be a food of the future

I have a special fondness for the yellow mealworm, Tenebrio molitor. As a child, I fed the mealworm stage of this beetle to my pet chameleon. As a teen, I…

Social Media Algorithms Distort Social Instincts and Fuel Misinformation

Summary: Social media algorithms, designed to boost user engagement for advertising revenue, amplify the biases inherent in human social learning processes, leading to misinformation and polarization. As humans naturally learn…

Adolescence’s Impact on Adult Dopamine Function and Impulsivity

Summary: In a novel study, researchers reveal a sensitive developmental phase during adolescence that significantly influences adult impulsivity, aggression, and dopamine function in mice. This study highlights the implications of…

Microchip Links Brain, Spine and Body, Allowing Paralyzed Man to Move and Feel

Summary: In a historic clinical trial, researchers successfully implanted microchips into the brain of a paralyzed man. This pioneering procedure, combined with developed AI algorithms, has established a “double neural…

Bridging the Sex Gap: Personalizing Treatments for Mood Disorders

Summary: Researchers explore the advancements made in understanding sex differences in mood disorders since the 2016 NIH mandate to include sex as a biological variable in basic research. Their review…

GLP podcast and video: Dunning-Kruger debunked? The evil industry, noble activist myth; The real Vandana Shiva

The less informed someone is about a topic, the more likely they are to overestimate their knowledge of it. This is a cognitive bias known as the Dunning-Kruger effect; it’s…

Behavioral Parallels: The Shared Routes of Aggression and Psychopathy

Summary: Aggressive and psychopathic individuals have difficulty shedding hostile behaviors once they’ve adopted them, according to new research. A mathematical model applied to a task assessing hostile responses confirmed this…

Plasma Proteins Predict Mental Health Risk in Teens

Summary: Researchers discovered plasma protein-based biomarkers that could predict mental health risks in adolescents. These markers offer a potential for early detection of mental health issues, which currently afflict 10-20%…

The newfound Los Angeles thread millipede is ready for its close-up

Despite living in the entertainment capital of the world, the Los Angeles thread millipede has avoided the limelight. But when researchers spotted it, they knew they’d found a creature worthy…