People who have children this way often place too much importance on genes while ignoring the environment. It’s like, “This is what our family is going to look like. We’re…
Category: Life
Targeted or Broadcast? How the Brain Processes Visual Information
Summary: Researchers have uncovered how visual information is processed across the brain’s complex and flexible networks. One study showed visual signals are selectively targeted or broadly broadcast, challenging the idea…
Teen Brain’s Blunted Reward Response Predicts Depression Onset
Summary: A new study reveals that a reduced neural response to rewards in teens predicts the first onset of depression, but not anxiety or suicidality. Researchers used EEG scans to…
Ketamine Reduces “Giving Up” by Targeting Brain Support Cells
Summary: Researchers have found that ketamine’s antidepressant effects target astroglia, a type of brain support cell, rather than neurons, challenging conventional views. Using zebrafish, scientists observed that ketamine suppressed the…
AI Tweaks Personality Tests to Appear More Likable
Summary: Large language models (LLMs) can identify when they are being given personality tests and adjust their responses to appear more socially desirable. Researchers found that LLMs, like GPT-4, showed…
Sheep earwax can record a dangerous diet
A bit of ear goop can reveal if sheep are eating dangerously poisonous plants. Earwax from sheep that have eaten death camas contains the plants’ toxins within a few days…
Being Watched Changes How Your Brain Processes Faces
Summary: A new study shows that knowing you’re under surveillance triggers a faster, automatic brain response to detect faces and gaze direction. Researchers found that participants monitored via CCTV became…
Twin Dynamics: How Developmental Differences Shape Dominance Roles
Summary: A new study reveals that developmental differences strongly influence dominance roles in twin relationships, with typically developing twins perceived as dominant over their nontypically developing siblings. This dominance imbalance…
Dopamine Plays Key Role in the Heart’s Stress Response
Summary: Researchers have discovered how stress-induced cardiovascular changes are controlled by the brain. Experiments in rats show that activating the lateral habenula, a stress-sensitive brain region, triggers changes in heart…
Human Remains Reveal Violence and Cannibalism in Bronze Age Britain
Summary: Archaeologists studying the Charterhouse Warren site in England found evidence of a massacre, where at least 37 individuals were butchered, likely partly consumed, and dehumanized by their enemies. Analysis…
