Like rolling into a gas station during a road trip, whale sharks use oil and gas rigs as a pit stop during their migrations of thousands of kilometers across the…
Category: Life
Cerebellar Serotonin Acts as a Brake to Reduce Anxiety
Summary: New research reveals that serotonin in the cerebellum plays a crucial role in anxiety regulation. Scientists found that mice with lower cerebellar serotonin levels displayed increased anxiety-like behaviors, while…
How the Brain Detects Novelty to Predict the Future
Summary: A new study shows that the cerebral cortex acts as a “memory machine,” constantly detecting novel stimuli to refine its predictions of the future. By imaging the auditory cortex…
A fungus named after Sir David Attenborough zombifies cave spiders
The new fungus species Gibellula attenboroughii forces reclusive cave spiders to exposed areas, likely to benefit spore dispersal.
Trump’s Ideological corruption of science: Political appointees censor formerly independent CDC report documenting soaring bird flu cases
Trump administration political appointees have taken steps in recent weeks to exert unprecedented influence over the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s flagship medical research publication, the Morbidity and Mortality…
Ketogenic Diet May Stabilize Mood in Young People with Bipolar
Summary: Researchers are launching a multi-site pilot study to assess whether a ketogenic diet, alongside standard medications, can stabilize mood symptoms in young people with bipolar disorder. The 16-week trial…
Cuttlefish ink may overwhelm sharks’ sense of smell
The main component of common cuttlefish ink — melanin — strongly sticks to shark smell sensors, possibly explaining why the predators avoid ink.
This bird’s eye view of a shark hunt won a photo contest
A school of hardyhead silverside fish (Atherinomorus lacunosus) flees from four blacktip reef sharks near the shore of the Maldives in this aerial photo. Behavioral biologists Angela Albi and August…
Viewpoint: The ‘post genomic era’ reveals nothing less than a new biology. We just don’t know how to talk about it
You could be forgiven for thinking that the turn of the millennium was a golden age for the life sciences. After the halcyon days of the 1950s and ’60s when…
