Neuroscie
Aging Brains Maintain Robust Language Networks Despite Cognitive Decline
Summary: While executive functions like memory and problem-solving naturally decline as we age, new brain imaging research reveals that the neural network responsible for language remains preserved and fully functional.…
Motor neurons don’t just move muscles. They may direct that motion too
Motor neurons, the nerve cells that control muscles, have a reputation as passive messengers. But growing evidence suggests they do more than simply relay the brain’s commands. Work in fruit…
Youth Protein TIMP2 Restores Immune Function in the Aging Brain
Summary: Researchers have discovered that the youth-associated protein TIMP2 plays a critical role in maintaining the healthy function of microglia, the brain’s primary immune cells. Supplementing this protein in aged…
Shame, Stigma, and Culture Prevent Male Domestic Violence Survivors From Seeking Help
Summary: A new large-scale study identifies the primary barriers that prevent male victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) from seeking help. Researchers found that viewing the abuse as a private…
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…
