Wednesday, 8 February, 2012

MRI scans of older people show major differences between searchers and non-searchers. After seven hours of Internet experience, those differences disappear. Honest? Could changing the brain be this easy?

Texting already banned for truckers, etc. What do research and reality say about the danger of hitting the keys or yakking on the mobile?

As the day wears on, both sleep pressure and the brain’s alerting signal rise, until sleep pressure triumphs. [Nod]. New brain study explains why night owls don’t get as sleepy during the day.

Disgust caused by filthy food, feces, and an unfair deal all trigger the same facial expression. So is our moral disgust the same as the primitive disgust caused by toxic food?

Study finds that holding a warm cup of coffee for a few seconds can make us see other people as warmer, more outgoing. How come?

A single neuron in the brain may deliver enough information to control a muscle. These results could eventually help bypass the spinal cord, allowing paralyzed people to control their own muscles.

Biology operates on the nanometer scale, and now ultra-small technology is producing monster benefits for genetic analysis, cell biologists, and the treatment of blinding glaucoma.

Injecting a protein in the brain stifles the drive to drink among lab rats; one dose lasts three hours or more. Does GDNF offer a new angle on alcoholism?

Brain electrodes allow monkeys to move robot arm and feed themselves. Experiment proves it’s possible to bypass spinal cord to create simple motion.

To measure the molecules that give food taste, you need a standardized eating machine. One has finally arrived, courtesy of food technologists in France (of all places!). Meet the mechanical masticator!