People in the Australian state of Queensland have taken part in a mass capture of poisonous cane toads as part of a collective effort at pest control. The toads have to be captured alive and unharmed, examined by experts, and then killed humanely under the event rules. Cane toads were introduced to Australia from South America in 1935 to eat beetles, but became a pest themselves... [more]
Source : BBC
Toad Day Out 'War' On Poisonous Australian Cane Toads
Brain cortex thinning linked to inherited depression
The brains of people with a family history of depression look different and work differently than those of others, according to a study that offers insight into the disease's progression. On average, people with a family history of depression appear to have brains that are 28% thinner in the right cortex -- the outermost layer of the brain -- than those with no known family history of the disease... [more]
Source : Los Angeles Times
Positive link between cognitive ability and cortical thickness, when it comes to intelligence size matters
McGill University has demonstrated a positive link between cognitive ability and cortical thickness in the brains of healthy 6 to 18 year olds. The correlation is evident in regions that integrate information from different parts of the brain. Cortical thickness may in part reflect the amount of complex connections between nerve cells. In other words, thicker cortices are likely to have more complex connections with consequences on cognitive ability. A positive link between cortical thickness and cognitive ability was detected in many areas of the frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital lobes. The regions with the greatest relationship were the ‘multi-modal association’ areas, where information converges from various regions of the brain for processing... [more]
Source : Montreal Neurological Institute
Study women more attracted to men in expensive cars
Men who drive expensive cars really are more attractive to women, according to a study by university researchers. The researchers say the men tested in the same way are not impressed by whatever car a woman drives because they judge purely on her face and figure... [more]
Source : Telegraph
Financial advice makes the brain blindly agree with the advice being given
A study using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) shows that expert advice may shut down areas of the brain responsible for decision-making processes, particularly when individuals are trying to evaluate a situation where risk is involved. Results showed that brain regions consistent with decision-making were active in participants when making choices on their own; however, there occurred an offloading of the decision-making process in the presence of expert advice... [more] & [more]
Source : Emory University & Plos One
Willie the Parrot Honored By Red Cross
Red Cross spokesperson Jim Rettew says it's unusual to honor a bird but he says if you hear the story, it's a great one. Megan went into the bathroom and moments later heard Willie screaming, "Mama, Baby" over and over... [more]
Source : CBS4 Denver
Integrity Of Neural Wiring The Secret To Higher IQ
New research suggests that the layer of insulation coating neural wiring in the brain plays a critical role in determining intelligence. In addition, the quality of this insulation appears to be largely genetically determined, providing further support for the idea that IQ is partly inherited... [more]
Source : Technology Review
Mental fatigue can affect physical endurance
Mentally tired individuals will reach exhaustion quicker that those who are not mentally fatigued according to findings of a study by Bangor University. In the trial conducted by exercise physiologists at the University's School of Sport, Health & Exercise Sciences, participants who performed a mentally fatiguing task prior to a difficult exercise test, reached exhaustion more quickly than when they did the same exercise when mentally rested... [more]
Source : Bangor University
Margot Somerville a case of identity theft
Margot Somerville knew she was in for a hassle when her wallet was stolen in 2006 on a San Francisco streetcar. But she had no way of knowing she would end up facing felony identity-theft charges 950 miles away. But one Sunday morning in April 2008, nearly two years after her wallet was swiped, police came to her house and took Somerville away in handcuffs on a no-bail warrant out of Colorado... [more] & [more]
Source : San Francisco Chronicle & The Denver Post
Nerica New Rice for Africa success in attempt to double rice production in Uganda
The New Rice for Africa (Nerica), A "miracle crop" it combines the high yield of Asian rice with the hardiness and drought resistance of African rice varieties. One kilogram of seed produces 50kg of seed inside one season... [more]
Source : Independent
MGAT2 The fat controller enzyme why some people don't get flabby
The enzyme, MGAT2, determines whether dietary fat is used to generate energy or stored under the skin around the waist. The discovery of its role could be the key to preventing obesity, diabetes and heart disease... [more] & [more]
Source : Telegraph & Daily Mail
Rare copy of the first Superman comic from 1938 sold for $317,200
The copy was described as unrestored. The cover shows the cape-wearing action hero from the planet Krypton lifting a car above his head. There are only 100 copies left of the first Superman comic, which sold for 10 cents when it appeared in June 1938... [more]
Source : BBC
TR10 Traveling Wave Reactor nuclear power safer and cheaper
Unlike today’s reactors, a traveling-wave reactor requires very little enriched uranium, reducing the risk of weapons proliferation. The reactor uses depleted-uranium fuel packed inside hundreds of hexagonal pillars in a “wave” that moves through the core at only a centimeter per year, this fuel is transformed (or bred) into plutonium... [more]
Source : Technology Review
Rocks To Soak Carbon Dioxide From Air Might Turn Emissions to Harmless Solids
To slow global warming, scientists are exploring ways to pull carbon dioxide from the air and safely lock it away. Trees already do this naturally through photosynthesis; now, in a new report, geologists have mapped large rock formations in the United States that can also absorb CO2, which they say might be artificially harnessed to do the task at a vastly increased pace. Ultramafic rocks generally form in earth’s mantle, starting some 12 miles under the surface and extending down hundreds of miles. Bits of these rocks—peridotite, dunite, lherzholite and others-- may be squeezed to the surface when continental plates collide with oceanic plates, or, less often, when the interiors of continents thin and develop rifts. Because of their chemical makeup, when the rocks are exposed to carbon dioxide, they react to form common limestone and chalk... [more] & [more]
Source : The Earth Institute at Columbia University & Usgs
Over-consumption of sugar linked to aging lowering caloric intake increases life span
Excess glucose can have deleterious effects, but it is not clear whether this is due to the caloric contribution of glucose or to some other effect. Glucose sensed by the cells activates signaling pathways that, in yeast, favor the metabolic machinery that makes energy (glycolysis) and cell growth. The sensing of glucose also reduces stress resistance and the ability to live long. Genetic inactivation of the glucose-signaling pathway prolonged life span in this yeast, while its constitutive activation shortened it and blocked the longevity effects of calorie restriction. The pro-aging effects of glucose signaling correlated with a decrease in mitochondrial respiration and an increase in reactive oxygen species production... [more]
Source : Plos Genetics
The underwater hydrokinetic energy system turning the tide to energy
JPL scientists, have designed a new kind of underwater hydrokinetic energy system. It uses water motion to generate a high-pressure liquid rather than electricity. That liquid is then transported to shore and used to produce electricity on land. The JPL/Caltech hydrokinetic energy system is a spin-off from a research project to find a new way to power robotic underwater vehicles. Most robotic underwater vehicles run on batteries and have to be recovered by ship to have their batteries recharged or replaced... [more]
Source : NASA/JPL
COPD Women are more vulnerable to cigarette harm
Studies of twins have revealed significant genetic differences between men and women who smoke who develop lung disease.
Smoking is the main risk factor for COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) which includes bronchitis and emphysema. COPD which progressively and irreversibly damages lungs is one of the most challenging diseases in the world, both in terms of treatment and prevention.
Currently it is one of the global top five causes of mortality and is predicted to rise. It is also closely associated with other major causes of death such as heart disease... [more]
Source : Alpha Galileo
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