According to a Danish study of brain response to religious figures, preconceived notions of authority and trustworthiness may allow certain individuals to gain influence over others. The lead researcher speculates that brain regions may be deactivated in a similar way in response to doctors, parents, and politicians. The researchers studied the response of subjects to prayer [...]
Monday, March 29, 2010
Some researchers believe that the plagues in the book of Exodus can be attributed to a chain of natural phenomena triggered by changes in the climate and environmental disasters. Their findings form part of the “Mysteries of the Bible” series on the National Geographic Channel this evening. The scientists claim that the arrival of known [...]
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Scientist Temple Grandin was the subject of an HBO film which premiered last week. Grandin, who struggled early in her life with autism, believes an autistic ability to “think in pictures” led her to becoming an expert in animal behavior and livestock handling. Grandin believes that mildly autistic students can succeed in science and technology, [...]
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
The American Heart Association has recently published a list of factors to be used in assessing cardiovascular health. Called “Life’s Simple 7,” they include smoking, weight, physical activity, diet, blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose. In conjunction with the guidelines, the AHA has created an online resource, “My Life Check,” to help people assess their heart health. [...]
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Statisticians at Oregon State University have concluded that the impact of a child is almost 20 times more important than the earth-friendly actions a person takes over a lifetime. Exponential population growth has an effect on the environment many times beyond the influence of a single individual. Although developing nations have higher birth rates, the [...]
Thursday, July 23, 2009
The world’s largest telescope will be built on Hawaii’s Big Island, atop the dormant Mauna Kea volcano, site of other large telescopes. The new instrument’s 100 foot mirror will allow it to see 13 billion light years away, providing a sort of “history of the universe.” To be completed by 2018, the telescope will take [...]
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Dr. Jerri Nielsen FitzGerald, 57, who treated herself for cancer at the South Pole ten years ago, has died. In 1999, as the only medical doctor at a National Science Foundation research station in Antarctica, Nielsen FitzGerald discovered a lump in her breast, and performed a biopsy with the help of a staff member. She [...]
Friday, June 19, 2009
The number of people who smoke cigarettes infrequently, so-called social smokers, is on the rise, according to a recently published study. The authors of the study claim that tobacco companies targeted occasional smokers in their advertising, attempting to convey smoking as an aid to social interaction. Such individuals often do not consider themselves smokers: they aren’t [...]
Monday, June 1, 2009
According to a newly released study, diagnoses of depression in children and adolescents have dropped, five years after the FDA warned about the hazards of anti-depressive medication for some young people. And while the lead author of the study says it does not attempt to explain why diagnosis rates have fallen, she believes the FDA [...]
Monday, May 4, 2009
Researchers have found that pictures, rather than words alone, allow patients with mild Alzheimer’s Disease to recognize subjects. The research suggests that patients may be able to use such “memory without conscious awareness” to help recognition. The scientists hope that the findings may lead to strategies that rely on implicit memory processes to support new learning in patients [...]
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
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