Scicurious

Neuroscience

Melatonin and the watery beginnings of sleep

The tiny zooplankton Platynereis dumerilii use melatonin just as much as we do, suggesting that the origins of sleeplike behavior may lie under the sea.

Health & Medicine

The sour side of artificial sweeteners

A new study found that saccharin alters the gut microbiome of mice and produces insulin resistance, but it’s not the first to show the sour side of diet drinks.

Psychology

Balancing the excitation and inhibition tightrope in depression

A new study looks at how a balance of positive and negative inputs in the lateral habenula might relate to disappointment and depression.

Science & Society

Banana peel slipperiness wins IgNobel prize in physics

Cartoons taught us that banana peels make for a slick trip to the floor, but scientists decided to find out just how slippery they could be.

Psychology

Training the overweight brain to abstain

A new study shows that brain changes are associated with a weight-loss behavioral intervention, but it may be a while before we can train our brains to prefer peppers over pork chops.

Psychology

In PTSD, a good night’s sleep means feeling safe

Studies of PTSD in rats have usually focused on fear and trauma. But a new study in humans shows that learning about safety may be important as well.

Neuroscience

To study attention, pay attention to bats

Studying how bats’ brains find prey using echolocation could have implications for the way human brains pay attention.

Psychology

Hypothesis on evolution of PMS attracts hostility

A new hypothesis states that PMS is evolutionarily useful for making women leave an infertile partnership. But other scientists question whether the hypothesis is reasonable or, in fact, even necessary.

Health & Medicine

Taking lab mice back to their roots

Lab mice are incredibly useful for biomedical research. But they are also incredibly inbred. A new study shows that bringing wild mouse traits back could help uncover new links between genes and behavior.

Health & Medicine

Clearing up anatomy with a see-through mouse

A new method begins with a mouse or rat and ends with a transparent body, where details can be visualized all the way to the DNA. Here’s how it works.

Neuroscience

For neurons, birthday matters

How brain cells make their connections during development still isn’t well understood. A new study shows that in the eye, a neuron’s birthday makes a difference in how it finds its targets.

Psychology

Addiction showcases the brain’s flexibility

People with substance abuse disorders are not just chasing a high. Their brains are adapting to the presence of drug, evidence of humans’ impressive neural plasticity.