Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Humans
Bat killer is still spreading
Since 2006, some 6 million to 7 million North American bats have succumbed to white-nose syndrome, a virulent fungal disease. That figure, issued in January by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, at least sextupled the former estimate that biologists had been touting. But the sharp jump in the cumulative death toll isn’t the only disturbing new development. On April 2, scientists confirmed that white-nose fungus has apparently struck bats hibernating in two small Missouri caves. The first signs of clinical disease have also just emerged in Europe.
- Health & Medicine
Autism linked to obesity in pregnancy
Association may spark research into a possible biological mechanism.
- Humans
Chemists distinguish between gunshot residue from various firearms
Analytical technique could lead to better crime scene investigation.
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- Humans
Yet another study links insecticide to bee losses
Since 2006, honeybee populations across North America have been hammered by catastrophic losses. Although this pandemic has a name — colony collapse disorder, or CCD — its cause has remained open to speculation. New experiments now strengthen the case for pesticide poisoning as a likely contributor.
- Health & Medicine
Extreme eaters show abnormal brain activity
Seeing images of food revs up reward areas in the obese and slows them down in severely underweight people, a brain scan study shows.
- Life
Stem cell treatment spurs cartilage growth
A small molecule called kartogenin prompts the manufacture of lost connective tissue in mice.
- Psychology
Autism rates rise again
Related developmental disorders affect 1.1 percent of U.S. 8-year-olds.
- Humans
Weighing the costs of conferencing
A provocative editorial in the Journal of the American Medical Association questions the value of attending scientific conferences. It’s a theme that reemerges every few years. And in times of tight budgets, the idea seems worth revisiting.
- Health & Medicine
Jolt to brain aids language recovery
Stroke patients treated with brain stimulation show improvement in language skills.
- Humans
From the ashes, the oldest controlled fire
A South Africa cave yields the oldest secure evidence for a blaze controlled by human ancestors.
- Health & Medicine
Brain scan foretells who will fold under pressure
Tests on high-stakes math problems reveal key regions of brain activity linked to choking under pressure.
