Humans

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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Humans

    Traumatic events trigger diverse responses

    New study compares difficulties faced by survivors of life-threatening events.

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  2. Psychology

    Perfectionism works for some diabetics, but not for new moms

    Demanding perfection of oneself boosts longevity for diabetic seniors, but it may prompt depression in new mothers.

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  3. Psychology

    Kids face up to disgust surprisingly late

    A new study suggests that children don’t recognize facial expressions of disgust until age 5, much later than many researchers had assumed.

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  4. Anthropology

    Contested evidence pushes Ardi out of the woods

    A controversial new investigation suggests that the ancient hominid lived on savannas, not in forests.

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  5. Health & Medicine

    Shark cartilage doesn’t appear to help lung cancer

    Patients taking an extract show no improvement.

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  6. Health & Medicine

    Tiny blood vessels expel clots by force

    A study in mice uncovers a new way that capillaries keep the flow going.

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  7. Humans

    Chaos makes a scream seem real

    Researchers analyze movie sound tracks to identify the acoustic roots of fear.

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  8. Life

    Parks not burdening poor neighbors, study says

    New research examines controversy over conservation areas by studying poverty in Costa Rica and Thailand.

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  9. Health & Medicine

    Immune traits may identify lucky kidney-transplant recipients

    Tests find a genetic signature that may delineate people who could drop immune-suppression therapy.

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  10. Humans

    Teeth as a forensic clock

    Here’s something we’re likely to see that endearing techno whiz kid, Abby Sciuto, whip out of her forensic arsenal next season on NCIS. They’re chemical and nuclear technologies to date teeth. When paired up, new research indicates, they’ll identify not only when people were born but also the age at which they clocked out — thereby pointing to the general date of death.

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  11. Psychology

    Gene makes kids more vulnerable to bullying’s effects

    Kids who get bullied a lot can develop serious emotional problems, especially if they possess a certain gene.

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  12. Physics

    Some ‘ball lightning’ reports may be hallucinations

    Magnetic fields generated by real bolts could trigger visual effects in the brain.

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