Humans
Sign up for our newsletter
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
Dynamite discovery on nitroglycerin
Scientists have found a long-sought enzyme that may be behind nitroglycerin's dilation of blood vessels.
By John Travis - Health & Medicine
Ginseng extract halts diabetes in mice
Extracts from the berry of the American ginseng plant counter obesity and insulin resistance in mice.
By Nathan Seppa - Health & Medicine
Watermelon red means lycopene rich
Watermelon is a far better source of the carotenoid lycopene than tomatoes are and at least as well absorbed by the body.
By Janet Raloff - Health & Medicine
Bugged by Foreign Cuisine
One common experience that tourists encounter while traveling far from home is gut-wrenching diarrhea. In some developing countries, it’s so common that it’s picked up geographic eponyms, like Montezuma’s revenge in Mexico or Delhi belly on the Indian subcontinent. Mexican cuisine typically offers diners tabletop condiments–from spicy chili liquids to diced-veggie salsas and guacamole–to customize […]
By Janet Raloff - Humans
From the July 9, 1932, issue
MODERNISTIC BUILDING SHOWS ACHIEVEMENTS OF SCIENCE Strikingly modernistic in design and construction is the huge Hall of Science building in Chicago which has been dedicated as the key structure for the Century of Progress Exposition next year. Its two floors and mezzanine, containing 9 acres of exhibit space, will illustrate the development of the sciences […]
By Science News - Humans
Building America
The “Building America” online exhibition by the National Building Museum provides a vividly illustrated overview of U.S. achievements in architecture, engineering, construction, planning, design, and landscaping. Timelines chronicle the evolution of buildings, from houses to skyscrapers, and environments, from historic New England towns to contemporary suburbs. Essays delve into the forces that affected U.S. architecture […]
By Science News - Humans
Official Concern: U.N. weighs in on acrylamide toxicity
A United Nations panel concluded that, in fried, grilled, and baked foods, the formation of acrylamide, a carcinogen and nerve poison in rodents, constitutes "a serious problem."
By Janet Raloff - Health & Medicine
His-and-Her Hunger Pangs: Gender affects the brain’s response to food
Men's and women's brains react differently to hunger, as well as to satiation.
By Kristin Cobb - Health & Medicine
Sex, smell and appetite
A study of sexual dysfunction in mutated mice may help explain the connection between smell and appetite.
- Health & Medicine
Hunger hormone gone awry?
People with an inherited form of obesity caused by constant hunger pangs have higher-than-normal blood concentrations of ghrelin, a hormone believed to boost appetite.
- Health & Medicine
Appetite-suppressing drug burns fat, too
An experimental drug seems to assail obesity through dual biological actions.
By Ben Harder - Health & Medicine
Diabetes problems aren’t just old news
Children who developed a type of diabetes that normally occurs only in adults suffer kidney failure, miscarriages, and death in their 20s.