Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Anthropology
Isotopes reveal sources of ancient timbers
Isotopic analysis of architectural timbers from ancient dwellings in the U.S. Southwest has shown from which distant forests the massive logs came.
- Health & Medicine
Alcohol on your breath need not be all bad
Drugs such as insulin may be delivered by inhaling mists of medicine-containing alcohol.
- Health & Medicine
Drugs slow diabetes patients’ kidney damage
Two drugs normally prescribed for high blood pressure help forestall kidney damage in people with type 2, or adult-onset, diabetes.
- Health & Medicine
Even a little coffee may up heart risk
Drinking just 1 to 3 cups of coffee daily may adversely affect blood concentrations of cholesterol and homocysteine.
- Health & Medicine
Constipation might signal Parkinson’s
Men who are constipated are more likely to develop Parkinson's disease than men who are not.
- Health & Medicine
Obesity linked to pancreatic cancer
People who are obese or who have led sedentary lives with little exercise are more likely than others to develop pancreatic cancer.
- Archaeology
Ancestors who came in from the cold
Researchers found the remains of a 36,000-year-old human occupation in the Russian Arctic, which represents the earliest evidence of a human presence that far north.
- Archaeology
Neandertals used tools with versatility
Microscopic data from artifacts found at two Ukrainian sites indicate that Neandertals used stone tools in flexible ways that allowed them to maintain a broad diet for nearly 50,000 years.
- Health & Medicine
Heard about Choline?
This week, the Food and Drug Administration is expected to announce its authorization of food-labeling claims for choline. It marks the first nutrient to be approved for such claims under the FDA Modernization Act of 1997. Central Soya Central Soya Although choline is hardly a household name, its low visibility doesn’t reflect its importance. This […]
- Health & Medicine
Two drugs may enhance recovery from stroke
Two drugs, levodopa and dextroamphetamine, may help stroke patients to recover the ability to move and speak.
- Anthropology
Neandertals show ancient signs of caring
A partial jaw unearthed in France indicates that Neandertals extensively cared for sick and infirm comrades beginning nearly 200,000 years ago.
- Health & Medicine
Painkillers may damage hearts
A retrospective study suggests that commonly used painkillers called COX-2 inhibitors may slightly increase a person's risk of having a heart attack.
