Like Civilization? Thank Tectonic Plates
Mesopotamia is Greek for “land between rivers” and indeed it sat between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, what is now basically modern Iraq.
Anthropology
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Archaeology
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Lady 56: A Swedish Grave Reveals A Famed Spanish Pilgrimage
If you see multiple graves in medieval graves, it is reasonable to assume children and adults were related, but a new study finds that was not the case.
Psychology
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Repressed Memories Nonsense Is Making A Comeback
Have you heard someone say online or in casual conversation, when responding to someone’s struggles, “well, the body keeps the score”? For many people, this phrase is a useful way to name the...
Science Education & Policy
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The Endangered Species Act Attempted To Define 'Habitat' And Controversy Ensued
It wouldn’t make much sense to prohibit people from shooting a threatened woodpecker while allowing its forest to be cut down, or to bar killing endangered salmon while allowing a dam to dry out...
Science History
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The Scorched Cherry Twig And Other Christmas Miracles Get A Science Look
Bleeding hosts and stigmatizations are the best-known medieval miracles but less known ones, like a scorched cherry twig miraculously sprouting, a diseased swamp becoming fertile land, and healing...
Philosophy & Ethics
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Editorial: This Week’s LA Non-riots
A Facebook friend opined that Los Angeles protesters could “turn LA into another Portland.” I expand for you my rejoinder to his post:
Simvastatin Reduces Incidence Of Alzheimer’s And Parkinson’s By Almost Half
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found that the statin, simvastatin, reduces the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease by almost 50 percent. This…
The Prefrontal Cortex And Food Preference
A research study carried out by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona describes the brain region connected to our declarative memory functions.
According to this experiment, part of the prefrontal…
Eat Curry, Prevent Alzheimers
Researchers isolated bisdemethoxycurcumin, the active ingredient of curcuminoids – a natural substance found in turmeric root – that may help boost the immune system in clearing amyloid beta, a…
How Drinking Can Help You Forget Your Worries
Just in time for the weekend, this study from Dutch researcher Ingmar Franken says that while alcohol does not make good things any better it can make bad things a lot less worse. Previously…
Bad Memories Can Be Suppressed With Practice, Study Says
A new University of Colorado at Boulder study shows people have the ability to suppress emotional memories with practice, which has implications for those suffering from conditions ranging from post-…
Your Brain: A Gratuitous iPhone Comparison
That title alone should get this article on the front page of technology papers everywhere, but the comparisons are valid.
Though people feel they have rich visual experiences, researchers have…
Study Advances vCJD Detection
Scientists have made significant advances towards the development of a technique that could be used to confirm whether someone is infected with variant CJD.
The technique, which has so far been used…
Scientists identify 2 distinct Parkinson's networks
The disease that causes tremors, rigidity and slowed movements in a million Americans also targets another brain network that regulates cognitive thought and the ability to carry out everyday tasks…
Alzheimer's Role Discovered For Protein That Causes Mad Cow Disease
A role for prion proteins, the much debated agents of mad cow disease and vCJD, has been identified. It appears that the normal prions produced by the body help to prevent the plaques that build up…
How Pain Distracts The Brain
Anybody who’s tried to concentrate on work while suffering a headache knows that pain compellingly commands attention—which is how evolution helped ensure survival in a painful world. Now,…
