Huh?
A new study reveals that the feeling of hunger itself may protect against Alzheimer’s disease. A study of mild hunger pangs in mice suggest that related hormonal pathways may be as important to the much-discussed value of "caloric restriction" as actually eating less (And if YOU want to eat less, you need to get Anne Strieber’s famous diet book!)
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They’ve finally found the God particle, and now for the next big scientific search: dark matter (which accounts for most of the mass in the universe).
Dark Matter can’t be seen with telescopes, but astronomers know it’s there because of the gravitational effects it has on the matter we CAN see. Galaxies, for example, could not rotate the way they do and hold their shape without the presence of dark matter.
Normal matter, the kind we can see with telescopes (such as stars and galaxies) is less than 5% of the mass/energy density in the universe, while dark matter makes up almost 30%.
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Almost half of all marriages end in divorce–is there anything that can be done about this?
Researchers have come up with an incredible idea: A new kind of "love drug" that can heal wounded relationships. It will in the form an inhaler and be prescribed by a relationship counselor. You’d sniff it in the presence of your loved one and, as the chemical entered your bloodstream, it would strengthen your bond.
Such a drug would contain doses of two structurally similar hormones: oxytocin and vasopressin. Scientists know this because of the study of voles: Prairie voles tend to be monogamous while their cousins, the mountain voles, are usually not. This contrast makes them valuable subjects for research.
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Gardens are good for your brain–and a type of bacteria in the soil called Mycobacterium vaccae may be the reason why.
On Arizona Public Media, Gisela Telis quotes psychiatrist Charles Raison as saying, "What’s remarkable is that this microorganism seems to know how exactly to signal the brain areas we believe are most important for reducing depressive symptoms.
"Dirt has a lot of microbes in it–a lot of little bacteria and such–that we know impact the immune system in ways that actually enhance emotional resilience. It’s been shown a number of times now that people who live near green spaces, who have access to natural environments, live longer than people who don’t."
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