Health, features and articles | Educational Science

May 31, 2005

West Nile Virus Spreads More Easily, Study Finds

Mosquitoes appear to get infected with West Nile virus more quickly than previously thought, according to a new study that also discovered mammals can transmit the deadly agent. West Nile, which killed 88 people in the United States last year and more in previous years, is typically thought to be...

May 31, 2005

Old Brains Shrink But Work Just as Well

Scientists know that our brains shrink with aging, but does less gray matter really matter? Apparently not, according to a new study of 446 people in Australia. We found that, on average, men aged 64 years have smaller brains than men aged 60, said Helen Christensen of the Australian National...

May 31, 2005

Heavy Weights in Thin Air

Porters in Nepal frequently carry heavy loads - sometimes weighing as much as they do - up in the thin air of the Himalayas.? Scientists have quantified the porters' energy efficiency and found it exceeds that of trained soldiers with backpacks. The Nepalese porters place supplies and goods in a...

May 31, 2005

Fear the Dentist? You're Not Alone

A new study finds women are 2.5 times more likely to fear a visit to the dentist than men. But are the men telling the truth? Women are more likely to be honest about their feelings, says Brian Chanpong, a dental anesthesia practitioner in Vancouver, Canada, who worked on the...

May 31, 2005

Skin Stem Cells Made into Bone and Muscle

Researchers have isolated stem cells from human skin and coaxed them into becoming fat, muscle and bone cells. Stem cells are able to become any type of tissue. Harvesting of stem cells from embryos has been highly controversial, so researchers have looked for alternatives that, while not as useful, might...

May 31, 2005

Why You Can't Tickle Yourself

The human brain anticipates unimportant sensations, such as your own touch, so it can focus on important input like, say, a tarantula crawling up your neck. The results might explain why it's hard to tickle yourself, scientists said today. In the study, 30 people used a finger on their right...

Apr 30, 2005

Study Finds Kids Can't Hit Slow Pitches

You're throwing a ball for a toddler to smack with a plastic bat. You toss it gently, slowly, to make it easier. He just can't hit it. It's because you throw too slowly, a new study finds. Kids' brains aren't wired for slow motion. When you throw something slowly to...

Apr 30, 2005

Study Reveals Baseball's Great Clutch Hitters

A baseball fan and statistics buff has proven that clutch hitters really do exist, putting statistics behind the obvious. The new study, by math and economics student Elan Fuld of the University of Pennsylvania, was announced by the university Thursday. Fuld defined a clutch hitter as one who hits better...

Apr 30, 2005

Rise of Deadly Superbugs should 'Raise Red Flags' Everywhere

A pair of new studies confirms recent fears that bacteria are growing increasingly resistant to drugs and that you can be infected anywhere. The number of cases of superbugs, as researchers call them, has been increasingly steadily in recent years, the reports conclude. The best medicine? Wash your hands a...

Apr 30, 2005

Monkeys Brains Alter to Work Robotic Arm

Scientists have shown in multiple studies that monkeys can manipulate robotic devices with their thoughts. Turns out the thoughts run deep. A new study finds a monkey's brain structure adapts to treat a robotic arm as if it was a natural appendage. The finding, announced Tuesday afternoon, bolsters the notion...

Apr 30, 2005

Children Beat Adults in Memory Contest

When you need to remember specific details, try thinking like a child. A new study pitted college-aged adults against 5- to 11 year-old kids in a memory contest. The younger contestants won by paying better attention to the details. Adults, it seems, get lazy. In the experiment, both test groups...

Apr 30, 2005

Study Reveals Why Raw Garlic is So Pungent

Cooks know there's a huge difference between raw and cooked garlic. If you've ever gnawed on the raw form, you know it too. What a bite. When cooked, it is mellower. A new study reveals why. Raw garlic is full of sulfurous compounds, including a chemical called alliin. When a...

Mar 31, 2005

Latest Buzz: Fly Brains Manipulated by Remote Control

Like a hypnotist who gets a man to act like a chicken when he hears a code word, scientists have genetically modified fruit flies to jump or beat their wings when flashed with lasers. This is a new approach to neuroscience, said Gero Miesenbock from the Yale University School of...

Mar 31, 2005

Serious Golf Injuries on the Upswing ... Among Children

More kids are getting head injuries as the popularity of golf rises. Falling out of a cart and getting smacked by a club are the two main causes. A review of 2,546 patients under age 19 seen by pediatric neurosurgeons at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta between 1996...

Feb 28, 2005

Finger Length Predicts Aggression in Men

Without pointing any fingers, a new study suggests a way to take the measure of tough characters. The research, done at the University of Alberta and announced Wednesday, found a connection between the length of the male index finger relative to the ring finger and the tendency to be aggressive....