Health, features and articles | Educational Science

Feb 28, 2005

Hospitals and Doctors Lag Behind Information Age

Health care lags behind the information age, a new study found. Fewer than a third of hospitals and only 17 percent of doctors' offices check electronic records prior to treating patients or prescribing medicine. Only 8 percent of physicians use a computerized physician order entry system. The setup, advocated by...

Feb 28, 2005

Samson and Delilah Reunited after Brain Surgery

Samson the lion, recuperating from a first-of-its-kind brain operation, is now back with his sister, Delilah, at the Hai-Kef zoo in Rishon Lezion, Israel. ? The meeting between Samson and his sister Delilah was joyous and emotional, said the director of the zoo, Bezalel Porath. Samson now has many visitors....

Feb 28, 2005

How the Brain Changes Channels

Your brain cells change channels sort of like a television, scientists say. Specific cells in the noggin can change what they allow through their membranes by swapping one kind of channel, or membrane opening, for another. This lets your brain fine-tune messages and adjust connections to control fine motor skills,...

Feb 28, 2005

Sleep Poorly? You're Not Alone

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Getting a good night's sleep is hard for many adults and that often means poorer health, lower productivity on the job, more danger on the roads and a less vibrant sex life. By 3 to 4 in the afternoon, I'm starting to feel brain-drained and I need...

Jan 31, 2005

Be Quick, Live Longer?

How quickly you react to this story could have something to do with how long you live. Unfortunately, it's not clear what you should do. A new study suggests reaction time is related to longevity. The research meshes with other studies that have found higher IQs tend to predict longer...

Jan 31, 2005

Big Brains Not Always Better

WASHINGTON D.C. - Nearly three million years ago, our ancestors had brains about as big as modern chimps. Since then the brain that would become human grew steadily, tripling in size. But this extra cranium capacity may not have resulted in smarter hominids. As far as tool-making is concerned, there...

Jan 31, 2005

Rocket Fuel Chemical Found in Breast Milk of Women in 18 States

Updated 3:38 p.m. ET A toxic component of rocket fuel has been found in breast milk of women in 18 states and store-bought milk from various locations around the country. The chemical, perchlorate, can impede adult metabolism and cause retardation in fetuses, among other things. It leaches into groundwater from...

Dec 31, 2004

How Your Nose is More Complex than a 747

Your nose may not be as big as a jumbo jet, or maybe it is, but whatever, it is more complex in one sense. A new study of how air flows through your schnoz reveals the process to be more complicated than air coursing over a jet's wing. Click Images...

Dec 31, 2004

Men and Women Really Do Think Differently

Men and women do think differently, at least where the anatomy of the brain is concerned, according to a new study. The brain is made primarily of two different types of tissue, called gray matter and white matter. This new research reveals that men think more with their gray matter,...

Dec 31, 2004

Sex in High School Involves Long Chains of Relations

A study of sexual and romantic relations at a high school found students connected by long chains, rather than in a tight network with a core group of a promiscuous few. Sharing of partners was rare, but many students were indirectly linked through one partner to another and another. The...

Nov 30, 2006

Gender Difference in Grammar

Most children make adorable slip-ups in grammar when they're learning to speak. Now scientists say the mistakes could vary by gender. Boys and girls tend to use different parts of their brain to learn some fundamental parts of grammar, according to a new study. Sex has been virtually ignored in...

Nov 30, 2006

Study: Laughter Really Is Contagious

If you see two people laughing at a joke you didn't hear, chances are you will smile anyway--even if you don't realize it. According to a new study, laughter truly is contagious: the brain responds to the sound of laughter and preps the muscles in the face to join in...

Nov 30, 2006

Recipe for Genius Revealed

If you think the innate talents of your child alone will produce the next Albert Einstein, think again. The real recipe for producing a bright-minded adult, according to a new study, calls for a few ingredients—cognitive abilities, educational opportunities, interest, and plain old hard work. The 35-year study, published online...

Nov 30, 2006

Virtual Mind Games Revive Controversial Experiment

Infamous experiments almost 50 years ago discovered that ordinary people--under orders from an authority figure--would deliver apparently lethal electrical shocks to complete strangers. The disturbing findings both shed light on the limits of human behavior and the mind but also ignited an ethical controversy that has made it impossible nowadays...

Nov 30, 2006

Stem Cell Loss in Aging Brain May Bring Poorer Memory

(HealthDay News) -- Having trouble remembering things with age? A new study in rats finds that stem cells in aging brains divide less frequently, leading to a dramatic drop in the number of new nerve cells being born in the hippocampus, the brain's learning and memory center. The finding, published...