Think

Shift of weather patterns necessitates rethinking of reforestation methods

Forest landowners can greatly increase the survival rate of pine tree seedlings by changing when and how they plant, according to research conducted here. "Some landowners have had to replant two, three or even four years in a row beca...

Deep thinking: Scientists sequence a cold-loving marine microbe

At home in the deep, dark Arctic Ocean, the marine bacterium Colwellia psychrerythraea 34H keeps very cool--typically below 5° degrees Celsius. How does the bacterium function in this frigid environment? To find out, scientists at The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR) and collaborators have sequenced and analyzed C. psychrerythraea's genome. That genome analysis, posted in the Proceedi...

Thinking the pain away? Study shows the brain's painkillers may cause 'placebo effect'

Sham painkiller prompts brain to release endorphins, bringing real relief to those in pain The study provides the first direct evidence that the brain's own pain-fighting chemicals, called endo...

New research puts a fresh spin on current thinking of speech evolution in humans

A study, published today in the prestigious journal Nature by Dr. Michael Petrides and colleagues at the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) at McGill University, challenges current thinking that speech developed as a result of new structures that evolved in the human brain. Dr. Petrides and colleagues have identified a distinct brain region that controls jaw movements in macaque monkeys that i...

Lateral thinking produces first map of gene transmission

A University of Queensland study mapping the evolution of genes has shed light on the role of gene transfer in bacterial diseases. Dr Robert Beiko, Professor Mark Ragan and Mr Timothy Harlow examined the genomes of 144...

Scientists show how thinking can harm brain cells

Scientists at the University of Rochester Medical Center have targeted a new culprit and method of attack on neurologic functions in diseases such as Alzheimer's and dementia associated with HIV. In an article in the Nov. 1 issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation, the Rochester scientists describe a new mechanism by which brain cells can be damaged during chronic neurodegenerative d...

Think fast! Rice undergrad unlocks nerve speed secret

In the second it takes you to read these words, tens of thousands of vesicles in your optic nerves are released in sequence, opening tiny surface pores to pass chemical signals to the next cell down the line, telling your brain what you're seeing and your eyes where to move. Thanks to two new studies ?including one spearheaded by an undergraduate biochemistry student at Rice University and publis...

Agriculture and tropical conservation: rethinking old ideas

It's a long-held view in conservation circles that rural peasant activities are at odds with efforts to preserve biodiversity in the tropics. In fact, the opposite is often true, argue University of Michigan researchers John Vandermeer and Ivette Perfecto. Combining case studies with ecological theory, Vandermeer and Perfecto found that the peasant farming practices encouraged by grassro...

Sex and the heart: It's not what you think

A surprising new study finds that women in their 60s have as many risk factors for heart disease as men, and by their 70s have more, according to research led by demographers at the University of Southern California. The findings, published in the current issue of the Journal of Women's Health, reflect a change from previous decades when older men were at greater risk for heart disease. In...

UCLA: How does your brain respond when you think about gambling or taking risks?

Should you leave your comfortable job for one that pays better but is less secure? Should you have a surgery that is likely to extend your life but poses some risk that you will not survive the operation? Should you invest in a risky startup company whose stock may soar even though you could lose your entire investment? In the Jan. 26 issue of the journal Science, UCLA psychologists present the f...

Thinking with the spinal cord?

Two scientists from the University of Copenhagen have demonstrated that the spinal cord use network mechanisms similar to those used in the brain. The discovery is featured in the current issue of Science. The research group behind the surprising results consists of Professor Jørn Hounsgaard and Post.doc Rune W. Berg from the University of Copenhagen, and Assistant Professor and PhD Aidas...

Jefferson researchers' discovery may change thinking on how viruses invade the brain

A molecule thought crucial to ferrying the deadly rabies virus into the brain, where it eventually kills, apparently isn’t. The surprising finding, say researchers at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, may change the way scientists think about how central nervous system-attacking viruses such as herpes viruses invade the brain and cause disease. According to Matthias Schnell, Ph.D...

Common gene version optimizes thinking -- but with a possible downside

Most people inherit a version of a gene that optimizes their brain's thinking circuitry, yet also appears to increase risk for schizophrenia, a severe mental illness marked by impaired thinking, scientists at the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) have discovered. The seeming paradox emerged from the first study to explore the effects of variation in...