Certain fish have a special mating preference
A biologist at Washington University in St. Louis has shown that for some fish species, females prefer males with larger sexual organs, and actually choose them for mating. That does not exclude males with an average-sized sex organ, called a gonopodium. These fish out-compete the larger-endowed males in a predator-laden environment because they have a faster burst speed than the males with large...Older female fish prefer imperfect male mates, study finds
There's hope for the less-than-perfect male ?if you're a swordtail fish, that is. As the size and age of female swordtail fish increase, so does the preference for males with asymmetrical markings, according to a new Ohio University study. Molly Morris, associate professor of biological sciences, and colleagues found that older female swordtails spent more time with asymmetrically striped...Have a taste for fat? Yes! A sensor in the mouth promotes preference for fatty foods
The sense of taste informs the organism about the quality of ingested food. It comprises five sub-modalities that perceive sweet, salt, sour, bitter, and umami stimuli. The possibility for an additional taste modality directed to lipid has often been suggested because many animals exhibit a spontaneous attraction for fats, but the existence of an actual sensor remained a matter of debate. <...Man's best friend: Study shows lonely seniors prefer playtime with pooch over human interaction
A new Saint Louis University study shows there is some truth in the old cliché that describes a dog as "man's best friend." Nursing...Predators prefer to hunt small-brained prey
They avoid more intelligent prey such as monkeys which have exceptionally large brains and are more capable of escaping attacks. The study, carried out by Dr Susanne Shultz, from the School of Biological Sciences, focused on predators from Africa and South America such as the jaguar, chimpanzee, leopard and puma. Dr Shultz found that prey with a small brain such as small antelope, mongoos...Spatial Behavior System, Preference from myNeuroLab.com
Description:PreferenceIncludes all features of Tracker, plus software to note when the animal enters a user defined area, and provide a food reward.The Spatial Behavior line is a family of instruments all built around a video camera, frame grabber, and feature extraction software and that can track two fields at once and up to 6 moving animals. Software automatically extracts animal positions and records th...Angioplasty The Much Preferred Treatment Of Choice For Heart Attacks
A new study finds angioplasty should be the treatment of choice for heart attack patients, even if the hospital they initially go to doesn’t offer angioplasty// services and they have to be transferred to another facility for treatment. Research has shown heart attack patients fare better when they are treated with angioplasty to open up the clogged blood vessel that caused the attack th...Understanding Food Preferences in Kids
Latest research shows there are actually scientific reasons why children may be more sensitive to bitter tastes or have an especially strong // sweet tooth. Researchers found variation in a taste receptor gene influences taste sensitivity in both children and adults. Age and culture also contribute to taste preferences and sometimes have a greater impact. For the study researchers compar...Conditioning preferences in children
Preferences influence all aspects of human behaviour; they impact upon the foods we eat, the products we buy, the stimuli we approach or avoid and the people with whom we spend time // . Evaluation of stimulus valence is so fundamental that it has been proposed that the brain uses it as a basic category for organizing information and activating approach or avoidance behaviors. Stimulus ev...Birth Weight of Babies Important Predictor for Salt Preference
In a new, unique study conducted on babies and birth weight, it has been found that smaller babies with low birth weight display an increased liking for salt.// The results of the present study may serve to explain why certain individuals include more salt in their diet than others. The study was conducted among 80 healthy babies, weighing atleast 2.5 kg. These babies were given both...India preferred for AIDS treatment
AIDS patients from Sri Lanka are preferring treatment in India to avoid social discrimination and to avoid others in their place to know that they are suffering from HIV infection.// Reports have found that about 100 patients every year come to India from Sri Lanka to get treatment for AIDS. Most of the people who come to India for their treatment are mostly from the higher class who...PreView PHP (Preferential Hyperacuity Perimetry)
Description:The PreView PHP is designed specifically for detection of recent-onset neovascular ("wet") age-related macular degeneration (AMD). This macular perimeter maps and quantifies visual field defects consistent with the progression of intermediate ("dry") AMD to the wet stage of the disease. By overcoming the brain's ability to compensate for small visual field defects, the PreView PHP can identify...