Old Brain Makes New Neurons, Study
Shows
The traditional belief was that the process
of aging in the brain is largely a story of
deterioration and decline. Key to this
narrative is the theory that new neurons
are not manufactured past youth. But a
recent study of the brains of the dead indicates that’s not entirely
correct: the brain does indeed make new cells through the course
of life. However, the cells made by older brains may not form as
many connections.
Great Pacific Garbage Patch Has Four
Times the Mass as Previously Believed
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch covers
more of the Earth’s surface than many
countries. A “gyre within a gyre” of ocean
currents collects plastic in a huge man-
made maelstrom of fishing line, laundry
baskets, toys and bottles, floating halfway between Hawaii and
California. The mass of the plastic within the Patch is actually at
least four times, and perhaps 16 times, greater than previously
believed—and it continues to grow, according to a study pub-
lished in Scientific Reports. The new estimate is due to bigger
pieces that were unaccounted for in previous estimates.
Lasers Could Detect Chemical Weapons, Toxic Events
A laser tool could scan the air, revealing the presence of chemical
weapons or other toxins, according to researchers from the Univer-
sity of Central Florida. The infrared lasers detect traces as small as
one ppb, and the dual-comb spectrometer uses a pair of subhar-
monic optical parametric oscillators. The platform supplies Fourier
transform spectroscopy, and the oscillators are pumped by two phase-locked thulium-fiber
combs. Essentially, the lasers are able to detect the minute vibrations of single molecules.
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FBI, Harvard Scientists Get Nuclear DNA
from Ancient Egyptian Mummy Head
FBI and Harvard scientists succeeded in sequencing a degraded mitochondrial genome and
pieces of nuclear DNA from an Egyptian mummy’s
head—a breakthrough that could have implications for the toughest, most degraded forensic
samples. The 4,000-year-old genetic data even
contained some traces of nuclear DNA, which helped allow
scientists to determine whether the head was of a prominent
ancient official or his wife.
Forensic Magazine, www.forensicmag.com
Hunger Over Chronic Pain
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania identified 300 neurons responsible
for prioritizing hunger over chronic pain in laboratory mice, a
discovery that could offer targets for novel pain therapies. The
research explains how focusing on hunger can help animals survive in the wild after a debilitating injury. The study examined the
pain responses of laboratory mice that hadn’t eaten for 24 hours.
The hungry mice responded to acute pain, but interestingly, were
less responsive to inflammatory pain than their counterparts.
Animal Lab News, www.alnmag.com
Discovery of Interstitium Fluid: Does it Upend
Human Biology?
A new look deep into the workings of the human body provided by a mix
of the latest technologies has produced a potentially startling revelation:
there is a heretofore unknown network of fluid and collagen bundles running throughout the body. The interstitium, described by some even as
a “new organ,” acts as both shock absorber for vital organs, and also as a medium for
transferring vital fluids. It could even hold the secret of pathologies, such as the spread
of cancer.
It happened in May
Oldest university unearthed
On May 12, 2004, the discovery of what was
believed to be the world’s oldest seat of learning,
the Library of Alexandria, was announced. A Pol-ish-Egyptian team had uncovered 13 lecture halls
featuring an elevated podium for the lecturer. Such
a complex of lecture halls had never before been
found on any Mediterranean Greco-Roman site.
Submarine nuclear power
plant prototype test
On May 31, 1953, the land-based Mark I prototype
submarine power plant began to produce power in
significant amounts. This was an experimental unit,
built in Arco, ID, to gain experience for operating the
Mark II unit in the world’s first nuclear submarine, the
Nautilus, launched Jan. 21, 1954.
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