Archive for May, 2007
Animals differ strikingly in character and temperament. Yet only recently has it become evident that personalities are a widespread phenomenon in the animal kingdom. Animals as diverse as spiders, mice and squids appear to have personalities. Personality differences have been described in more than 60 species, including primates, rodents, birds, fish, insects and mollusks.
New work by Max Wolf (University of Groningen; currently at the Santa Fe Institute), Santa Fe Institute… Continue reading
It seems almost certain that San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds will pass Hank Aaron as baseball’s all-time home-run king sometime this summer, but his pursuit has generated little public interest.
There may be several reasons for this, ranging from Bonds’ prickly personality to the suspicion that he may have used performance-enhancing drugs later in his career, say two Duke University professors.
“Career home runs is perhaps the most single hallowed record… Continue reading
A critical step in brain development is governed by endogenous cannabinoids, the brain’s own marijuana. Studies conducted at Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet, with participation of scientists from Europe and the United States, are now published in Science and show that these endogenous molecules regulate how certain nerve cells recognize each other and form connections. The scientists believe that their findings will significantly advance our understanding of how cannabis smoking… Continue reading
It is well known that human speech can provide listeners with simultaneous information about a person’s emotions and objects in the environment. Past research has shown that animal vocalizations can do the same, but little is known about the development of the features that encode such information.
Observing wild, but habituated, meerkats (Suricata suricatta) in the Kalahari Desert, researchers from the University of Zurich have shown that a youngster’s understanding… Continue reading
Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and McLean Hospital have found that practicing yoga may elevate brain gamma-aminobutyric (GABA) levels, the brain’s primary inhibitory neurotransmitter. The findings, which appear in the May issue of the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, suggest that the practice of yoga be explored as a possible treatment for depression and anxiety, disorders associated with low GABA levels.
The World Health Organization reports that… Continue reading
