Neural Navigations #10

It's a shame that conflicts and wars continue to persist worldwide, leading to the loss of thousands of innocent lives, especially children, on a weekly, if not daily, basis. In the face of these challenges, it becomes increasingly important for us to focus on advancements in science and technology. However, it's crucial for politicians to put an end to hostilities and work towards achieving lasting peace. By harnessing the power of innovation and knowledge, we have the potential to shape a better future for children who deserve peace, prosperity, and opportunities.

Let's explore the breakthroughs of the week!

Brain & Mind

• Researchers have discovered that goalkeepers have a unique way of processing multisensory information. They exhibit efficient temporal binding windows and a tendency to separate sensory information. The exact cause of this phenomenon, whether it is due to intensive training or inherent abilities, is still a subject that requires further exploration. Let's salute the scorpion of the pitch!

• Neuroscientists have uncovered a key brain area in rats that encodes the value of economic choices when faced with the uncertainty of a lottery. In this work, the causal role of frontal and parietal cortex was tested in economic decision-making. The findings provide a foundation for understanding the neurobiology of risky decisions. When it comes to the word "lottery," have you ever wondered how the lives of the biggest lottery winners changed?

• When given the choice to learn how their actions will affect someone else, 40% of people will choose ignorance, often in order to have an excuse to act selfishly, according to new research .
• There is a common claim that using the snooze button can have negative effects on sleep and cognitive processes. However, there has been no direct evidence to support this claim. New research suggests that snoozing may actually aid the waking process for individuals who regularly use the snooze button.
• Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have discovered that pregnancy hormones, specifically estrogen and progesterone, have an impact on the brains of female mice. This leads to heightened parental instincts even before birth. The findings indicate the potential for long-term brain changes as a result of pregnancy and raise the possibility of similar changes in the brains of humans during pregnancy, due to the same hormonal interactions.

• A study has shown that time-restricted feeding (including intermittent-fasting) can improve circadian disruptions related to Alzheimer's disease in mice. This improvement leads to better memory and reduced accumulation of harmful proteins in the brain. This approach, based on lifestyle changes, may provide a new care strategy for patients with Alzheimer's.

Science & Technology

• A team of researchers led by the University of California San Diego has developed soft yet durable materials that glow in response to mechanical stress, such as compression, stretching or twisting. The materials derive their luminescence from single-celled algae known as dinoflagellates .

• Sperm caught breaking Newton's third law of motion ! Some biological cells swim freely in a way that apparently breaks one of Newton’s laws of motion – but only if they have strange elastic properties .
• A few years ago, researchers discovered that a rapidly rotating magnet will cause other nearby magnets to levitate, and they have now worked out why .

• Current wireless charging pads, primarily utilizing induction over short distances, have demonstrated high efficiency but only within close proximity to the device being charged. New research now suggests that by harnessing the power of radiation suppression in the loop antennas, not only can devices be charged over significantly longer distances with over 80% efficiency, but also in various orientations, paving the way for a new era of wireless power transfer applicable to a myriad of devices, from mobile gadgets to biomedical implants.

• University of Tokyo researchers introduce a superior, cobalt-free alternative for lithium-ion batteries, offering better performance and longevity, with potential applications in various electrochemical processes. By replacing problematic and scarce cobalt with safer and more abundant elements, the researchers mitigate some issues with current batteries. As an extra bonus, the new battery chemistry leads to greater energy density for an equivalent weight and volume of battery, which could be very useful in applications such as electric cars.

• Physicists have created a novel radio wave antenna by utilizing a glass bulb filled with atomic vapor. This team has shown that these atomic radio frequency sensors, which employ a Rydberg state , are more sensitive and adaptable compared to existing antenna technologies. The compact design and wide frequency range of these sensors make them well-suited for defense, communication, and satellite applications.
• Since Antonie van Leeuwenhoek discovered bacteria through a microscope in the late seventeenth century, humans have been trying to explore the world of the extremely small. But traditional optical methods have limitations that prevent us from examining objects up close. This limitation is called the 'diffraction limit ', which is caused by the way light behaves as a wave. It means that a focused image can never be smaller than half the wavelength of the light used to see the object. Researchers at the University of Sydney developed a groundbreaking method to achieve super-resolution imaging without a super lens, offering potential advancements in various fields from medical imaging to art authentication.

Health & Environment

• A team of researchers has engineered an innovative magnetic wound-healing gel that promises to heal diabetic wounds three times faster, reduce the rates of recurrence, and in turn, lower the incidents of limb amputations. The innovative magnetic hydrogel, which contains skin cells for healing as well as magnetic particles, takes a comprehensive 'all-in-one' approach to wound healing, accelerating the process on several fronts. To maximize therapeutic results, a wireless external magnetic device is used to activate skin cells and accelerate the wound healing process.
• Some more bad news for the coral reefs: The crown-of-thorns starfish is a natural coral predator that has perfectly adapted to thrive in warming waters.

• Plants release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere when they experience mechanical damage or insect attacks. Nearby undamaged plants detect these released VOCs as signals of danger, which triggers their defense responses against potential threats.

• The houting , a fish species that was believed to be extinct in North Sea estuaries, has been found to be alive and thriving. Researchers from the University of Amsterdam and the Natural History Museum London extracted DNA from preserved houting specimens in the museum, some of which were over 250 years old. They then compared the DNA of these museum fish with DNA from other closely related species that are currently present. The biologists discovered that there were very few genetic differences between houting and a species known as the European whitefish. As the European whitefish is still common, it can be concluded that the houting is also not extinct.
• During the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a noticeable increase in the number of girls diagnosed with precocious puberty. This condition causes children to mature physically at an earlier age. Researchers believe that this rise can be attributed to factors such as increased screen time, reduced physical activity, and other lifestyle changes resulting from the pandemic. Additionally, girls diagnosed during this period had higher body mass indexes (BMIs) and significantly decreased levels of physical activity. Other factors, including stress, social isolation, and frequent use of sanitizers, may also contribute to this trend.
• The more diverse?species?in your gut, the better it is for your health. Now an international team led by the Hudson Institute of Medical Research has found a way to determine which species are important and how they interact to create a healthy microbiome.

Microbiome Facts

There are trillions of microbes living inside and on the surface of your body, altogether they are called the microbiome and they are vital to your health and fighting disease.

Since the microbiome was first recognized in the late 1990s, scientists have identified more than 2,000 microbial species?from the largest microbiome, in the gut.

The skin,?bladder, and genitals also harbor microbiome populations.

Your gut microbiome composition is unique to you and affects your metabolism, gastrointestinal tract, brain, and immune system.

In a healthy person, the symbiotic and pathogenic microbes work in balance.

Imbalances between symbiotic (benefiting you and the microbes) and pathogenic (disease-causing) microbes, known as dysbiosis, disrupt the microbes, making people more susceptible to conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and?Clostridioides difficile infection,?which causes severe diarrhea and inflammation of the colon or colitis.

There is hope that we may soon be on the cusp of a new era of healthcare that nurtures and tweaks the microbiome to optimize human health.

• For 2000 years, Chinese herbalists have diagnosed diseases by examining the human tongue. This traditional method is now being enhanced with artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies.
• A team of researchers has mapped nearly 6,000 proteins from various cell types within the eye. They achieved this by analyzing small drops of eye fluid routinely collected during surgery. By using an AI model, the researchers created a 'proteomic clock' based on this data. It can predict a person's age based on their protein profile, providing valuable insights into their health. The clock revealed that certain diseases, like diabetic retinopathy and uveitis, accelerate aging in specific cell types. Interestingly, the researchers also discovered proteins associated with Parkinson's disease in the eye fluid, suggesting a potential avenue for early diagnosis of Parkinson's.
• Millions of couples worldwide experience infertility with half of the cases originating in men. For 10% of infertile males, little or no sperm are produced. Now, new research is shedding light on what may be going wrong in the process of sperm formation, leading to potential theories on possible treatments.

Thank you for joining me on this journey, and I look forward to bringing you more exciting content next week.