Reading for pleasure may offer surprising benefits for the brain, with research linking the habit to better mental health, stronger cognitive abilities, and a lower risk of dementia. Reading for pleasure may do far more than provide entertainment. A scientific review published in Psychological Medicine links the habit to better mental health, stronger cognitive abilities, […]
Scientists Restore Memory in Mice With Alzheimer’s by Boosting a Single Brain Protein
Boosting a protein restored brain rhythms and improved memory in mice with Alzheimer’s-like disease, pointing to a potential treatment strategy focused on how brain cells coordinate. The brain relies on rapid electrical rhythms called gamma oscillations when focusing on a task, learning a skill, or retrieving a memory. These rhythms cycle 30 to 90 times […]
Reddit Users Are Experimenting With an Unapproved Weight-Loss Drug. AI Found Something Surprising
An AI analysis of nearly 150,000 Reddit posts and comments offers the first systematic look at symptoms people attribute to gray-market retatrutide, showing how social media could guide drug safety research. People are buying unapproved versions of retatrutide, a next-generation GLP-1 weight-loss drug, and sharing their experiences on Reddit before the drug has received approval […]
NASA’s Curiosity Rover Unveils a Spectacular New View of Mars at Dawn
Curiosity’s latest panorama sharpens the view of a Martian rock layer that looks out of place and may have formed from ancient volcanic ash. A band of wind-carved cliffs stretches roughly 10 miles (16 kilometers) across the northwestern reaches of Mount Sharp on Mars, and NASA’s Curiosity rover is climbing toward it. A newly released […]
Scientists Create “Super Ice” That’s 10 Times Stronger and Rivals Concrete in Strength
A new form of reinforced ice could offer an unconventional building material for extreme polar environments, although questions about its long-term durability remain. Scientists have developed a new form of ice that approaches the compressive strength of conventional concrete while resisting the sudden fractures that make ordinary ice so brittle. Known as BioPykrete, the material […]
Scientists Turn Ordinary Plastic Into Billions of Tiny Diamonds Using Powerful Lasers
Diamonds recovered from plastic contain roughly 3,000 atoms each and could be modified with other elements for future use in medical imaging. Powerful lasers can turn plastic into tiny diamonds, but recovering the crystals means catching them as they shoot out at speeds comparable to a meteorite impact. Researchers at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) and […]
Scientists Turn a Cancer-Fueling Protein Into a Powerful New Weapon Against Tumors
A protein that helps cancer grow could become an unlikely ally in treating it, with laboratory and mouse experiments showing that activating it in engineered immune cells curbs tumor growth. Colorectal cancer has become the leading cause of cancer-related death in people under 50, and chemotherapy and newer immunotherapy drugs can fall short against its […]
New Triple-Action Drug Helps People With Diabetes Lose Up to 15% of Their Body Weight
An experimental drug that targets three metabolic pathways has shown promising results in people with type 2 diabetes. An experimental drug that targets three metabolic pathways has produced substantial improvements in blood sugar control and weight loss in people with type 2 diabetes. In a phase 3 clinical trial published in The Lancet, participants receiving […]
Not Getting Enough Daylight Could Be Linked to a Higher Risk of Dementia
Researchers found that insufficient exposure to bright daytime light may be a stronger predictor of dementia than several established risk factors. Greater exposure to bright light during the day may be associated with a lower risk of developing dementia, according to research involving nearly 88,000 adults. Participants whose average daytime light exposure exceeded 1,000 lux […]
Researchers Unleash Record-Breaking X-Ray Flashes in Just 300 Attoseconds
Researchers used the European XFEL to produce ultrashort X-ray flashes that reached record intensity for this type of pulse. To understand chemical reactions and perhaps one day control the electrons involved, scientists need a detailed picture of how electrons behave inside atoms and molecules. X-rays offer a way to probe that behavior, but the flashes […]