Humans
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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
If timing’s right, cats and roaches may be good for kids’ allergies
Exposure to mice, roaches and cats before a child’s first birthday may confer protection against asthma and allergies, a new study suggests.
- Health & Medicine
Number of skin moles tied to breast cancer risk
Women who have many moles also have increased disease risk, which may reflect higher estrogen levels.
By Nathan Seppa - Health & Medicine
Bacteria linked to stress-induced heart attacks
Bacteria may play an underlying role in heart attacks brought on by stress.
- Health & Medicine
Anesthesia linked to effects on children’s memory
Undergoing anesthesia as an infant may impair a person's ability to recall details later in life, a new study suggests.
- Humans
There’s more to acing interviews than holding the vocal fry
A new study of vocal fry, a low razz in human speech, suggests job interviewees might want to hold the fry. But there's more to a job interview than a little vocal sizzle.
- Neuroscience
Stem cell approach for Parkinson’s disease gets boost
Postmortem study finds Parkinson’s patients can retain transplanted neurons for years.
- Psychology
Why stabbing a voodoo doll is so satisfying
To measure how aggressive a person is, psychologists turn to voodoo dolls and hot sauce.
- Neuroscience
Sleep strengthens some synapses
Mice show signs of stronger neuron connections when allowed to sleep after learning a trick.
- Health & Medicine
Your baby: The ultimate science experiment
Babies may be serious scientists, but parents can join the fun by trying some simple experiments with their kids.
- Health & Medicine
Early malnutrition may impair infants’ mix of gut microbes
Babies’ gut microbiomes fail to fully recover even after fending off bouts with malnutrition.
By Nathan Seppa - Neuroscience
Stress and the susceptible brain
Some of us bounce back from stress, while others never really recover. A new study shows that different brain activity patterns could make the difference.
- Health & Medicine
Health risks of e-cigarettes emerge
Research uncovers a growing list of chemicals that end up in an e-cigarette user’s lungs, and one study finds that an e-cigarette’s vapors can increase the virulence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
By Janet Raloff