Author: Diane Shipley
Staff Writer Diane is especially interested in high-tech medical advances, weird and interesting uses of science, new gadgets, and the intersection of tech and lifestyle. When not working, she reads the internet, listens to podcasts, watches American TV, and thinks about leaving the house.
Adam the labrador proves that dogs can be allergic to humans, too
Itchy skin that causes an insatiable urge to scratch is one of the side-effects when people are allergic to dogs. And, as Treehugger reports, it's also one of the side-effects when dogs are allergic to people. When volunteers from the Lucky Dog Retreat rescue centre in Indianapolis in the U.S found an adorable two year-old…
Want to learn more? You need to daydream, says study
You know when you’re working hard to learn something new and people tell you that you need to calm down and stop stressing? Annoying, isn’t it? What’s even more annoying is that they’re right. New research suggests that rather than pushing yourself to take in new information, your time would be better spent daydreaming, and…
Over-the-counter painkillers could help treat depression
Anti-inflammatory painkillers sold over the counter (like ibuprofen and aspirin) could help to treat depression, according to a new analysis. As Psych Central reports, researchers from Aarhus University in Denmark have just reviewed 14 studies containing info on 6262 patients who had symptoms of depression, publishing their findings in JAMA Psychiatry. They discovered that those…
‘Brain training’ won’t make you smarter or stave off Alzheimer’s after all
Finally: some good news for the lazy, can’t-be-bothered-with-Sudoku types among us. Turns out, ‘brain training’ software and apps aren’t doing a darn thing. Yep, even though Nicole Kidman strongly implied the DS version would make us smarter, prettier, and more Oscar-winning, there’s absolutely no scientific evidence to suggest that any technology can train our brains…
Doctors have opened the blood-brain barrier for the first time
Surgeons have opened and closed the blood-brain barrier (BBB) for the first time, New Scientist reports. The BBB is a protective cell lining that shields the brain from potentially harmful chemicals in the blood. But it also means that it’s not possible to take drugs for brain disorders as they won’t circulate to where they’re…
Dachshund’s Creek is the ’90s reboot you didn’t know you needed
Dawson’s Creek was great in its day: the ‘90s, back before any of us had actual worries and were happy to listen to overly loquacious teenagers string self-important sentences together and watch endless permutations of the Dawson-Joey-Pacey-Jen ‘love square’. (No wonder creator Kevin Williamson finally snapped and killed one of them off. The wrong one,…
The season you’re born affects your mood, study says
Could astrologers have been right all along? New research suggests that there’s a link between the season you're born and how happy you are. And the time of year people are born and their risk of going on to develop a mood disorder like depression, bipolar disorder, or anxiety could also be connected. A group…
It’s official: Sex started in Scotland, says science
A palaeontologist has discovered when and where reproduction by copulation and internal fertilisation (also known as S-E-X) first took place. Professor John Long from Flinders University in South Australia dates heterosexual, penetrative sex to 385 million years ago in the place that later became Scotland (and OK, fine, to Estonia and China, too. But we…
The flu vaccine could be the key to preventing heart disease
Scientists have discovered why the flu vaccine reduces the risk of heart disease, and are hoping they can go on to develop a vaccine for the condition as a result. Heart disease is the number one cause of death around the world, killing around 74,000 people in the UK each year. It's caused by a…
A new sensor lets doctors see inside the brain
Engineers have developed a new implantable brain sensor that’s transparent, so they can see what’s happening underneath it. The team, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, used scientists’ new favourite miracle material, graphene, to make the sensor. That’s because it conducts electricity well and tends not to be rejected by the body. It also allows them…
