Sex, Beer & Politics: Riddles Reveal Life of Ancient Mesopotamians
Posted on July 1, 2023
| 5 minutes
| 983 words
| Fernande Dalal
Millennia before modern-day Americans made fun of their politicians or cracked crude jokes over a cold one, people in ancient Mesopotamia were doing much the same thing.
The evidence of sex, politics and beer-drinking comes from a newly translated tablet, dating back more than 3,500 years, which reveals a series of riddles.
The text is fragmentary in parts and appears to have been written by an inexperienced hand, possibly a student.
[Read More]Sneaky Herpes Virus Lurks Even Without Symptoms
Posted on July 1, 2023
| 3 minutes
| 557 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Even people who don't show symptoms of genital herpes can harbor active forms of the virus that can be spread to sexual partners, according to a new study.
People who are infected with the herpes simplex virus type 2, but don't have symptoms, still have active forms of the virus detected on their genital tract 10 percent of the time, the study said.
And people who do have symptoms of herpes infection carry active forms of the virus on their genital tract 20 percent of the time, said study researcher Dr.
[Read More]Stretchy, Transparent Gaming Controller Acts Like a Second Skin
Posted on July 1, 2023
| 2 minutes
| 376 words
| Trudie Dory
It's finally happened. Our bodies can now become one with the game controller.
A stretchy, skin-like controller created by materials scientists at Seoul National University promises to turn a forearm into a touchpad for gaming, playing music, and scrawling notes that appear on a computer screen.
RELATED: Pokémon Go: Top 10 Hazards of Augmented Reality Gaming
The team, led by researcher Chong-Chan Kim along with Jeong-Yun Sun, a professor of materials science and engineering, imagines a future where we ditch brittle electrodes for soft, biocompatible technology.
[Read More]Weird Mucus Parasites Are Actually Jellyfish
Posted on July 1, 2023
| 3 minutes
| 586 words
| Patria Henriques
Microscopic parasites only a few cells large are essentially greatly degenerated jellyfish, a finding that could expand the definition of the animal kingdom, researchers say.
"When people think of an animal, they think of a macroscopic, multicellular, complex organism, and now they'll have to expand their definition of an animal to include very simple microscopic organisms," study co-author Paulyn Cartwright, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Kansas,told Live Science.
[Read More]Why It's Harder to Recover from Jet Lag When You Fly East
Posted on July 1, 2023
| 3 minutes
| 583 words
| Patria Henriques
If you've ever found that recovery from jet lag took even longer than you expected it to, physicists have answers: A new mathematical model helps explain why flying east is tougher on jet-lag recovery.
The model takes into account how certain cells in the human brain respond to crossing time zones, according to the study, published today (July 12) in the journal Chaos.
These cells, called "neuronal oscillator cells," regulate people's circadian rhythm, or biological clock, by syncing up with one another and also linking up with external cues, said Michelle Girvan, an associate professor of physics at the University of Maryland and a co-author of the study.
[Read More]Yohimbine Supplements Contain Drug-Like Doses
Posted on July 1, 2023
| 4 minutes
| 669 words
| Patria Henriques
A supplement often touted for revving up sex lives actually contains doses of a supposedly natural compound that are so high that the product essentially acts like a drug, with potentially dangerous side effects, according to a new study.
Researchers analyzed the contents of about 50 dietary supplements sold in the United States that contained the ingredient yohimbine, a compound found in small amounts in the bark of an African tree called Pausinystalia johimbe.
[Read More]6 Sex Supplements Contain Hidden Drugs, FDA Warns
Posted on June 30, 2023
| 2 minutes
| 281 words
| Fernande Dalal
The Food and Drug Administration is cracking down on sex supplements again, warning the public today about six products that were found to contain hidden drugs.
The names of the tainted products are: Reload, Get It Up, Super Cheetah, Cave Diver, Nights to Remember and X Zen Platinum. All of the products are marketed for sexual enhancement, and sold on various websites and in some retail stores, the FDA said.
[Read More]8 Is Enough: The Limits to Human Reproduction
Posted on June 30, 2023
| 3 minutes
| 620 words
| Fernande Dalal
Editor's Note: The mother of octuplets previously had six children, it was revealed today. Eight kids at once. The mind boggles. The mind is also pretty creeped out by the thought of one tiny baby after another coming out of a woman as if she were a mouse. It's great those octuplets are here and healthy, but really, humans aren't designed to have litters. It's basic energetics. Every individual has only so much energy.
[Read More]Abandoned Albino Seal Finds Accepting Home
Posted on June 30, 2023
| 2 minutes
| 284 words
| Patria Henriques
An adorable albino seal pup who was rejected by her family has found a home — and her own webcam — at a Russian dolphinarium.
A Russian photographer first came upon the tiny, lone seal on Tyuleniy Island, a small island located in the Sea of Okhotsk, in September. The young pup had been rejected by her family members, who have black coats, because of her rusty brown fur and pale blue eyes.
[Read More]Ancient Whales Gave Birth on Land
Posted on June 30, 2023
| 4 minutes
| 674 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
More than 47 million years ago, a whale was about to give birth to her young … on land. That's according to skeletal remains of a pregnant cetacean whose fetus was positioned head-down as is the case for land mammals but not aquatic whales.
The teeth of the fetus were so well-developed that researchers who analyzed the fossils think the baby would have been born within days, had its mom not died.
[Read More]