People sometimes prefer burning hot pain to thinking too hard
Posted on March 7, 2023
| 7 minutes
| 1316 words
| Patria Henriques
When faced with a challenging mental task, some people would rather endure literal pain than use their brain power.
According to a new study, published Nov. 17 in the journal eLife, the prospect of performing a difficult mental task can be just as off-putting as the threat of a painful experience, like having a scalding hot object held on your skin. In the study, participants could either subject themselves to this uncomfortable, thermal pain or they could complete a memory task — the choice was up to them.
[Read More]Scientists create weird pumpkin-shaped nucleus that vanishes in nanoseconds
Posted on March 7, 2023
| 2 minutes
| 394 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Physicists in Finland have created a pumpkin-shaped atomic nucleus that throws off protons in a rare kind of radioactive decay.
The nucleus, lutetium-149, has the shortest half-life of any of a group of radioactive elements called proton-emitters, according to PhysicsWorld(opens in new tab). It loses half its radioactivity (decays into other elements) in a mere 450 nanoseconds, the physicists reported March 16 in the journal Physical Review Letters(opens in new tab).
[Read More]Stinky Seduction: Flowers Use Shocking Scents to Attract Bugs
Posted on March 7, 2023
| 2 minutes
| 243 words
| Fernande Dalal
Catching Flies With RoadkillTimotheüs van der Niet catches flies from roadkill to see which might be carrying orchid pollen.
Smelly OrchidThis orchid (Satyrium pumilum), native to South Africa, attracts carrion-loving flesh flies to pollinate it.
Fly Pollinating OrchidThe orchid has a special smell of roadkill that selectively attracts flesh flies.
Pollen PomPoms on Flesh FlyThe orchid lures the flies into its carrion-scented boosom so the fly can pick up pollen and deposit it on other flowers.
[Read More]The Chinese Secret to Long Life
Posted on March 7, 2023
| 4 minutes
| 691 words
| Patria Henriques
Guangzhou, China—With all the stories from China about dangerous toys, environmental abuses, crowded and dirty cities and widespread poverty, it's hard to imagine how the Chinese can live to a ripe old age.
But they do, with spectacular success, boasting of a life expectancy surprisingly close to that in the United States. China manages this feat while paying a fraction of the healthcare cost per capita spent in the United States, too.
[Read More]When a rogue rocket hits the moon March 4, NASA orbiter will hunt for its crater grave
Posted on March 7, 2023
| 3 minutes
| 583 words
| Patria Henriques
A doomed rocket stage that's expected to crash into the moon on March 4 will do so out of view of NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.
The collision is set to take place on the far side of the moon, out of range of Earthbound telescopes. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter(opens in new tab) (LRO) does have the ability to observe the lunar far side, but it won't be within view of the expected impact zone when the event happens, NASA told Space.
[Read More]'Extraordinary Find': Ancient Roman Villa Unearthed in Britain
Posted on March 6, 2023
| 4 minutes
| 750 words
| Arica Deslauriers
One of Britain's best-preserved Roman-age villas was recently discovered beneath a home in southwest England.
Homeowner Luke Irwin, who lives in Wiltshire, wanted to run electrical cables from his house to an old barn, where his children could play table tennis. But in February, workmen digging a trench for the cables struck a hard surface about 18 inches (46 centimeters) underground.
"It was extraordinary," Irwin told Live Science. "I was lucky I was there that day.
[Read More]1 in 45 US Kids Has an Autism Spectrum Disorder
Posted on March 6, 2023
| 5 minutes
| 1005 words
| Fernande Dalal
About 1 in 45 children in the United States has an autism spectrum disorder, according to a new government estimate of the condition's prevalence in 2014.
This new report is based on data collected during the yearly National Health Interview Survey, from interviews of parents about their children, and is the first report of the prevalence of autism in the U.S. to include data from the years 2011 to 2014, according to the researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
[Read More]Biblical-Era Town Discovered Along Sea of Galilee
Posted on March 6, 2023
| 4 minutes
| 735 words
| Patria Henriques
A town dating back more than 2,000 years has been discovered on the northwest coast of the Sea of Galilee, in Israel's Ginosar valley.
The ancient town may be Dalmanutha (also spelled Dalmanoutha), described in the Gospel of Mark as the place Jesus sailed to after miraculously feeding 4,000 people by multiplying a few fish and loaves of bread, said Ken Dark, of the University of Reading in the U.
[Read More]Falling Geckos Use Tails to Land on Their Feet
Posted on March 6, 2023
| 3 minutes
| 637 words
| Patria Henriques
Like cats, geckos always land on their feet.
If the lizards happen to fall from a wall or leaf they've been climbing, a quick snap of the tail ensures that they land feet-first, a new study finds.
Geckos are truly built for climbing: Their specialized feet have hairy toes that can attach to and peel away from a wall or other vertical surface in just a few thousandths of a second.
[Read More]Freaky Frog Photos: A Kaleidoscope of Colors (Gallery)
Posted on March 6, 2023
| 4 minutes
| 731 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Julie Larsen Maher is staff photographer for the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), the first woman to hold the position since the society's founding in 1895. In addition to field visits, Maher photographs the animals at WCS's five New York-based wildlife parks: the Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, New York Aquarium, Prospect Park Zoo and Queens Zoo. She contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.
Frogs are nature's jewels. Their unique colors and patterns are not only beautiful, but aid in their survival — as camouflage or as a warning to predators.
[Read More]