Ringing Ears and Chronic Pain Share Unexpected Link

 Posted on January 8, 2023  |  4 minutes  |  754 words  |  Fernande Dalal

A condition that causes a person's ears to ring nonstop and a condition characterized by pain that won't go away may seem worlds apart on the surface, but they may not be so different after all, the authors of a new review said. In the review, the authors proposed that tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, and chronic pain are the result of similar changes in two regions of the brain. [Read More]

Spouses Who Argue Face a Lifetime of Fights

 Posted on January 8, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  517 words  |  Patria Henriques

If you and your spouse argue a lot now, don't expect things to change as you grow old together. A new study finds that conflict levels remain relatively unchanged throughout a marriage. Thankfully, the same goes for happy, conflict-free couples, the researchers said, adding that spouses who shared decision-making responsibilities were happier and less likely to divorce. The study followed nearly 1,000 couples for 20 years. In 1980, researchers questioned 2,033 married people ages 55 years or younger about the quality of their marriage and their relationship with their spouse. [Read More]

Why Total Solar Eclipses Are Total Coincidences

 Posted on January 8, 2023  |  6 minutes  |  1158 words  |  Patria Henriques

If the sun were just a little bit bigger or the moon a bit farther away, total solar eclipses may never occur. But they do, and it turns out this celestial phenomenon that has changed human history, and our perspective of the universe, may be a sheer coincidence. Total solar eclipses, when the moon nearly perfectly covers the sun, have fascinated humans since at least the time of the earliest civilizations. [Read More]

'Black fungus' treatment runs short in India as new cases of infection emerge

 Posted on January 7, 2023  |  4 minutes  |  697 words  |  Patria Henriques

New cases of mucormycosis, a potentially fatal fungal infection, continue to crop up among COVID-19 patients in India, but many regions are facing shortages of the drug used to treat the disease. Mucormycosis, also called "black fungus," typically strikes people with weakened immune systems, such as those with diabetes and those taking immunosuppressive drugs — including the steroids sometimes used to treat COVID-19, Live Science previously reported. Experts suspect that the rise in cases may be to these steroids, administered both in hospitals and sometimes at home, as hospitals have recently been overrun. [Read More]

'Iceman' Mummy Holds World's Oldest Blood Cells

 Posted on January 7, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  622 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

The oldest red blood cells ever identified have been found in the body of Ötzi the Iceman, a 5,300-year-old mummy found in the Alps in 1991. The bloody find is a first for Ötzi's mummy, which has been under scientific scrutiny since a pair of hikers stumbled over the body frozen in ice on the Austrian-Italian border. And the new research, published today (May 1) in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, helps confirm the story of Ötzi's death. [Read More]

19 New Swift & Clever Praying Mantises Discovered

 Posted on January 7, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  399 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Swift, deadly hunters lurk in the trees, many camouflaged to look like lichen or bark. They don't sit and wait for prey; they actively pursue it. And when danger threatens, some even leap to the forest floor, fluttering to the ground like so many dead leaves. That's the life of 19 new praying mantis species discovered in Central and South America. The findings, announced today (March 18) in the journal ZooKeys, suggest the world of praying mantis diversity is largely mysterious. [Read More]

Ancient 'ring of fire' galaxy found glaring at Earth across space and time

 Posted on January 7, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  504 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Eleven billion years ago, a hot, active, galaxy that looked like an eye glared across space. Now, using data from the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii and the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have captured a snapshot of its unblinking gaze. This galaxy, R5519, is made up of a flat ring of stars, with a hole in the middle where astronomers believe another blob of stars punched through. Galaxies like this, known as " [Read More]

Did Amelia Earhart Survive Crash? New Photo May Offer Tantalizing Clue

 Posted on January 7, 2023  |  5 minutes  |  959 words  |  Patria Henriques

Editor's note: New information that has come to light casts even more doubt on the validity of the "Amelia Earhart image." Read Live Science's coverage here.  A newly found black-and-white photo taken on the Marshall Islands may help solve the mystery of Amelia Earhart's disappearance, but not everyone is convinced that the famous aviator is in the photo. The 80-year-old photo shows what may be Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, surrounded by a group of people on a dock on Jaluit Atoll in the Marshall Islands in 1937, according to History channel researchers, NBC reported today (July 6). [Read More]

Energy-Efficient Light Bulbs Might Cause Skin Damage, Study Suggests

 Posted on January 7, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  268 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs, or CFLs, are a popular choice for homeowners and businesses looking for ways to reduce their electricity bills. But researchers at Stony Brook University in New York have discovered CFLs have a darker side, too: The lamps emit surprisingly high levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which can damage skin cells and, at high exposure levels, cause cancer, according to CBS Miami. To test the safety of the light bulbs, researchers exposed healthy human skin cells to light from the CFLs, and compared that to the effect that older-style incandescent light bulbs had on the same skin cells. [Read More]

Fish Oil Supplements: A Look at the Possible Benefits

 Posted on January 7, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  630 words  |  Trudie Dory

"The Healthy Geezer" answers questions about health and aging in his weekly column. Question: I keep hearing about how good fish oil is for you. Could you separate fact from fiction on this? Answer: Fish oil is touted so often that it's beginning to sound like a cure-all. It isn't. And you have to be careful taking it. High doses of fish oil can be dangerous. Always check with your doctor before changing your intake of foods or supplements. [Read More]