Raccoons Ace Cognition Test (But Sometimes They Cheat)

 Posted on November 16, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  576 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

In the classic Aesop tale "The Crow and the Pitcher," a thirsty corvid who can't quite reach the water at the bottom of a jug cleverly drops pebble after pebble into the vessel until the water rises enough for the bird to take a drink. Researchers have used this "Aesop's fable" scenario in experiments that test cognition in birds and primates. The test helps researchers see if the animals could learn to recognize cause and effect and use that knowledge to solve a problem, as Aesop's crow did. [Read More]

Spiky Ankylosaurus Looks Like Monster from 'Ghostbusters'

 Posted on November 16, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  493 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

What's as long as a pickup truck, as heavy as a white rhinoceros and as weird-looking as Zuul, the monster from the 1984 "Ghostbusters" movie? A newfound species of ankylosaurus. In a new study, researchers describe the 75-million-year-old dinosaur that lived during the Cretaceous  and sported bony armor and spikes. Due to its uncanny resemblance to Zuul, paleontologists are calling it Zuul crurivastator (CRUR-uh-vass-TATE-or). The genus name is a nod to Zuul, the fictional Gatekeeper of Gozer in " [Read More]

Staggering Stats: Cats Kill Billions of Animals a Year

 Posted on November 16, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  537 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Cats kill billions of birds every year and even more tiny rodents and other mammals in the United States, a new study finds. According to the research, published today (Jan. 29) in the journal Nature Communications, cats kill between 1.4 billion and 3.7 billion birds and between 6.9 billion and 20.7 billion small mammals, such as meadow voles and chipmunks. Though it's hard to know exactly how many birds live in the United States, the staggering number of bird deaths may account for as much as 15 percent of the total bird population, said study co-author Pete Marra, an animal ecologist with the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. [Read More]

The Flu (Influenza): Causes, Symptoms & Treatment

 Posted on November 16, 2022  |  7 minutes  |  1395 words  |  Fernande Dalal

The flu (short for influenza) is a respiratory virus that affects the throat, nose, bronchi and, sometimes, the lungs. There are different types of influenza viruses and they evolve and change from year to year. For most people, the flu is an inconvenience that subsides in a few days. For others, influenza can lead to health complications, visits to the hospital and even death. Globally, 5 to 10 percent of adults and 20 to 30 percent of children get the flu each year and 3 to 5 million of these cases are severe, leading to about 250,000 to 500,000 deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). [Read More]

What Do Trump's Cognitive Test Results Show?

 Posted on November 16, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  453 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

President Donald Trump aced a cognitive test designed to detect early signs of dementia, White House physician and Navy Rear Adm. Dr. Ronny Jackson told reporters yesterday (Jan. 16). Trump scored a perfect 30 out of 30 points on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA, pronounced "mocha"), which he took in an apparent effort to put to rest questions about his mental abilities, The New York Times reported. The test itself is fairly straightforward and widely available in PDF form online. [Read More]

What is a 100-Year Storm?

 Posted on November 16, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  763 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

The torrential rains that have inundated Atlanta, Ga., and its surrounding areas over the past few days have been called a 100-year storm event by state weather experts. Does that mean such a storm comes only once a century? Actually, no — the story is a little more complicated than that. Meteorologists, climatologists and hydrologists calculate 100-year events as a statistical tool to determine the likelihood of intense storms or floods. [Read More]

Why Hard Drinkers Have Problems with Bones

 Posted on November 16, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  587 words  |  Trudie Dory

BALTIMORE — It's a long-known association: hard drinking leads to weak bones. Doctors know that alcohol abusers are more likely than abstainers to suffer from frequent bone fractures, and slow bone healing. However, precisely why this is the case has been a mystery. Doctors have attributed the association to multiple reasons, such as the malnutrition commonly seen among alcoholics, as well as myriad interactions between alcohol and hormones. Now a team of researchers from Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill. [Read More]

A Dose of 'Good' Bacteria Could Help Your Sinus Problems

 Posted on November 15, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  462 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Some chronic sinus problems may be caused by a depletion of "good" bacteria and the presence of "bad" bacteria in the sinuses, a new study says. The findings suggest adding back some of these good bacteria to the sinuses may help treat the condition, analogous to the way probiotics may treat certain intestinal problems. In the study, the researchers analyzed the populations of bacteria present in the sinuses of 10 people with chronic sinus problems, known as chronic rhinosinusitis, and 10 healthy people. [Read More]

CVS-Brand Nasal Spray Recalled for Potential Bacterial Contamination

 Posted on November 15, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  337 words  |  Fernande Dalal

A CVS-brand nasal spray is being voluntarily recalled due to potential bacterial contamination, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced today (Aug. 8). The recall applies to Lot# 173089J of CVS Health 12 Hour Sinus Relief Nasal Mist, a nasal decongestant, according to the FDA statement. The nasal spray is manufactured by a Florida company called Product Quest Manufacturing, which initiated the voluntary recall after discovering that the product was contaminated with a bacterium called Pseudomonas aeruginosa. [Read More]

Dark Chocolate Lowers Heart Attack, Stroke Risk

 Posted on November 15, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  298 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Eating dark chocolate every day may lower the risk of having a heart attack or stroke for some people at higher risk of these conditions, a new study from Australia found. Researchers gathered data on 2,013 people who had metabolic syndrome — which is a cluster of medical issues that includes high blood pressure, a large waist and low levels of "good" cholesterol — and used mathematical equations to predict how eating dark chocolate daily could affect the number of strokes and heart attacks the group would be expected to have. [Read More]