The Origins of Unlucky Friday the 13th
Posted on November 3, 2022
| 4 minutes
| 649 words
| Trudie Dory
Today, the phrase "Friday the 13th" rolls off the tongue, instinctively linked to bad luck, strange happenings and a hockey-masked murderer in a slasher flick of the same name. But before Jason Voorhees made his mark in 12 films about the infamous day, how did the superstition come to exist?
No expert can verify the origins of Friday the 13th. But the first written references to its wickedness appear around the mid-19th century when William Fowler, a U.
[Read More]This Antarctic Meteorite Holds a Tiny Speck of Stardust That's Older Than the Solar System
Posted on November 3, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 558 words
| Fernande Dalal
A tiny speck of stardust, hidden within a meteorite from Antarctica, is likely older than our sun — and was catapulted into our celestial neighborhood by an ancient star explosion that predates the formation of our solar system.
This ancient grain is only 1/25,000 of an inch, sports a "croissant-like shape," and could tell us a thing or two about the origins of our solar system, researchers said April 29 in the journal Nature Astronomy(opens in new tab).
[Read More]Why Scientists Are Rearing Bird-Killing Parasites on Chicken Blood
Posted on November 3, 2022
| 2 minutes
| 360 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Maggots raised on chicken blood may help researchers figure out how to save endangered finches.
It's not Halloween yet, but a spooky new study is the first to report the successful rearing of the maggots of the fly Philornis downsi without a living avian host. That's good news, because P. downsi feeds on nestlings on the Galapagos Islands and is endangering several rare species. Rearing the flies in the lab is the first step in pest control.
[Read More]Will we need more COVID-19 boosters to end the pandemic?
Posted on November 3, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 956 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Omicron's explosive surge in the U.S. is a painful reminder that the pandemic is far from over.
It also raises some questions. Will the pandemic ever end? And will we need more boosters to enter the "endemic" phase of transmission, in which COVID-19 case counts don't break records and hospitals aren't strained?
"I think many of us working in infectious disease realized that after the first couple of surges, it wouldn't just go away completely, because that's not what viruses like this do,"
[Read More]'Ghost forests' are invading the North Carolina coast
Posted on November 2, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 435 words
| Trudie Dory
Climate change has transformed enormous swaths of protected woodlands in North Carolina into lifeless "ghost forests," a new study finds.
These ghost forests — marked by thousands of leafless, limbless trunks, stumps and toppled trees where healthy forests once stood — have taken over about 11% of the tree cover in North Carolina's Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in the past three decades, the researchers found, resulting in tens of thousands of acres of dead greenery.
[Read More]13 Tips for Staying Hydrated in the Summer Heat (Op-Ed)
Posted on November 2, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 1023 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Katherine Tallmadge, M.A., R.D., is a registered dietitian; author of "Diet Simple: 195 Mental Tricks, Substitutions, Habits & Inspirations(opens in new tab)" (LifeLine Press, 2011); and a frequent national commentator on nutrition topics. Tallmadge contributed this article to LiveScience's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.
I'll never forget volunteering at the Marine Corps Marathon's Finish Line Emergency Tent. The experience was horrifying and exhilarating at the same time.
I spoke at the marathon's scientific conference the day before, and the other speakers — dedicated medical specialists who came from around the world — were amazing.
[Read More]Aging Lowers Your Immunity
Posted on November 2, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 557 words
| Trudie Dory
Question: I seem to be getting sick a lot lately and I'm worried that my immune system isn't working right. Could that be a reason?
Answer: A diminished immune system could be the cause of your problems. Go to your doctor for a check-up and diagnosis.
The immune system is a network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to defend the body against attacks by organisms such as bacteria, parasites, and fungi that can cause infections.
[Read More]Flirting Style Predicts Relationship Success, Study Suggests
Posted on November 2, 2022
| 4 minutes
| 839 words
| Patria Henriques
Whether your flirting style is playful or more traditional says a lot about your personality and could even help snag a date or get through a tough patch in a relationship, suggests a new study.
The research revealed five flirting styles people use when communicating with romantic others – playful, traditional, physical, sincere and polite. Each approach leads to different experiences in the flirting world, with "polite" women saying they don't find getting hit on particularly flattering and that they have trouble getting guys to notice them.
[Read More]Fungal Infection Causes Swirling, 'Maze-Like' Rash
Posted on November 2, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 576 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
Fungal infections can show up in some pretty unusual ways, and a neat, "maze-like" pattern of concentric rings on the skin is one of them.
Such was the case for a young woman in Fiji, whose rash, typified by a distinctive, swirling pattern, was caused by the fungus Trichophyton concentricum, according to a recent report of her case.
The 18-year-old woman told doctors that she had had the itchy rash for three years, according to the brief report, which was published Dec.
[Read More]Here's what you need to know about COVID-19 breakthrough infections
Posted on November 2, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 1001 words
| Arica Deslauriers
The COVID-19 vaccines that are used in the U.S. are highly effective. But sometimes, the coronavirus can still infect people who are vaccinated, causing so-called breakthrough infections. So what are breakthrough infections, what are the symptoms and how common are they?
If a person tests positive for COVID-19 at least two weeks after receiving all recommended doses of vaccines authorized by the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considers them to have a breakthrough infection.
[Read More]