Widowhood May Raise Dementia Risk

 Posted on September 25, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  576 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Being widowed and never remarrying may raise the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study of genealogical data. The research, presented Saturday (March 19) at the annual meeting of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry, found that widowhood nearly doubled the risk of dementia in Utah citizens born between 1895 and 1930. The risk of Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, was 2. [Read More]

Wild Turkeys Are Back, A Century After Severe Decline

 Posted on September 25, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  661 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

In the early 1900s, wild turkeys seemed to be on the road toward extinction, as unregulated hunting and widespread logging had wiped them out over much of their range. In the last few decades, however, the birds have made an incredible recovery, reaching levels near those of their precolonial days. The birds are now found in virtually all parts of their former territory, and some new places where they hadn't been previously, said wildlife biologist Thomas Hughes of the National Wild Turkey Federation, an organization that has reintroduced the animals into the wild. [Read More]

'Green' Light Bulbs Pack Toxic Ingredient

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  6 minutes  |  1183 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Highly efficient fluorescent light bulbs are widely touted as environmentally friendly, but they have created a recycling headache for the EPA and local governments. More often than not, their toxic ingredients simply end up in landfills, where the chemicals can leach into soil and water and poison fish and other wildlife. The bulbs contain mercury and should not be tossed in the trash like regular light bulbs. “They’re very efficient, but once they’re used up they become a ticking toxic time bomb," [Read More]

A Living 'Balloon on a String' Discovered in the Deepest Part of the Indian Ocean

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  693 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

The depths of the Indian Ocean are home to some bizarre creatures — including one that looks like a balloon on a string. Explorers captured a video of this gelatinous creature in a recent dive to the Java Trench, the bottommost part of the Indian Ocean. This dive was one of many in the Five Deeps Expedition, during which the crew aimed to reach the deepest part of all five of the world's oceans. [Read More]

Brain-Hacking Tech Gets Real: 5 Companies Leading the Charge

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  5 minutes  |  883 words  |  Trudie Dory

There's been a lot of hype coming out of Silicon Valley in recent months about technology that can meld the human brain with machines. But how will this tech help society, and which companies are leading the charge? Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk made waves in March when he announced his latest venture, Neuralink, which will design so-called brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). Initially, the BCIs will be used for medical research, but the ultimate goal is to prevent humans from becoming obsolete, by enabling people to merge with artificial intelligence. [Read More]

Do Zoos Really Teach Visitors Anything? (Op-Ed)

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  6 minutes  |  1098 words  |  Patria Henriques

Marc Bekoff, emeritus professor at the University of Colorado, Boulder, is one of the world's pioneering cognitive ethologists, a Guggenheim Fellow, and co-founder with Jane Goodall of Ethologists for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Bekoff's latest book is Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed(opens in new tab) (New World Library, 2013). This Op-Ed is adapted from one that appeared in Bekoff's column Animal Emotions in Psychology Today. He contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. [Read More]

How Do Sinkholes Form?

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  285 words  |  Trudie Dory

In the aftermath of Tropical Storm Agatha, a 330-foot-deep sinkhole opened up in the middle of Guatemala City. Like all sinkholes, the one in Guatamala City formed when a swath of land collapsed, leaving behind a crater-like depression in the ground. The phenomenon is most common in Florida, Texas, Alabama, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee and Pennsylvania, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The ground beneath these states is rich in easily dissolved rocks such as limestone, carbonates and salt beds. [Read More]

Image Gallery: The Life of T. Rex

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  388 words  |  Trudie Dory

T. Rex: Thunder ThighsScientists have figured out with more accuracy how much the tyrannical lizard, Tyrannosaurus rex, really weighed, suggesting the largest and most complete skeleton, named SUE, weighed a whopping 9 tons. (SUE's skeleton resides at The Field Museum in Chicago.) Fierce SueA head-on confrontation with this T. rex named SUE would not be pretty. Scientists aren't sure whether the specimen came from a male or female, though they named it after Sue Hendrickson who discovered it. [Read More]

Images: Everest, 1924

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  459 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Ever GroupMembers of the 1924 Everest expedition at base camp, 16,500 feet (5,029 meters), Tibet. Back row, left to right: Andrew Irvine, George Mallory, Edward Norton, Noel Odell, John MacDonald. Front row: Edward Shebbeare, Geoffrey Bruce, Howard Somervell, Bentley Beetham. Mallory was a superb climber, one of the best in his day. There is still much speculation over why he chose Irvine to be his climbing companion for the summit attempt that killed them both. [Read More]

In Photos: Exploring the Mysterious Plain of Jars Site

 Posted on September 24, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  422 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

Longstanding mysteryThe mysterious Plain of Jars is an archaeological site in central Laos that has thousands of stone vessels scattered across the ground. Archaeologists have also found many of these jars in forested and mountainous regions of Laos. They have long tried to figure out why the stone jars were littered across this remote part of Laos. Archaeologists recently unearthed an ancient burial site and human remains at the Plain of Jars. [Read More]