The same brain chemicals that are responsible for our enjoyment of recreational drugs, sex, and food are also involved in the experience of getting pleasure from listening to music. In order to find out more about the brain’s pleasure circuits’ involvement in music perception, researchers blocked the release of natural opioids in the participants’ brains […]
The switch from smoking to e-cigarettes better for health
E-cigarettes might make for a healthier alternative to smoking after all, according to the results of a first-of-its-kind long-term study. Researchers compared the intake of potentially harmful chemicals in e-cigarette users to that of people using nicotine patches and combustible (regular) cigarettes. Their findings suggest that the switch to e-cigarettes significantly reduced the subjects’ carcinogenic […]
Shift work and physically demanding labour linked to lower fertility in women
Working outside the regular office hours, working irregular shifts and doing heavy lifting at work could lower a woman’s ability to conceive. These are the findings of the first study to ever examine the impact of workplace conditions on a woman’s biological capacity to have a baby. Researchers monitored a number of indicators in 473 […]
SMCC Webinar | Building Resilience to Climate Change: Evidence Based Strategies for Healthier Cities
Climate change is affecting Canada’s weather, changing not only the temperature, but also the quality of the air we breathe. Evidence suggests these changes may pose a serious threat to public health, especially for certain vulnerable populations in urban areas. With over 80% of Canadians living in urban settings, there is an urgent need to […]
For better sleep, spend more time in the sun – even in the winter
Shorter days and cooler temperatures prevent us from spending as much time outdoors in the winter than we do in the summer. But new research suggests that better sleep in the winter requires spending more time outside. Recent data suggest that, thanks to our modern lifestyles, our light exposure in the winter is reduced by […]
Careful, that cool soccer ball trick can cause a concussion
Concussions are a common injury among competitive team sport players, but previous studies have suggested the biggest risk comes from direct head impact with another player or a goal post. A new survey of amateur soccer players shows that heading—deflecting the ball with one’s head—can increase the risk of concussion symptoms. 45% of respondents have […]
A small percentage of genes determine much of our height 
How tall we are is largely determined by our genetic makeup, and much of that is inherited. But a recent study reveals that there are 80 genetic variants (alleles) that occur at lower frequency, but have a significant effect on the individual’s height – up to 2 centimetres of height per allele, which is ten […]
Coastal wetlands help soak up harmful greenhouse gases
A new study suggests that coastal wetland ecosystems such as mangrove forests, tidal marshes and seagrass meadows are great at mitigating negative effects of greenhouse gases. To study how effectively each marine ecosystem utilizes greenhouse gases, researchers evaluated how CO2 is stored within the system and for how long. Their estimations suggest that mangrove […]
Ocean acidification effects differ depending on the species’ sex
Ocean acidification (OA) occurs with the increase of human-made carbon dioxide in the waters. The impacts of acidification on marine ecosystems have been studied extensively over the past decade, but little research has been done to look at intraspecific differences in reaction to increased CO2 levels. The present study reviews all data collected about the […]
Oldest protein found in a 195-million-year-old dinosaur bone
A new discovery beat the record for the oldest preserved protein by over 100 million years. Researchers used a new technique to examine a 195 million-year-old bone of a Lufengosaurus dinosaur without risking contamination. Their analysis showed traces of preserved collagen in parts of the bone where blood would pass through. Typically, soft tissue in […]
Brain-computer interface allows locked-in patients to communicate
Imagine being completely paralyzed, but still have the capacity to think and feel without the ability to communicate your thoughts to others. This is what patients experience in what’s called the complete locked-in state, a state in which actions are limited to, at most, eye movements or blinks. It’s these movements that researchers have used to […]
Newly found remnants of an ancient continent of Mauritia
Three billion-year-old minerals found under Mauritius suggest that the island was once part of a lost continent. Zircon crystals ranging from two-and-a-half to three billion years of age were found in lava brought up to the surface of Mauritius by volcanic eruptions. These minerals are part of a growing body of evidence that suggests that […]
Why Salmonella wants its host to stay hungry
The loss of appetite is a common symptom of a bacterial infection, where the spread of the pathogen suppresses the host’s desire to eat, along with other detrimental effects to the host’s health. But a recent study found that a type of Salmonella pathogen, Salmonella Typhimurium, has evolved to become less dangerous to its host […]
Distant relative of the iguana found in Montana
The geographical origin of Pleurodonta, one of the two subdivisions of the Iguania suborder, has been unclear for many years. The oldest representative of the prehistoric iguanas was thought to come from Brazil; but a recent analysis removed it from the iguana’s evolutionary tree altogether. Two skeletons of giant herbivorous lizards found in Montana, US, […]
Here’s why you can’t break an egg by squeezing it
Uncooked chicken eggs break easily if dropped or knocked against a hard surface; but if you try to break one by squeezing it between your palms, you’ll soon find yourself out of luck. Researchers were curious to find out what it is about the avian egg’s shape and the structure of the shell that allows […]
Baby vital signs monitors show little benefit for parents and infants
In the era of the Quantified Self, it comes as no surprise that, along with step-counters and heart-rate monitors for adults, electronic sensors for infants are marketed as a useful child care aid to parents. But a recent analysis of several types of consumer-use baby monitors concluded these electronics show little benefit and may even […]
