Author: Ranveer Kumar

AD-stricken brains show a genetic deficit in ability to use glucose For years, research to pin down the underlying cause of Alzheimer’s Disease has been focused on plaque found to be building up in the brain in AD patients. But treatments targeted at breaking down that buildup have been ineffective in restoring cognitive function, suggesting that the buildup may be a side effect of AD and not the cause itself. A new study from a team of BYU researchers finds novel cellular-level support for an alternate theory that is growing in strength: Alzheimer’s could actually be a result of metabolic…

New research from McMaster University suggests the pandemic has created a paradox where mental health has become both a motivator for and a barrier to physical activity. People want to be active to improve their mental health but find it difficult to exercise due to stress and anxiety, say the researchers who surveyed more than 1,600 subjects in an effort to understand how and why mental health, physical activity and sedentary behaviour have changed throughout the course of the pandemic. The results are outlined in the journal PLOS ONE. “Maintaining a regular exercise program is difficult at the best of times…

French lawmakers have moved to ban short-haul internal flights where train alternatives exist, in a bid to reduce carbon emissions. Over the weekend, lawmakers voted in favour of a bill to end routes where the same journey could be made by train in under two-and-a-half hours. Connecting flights will not be affected, however. The planned measures will face a further vote in the Senate before becoming law. Airlines around the world have been severely hit by the coronavirus pandemic, with website Flightradar24 reporting that the number of flights last year were down almost 42% from 2019. The measures could affect…

The world’s wealthy must radically change their lifestyles to tackle climate change, a report says. It says the world’s wealthiest 1% produce double the combined carbon emissions of the poorest 50%, according to the UN. The wealthiest 5% alone – the so-called “polluter elite” – contributed 37% of emissions growth between 1990 and 2015. The authors want to deter SUV drivers and frequent fliers – and persuade the wealthy to insulate their homes well. The report urges the UK government to reverse its decision to scrap air passenger duty on UK return flights. And it wants ministers to re-instate the Green Homes Grant scheme…

You’ve probably heard that fish have a three-second memory, or that they’re incapable of feeling pain. Neither of these statements is true, but it’s telling that these misconceptions don’t crop up for other vertebrates. Perhaps it’s because fish appear so different from us. They don’t seem to have any capacity for facial expression, or vocal communication—and we don’t even breathe the same air. Collectively, these differences put fish so far away from humans that we struggle to relate to them. But when scientists have conducted experiments to discover more about fish—including their neurobiology, their social lives and mental faculties—they’ve found time and time again…

Haida ermines are different in both DNA and appearance, says University of Kansas scientist After more than 300,000 years of being stuck on an archipelago off B.C’s West Coast, a weasel-like creature has a new designation, according to a scientist from the University of Kansas. The Haida ermine is now one of three distinct ermines that can be found in only two places in the world. The mammal was first thought to be unique in 2013 but after examining its DNA and skull, scientists discovered that the animal is so vastly different from ermines found in other parts of the world, it is now…

A glacier is surging. Video here Muldrow Glacier, a mountain in Denali, south central Alaska, is moving really quickly in what is called a glacial surge event. The surging glacier is moving at a rate between 50 and 100 times faster than normal, according to Denali National Park, Gizmodo reported. “They are these things that have fascinated glaciologists for decades,” Jonny Kingslake, an assistant professor of environmental science at Columbia University, said. Glaciers normally move at a glacial rate of millimeters per day, but sometimes some of them experience rare surges, likely tied to the seasons. The glacier surge was first discovered…

AN INACCESSIBLE CAVE PRESERVED CLUES TO JAMAICA’S CLIMATE PAST IN THE SEDIMENTARY LAYERS OF BAT GUANO WASHINGTON—Deep in a Jamaican cave is a treasure trove of bat poop, deposited in sequential layers by generations of bats over 4,300 years. Analogous to records of the past found in layers of lake mud and Antarctic ice, the guano pile is roughly the height of a tall man (2 meters), largely undisturbed, and holds information about changes in climate and how the bats’ food sources shifted over the millennia, according to a new study. “We study natural archives and reconstruct natural histories, mostly…

Even before Covid-19, ‘excess deaths’ in the US were higher than in peer European countries How many Americans would die each year, on average, if the country had European mortality rates? Far fewer, suggests a new analysis, which compared mortality trends before the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite spending far more than other wealthy countries on healthcare, the United States has relatively higher mortality rates and lower life expectancy – attributed to a plethora of factors including obesity, opioid overdoses, gun violence, suicides, smoking, road accidents and infant deaths. Given the US does not have a universal healthcare system like most high-income European countries,…

Legalizing medical marijuana has either decreased or had no effect on teenage cannabis use, and initial evidence suggests that recreational legalization has similar effects, according to a new comprehensive review of studies on the topic. The working paper, published by the National Bureau of Economic Research in April, also explores literature around the effects of medical and recreational marijuana legalization on other public health outcomes including tobacco smoking, use of opioids and other prescription drugs, traffic fatalities and overall crime. It considers results from more than 140 studies. “The section of the paper that I think is most interesting to…