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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: human

human stories: 12 news summaries

 Women Getting 
 Shorter, Heavier 

They'll lose 1 inch and gain 2 pounds by 2409

Oct 21, 09 2:18 PM CDT
(Newser) - Humans are still changing, and the female winners of the evolutionary crapshoot will be shorter and heavier down the line. A new study that tracked the motherly productivity of the slim-and-tall set alongside their squatter peers concludes that a lower center of gravity will win out in the end, and... More »

MORE ABOUT:
evolution • women • menopause • childbirth • human • scientific study • medical study • women's issues • inherited traits

GLOSSIES


 Why Exercise 
 May Not Erase 
 That Gut 

Rigorous exercise can make you eat more, and diet affects weight more than exercise

Aug 6, 09 2:59 PM CDT
(Newser) - Despite forcing himself to do a rigorous amount of aerobic exercise, John Cloud hasn't budged from 163 pounds—with gut fat. Shouldn’t all that exercise change something? Not necessarily, he writes for Time. Science has shown that exercise has much less effect than diet on overall weight. The problem,... More »

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weight loss • exercise • human • eating • aerobics

INTERVIEW

Cooking: What Separates Men From Apes (and Women)

And anthropologically speaking, women are always the cooks

Jul 29, 09 1:14 PM CDT
(Newser) - Cooking—not just eating—meat is what prompted human evolution, Richard Wrangham argues in his book Catching Fire: How Cooking Made Us Human, and he discusses his beliefs—including an opposition to the trend of raw diets—with Salon. “Raw foodists argue quite strongly that it is our... More »

MORE ABOUT:
evolution • cooking • human evolution • human • anthropology • book • raw food • Richard Wrangham

 Apes, Humans Share a Laugh 

Commonalities
show laughter
is pre-human

Jun 4, 09 2:04 PM CDT
(Newser) - After tickling two dozen apes and several children, scientists have concluded that laughter developed long before humans did. In fact, a common ancestor of both apes and humans probably emitted the first chuckle at least 10 million years ago. The study measuring 800 vocalizations found that all subjects shared the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
apes • human evolution • human • laughter • scientific study

They Don't
Call Him Fido
for Nothing

Dogs are ethical, full
of natural goodness, scientist says

May 16, 09 5:58 PM CDT
(Newser) - Science is finally catching up to what dog owners have known all along: Canines are ethical. After thousands of hours studying dogs—once dismissed as "furry automatons," an author said—animal behaviorist Marc Bekoff concluded that they possess the capacity for empathy and compassion, the hallmarks of morality.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
animal behavior • human • canine behavior • empathy • Harvard • emotion • dog • human nature • canines • morality

 Africans Have World's 
 Greatest Genetic Diversity 

Landmark study tracks modern humanity's origins to area in South Africa

May 1, 09 6:19 AM CDT
(Newser) - The people of Africa have by far the world's most diverse genes, says a new study that sheds light on humanity's origins. Researchers—who traveled deep into remote areas of Africa to study more than a hundred populations—have pinpointed the origin of modern humans to an area near the... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Africa • African Americans • genetics • human evolution • human • genetic research

No Wonder They're Crabby: Crabs Feel Pain

Laws should consider the suffering of crustaceans, scientist says

Mar 27, 09 12:20 PM CDT
(Newser) - Before you drop another crab into a boiling pot of water, take note: Crabs feel pain. Scientists don’t fully understand pain in humans, but do now know that crustaceans respond to discomfort and keep a memory of it, LiveScience reports. Hermit crabs that were shocked fled their shells, “... More »

MORE ABOUT:
research • human • crab • pain • lobster

 Our Not-So-Distant 
 Relatives: Kangaroos 

Scientists decode marsupial's genome, find much in common with humans

Nov 18, 08 4:26 PM CST
(Newser) - The kangaroo genome has much in common with that of humans, the Telegraph reports. Scientists in Australia, under the auspices of the Centre of Excellence for Kangaroo Genomics, have completed mapping the marsupial’s genetic code. “There are a few differences, we have a few more of this,... More »

MORE ABOUT:
evolution • Australia • genome • human • scientific research • kangaroo

 Stress Pushes 
 Animals to Binge, Too 

House pets feel human worries; lab animals turn to high-fat treats

Oct 17, 08 6:35 PM CDT
(Newser) - Animals get stressed out just like humans, and they even cope anthropomorphically, binging on sweet, fatty foods, LiveScience reports. What’s more, animals can read our misgivings and take on that stress themselves. “The more intelligent an animal is, the more psychological stress it can undergo,” one veterinarian... More »

MORE ABOUT:
rats • stress • monkey • human • sympathy • scientific study • scientific research • animal • brain chemistry

Americans Seek Immune Genes in Mates: Study

Nigerians don't marry for DNA diversity, but may not need to

Sep 14, 08 7:45 PM CDT
(Newser) - Americans pick mates with different immune genes while Africans prefer the genes they already have, New Scientist reports. A study of 60 couples from Utah and Nigeria showed that the Americans hitched up with partners whose genes recognized pathogens that theirs couldn't. The African marriages, however, appeared to be... More »

MORE ABOUT:
evolution • Nigeria • Utah • genes • human • scientific study • mating • Yoruba

Not Sweet, nor Salty: 'Umami'

Chefs and Campbell's alike seek coveted, satisfying 'fifth taste'

Dec 9, 07 4:26 PM CST
(Newser) - Humans crave not only salt and sugar, but also a savory, satisfying flavor known as “umami,” the Japanese term for “deliciousness,” the Wall Street Journal reports. Umami (“oo-MA-mee”) describes the taste of stick-to-your-ribs dishes such as chicken soup or Caesar salad with Parmesan cheese... More »

MORE ABOUT:
food • senses • human • MSG • Frito Lay • salt • snack foods • umami • Campbell's Soup

No Tired Explanation: Yawning May Cool Brain

Evolutionary adaptation keeps the nervous system's motherboard cool

Jul 30, 07 5:04 PM CDT
(Newser) - Yawning may be less a response to boredom than a natural mechanism for cooling off overheated brains, new research says. The human brain operates optimally when cool, much like a computer, and conditions like fatigue actually cause the organ to heat up, ABC News reports. A quick gulp of air... More »

MORE ABOUT:
brain • research • yawning • body • human • fatigue

12 Stories


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