Male fertility rates have been plummeting over the past half-century. An analysis from 1992 noted a steady decrease in sperm counts and quality since the 1940s. A more recent study found that male infertility rates increased nearly 80% from 1990 to 2019. The reasons driving this trend remain a mystery, but frequently cited culprits include … Read more
The world is awash with the color purple — lavender flowers, amethyst gemstones, plums, eggplants and purple emperor butterflies. But if you look closely at the visible-light portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, you’ll notice that purple (which is different from bluish hues of violet and indigo) is absent. That’s because purple may be made up … Read more
Imagination relies on an ability to differentiate between what’s real and what’s not — and now, scientists have uncovered potential brain mechanisms that make this distinction possible. These, they hypothesize, may be significant in conditions like schizophrenia, which can affect people’s perception of reality. A paper published June 5 in the journal Neuron explored these … Read more
Disease name: Werner syndrome, sometimes called “adult progeria” Affected populations: Werner syndrome is estimated to affect 1 in 100,000 live births worldwide, though its prevalence varies among countries. In Japan, the syndrome affects an estimated 1 in 40,000 to 1 in 20,000 people, whereas the prevalence in the United States is around 1 in 200,000. … Read more
Some lucky people have rare genetic mutations that enable them to feel well-rested after just four hours of sleep, while the rest of us need around eight hours to function. Now, researchers have identified one of these mutations, named SIK3-N783Y, in a human super-sleeper. The team then studied the mutation in genetically modified mice and … Read more
Digestive gas gets the best of everyone sooner or later, often in the form of a burp. Burping is how the body clears excess gas from the upper digestive tract, which would otherwise result in extremely uncomfortable pressure in your stomach and esophagus. Or at least that’s how it works on Earth. In space, everything … Read more
Seeing or hearing someone yawn can make you yawn. This phenomenon is not limited to humans; some animals experience contagious yawning, too. But why is yawning contagious? Brain cells called mirror neurons may play a role in contagious yawning, Dr. Charles Sweet, a board-certified psychiatrist and medical adviser at Linear Health, told Live Science in … Read more
NASA’s Curiosity rover has found some of the best evidence yet that ancient life may have existed on Mars — and an answer for what could have wiped it out. When drilling into rocks on Mount Sharp, the central peak of the Red Planet’s Gale Crater, the rover found evidence of siderite, an iron carbonate … Read more
Kangaroos are pretty peculiar on the outside: They’re the world’s largest marsupials, they hop to get around, and they use their tails as a fifth limb. But they’re also pretty unusual on the inside: Female kangaroos have two vaginas — or three, if they’ve given birth. Why could that be? The most likely explanation is … Read more
A brain implant that uses artificial intelligence (AI) can almost instantaneously decode a person’s thoughts and stream them through a speaker, new research shows. This is the first time researchers have achieved near-synchronous brain-to-voice streaming. The experimental mind-reading technology is designed to give a synthetic voice to people with severe paralysis who cannot speak. It … Read more
