ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• An elephant that speaks Korean
• This is your brain on politics: Neuroscience reveals brain differences between Republicans and Democrats
• Virtual reality puts human in rat world: 'Beaming' technology transforms human-animal interaction
• When people worry about math, the brain feels the pain
• Mice with 'humanized' livers improve early drug testing, scientists show
• 'Twitterzombie' helps researchers examine bite-sized pieces of Twitterverse
• Heady discovery for beer fans: The first gene for beer foam could improve froth
• Foggy perception slows us down

An elephant that speaks Korean Posted: 01 Nov 2012 09:15 AM PDT An Asian elephant named Koshik can imitate human speech, speaking words in Korean that can be readily understood by those who know the language. The elephant accomplishes this in a most unusual way: he vocalizes with his trunk in his mouth.

This is your brain on politics: Neuroscience reveals brain differences between Republicans and Democrats Posted: 01 Nov 2012 07:50 AM PDT New research provides fresh evidence that choosing a candidate may depend largely on our biological make-up. That's because the brains of self-identified Democrats and Republicans are hard-wired differently and may be naturally inclined to hold varying, if not opposing, perceptions and values. This study showed a strong link with broad social connectedness with Democrats, and a strong link with tight social connectedness with Republicans

Virtual reality puts human in rat world: 'Beaming' technology transforms human-animal interaction Posted: 31 Oct 2012 06:42 PM PDT Using cutting-edge virtual reality technology, researchers have "beamed" a person into a rat facility allowing the rat and human to interact with each other on the same scale.

When people worry about math, the brain feels the pain Posted: 31 Oct 2012 06:37 PM PDT Mathematics anxiety can prompt a response in the brain similar to when a person experiences physical pain. Using brain scans, scholars determined that the brain areas active when highly math-anxious people prepare to do math overlap with the same brain areas that register the threat of bodily harm—and in some cases, physical pain.

Mice with 'humanized' livers improve early drug testing, scientists show Posted: 31 Oct 2012 11:18 AM PDT Scientists have used bioengineered mice with livers composed largely of human cells to characterize a drug about to enter early-stage clinical development for combating hepatitis C.

'Twitterzombie' helps researchers examine bite-sized pieces of Twitterverse Posted: 31 Oct 2012 10:27 AM PDT Researchers have created software that helps them capture and analyze the steady flow of data generated on Twitter.

Heady discovery for beer fans: The first gene for beer foam could improve froth Posted: 31 Oct 2012 09:50 AM PDT The yeast used to make beer has yielded what may be the first gene for beer foam, scientists are reporting in a new study. The discovery opens the door to new possibilities for improving the frothy "head" so critical to the aroma and eye appeal of the world's favorite alcoholic beverage, they say.

Foggy perception slows us down Posted: 31 Oct 2012 05:15 AM PDT Fog is an atmospheric phenomenon that afflicts millions of drivers every day, impairing visibility and increasing the risk of an accident. The ways people respond to conditions of reduced visibility is a central topic in vision research. It has been shown that people tend to underestimate speeds when visibility is reduced equally at all distances, as for example, when driving with a uniformly fogged windshield. But what happens when the visibility decreases as you look further into the distance, as happens when driving in true fog?

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