ScienceDaily: Top Science News

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• High heart rate at rest signals higher risk of death even in fit healthy people
• Bad decisions arise from faulty information, not faulty brain circuits
• Concert cacophony: Short-term hearing loss can be protective, not damaging, researchers find
• Scientists learn what makes nerve cells so strong
• Brain development is guided by junk DNA that isn't really junk
• Fish prone to melanoma get DNA decoded
• Medical researchers implant telescope for macular degeneration
• No evidence drugs, vitamins, supplements help prevent cognitive decline in healthy older adults
• Photons run out of loopholes: Quantum world really is in conflict with our everyday experience
• Skin cells turned directly into the cells that insulate neurons
• Musicians who learn a new melody demonstrate enhanced skill after a night's sleep
• Following a Western style diet may lead to greater risk of premature death
• Ocean's future not so bleak? Resilience found in shelled plants exposed to ocean acidification

High heart rate at rest signals higher risk of death even in fit healthy people Posted: 15 Apr 2013 05:49 PM PDT A high heart rate (pulse) at rest is linked to a higher risk of death even in physically fit, healthy people, suggests new research.

Bad decisions arise from faulty information, not faulty brain circuits Posted: 15 Apr 2013 02:24 PM PDT Researchers have found that it might be the information rather than the brain's decision-making process that is to blame. The researchers report that erroneous decisions tend to arise from errors, or "noise," in the information coming into the brain rather than errors in how the brain accumulates information.

Concert cacophony: Short-term hearing loss can be protective, not damaging, researchers find Posted: 15 Apr 2013 02:23 PM PDT Contrary to conventional wisdom, short-term hearing loss after sustained exposure to loud noise does not reflect damage to our hearing: Instead, it is the body's way to cope. The landmark finding could lead to improved protection against noise-induced hearing loss in future.

Scientists learn what makes nerve cells so strong Posted: 15 Apr 2013 02:20 PM PDT How do nerve cells -- which can each be up to three feet long in humans -- keep from rupturing or falling apart? Axons, the long, cable-like projections on neurons, are made stronger by a unique modification of the common molecular building block of the cell skeleton.

Brain development is guided by junk DNA that isn't really junk Posted: 15 Apr 2013 02:20 PM PDT Specific DNA once dismissed as junk plays an important role in brain development and might be involved in several devastating neurological diseases, scientists have found.

Fish prone to melanoma get DNA decoded Posted: 15 Apr 2013 12:14 PM PDT Scientists have decoded the genome of the platyfish, a cousin of the guppy and a popular choice for home aquariums. Among scientists, the fish are meticulously studied for their tendency to develop melanoma and for other attributes more common to mammals, like courting prospective mates and giving birth to live young.

Medical researchers implant telescope for macular degeneration Posted: 15 Apr 2013 12:14 PM PDT Physicians have successfully implanted a telescope in a patient's eye to treat macular degeneration.

No evidence drugs, vitamins, supplements help prevent cognitive decline in healthy older adults Posted: 15 Apr 2013 12:14 PM PDT A review has found no evidence that drugs, herbal products or vitamin supplements help prevent cognitive decline in healthy older adults.

Photons run out of loopholes: Quantum world really is in conflict with our everyday experience Posted: 15 Apr 2013 09:49 AM PDT Physicists have carried out an experiment with photons in which they have closed an important loophole. The researchers have thus provided the most complete experimental proof that the quantum world is in conflict with our everyday experience.

Skin cells turned directly into the cells that insulate neurons Posted: 15 Apr 2013 09:48 AM PDT Researchers have succeeded in transforming skin cells directly into oligodendrocyte precursor cells, the cells that wrap nerve cells in the insulating myelin sheaths that help nerve signals propagate. The current research was done in mice and rats. If the approach also works with human cells, it could eventually lead to cell therapies for diseases like inherited leukodystrophies -- disorders of the brain's white matter -- and multiple sclerosis, as well as spinal cord injuries.

Musicians who learn a new melody demonstrate enhanced skill after a night's sleep Posted: 15 Apr 2013 09:48 AM PDT A new study examining how the brain learns and retains motor skills provides insight into musical skill. Musicians who practiced and learned a new melody and were tested on it again after a night's sleep showed enhanced learning, says a researcher. The study found, however, that when two similar musical pieces were practiced one after the other, followed by sleep, any gains in speed and accuracy were diminished.

Following a Western style diet may lead to greater risk of premature death Posted: 15 Apr 2013 09:45 AM PDT Data from a new study of British adults suggest that adherence to a "Western-style" diet (fried and sweet food, processed and red meat, refined grains, and high-fat dairy products) reduces a person's likelihood of achieving older ages in good health and with higher functionality.

Ocean's future not so bleak? Resilience found in shelled plants exposed to ocean acidification Posted: 15 Apr 2013 07:09 AM PDT Marine scientists have long understood the detrimental effect of fossil fuel emissions on marine ecosystems. But a group has found a point of resilience in a microscopic shelled plant with a massive environmental impact, which suggests the future of ocean life may not be so bleak.

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