Article archives

Hungry lonely brains

Hungry lonely brains

Neuroscience

By Rosa García-Verdugo

When hungry, not only our bodies long for food, our brains do too. And it appears that when it comes to social interaction, a similar thing happens. Social deprivation leads to a brain angry for social contact. A recent study [Livia Tomova et al (2020) Acute social isolation evokes midbrain craving responses similar to hunger […]

MI weekly selection #428

MI weekly selection #428

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Deep Space Atomic Clock aces test Researchers say the Deep Space Atomic Clock has outpaced other kinds of space clocks, heralding what it could do for the future of navigation in space. The atomic clock, which has been orbiting Earth in a satellite for about two years in its first test run, uses ions to […]

IQ tests can’t measure it, but ‘cognitive flexibility’ is key to learning and creativity

IQ tests can’t measure it, but ‘cognitive flexibility’ is key to learning and creativity

NeurosciencePsychology

By Invited Researcher

IQ is often hailed as a crucial driver of success, particularly in fields such as science, innovation and technology. In fact, many people have an endless fascination with the IQ scores of famous people. But the truth is that some of the greatest achievements by our species have primarily relied on qualities such as creativity […]

Online harassment toward women

Online harassment toward women

Sociology

By Invited Researcher

Author: Martha R. Villabona works at Subdirección General de Cooperación Territorial e Innovación Educativa of the Spanish Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, where she coordinates the area of multiple literacies. The seemingly unlimited possibilities of citizen participation in social networks are affected by the polarization of debate, the aggressive style of communication and the […]

MI weekly selection #427

MI weekly selection #427

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Gene found in gecko may have link to melanoma SPINT1, a gene responsible for the skin coloring of Lemon Frost geckos, may play a role in the lizards’ propensity to develop tumors and has also been linked to the development of melanoma in humans, a study in PLOS Genetics suggests. “Studying a gecko is not […]

Kerker anapoles

Kerker anapoles

DIPCDIPC Photonics

By DIPC

A nanoantenna with balanced electric and magnetic dipole moments exhibits a directive radiation pattern with zero backscattering. This is known as the first Kerker condition after Kerker, Wang, and Giles, who predicted in 1983 that, under plane wave illumination, magnetic spheres with equal relative permittivity and permeability radiate no light in the backscattering direction. They […]

Pseudo-hallucinations: why some people see more vivid mental images than others – test yourself here

Pseudo-hallucinations: why some people see more vivid mental images than others – test yourself here

NeurosciencePsychology

By Invited Researcher

Consider the statements below. What do they describe? A trip on psychedelics? A dream? I felt I could reach through the screen to get to another place. Lasers became entire fans of light sweeping around, and then it felt as if the screen began to expand. I saw old stone buildings … like a castle […]