Head Banging

News flash: Rock ‘n’ roll head-banging ain’t healthy! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. In 1968, at a Led Zeppelin concert, hard rockers began BANGING their heads on the stage. Violent rhythmic head movements became common among heavy metal fans. Unfortunately, so did reports of

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X-Factor in Brain Aging

Ugh. You think just like mom! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. In women, ONE of your X chromosomes — from mom OR dad — is MORE active across individual cells. And this could influence how your brain AGES. How, you ask? Enter Samira Abdulai-Saiku

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Back Pain Rat Race

Can protein cause… back pain?!… in rats?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. When we get hurt, our bodies send tiny proteins to kickstart healing. But sometimes, they work against us! How?! Protein C-D forty seven helps cells hide from the immune system, making inflammation

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Scents and Sounds

*sniff sniff* Smells…noisy? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Is there a link between smell and sound? Enter Diego Hernandez and team at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. They trained mice to associate high-pitched SOUNDS with WATER rewards, and fruity SMELLS with NO reward. When the

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Pickleball Prescription

Is the cure for cancer… pickleball?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science saying… service! Recovering from chemo is tough – there’s fatigue, muscle loss, and just plain loneliness. How can we find comradery? Enter Project Rally! Nathan Parker and team at the Moffitt Cancer Center

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Plant Steroids

Beanie Babies are back… on the menu?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Growing food is great! Chemical fertilizers polluting the environment? Not so great.  Enter Nicola Cook and team at the John Innes Center in the U-K. They found a way to give plants a

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Battery Boost!

Water and technology don’t mix! But what if they did? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Scientists from China’s Yibin Academy of Southwest University floated an electrifying idea for… MARINE BATTERIES! Hmmm. Batteries use electrodes to direct the flow of ions, like SODIUM, to power

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Maximizing your GAINS

Pump some iron… into your noggin?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Blood flow is vital for distributing nutrients, vitamins, and oxygen to our organs – especially our brains!  Philip Ainslie at the University of Otago has a fascinating theory about that.  So, sitting around slows

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Tiny Flowers

Stop and smell the… NANO BOTS?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. How do you picture medicine delivery robots? Like tiny space crafts? What about flowers! Dong Wook Kim and team at Max Planck Institute designed particle-sized bloom-bots. But they’re not just pretty! Sound waves

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Smarter Cancer Predictions

Can AI tell if you have cancer? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. If only cancer came with warning labels! Even for doctors, tumors can be misleading, like with Merkel cell carcinoma – a skin cancer. What about letting A-I take a look? Enter DeepMerkel,

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