Is itchiness… CONTAGIOUS?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Zhou-Feng Chen and team from Washington University were ITCHING to find out. They showed mice a video of another mouse scratching. Then, the mice watching the video began to itch, too! The team monitored their neuron
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Big city life – the sights, the sounds, the smells…is that PIZZA?!? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. We can smell a warm slice ANYWHERE! But how is it that our nose ALWAYS knows? Srinath Nizampatnam and colleagues at the University of Washington in St.
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Is fat LITERAL food for thought? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Our brain is filled with billions of neurons that are constantly talking to each other. What helps speed up these conversations? Fatty layers of cholesterol called myelin. But diseases like Multiple Sclerosis cause
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If neurons could watch TV, they’d watch the SODIUM CHANNEL! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Neurons are very complex cells in the brain. They’re responsible for EVERYTHING: memory, movement, feelings… But some diseases make neurons stop working, and the whole body is affected. How
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It’s the Itchy and Scratchy Show! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Everyone’s sitting ‘round the campfire when someone gets bit by a MOSQUITO. First THEY’RE itchy… suddenly… EVERYBODY’s itchy! Is it a mosquito attack or something…else? Zhou-Feng Chen and team from Washington University were
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You’re SOOO bird-brained! But is that a bad thing? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. The BRAIN uses the most energy of mammal organs. And neurons, the brain-body messengers, use LOTS of sugar to communicate. Birds have much SMALLER brains than most mammals, but can
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Big city life – the sights, the sounds, the smells…is that PIZZA?!? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. We can smell a warm slice ANYWHERE! But how is it that our nose ALWAYS knows? Srinath Nizampatnam and colleagues at the University of Washington in St.
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Is fat LITERAL food for thought? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Our brain is filled with billions of neurons that are constantly talking to each other. What helps speed up these conversations? Fatty layers of cholesterol called myelin. But diseases like Multiple Sclerosis cause
Continue reading
Somebody pinch me! Am I REALLY awake? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Brain injury can make it difficult to tell if someone’s conscious or not! Patients in a coma may respond to things, but only as a reflex. How can doctors tell the difference?
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