While there are many who doubt that humans evolved from the animal kingdom, we do share many physical traits of animals. Or we could look at it from the other way around: animals share human traits. This is only beginning to be appreciated, especially for such abstractions as the ability to [...]
Not knowing the plot, which book would you be more likely to read: Love on the Way to Los Angeles or Innocence Lost? Love, well, it’s a dime a dozen, and on the way to Los Angeles is about a journey possibly for show business, hardly inspiring, novel, or informative. By contrast, innocence lost [...]
Bob Goldstein captured the C. elegans in action. Learn more about this worm.
Gene therapy continues to crawl into our lives with promises and, this time, some surprises. Patrick Yu-Wai-Man, an ophthalmologist at Cambridge University, treated a patient with a mitochondrial gene defect leading to retinal cell death, causing the blinding disease called Leber hereditary optic neuropathy. Image of human retina This is due to [...]
During these days with headlines still, unfortunately, about (pardon the expression) Trump, I recommend escaping with science, which is certainly more interesting and less depressing than current politics. Every Tuesday the Science Section of the New York Times continues to present mind-bending reports. Imagine, shrimp hop out of the water, walk over rocks until [...]
We all love to gain something new – a promotion at work, a gift, a marriage, the birth of a child – all good things. By contrast, we dislike or mourn loss – a missing earring, a stolen credit card, the death of a friend or family member, an accidentally dropped or shattered precious vase – all bad things. In general, gain is positive, and loss is negative in our lives.
Yet, nature and science demonstrate that adapting to loss can be a win. The evolution of genes has resulted in losses that have helped koalas, birds, aquatic animals and – even humans – thrive.
You may find yourself wishing you had a bird brain once you see what loss can bring you!
