development

Brain development: Giving low-income US families $4000 a year boosts child brain activity

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Poverty has been linked with changes in child brain development, and a scheme to give $333 a month to low-income families improved brain activity in a child’s first year Health 24 January 2022 By Jason Arunn Murugesu Improvements in brain activity related to increased family income can be seen in children as young as 1 … Read more

Vaccine development: Process could be fast-tracked using antibody imaging tool

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A new imaging approach monitors antibody responses to vaccines more quickly than current techniques, which could accelerate vaccine design 19 January 2022 By Carissa Wong An artist’s illustration of antibodies (red and blue) responding to an infection with SARS-CoV-2 (purple) SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY By analysing high-resolution images, a computer can quickly predict the sequence of … Read more

How AI Could Prevent the Development of New Illicit Drugs

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IN RECENT YEARS, underground chemists have increasingly made small chemical tweaks on known recreational drugs to skirt laws, creating novel designer versions. Instead of cannabis, for instance, these chemists could offer up XLR-11, or instead of PCP they might have 3-MeO-PCE. Novel designer drugs, also called research chemicals or legal highs, still produce physiological and psychological effects, though … Read more

Small study suggests pandemic may slow babies’ development | Science

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Babies born at two New York City hospitals in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic scored slightly lower on developmental tests at 6 months of age than did babies born before the pandemic, according to a new study. There were no significant differences between the groups in communication and problem-solving skills. The study, published in JAMA … Read more

Breathtaking Fossil of Baby Dinosaur Tucked in Its Egg Yields New Evolutionary Clues

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A rare and exquisitely preserved dinosaur embryo tucked inside an egg like a baby bird has been unearthed in southern China, providing an “unprecedented glimpse” into dinosaur development.   With a posture that resembles modern bird embryos close to hatching, the fossilized embryo is a remarkable find which raises the possibility that evolutionary links between … Read more

The Brain’s Secrets May Be Hidden in Its Folds And Wrinkles. How Are They Made?

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The human brain has been called the most complex object in the known universe. And with good reason: It has around 86 billion neurons and several hundred thousand miles of axon fibers connecting them.   Unsurprisingly, the process of brain folding that results in the brain’s characteristic bumps and grooves is also highly complex. Despite … Read more