Anxious thoughts about aging is programmed to disease

Young people who are negatively reflect on old age, more at risk of getting sick in old age than their colleagues with positive thoughts
Young people thought that old age is heavy and disconsolate time in a person's life can actually lead to stroke and heart attack, according to U.S. experts, says "AMS" referring to the foreign media.
Doctors have found that the treatment of old age may determine your future health in old age. Even after controlling for other factors that contribute to poor health, remains a clear link between the representations of the aging process and the development of the elderly cardiovascular problems.
Doctors at Yale School of Public Health, USA, studied the stereotypes about aging, trying to determine how they affect health over time. Under long-term observation involved 386 people. Those who believe that older people are helpless, had a higher risk of heart attack, heart failure, angina, and stroke 30 years after the initial survey.
American cardiologists believe that negative thoughts associated with additional stress, and also have to boost the work of many agencies. In addition, the effect on health and genetics: for example, people in families whose elderly relatives do not have any chronic diseases are more likely to be regarded as the natural aging process. However, the review authors consider it unlikely that positive thinking about aging can improve health.

Stress of Poverty leave traces on DNA

University of British Columbia and the Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, in a joint study showed that child poverty and stress, along with demographic characteristics - age, gender and ethnicity - leave an imprint in human genes. This track may play a role in our immune response.
The study was published in a special issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, it is investigated how the experience gained at birth and in the first years of life, can influence the course of human life.
Study of changes in genes, also known as epigenetics, examines the process of DNA methylation, which are added to the DNA chemical molecules, "including" or "turn off" certain genes. The study found that experiences play a role in shaping the patterns of DNA methylation.
The scientists found that the socio-economic status of adult influence on heredity has not. But child poverty interferes with the methylation and imprinted genes.
"We found traces of biological life in a poor childhood - said Michael Kobori, Associate Professor of Medical Genetics at the University of British Columbia. - This is clear evidence that the influence of the environment really is correlated with epigenetic models."
Amount of stress hormones produced by adults, is also associated with changes in the DNA. Kobori said it is a matter that was before - the chicken or the egg. It is not known whether the reserves in adults increased stress signs in the DNA or, on the contrary, DNA determines how much stress hormones will be released.
Kobori and his colleagues also found that methylation may help in the prediction of future immune responses, and therefore, the first experience of life sometime in the future will have an impact on the response to disease in adulthood.

Athene's Theory of Everything

The Magnetic Pole Flip and DNA Activation

The Sun goes through a Magnetic Pole Flip every eleven years. This is known as the sunspot cycle. At the totality the north and south magnetic poles split apart, with sunspots being temporary magnetic poles, which drift around the surface of the Sun from upwellings of magnetic current deep inside the Sun, until the north and south magnetic poles reform themselves in the opposite positions from what they were before the totality.
The Earth also goes through magnetic pole flips, (I am not talking about a shift of the rotational axis), but not as frequently. Our scientistics have found in the geological records, sixteen previous occurances of magnetic pole flips on Earth, the most recent of which happened some 780,000 years ago. That was when early hominids began walking upright, figuring out how to use and make tools, and discovered fire.
In past magnetic pole flips there have always been massive species extinctions before the totality, followed by a resurgence of Life, and the appearance of new species after the totality. This is happening again right now. For over one hundred years, the Earth's magnetic field, the Van Allen Belt, has been decreasing in strength. This always happens before a Totality, and we have most certainly seen many species extinctions, although we are responsible for much of that.
Our scientists believe that the totality will not begin for another 1000 years, but they are basing their speculation upon the apparent rate that the Earth's magnetic field has been decreasing. Now while the Earth's magnetic field has been decreasing at a steady rate, Nature does not operate in straight lines. A hyberbolic or tangent function is much more likely.
Now considering that our solar system is approaching the end and the beginning of a Long Year, and that we are now entering the dense space of the galactic plane, it seems much more likely that the totality period of the Earth's magnetic flip will coincide. Probably not on the Winter Solstice of 2012, but most certainly any time now, or shortly thereafter.
Geological records of past magnetic pole flips of the Earth, show that the time period of the totality varies considerably from several decades to a few hundred years. It simply is not predictable. During that time, the Van Allen Belt will be greatly weakened, allowing much more of the full spectrum of the Sun's light to reach the Earth, rather than being deflected around it, as it normally does. We will also be more subject to solar flares, than we have in the past. These higher spectra of the Sun's light are very mutagenic.
Couple this with surges of magnetic current from the various roving Earthspots during the magnetic pole flip, and you will understand why much genetic mutation, and evolutionary processes will be active. All lifeforms, both plant and animal, will undergo changes. Some plants may change the shapes of their leaves or the formation of their flowers. Some trees may begin to produce fruit, that they never did before. The changes in animals may be less apparent physically, but many species may attain a higher level of sentience. Two directions in which these changes should show up, are in an increase in manual dexterity in some animals, and an increase in language development in all of them. By the end of this process, certain animal species may be demanding the right to vote ...
One physical change in humans, will be a spinal arrangement better adapted for upright walking, as we have been moving in that direction for a long time in our evolution. Our geneticists have already detected an increase in people with more than two strands of DNA. All of these people have various psychic abilities. This will continue, until we achieve maturity with 12 strand DNA.
With the surges of magnetic current through the roving Earthspot temporary magnetic poles, there will be auroara borealis visible at times all over the Earth. It should be quite a light show. However, this also means that magnetic media will be subject to being wiped clean. It would be a good idea to transfer your audio, and video tapes to laserdiscs, CDs, or DVDs. Computer hard drives are magnetic media. Make sure you have a back-up burned and ready ...

by James Clair Lewis

Which genes cause the level of intelligence

Genes - is one of the key factors affecting the development of the person. Scientists have found that IQ is inherited, and if one of the parents of a high IQ, is a descendant of a high probability it will also be high.
Identical twins identical IQ greater than that of fraternal. And, of course, more than cousins, it is similar in siblings. As we can see IQ is inherited as well as height and eye color, hence, there is a gene responsible for the transfer.
Over the past 10 years, scientists have proposed several options on which genes are associated with IQ. Among the candidates were some options ApoE - gene, which is related to Alzheimer's disease, cathepsin D (CTSD) - a gene associated with schizophrenia, single nucleotide polymorphisms of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cholinergic receptor CHRM2.
As a result, over the years, researchers have made a statement that IQ correlates with more than a dozen different single nucleotide polymorphisms.
But the results of the analysis of a statistically significant sample in the study, which was conducted under the direction of David Leybsona and Chris Chabris (psychologist from Union College), did not confirm connection with the degree of intelligence to any of these genes. Largely unexpected disappointment was that none of the results of those studies have not been confirmed, although the scientists used data from three independent samples, which were obtained from the thousands of participants in the experiment.
Chris Chabris focuses on the fact that the results of his work, does not mean that the previous studies were not conducted properly. This is most likely on the intellect as well as growth depends on a whole set of genes (the height of a man due to the action of the cumulative effect of hundreds of genes).
Search for genes of intelligence, according to Chabris and promising areas of science, which can help to find relevant molecular pathways and neural circuits. Chabris said that he believes the search for genes end in itself, but as soon as something becomes aware of this gene, scientists can more closely relate psychological and biological concepts of intelligence. Answering the question of which gene is responsible for the transfer of intellectual abilities, scientists will be able to formulate a clearer and closer to answering the more important questions such as: "What kind of anatomical systems, these genes are involved?", "Where in the brain to produce proteins of these genes?" And "What is their evolutionary history?". The answers to these and other questions will give scientists a new key to understanding the mind.
For the study of intelligence at the genetic level scientists lack the aggregate statistics. According to Chabris sample should be 100 000 or more items to obtain objective data on this issue, because the psychological properties can not be determined by a single gene, such as Huntington's disease.
Scientists recognize that the work will be very time consuming, because one person had not the strength to grasp the understanding of the role of thousands of genes on a single process, but the level of science can make such a discovery at this stage.

Vision for the blind

The two scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, who published their findings in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, have also deciphered the retinal neural code of monkeys - which is essentially identical to that of humans.
"It's an exciting time," said computational neuroscientist Sheila Nirenberg, in a statement from the college. "We can make blind mouse retinas see, and we're moving as fast as we can to do the same in humans."
Novel prosthetic vision system
The novel prosthetic vision system consists of two parts: an 'encoder' and a 'transducer'. The encoder mimics the role of the retina by converting light patterns into streams of electrical pulses using the same 'code' by which a healthy retina communicates to the brain. The transducer, or 'stimulator' - a light-sensitive protein - then 'fires' the appropriate retinal neuron cells, called ganglion cells, as specified by the code.
"What these findings show is that the critical ingredients for building a highly-effective retinal prosthetic - the retina's code and a high-resolution stimulating method - are now, to a large extent, in place," said Nirenberg.
At present, most bionic vision systems use a camera that converts visual input into electrical signals communicated via electrodes implanted either on the retina or the brain. This usually results in simple light dots and outlines with very low resolution that assist the user with basic navigation.
Blind can discern facial features, movement and landscape
The neural code behind this latest system is so accurate, the researchers say, that it can allow facial features, movement and landscapes to be discerned.
"The reason [other bionic vision researchers] have not reached their goal is not just because of a resolution problem," the authors wrote in the paper, "but also because of a coding problem."
Wai Ho Li, a lead researcher at the Monash Vision Group in Melbourne, who is working towards a direct-to-brain bionic vision system, said this new research is "an important step towards better visual prostheses".
"The research demonstrates a new approach for improving the quality of bionic vision generated using retinal optogenetics," he said. "Instead of increasing the visual resolution of bionic vision, they argue that encoding information for the visual system so that it doesn't get 'lost in translation' is just as important."

?Really a window to the soul

As the cheesy pickup line suggests, your eyes may really be the window to your soul. According to a new study by Yale University psychologists, most people intuitively feel as if their "self" - otherwise known as their soul, or ego - exists in or near their eyes.
In three experiments, the researchers probed preschoolers 'and adults' intuitions about the precise location of the self in the body. The participants were shown pictures of cartoon characters, and in each picture a small object (a buzzing fly or snowflake) was positioned near a different section of the character's body (face or torso or feet, etc.), Always at the same distance away .
The study participants were then asked which pictures showed the object closest to the body, the hypothesis being that people would interpret the object as closest when it was near what they intuitively believed to be the soul's location.

As reported earlier this month in the journal Cognition, the vast majority of the 4-year-olds and adults in the study thought the object was closest to the character when it was near the character's eyes. This was true even when the cartoon character was a green-skinned alien whose eyes were on its chest rather than in its head - suggesting that it was the eyes, rather than the brain, that seemed most closely tied to the soul.
According to lead researcher Christina Starmans of the Mind and Development Lab at Yale, she and study co-author Paul Bloom designed their experiment after a conversation in which they discussed intuitively feeling as if their consciousnesses were "located" near their eyes, and that objects seemed closest to them when near their eyes. "We set out to test whether this was a universally shared intuition," Starmans told Life's Little Mysteries.
As it turned out, it was - even among young children.
"The indirect nature of our method, and the fact that these judgments are shared by adults and preschoolers, suggests that our results do not reflect a culturally learned understanding ... but might instead be rooted in a more intuitive or phenomenological sense of where in our bodies we reside, "the authors concluded.
However, experts disagreed about the implications of the research. Neurologist Robert Burton, author of numerous books and articles on themind-body connection, thinks the results don't rule out the possibility that Westerners' sense that we exist in our eyes is culturally indoctrinated.
Burton, former chief of the division of neurology at University of California, San Francisco-Mount Zion Hospital, said the most interesting result of the study seems to have been brushed under the rug by the researchers: It is that the 4-year-olds and adults didn't actually give the same responses during the experiment with the alien cartoon character. Almost as many children thought the buzzing fly was closest to the alien when it was near his eyeless head than when it was near his eye-bearing chest. Meanwhile, the adults almost unanimously selected the chest-eyes. "This suggests that something has transpired during the time between age 4 and adulthood that affects our understanding of the identity of other people," Burton said.
In other words, it seems we learn to associate identity with eyes, rather than doing it innately from birth. Perhaps, for example, eyes take on more importance as we develop awareness of the social cues that other people convey with their eyes. Or, perhaps it's because adults have learned that it's good etiquette to make eye-contact.
Furthermore, the study participants may not have interpreted the idea of ​​the buzzing fly and snowflake being "closer" to a cartoon characters as meaning that they were closer to its soul or self. Objects look bigger when they are nearer one's eyes, and this may have confused the participants into labeling them as "closer." [Gallery: The Most Amazing Optical Illusions]
Georg Northoff, a neuropsychiatrist at the University of Ottawa, agrees that the authors' interpretation of their experimental results is "far-fetched." The issues with this particular study aside, Northoff said a large body of evidence suggests most people do have a sense of self that physically manifests itself in their bodies. "We always have the tendency to locate something and materialize it in the body as mind or as soul," he wrote in an email. "That seems to be predisposed by the way our brain works, though the mechanisms remain unclear."
It is also worth noting that the part of the brain in which self-awareness is thought to arise, called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, happens to be located behind the eyes. It is possible, Burton said, that we may "feel" as if we are physically located near our eyes because our identity emerges in the neurons.

The more we know, the more quickly we forget

Information plays an increasingly important role in our lives, its volume is growing, but keep it all the more difficult. What developments take place in this area? Scientists suggest that? Miracles are possible here? You can make immortal medium which permanently store the recorded data to it?
Stone, vinyl, paper ...
Every age and even every year it becomes more obvious paradoxical trend: more and more information, methods of storing more diverse, but less durable. From granite and parchment mankind turned to paper and magnetic tape. Then they were replaced by electronic media: books, CDs, flash drives. However, if paper books live a few hundred years, the electronic and do not hold up to a dozen. Extruded vinyl progress, according to the music lovers, if stored properly can "live" almost forever. CD and DVD, which originally was intended for developers at least a 100-year service life, even in the most expensive and high-quality version can not withstand longer 5-10 years. More spacious and convenient USB flash drive, also designed just for 5 years, and the hard drive on which most of us keeps the most important records and data "lives" only 10 years.
On what and how to store
On the problem of long-lasting storage for a long time, scientists are struggling. The difficulty lies not only in the search for a heavy-duty material for recording the data, but also in the choice of the form of writing. To save a lot of information, it must be somehow "pack." Therefore, the reading will also require additional treatment. Use with computer software and devices greatly reduces the "shelf life", as manufacturers of special equipment to provide support only for a limited time. What's the use of stored data, if you read them in the absence of a suitable "player" is impossible. Optimal solution, which would combine the durability of the material with the ease of reading the recorded information has yet been found, but some of the options for the "eternal" records scientists have to offer.
Disc in a million
Employees of the French agency ANDRA create a disc capable of maintaining data for millions of years. Scientists have solved with a purely practical problem: warn children about the graves of nuclear waste.
"Miracle letter" consists of two thin discs industrial sapphire diameter of about 20 cm on one of the drives with engraved platinum deposited about 40,000 miniature (not digital) pages, then covered with a second disc labels and sealed. To read them, the archaeologists of the future will need only an optical microscope.
Creation of a prototype cost to researchers at 25 thousand euros. He passed all the tests, including immersion in acid. Experts believe that such a disk can store data at least 1 million years, and in the near future, hoping to prove that he was uneasy and 10 million. A prototype of the sapphire disk was shown in an open forum Euroscience Open Forum 2012, in Dublin.
True, still remain some doubts that this drive will perform the task for which it was created. First, despite its durability, the drive might just not get to children at the most banal reason - the sapphire and platinum can Pozar robbers. There is a second, more serious problem: the language is to speak to the descendants? In this matter, scientists hope to help a variety of specialists.
The universal language
Specialists Japanese company Hitachi as a universal language that timeless chose binary. It was he who used to write data to a new sverhdolgovechnom optical media, created recently by the company. "Eternal drive" from Hitachi is a plate of transparent quartz glass 2x2 cm and a thickness of 2 mm. Binary code written in four layers of laser points that are visible in ordinary light microscope. Recording density is 40 megabytes per square inch, that is placed on a plate for about 25 MB, but the commercial use of the thickness and number of layers can be easily increased.
The glass plate is not responding to any of almost reagents from the same material make tubes and other glassware. She is able to withstand temperatures up to 1000 ° C for several hours. Destroy the information can only be breaking a record, which is very easy to do, given the strength of fused silica. According to the creators, this drive is capable of storing information, "hundreds of millions of years."
True, there is no guarantee that after millions of years, there reader quartz disks, and people will be able to extract information from the binary code. So the new media is useful, rather than in the future, but today. According to experts from Hitachi, these carriers may be in demand from government agencies and museums.
Military developments
Just as relevant and "eternal" disc, presented not yet known company Millenniata supported by such an authority as LG. The new disc is called M-Disc and intended to be read in an ordinary DVD-player. According to calculations of the creators, M-Disc must remain operational even after a thousand years - and even after 10 thousand. Unknown, but again, not going to disappear by the time the DVD-players.
But dignity superdiska can estimate now. It was created in the framework announced in 2009, the tender for the development of equipment to meet the needs of the army. M-Disc successfully proved his incredible endurance in tests conducted by the military at the base of the lake Chino. 25 prototypes of three different discs were placed in a special chamber, where they were subjected to temperatures of 85 degrees Celsius with a relative humidity of 85 percent, as well as light exposure in all ranges. As a result, drives Millenniata was the only samples that have not lost any data at all. Moreover, according to the creators, the drives themselves are able to withstand short-term exposure of ultrahigh and ultralow temperatures.
The secret of this stability lies in the use of inorganic materials. During the recording, which is produced by the strong laser on the surface of the disc burned notch, and sintered polycrystalline form. Similar compounds are found in many rocks. Because of this, researchers have even named their album "stone."
Flash memory for hundreds of years
Not remain without attention and memory cards. Japanese scientists from the Institute of Modern Applied Science and Technology (AIST) and the University of Tokyo have developed a flash memory that can store the recorded information in it for hundreds of years.
Such a life is made possible by the fact that the memory is made of ferroelectric - substances whose properties vary under the influence of an external electric field. The information in a cell can be recorded 100 million times 10 thousand times more than the flash memory used today, which allows to perform only about 10 thousand write cycles. That limitation on the number of write cycles and are, by the way, the main reason for the fragility of ordinary flash drives.
For the renewal of the new flash memory technology has also been used "wear-levelling", which distributes write cycles over all cells chips evenly, preventing wear of cells to varying degrees. However, some cells may still fail earlier than others. To save the newly recorded data is still guaranteed, such cells off without disabling the entire chip.
In addition to durability, the new memory chips has other advantages - they operate at a lower voltage than those that exist today, and therefore consume three times less energy.
The future is open source
Thus, it is obvious that in the search for durable materials scientists have already achieved considerable success. Now it's up in order to "find" technology of the future: to create something as simple, reliable, and does not require major changes, such as the printing technique, which appeared in the XV century.
The rapid development of computer technology with many advantages is far and obvious drawback: the program languages, operating systems very quickly become obsolete and out of use. To read data recorded forty years ago, we need specialists with language is the time.
Part of the continuity of programs and systems is achieved through the use of open source. An open-source is much more likely to survive the century than closed, as the latter depends entirely on the company's policy-owner. To encourage buyers, Microsoft, for example, changed the format of recording and storing data in the new version of Microsoft Office, so that the owners of the old version will not be able to open documents created in the new Office, and had to buy a new version.
If the source code is open, there is no motivation deliberately stop supporting old formats. However, even if this happens, it is possible to read them, in the end, write a separate program using the old code. It is possible that Linux, Android, and other systems may be ill-suited to the new reality, but because they are open, based on them, you can create something new, processing them in any way. Each of these systems can be adapted to the new reality, using pieces of code and algorithms to read data in the old format, sorting out her insides and making it necessary for the program.

To make a choice, the brain turns to unconscious memories

The main area of ​​memory in our brain is the hippocampus, scientists have long known about its role in the conversion of short-term memory to long-term.
Researchers at Columbia University (USA) decided to see if he is not involved in decision making. Volunteers for the experiment, were the following. First, they were shown pairs of pictures in which a face, or any part of the body landscape side by side with a colored circle. Pairs of images have been constant, then there is a certain range was always with a particular landscape. In the second part of the experiment showed only the colored circles, but some of them had to choose: for it was given a cash reward.
Finally, the third stage of the subjects again showed a couple of pictures, but walked away from the circles of landscapes and people. In each pair, again had to choose an illustration to get the prize, but this time the choice left to chance: the man does not know what to choose.
There can be a chain of associations. The man in the third stage should choose an image, but does not know what, and then he remembers the first stage, where this image was associated with a certain circle, which is the second stage brought a bonus. Perhaps, and picture related to it, too, will give a reward? .. Subjects were not aware of anything, but to do so. And, most importantly, this chain confirmed fMRI brain scans: The more active a person worked the hippocampus in the second stage ("circle - Fee"), was the stronger associative choice in the third stage of the experiment.
Important role also played by the hippocampus striatum, which is part of the reinforcement. That is, when I had to make a choice, the brain accesses memory and the hippocampus prompted a decision based on good feeling of reinforcement.
It is especially important in these data is that such associative chains can not be realized by man, but is widely used by the brain.
Past experience does influence our behavior, and it seems, is not the invention of psychologists and psychoanalysts, and the general principle of the brain.
The results were published in the journal Science

Facts on Kissing

Everyone loves a kiss, do not they 'll? When someone leans over and plants a big kiss on us, do not we just smile inside? We somehow feel a glow - unless of course we don't really like that person, in which case it's another story ...
What's with all the kissing?
Kissing is big news. It's good for us. It extends our health, makes us happier, promotes all sorts of amazing chemicals to go flooding through our body, and makes us smile. All round, it's a very fine thing that perhaps we should be doing more of day by day. If we read the research on the positive benefits of kissing, we would be at it all day long.

1. Kissing helps people relax and significantly reduces the effects of stress.
Two. On average, people spend 20,000 hours (two weeks) of life kissing.

3. Kissing uses 29 facial muscles - it's a very effective exercise to reduce wrinkles.

4. 66 percent of people close their eyes while kissing. The rest take pleasure in watching the emotions in the face of their partner.

5. A quick kiss burns three calories, an energetic kiss more than 10 calories.

6. Lips are 200 times more sensitive than fingers.

7. People who kiss their partners goodbye before going to work live longer than those who shut the door.

8. Eskimos do it this way: they rub noses together. Their lips open up once their noses meet. Then they take a deep breath and send air out while holding lips closed. After this, they notice the smell and scent of one other, followed up by pressing noses against each other's cheeks for a freezing minute or two.

9. Kissing in public is a no-go in Japan, Taiwan, China and Korea.

10. When kissing, the body produces a substance that is 200 times more powerful than morphine, releasing a powerful narcotic effect on the body.

Kissing can create powerful feelings of euphoria and bliss - woo hoo! So, forget about the rush and the getting some place today. Instead, take a deep breath, smell your friend's scent and rub noses - if you're an Eskimo. Or, if you're not an Eskimo, just reach over and give that person you love a great big gorgeous narcotic-inducing kiss.

By Susie Pearl

Memory without the brain and nervous system

Australian scientists have proof that the "stupid" one-celled organisms, such as slime mold, still have some form of memory.
In the course of scientific experiments conducted on slime mold Physarum polycephalum, scientists from the University of Sydney noted that slime mold can avoid obstacles, get out of the traps. On this basis, the researchers suggested that the slime mold is used to navigate the external spatial memory.
Biologist Christopher Reid (Chris Reid): «Towards a slime mold movement leaves a trail of slime, which serves as a detector that helps identify" passed "the place" Thus, to confirm this theory, the researchers placed Physarum polycephalum in the U-shaped trap. On a clean surface of 96% of the sample were able to pass the trap and find the sugar within 120 hours, and they never came back to the already completed and slimy areas. But when the surface is covered with a layer of mucus, Physarum polycephalum were unable to recognize their tracks, only a third of the organisms reached the target within the set time limit, although in this case, the body will return to the sectors covered
The researchers hypothesized that Physarum polycephalum can respond and recognize slime left by other species.
Christopher Reid noted that the external memory space, characteristic of primitive organisms that will allow scientists to address some issues, such as those associated with the evolution of memory. In addition, further study of these mechanisms will enable engineers and programmers to improve the system to overcome the obstacles in robots.
"Single-celled organisms are continually surprised scientists with their ability ... They are such wonderful creatures that make to revise our understanding of intelligence"Thus, to confirm this theory, the researchers placed Physarum polycephalum in the U-shaped trap. On a clean surface of 96% of the sample were able to pass the trap and find the sugar within 120 hours, and they never came back to the already completed and slimy areas. But when the surface is covered with a layer of mucus, Physarum polycephalum were unable to recognize their tracks, only a third of the organisms reached the target within the set time limit, although in this case, the body will return to the sectors covered
The researchers hypothesized that Physarum polycephalum can respond and recognize slime left by other species.
Christopher Reid noted that the external memory space, characteristic of primitive organisms that will allow scientists to address some issues, such as those associated with the evolution of memory. In addition, further study of these mechanisms will enable engineers and programmers to improve the system to overcome the obstacles in robots.
"Single-celled organisms are continually surprised scientists with their ability ... They are such wonderful creatures that make to revise our understanding of intelligence"

'Invisible Worlds' - Richard Hammond

Ten things about Invisible Worlds

1. The human eye is not all it's cracked up to be. Human vision is pretty miraculous, but our eyes aren't quite as powerful as you might imagine. What we can see is stuff that reflects or emits light with wavelengths in a very narrow band (since you ask, from about 750 to 400 nanometres). What we can't see is the rest. That's all matter that reflects or emits light over the other 99.99999999999% percent of the spectrum. In fact, we're almost blind.

2. If I was a honeybee, my garden would look like a psychedelic acid flashback Honeybees are one of a few rare beasts who can see in ultra-violet. This was news to me, but not to the flowers in my back garden who exploit this fact ruthlessly by advertising their presence to the bees with all sorts of inventive patterns in order to lure them in for pollination. Completely invisible to us but not I've now learnt, to the bees ...

3. When something's on fire, it isn't. Well, not exactly.Watching something burn, it's easy to think the flames are actually on the thing that's burning, eating away at it. That's what it looks like. But it's not that simple. In the invisible infra-red spectrum we can see that what's actually happening is the heat is causing the object to give off combustible gases, and as they escape it's those combustible gases in contact with the oxygen in the air that cause the fire. So the flames are not on the thing that's burning, they're in the air around it.

4. Continued incontinence can be very dangerous to your health ... if you're a field vole.Voles piddle continuously as they go about their business. Not a very nice notion but apparently rather useful, as it tells them relevant 'vole' things like who's been on their patch of grass, what sex they were and what direction they went off in (though sadly not how cute they were). But, those handy pee trails also reflect ultraviolet light and one of our vole's main enemies is the kestrel, which - sadly for Mr Vole - can see in ultraviolet. So all it has to do is follow the pee trail all the way to the dinner table.

5. The humble common cold is actually the source of a masterful feat of engineering ... the sneeze.You know how we all cringe when someone sneezes anywhere near us? 'Stay at home!' We think, 'don't come near me with your nasty infectious nose ...' Well - I'm afraid it's even worse than you might have realised. That sneeze shoots out of that nose at up to 100 miles an hour, contains around 40,000 separate droplets of horridness and can travel vast distances through the air. And the worst bit is - the drops you can see (and so avoid) make up just 4% of the total volume. So that leaves ... well quite a lot of invisible snot ...

6. Geckos have the worst case of split ends in nature, but it's the secret of their success.On 'Invisible Worlds' it took a small stunt team and half a day's rigging to get me to walk up a vertical wall. But geckos can scamper up them without a second thought, and then cling from the ceiling with a single toe. The secret of their superhero powers lies in the invisible hairs that cover each toe. Each of these is ten times thinner than a human hair and there are millions on each toe. But look a bit closer, around 40,000 times magnification, and you can begin to make out the split ends on those hairs. It turns out that at the nanoscale each of them branches off into hundreds of further tiny hairs of their own. It's these split ends that hold the key to gecko's amazing grip.

7. You can find the fastest thing on earth ...... living in a cow pat.The fastest thing on earth isn't Ussain Bolt, it isn't a cheetah, it isn't even a Ferrari. It's a fungal spore. Cow pats are home to hundreds of them, and courtesy of a new generation of ultra high speed cameras, capable of taking over 250,000 images per second, we can now actually see those spores in action. One moment they're stationary, and then one millionth of a second later they're travelling at 25metres a second, sustaining a force equivalent to 180,000 g. Astronauts on the space shuttle have to cope with just 4g. Anything past 5g and we start blacking out. So why do they go to such trouble? Well, it's all about survival. In order to reproduce, they need to get themselves as far away from the dung as possible - so they can get eaten again.

8. I mustn't put my finger in a tank containing a pistol shrimpPistol shrimps are less than an inch long, but with an oversized claw, shaped like a boxing glove, they're not to be messed with. In real time it looks like they see off opponents such as crabs by simply jabbing at them. But use high-speed cameras and you can tell something far stranger is going on. They win their fights without ever landing a punch. All their damage is done at a distance, as their closing claws force a jet of water to spurt out at close to 70 miles per hour, creating a low pressure 'bubble' in its wake. When this collapses, massive light, heat and energy are briefly created. Inside the bubble it momentarily reaches temperatures as hot as the surface of the sun, soaring to more than 4,000 C. It's this invisible force that causes much of the damage.So the knockout punch comes from the bubble, not the claw.

9. If you're worried about cellulite, don't swim in the presence of a high speed camera.Dolphins are the perfect shape for swimming. Slowed down 40 times their torpedo-shaped smooth bodies just scythe through it. There's little drag, the water is simply displaced and the dolphins appears to be gliding, cruising along at 20mph. In contrast, in water it's not just our shape that limits our speed, it's also our skin itself. If you can face seeing the full effect drag has on the human body, you need to film a swimmer with a state of the art high speed camera that can offer thousands of images a second at HD resolution. Then you begin to see the way water actually buffets the skin and distorts its surface. Even the fittest swimmer is transformed. And it really puts orange peel thighs into perspective.And finally ......

10. My phobia of spiders is serious.In 20 years I've done some frightening things for tv. I've stood on the summit of the world's tallest road bridge, I've climbed to the top of the Sydney Opera House, I've abseiled off a bunch of buildings, I've driven at 300mph (you might remember that) ... Top Gear even kindly arranged for me to be in a car that then got struck by 800,000 volts ... and I've gone along with everything ... absolutely everything, without fuss, without hesitation. But when Invisible Worlds asked me to milk a spider I totally bottled it.

What if depression helped humanity survive

Depression covers more people. Moreover, to the extent that, according to the World Health Organization, in 2020, it could become the first cause of the disease in women and the second in men (after cardiovascular disorders).In France suffer from depression more than three million people. In addition, it is a major cause of suicide. However, in the western world it is rarely detected, because the symptoms are mostly unknown to the public. People know little about not only its manifestations - at the moment, scientists are increasingly studying the link between depression and the human genome. Thus, they were able to establish that, although today Depression and prevents social life, a few centuries ago, it helped our ancestors. Unbelievable, but true. So how does depression helped our ancestors? The answer to this question can be genetics.A report published in the early years of the study, "Evolutionary significance of depression in the defense against pathogenic organisms» (The evolutionary signifiance of depression in pathogen host defense) scientists Andrew Miller (Andrew Miller) and Charles Reyzon (Charles Raison) showed that certain genes that increase the risk of depression, and help strengthen the immune defense against infections. Experts note that "participating in a depression alleles exist and largely retained in the human genome and is then encoded immunological and behavioral responses that protect the body against pathogens." Some NPY gene mutations are associated with increased body temperature, which is a classic immune response to "aggression." Early in the century mutation of this gene makes our fight against diseases such as pneumonia and tuberculosis. Scientists have found that a modified version of NPY gene is more common in people exposed to depression.But it is - is not everything. Both experts believe that certain symptoms of illness - isolation and passivity - gave our ancestors an advantage. Passivity allows the body to send all unspent energy to fight the infection. Similarly, isolation, and that means - and reduced social contact, minimizing the risk of catching the disease from other people. All this led scientists to conclude that "the symptoms of depression are closely related to the physiological response to infection, as well as the challenges it."Be that as it may, not all scientists share the view of the two experts. A 2003 study at the University of Wisconsin found that depressed people exposed - vulnerable to diseases such as the flu. Andrew Miller and Charles Reyzon themselves recognize the relative nature of their findings, and note that the appearance of markers of increased temperature in depressed people is not systematic. Although biological therapy to rebuild immunology patients at depression can really be effective, it is unlikely the answer lies solely in this. There is still much to do to understand this disease.

("Atlantico", France)

Psychopaths - Good or Evil

The Human Body

Read: The Secret of Life by James D. Watson

The Secret of Life by James D. Watson - Download

The Ghost in Your Genes

The Mystery of DNA

DNA is foundational for life. This double helix is ​​within each of our cells in our body and each cell of every life form. This microscopic code (or instruction manual) is composed of chemicals arranged in specific sequences. These arrangements form the letters of a language that communicates to a cell all the information it needs to manufacture everything for life. The DNA in a single human cell contains the information equivalent of 4,000 books! How did DNA come to exist?

DNA is like a foreign language - it looks random at first, but once you understand the "code" and "rules" of the language, all the arrangement of the letters makes sense in this order. This irregular yet patterned aspect of DNA makes DNA very unique, because it is specified information. And information of this kind is only known to result from an intelligent mind.

Dr. Werner Gitt, Director and Professor at the German Federal Institute of Physics and Technology, states that one thing we have learned from scientific study is that information can only result from greater information that results from a mind and will:

"No Known Natural Law"

"A code system is always the result of a mental process (it requires an intelligent origin or inventor) ... It should be emphasized that matter as such is unable to generate any code. All experiences indicate that a thinking being voluntarily exercising his own free will, cognition, and creativity, is required. "In the Beginning was Information, CLV, Bielenfeld, Germany.

"There is no known natural law through which matter can give rise to information, neither is any physical process or material phenomenon known that can do this.

Thus, chance and necessity are unable to account for the information in DNA. This leaves the third option, design. Someone's mind had to intentionally design DNA so the pattern makes sense and can function.

The Search Begins. . .

Now, who could this higher mind be? DNA is exceedingly complex, far exceeding the complexity of any computer code or other information that mere human minds can create. Not even the most brilliant scientists can create DNA. So whatever mind created DNA, it is a mind far superior to ours.

Option 1: Aliens?

Maybe aliens gave our planet life, including DNA? Some have proposed it in all seriousness. Yet it is not the most reasonable choice, since we have very little evidence that such higher life forms exist in outer space. The most evidence for life outside earth is bacteria in Mars, but that is far from super-intelligent extraterrestrials. Besides, these hypothetical life forms would themselves have to have some information code similar to DNA within their own cells. All life, especially of the higher orders, that we have ever experienced contains DNA, so it is only reasonable to say that DNA or something like it is integral to life. If extraterrestrials created DNA on earth, who created theirs? The problem is only pushed farther back in the mists of time. So who created it?

Option 2: The Life Force

Is the Life Force of pantheistic religions like Hinduism the cause of DNA? Not likely, since this Life Force is supposed to be impersonal - which means it has no will of its own. Such a force would be similar to nature's laws, another "necessity" unable to create anything except repetitious designs, like the law of karma. But since DNA is an unrepeated pattern of information, an impersonal life force is truly unlikely as its source.

Option 3: A Creator

From a process of elimination, we have reduced the possibilities greatly. From thinking through this process of elimination, here are some traits of DNA's Creator:

1. This Creator must be super-intelligent, since DNA is super-complex

2. This Creator must be very powerful in order to bring elements together and make DNA from raw materials.

3. This Creator must have the ability to see things we cannot, such as the microscopic world, yet also have the wisdom to know how to make DNA work for life in the macroscopic world.

4. This Creator must have a will and not just be pure law or necessity, since DNA has a non-repeating pattern.

5. This Creator must not be composed of DNA, since that is the very thing we are trying to explain. If whoever made DNA has no DNA, then this mind and will is much different from all life as we know it. Since all flesh has DNA, this being appears not to be made of flesh.

6. This Creator cares about life, since DNA is key to life.

Who is this Creator?

Now, where can I find a super-intelligent, super-powerful, all-seeing, wise, conscious, and non-physical Creator who has a keen interest in life on this planet? Well, every single human society since antiquity already claims that such a being exists: God. Isn't it strange that all human societies have the consciousness of a being they cannot see, hear, taste, smell, or feel? Yet DNA shows that this kind of being is just what is required for DNA's very existence! This is no coincidence.

We Knew It All Along

The Creator of DNA put within our consciousness (in our DNA!) That He exists and can be known. No other cause can adequately explain how the non-repeating, incredibly complex information in DNA came into existence. Even the philosopher Antony Flew, the most renown atheist of the twentieth century, made a 180 and admitted near the end of his life that God must exist because of DNA. The discovery of DNA was one of the most pertinent reasons for this atheist's turnaround.

Thus, DNA is powerful evidence that God exists just as these words right here are evidence that a person exists behind them. These words couldn't write themselves, even over millions of years, because they do not mean anything in themselves, but have meaning only within the higher code, or language, they belong in. The physics that make these words possible for you to see - the ink, paper, printer - cannot make the words for the simple reason that information is not part of the physical world. The same information could be written with a pencil or even with squirts of lemon juice. Thus, the natural laws of the physical world have nothing to do with information. Physical laws can only work with the information encoded within it. But it can't create any new information, like DNA. That requires, as Dr. Werner Gitt concludes, a mind behind the matter. And God is the only mind that qualifies as capable of creating DNA.

?Are You Highly Sensitive

Do you often feel overwhelmed by your environment or the people around you? Has anyone ever Called you shy - or worse, "too sensitive"? Do you care Deeply about EVERYTHING? You may be a Highly Sensitive Soul - a person of deep empathy and high intensity, with powerful intuition, awareness, and intelligence. Being Highly Sensitive, you have a uniquely Perceptive sensors system. Therefore you are more sensitive to emotions, energy, environmental conditions such as Microsoft lighting or sound, other people, excitement, and stress. As a result of constant stimuli, Easily you may feel overwhelmed or unable to cope. Things can be confusing Particularly When others seem unperturbed by the Same experiences. For example, your friends might be Able to shop all day, go out to dinner, and then head to a loud party. For you, That Would Be Unbearable.Research psychologist Dr. Elaine Aron, author of The Highly Sensitive Person, has high sensitivity extensively studied. Her research shows That being sensitive is a temperament or personality trait, one inherited usuall. According to Dr. Aron, up to 20% of the population is Highly Sensitive.How To Tell If You Are Highly SensitiveBeing Highly Sensitive comes with a number of gifts, as well as challenges. See if any of these symbols Highly Sensitive Qualities resonate strongly with you.First You are Deeply affected by all Aspects of your life.As a Sensitive Soul, you have great emotional passion, intensity, and depth. You may have been told That your emotions are "too much." You are sensitive, caring, and Easily affected by the energy and emotions of others. These Qualities make it easy to lose touch with your needs and desires.Second You have Heightened Perceptive skills.A Sensitive Soul is intuitive, highly aware, and keenly observant of the subtleties of your environment, Including energy, light, noise, smell, texture, and temperature. You may ook be empathic or even psychic. Operate Your Perceptive skills in the physical, Intellectual, emotional, and spiritual realms. You tie together things you see into complex and original concepts. This makes you a visionary.Third You have a lower tolerance for stimulation Than others.Because you receive so much information from your surroundings, your threshold for what's "too much" is significantly lower than option For those around you. This means: a) You may be seen as shy or timido, and b) You may feel uncomfortable dissimilar to others Because you respond so differently to stimulation.4th You are HIGHLY Thorough and conscientious in all your undertakings.A Sensitive Soul makes a great employee. You concentrate intensely and process multi-source information. Referring to: you require privacy, uninterrupted time, and little or no pressure in order it to your best work.5th You have a strong relationship with aesthetics and art.As a Highly Sensitive Soul, you have a passion for beauty, art, and aesthetics. You may be HIGHLY artistic and creative yourself. You Easily create beauty and comfort. Seeing things "out of alignment" can actually be Physically or psychically distressing.6th Your inner life is just as intriguing and inspiring as your outer life.Likely you have a rich, complex inner life and are HIGHLY imaginative. You may find it challenging to connect to "real world" Priorities and realities.7th You absolutely require private time alone in order to feel replenished.Up to 70% of Highly Sensitive Souls are introverted. But even extroverted sensitives need downtime to Rejuvenate, Often in a Darkened, quiet room.8th You have a strong spiritual connection and depth.If you are Highly Sensitive, and you experience profound spiritual connection with the divine and / or spiritual realm. You "see" a lot in what Appears common. Because of this you may feel truly Impatient with the Mundane.Learning To Thrive: What You NeedLearning to Thrive as a Highly Sensitive Soul presents challenges. If you're sensitive, Likely you have accumulated years of training in trying Overcome the trait Because you do not "fit in" with society. And yet being Highly Sensitive is a vital part of you.A first step toward your thriving as a Sensitive Soul is to understand and accept your trait. Hear this now: There is absolutely nothing wrong with you. You are just different. As one of my clients says, being Highly Sensitive is both a gift and a responsibility.Sensitive Souls require regular self-care, Meaningful work, and supportive relationships. Working with a coach or therapist sensitive Who helps you tune into your own magnificent inner guidance system - your sensitivity - is a powerful Means of support.Additionally, there are books, websites, web-based communities, and Gatherings teleconference on the subject. Connecting with like-minded souls is Often Deeply healing for sensitive persons.As you begin to manage your life in a way That truly works for you, you will trust the power and gift of your sensitivity, and be inspired to share your much-needed wisdom with the world.