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Stem cells from schizophrenics produce fewer neurons

New research shows that a genetic mutation associated with schizophrenia alters the process of cellular differentiation, disturbing the balance of neurons and glia in the brain

Stem cells obtained from patients with schizophrenia carry a genetic mutation that alters the ratio of the different type of nerve cells they produce, according to a new study by researchers in Japan. The findings, published today in the journal Translational Psychiatry, suggest that abnormal neural differentiation may contribute to the disease, such that fewer neurons and more non-neuronal cells are generated during the earliest stages of brain development.

Schizophrenia is a debilitating mental illness that affects about 1 in 100 people. It is known to be highly heritable, but is genetically complex: so far, researchers have identified over 100 rare genetic variations and dozens of mutations associated with increased risk of developing the disease.

Related: Brain’s immune cells hyperactive in schizophrenia

Related: Turning urine into brain cells | Mo Costandi

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Obesity alters brain structure and function

It’s not just your waistline that suffers as you put on weight. Researchers are beginning to find puzzling new links between obesity, memory loss and dementia

Lucy Cheke and her colleagues at the University of Cambridge recently invited a few participants into her lab for a kind of ‘treasure hunt’.

The participants navigated a virtual environment on a computer screen, dropping off various objects along their way. They then answered a series of questions to test their memory of the task, such as where they had hidden a particular object.

Related: How your eyes betray your thoughts

Related: How to optimise your brain's waste disposal system

Related: Gut bacteria regulate nerve fibre insulation

Related: Obesity linked to memory deficits

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Breathing modulates brain activity and mental function

New research shows that the rhythm of breathing directly impacts neural activity in a network of brain areas involved in smell, memory and emotions

The rhythm of breathing co-ordinates electrical activity across a network of brain regions associated with smell, memory, and emotions, and can enhance their functioning, according to a new study by researchers at Northwestern University. The findings, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, suggest that breathing does not merely supply oxygen to the brain and body, but may also organise the activity of populations of cells within multiple brain regions to help orchestrate complex behaviours.

Related: Your nose knows death is imminent | Mo Costandi

Related: A cooler way to evaluate brain surgery patients

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Face-selective brain region continues to grow in adulthood

New findings challenge our understanding of how the brain matures

Faces are important to us. From the moment we are are born, we prefer to look at faces than at other, inanimate objects, and, being social animals, we encounter faces every day of our lives. The face is the first thing we look to when identifying other people; faces also convey emotions, informing us of peoples’ mood, and from them we can usually determine a person’s sex and, sometimes, roughly how old they are. Eye movements can also reveal to us something about another person’s intentions.

Related: How your eyes betray your thoughts

Related: Live imaging of synapse density in the human brain

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Sleep may help us to forget by rebalancing brain synapses

New research provides evidence for the idea that sleep restores cellular homeostasis in the brain and helps us to forget irrelevant information

We spend one third of our lives sleeping, but we still do not know exactly why we sleep. Recent research shows that that the brain does its housekeeping while we sleep, and clears away its waste. According to another hypothesis, sleep plays the vital role of restoring the right balance of brain synapses to enhance learning, and two studies published in today’s issue of Science now provide the most direct evidence yet for this idea.

We do know that sleep is important for consolidating newly formed memories. During waking hours, we learn all kinds of new information, both consciously and unconsciously. To store it, the brain modifies large numbers of synaptic connections, making some of them stronger and larger, and it’s now thought that as we sleep other synapses are weakened or destroyed, so that the important new information is stored for later use, while irrelevant material, which could interfere with learning, is not.

Related: The Homer Simpson effect: forgetting to remember

Related: How to optimise your brain's waste disposal system

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How to become a super memorizer – and what it does to your brain

New research shows that we can train our brains to become memory champions

To many of us, having to memorize a long list of items feels like a chore. But for others, it is more like a sport. Every year, hundreds of these ‘memory athletes’ compete with one another in the World Memory Championships, memorising hundreds of words, numbers, or other pieces of information within minutes. The current world champion is Alex Mullen, who beat his competitors by memorizing a string of more than 550 digits in under 5 minutes.

You may think that such prodigious mental feats are linked to having an unusual brain, or to being extraordinarily clever. But they are not. New research published in the journal Neuron shows that you, too, can be a super memorizer with just six weeks of intensive mnemonic training, and also reveals the long-lasting changes to brain structure and function that occur as a result of such training.

Related: The Homer Simpson effect: forgetting to remember

Related: A neural pathway that erases memories

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Researchers develop non-invasive deep brain stimulation method

Researchers at MIT have developed a new method of electrically stimulating deep brain tissues without opening the skull

Since 1997, more than 100,000 Parkinson’s Disease patients have been treated with deep brain stimulation (DBS), a surgical technique that involves the implantation of ultra-thin wire electrodes. The implanted device, sometimes referred to as a ‘brain pacemaker’, delivers electrical pulses to a structure called the subthalamic nucleus, located near the centre of the brain, and effectively alleviates many of the physical symptoms of the disease, such as tremor, muscle rigidity, and slowed movements.

DBS is generally safe but, like any surgical procedure, comes with some risks. First and foremost, it is highly invasive, requiring small holes to be drilled in the patient’s skull, through which the electrodes are inserted. Potential complications of this include infection, stroke, and bleeding on the brain. The electrodes, which are implanted for long periods of time, sometimes move out of place; they can also cause swelling at the implantation site; and the wire connecting them to the battery, typically placed under the skin of the chest, can erode, all of which require additional surgical procedures.

Related: Blowing up the brain to reveal its finer details

Related: Traces of memory in a dish | Mo Costandi

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[ Cooking & Recipes ] Open Question : My mom keeps putting me down and making fun of the meals I was making before using hello fresh and it hurts my feelings ?




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[ Other - Games & Recreation ] Open Question : A dnd session where the party killed a manticore and decided to bring the corpse back to town to sell. How much money should this give them?




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Why was that conservative Yosemite Sam always after that liberal Bugs Bunny?

Why did right-winger Yosemite Sam have problem with the leftist Bugs Bunny?




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[ Polls & Surveys ] Open Question : Do you think Beyoncé should go back to the kitchen?

Or better yet go back to Africa, we don’t need any feminazis ruining our society




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[ Mathematics ] Open Question : Trig maths?

I know AB and angle ABD, does anyone know how to work out BD and the area of ABD? Thanks




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Are the people who are complaining about this "LOCKDOWN" and want things opened up, the MAIN REASON the US WILL DIE OF COVID-19 ?

I say - Lock everything down, as we are, and keep everything locked down for years  This way, what every these people are complaining about will be long gone 




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[ Physics ] Open Question : Help with a non-uniform moments question...?

Ok, so I have tried and do not get the same as as the book (1.6m). Can someone show the forces diagram or something , please?




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[ Polls & Surveys ] Open Question : What is your typical mood?

happy, sad, meh, mad, or what?




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[ Mathematics ] Open Question : How to go from step 1 to step 2?

Is this some sort of properties for fractions? I know how to arrive at step 1 from step 2 but not step 1 to step 2.




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Should Gregory and Travis McMichael be freed and given a medal of honor for their heroic actions of taking a dangerous thug of the streets?




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Are state/national forests open to go hiking?




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[ Elections ] Open Question : See why Boris Johnson will tell public to ‘stay alert, control the virus and save lives’ ?

https://diazhub.com/news/boris-johnson-will-tell-public-to-stay-alert-control-the-virus-and-save-lives/




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Would Northern Ireland be different to the Republic of Ireland culturally?




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[ Other - Food & Drink ] Open Question : Is there any food not allowed in your country that you want to try?

First, I would love to try Casu marzu and for dessert I am curious about durian. or a drink such as wormwood absinthe.




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Will my friend be arrested for going fishing on his kayak everyday? ?

He catches the fish, breathes on them, then throws them back. These infected fish will infect all bodies of water with Covid-19. He goes saltwater and fresh water fishing 




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Should President Trump continue to have manufacturing sent to China???




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[ Wrestling ] Open Question : Do you think The Rock is a 1990s, 2000s or 2010s wrestler in the WWF/E ?

I think The Rock is a combination of both but barely because when he made his debut in the WWF in late 1996, he wasn't even called The Rock yet he was Rocky Maivia at that time. By the time he started getting over with the fans as The Rock, the 90s were almost over because it was 1998 - 99 by then. He spent more time as The Rock in the 2000s but even though he was still in the WWF/E when the decade started, he was gone by 2004 (by then he was already doing movies and wrestling at the same time). Then The Rock stopped wrestling completely and spent the rest of the 00s decade making movies, he spent even less time wrestling in the 2010s which is his most recent run in the WWE he missed 2010, came back in 2011 and was gone by 2013 aside from one match in 2016. What do you guys think ?




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Why is it that marijuana unlocks your 6th sense?




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[ United States ] Open Question : How do I report my income to irs. What forms should I be using?

I am a dog sitter for my sister, she pays me around $100 a week. I also do extra chores around the house such as cleaning as an exchange for not paying rent. The money she pays me is usually transferred through zelle or paid cash. Im not sure if I would be considered an independent contractor or an employee. Also does she have to report to the irs my income and what forms would she have to use? Ive always received w2s from employers, so I’m Clueless to what I should do this tax season.  Thank you in advance!  Sorry I forgot to mention that my income for this last year was approximately $5000




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Trump says he will move the capital to Moscow to avoid the virus. what do you think of his plan?




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[ Singles & Dating ] Open Question : Is it seen as wrong for women to be protective of themselves, and not reliant on a male protector?




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[ Movies ] Open Question : What are some very little known great/good horror or sci-fi movies to watch?

Examples being: XTro (UK), Oldboy (S.Korea), Girl With a Dragon Tattoo (Sweden), Predestination (Australia) ... something like these




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[ Polls & Surveys ] Open Question : What happens if you go to a concert just to stand in the corner and stink the place up with your farts?




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[ Politics ] Open Question : If Trump is such a genius, how come he says all those dumb things ?




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[ Law & Ethics ] Open Question : If I change my legal name is there a chance my future employers would see my old name?

I just got sent an electronic message from one of the employers stating that I am unsuitable for the role based on my police record. I'm under the impression some people are still choosing to impersonate me on several job search engines by giving each employer the idea I'm an ex-con with work skills that came out of prison. Is there a chance they can see my old name?




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[ Singles & Dating ] Open Question : I have an online gf i never met in person,is it cheating if i slept with someone irl?

I have an online gf it seems kind of serious but we've never really made attempts on meeting but i slept with someone irl,is that cheating? Should I tell her?




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[ Video & Online Games ] Open Question : Is my Sim thick?

is she thicc af? I made this in the Sims 4 lol 




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[ Polls & Surveys ] Open Question : How would fragrance companies benefit by the invention of smell-o-vision?




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[ Politics ] Open Question : Why can democrats never explain how sexism against women is a real issue when they get special treatment in society and courts?

Feminism is a lie and useless in modern America, patriarchy is a good thing and natural order of society. Women be like I'm oppressed cause I don't always get my way and choose careers that pay less




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[ Standards & Testing ] Open Question : Can you help me my exam question?




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[ Polls & Surveys ] Open Question : True/False: Your bank account is healing - turns out you're the virus all along?

????




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[ Polls & Surveys ] Open Question : You have a gun to your head and you have one phone call...?

If they answer you DIE, if they don’t you live. Who are you calling?




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[ Movies ] Open Question : Name of a movie about a man visiting a small town living with a single mom and her son. Everyone thinks he is a coward but he is a war hero?




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[ Religion & Spirituality ] Open Question : The Epistles were written to the members of the body of Christ who'd been Holy Spirit baptized (I Cor 12:11-13). What are today's Christians?

....GOING TO DO WHEN THEY BELIEVE THEY APPLY TO THEM BUT THEY HAVEN'T BEEN HOLY SPIRIT BAPTIZED? TODAY'S CHRISTIANS HAVEN'T BEEN "QUICKENED BACK TO LIFE" (EPHESIANS 2:1)  BY HIS "POWER THAT CAME UPON THEM" (ACTS 1:8) WITH HOLY SPIRIT BAPTISM (ACTS 1:5) AS THEY WERE "BORN AGAIN OF THE SPIRIT" (JOHN 3:5-7) FROM THEIR "DEAD SPIRITS" (ROMANS 5:12-14) AND WERE "RESURRECTED" (I COR 15) FROM THEIR GRAVES" (EZEKIEL 37:12-14). WHAT ARE THESE "DEAD SPIRITS" GOING TO DO? 




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[ Laptops & Notebooks ] Open Question : How can I connect senheisser $S 120 RF headphone to laptop?




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[ Religion & Spirituality ] Open Question : Why does God want me to kiss his a s s so much?

So I was talking to this cute Christian girl and she was apparently interested in me. We even set up a date and aal that. Then she found out I'm an atheist, and she said that "She's looking for someone to share her faith" and bailed out on me. Why does God want me to kiss his a ss so badly, for me to simply date a girl? Does he have a perverted crush on me?




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[ Other - Health ] Open Question : Can you faint from being cold and then being hot?

yesterday night i had come from the cold and i was freezing!. i immediately got into a hot shower - i don't know why but i started feeling dizzy: my vision started going and i was confused then my ears started ringing and i was scared. i shouted for someone and my brother came: he asked if i was ok but i said i felt dizzy and i couldn't really see him at all. i said i felt faint and he said sit down slowly - so i did. eventually i closed my eyes and it helped; i feel better now but why did it happen?!.




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California life in the COVID-19 pandemic

The state of California has enacted a shelter-in-place order in an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus, urging residents to stay in their homes except for essential travel and closing non-essential businesses. Red carpet events have been canceled. The production of many films and TV shows has been suspended.




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Britain to launch 14-day quarantine for arriving travelers, airlines say

British airlines said they have been told the government is planning a 14-day quarantine for anyone arriving there from any country other Ireland.




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Memo: Prior COVID-19 diagnosis 'permanently disqualifying' for U.S. military service

Military Entrance Processing Stations won't process individuals who have had COVID-19 for military service, even if they've fully recovered from the virus, the Pentagon confirmed this week.




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Army solicits bids for wearable technology to detect COVID-19 in early stages

The Army is requesting bids for a $25 million contract for wearable sensors to detect early symptoms of COVID-19.




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FDA authorizes for antigen-based coronavirus test

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued the first emergency use authorization for a new kind of coronavirus test this week.




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Tesla sues California county as Musk threatens to move operations

Tesla filed a lawsuit Saturday against Alameda County, Calif., and CEO Elon Musk threatened to move the company's headquarters and operations out of state.