Infants and young children have brains with a superpower, of sorts, say neuroscientists. Whereas adults process most discrete neural tasks in specific areas in one or the other of their brain's two hemispheres, youngsters use both the right and left hemispheres to do the same task. The finding suggests a possible reason why children appear to recover from neural injury much easier than adults.

Stop scratching: rubbing skin activates an anti-itch pathway in the spinal cord, according to new research.

Plant protein foods -- like lentils, beans, and nuts --c an provide vital nutrients using a small fraction of the land required to produce meat and dairy. By shifting to these foods, much of the remaining land could support ecosystems that absorb CO2, according to a new study.

When acorn woodpeckers inhabiting high-quality territories die, nearby birds begin a battle royal to win the vacant spot. Researchers used radio tags to understand the immense effort woodpecker warriors expend traveling to and fighting in these dangerous battles. They also found spectator woodpeckers go to great lengths to collect social information, coming from kilometers around just to watch...

Recent cancer studies have shown that genomic mutations leading to cancer can occur years, or even decades, before a patient is diagnosed. Researchers have developed a statistical model that analyses genomic data to predict whether a patient has a high or low risk of developing esophageal cancer. The results could enable early detection and improve treatment of oesophageal cancer in future.

Scientists looked at links between the personality profiles of over 3.3m US residents and the 'topography' of 37,227 ZIP codes. Distinct psychological mix associated with mountain populations is consistent with theory that harsh frontiers attracted certain personalities. Researchers argue this may be residual from US frontier expansion during the 19th century, as personality pattern is strongest...

In a significant advance, researchers working towards a brain-controlled prosthetic limb at the UC San Francisco Weill Institute for Neurosciences have shown that machine learning techniques helped a paralyzed individual learn to control a computer cursor using their brain activity without requiring extensive daily retraining, which has been a requirement of all past brain-computer interface (BCI)...

A team of scientists has just announced the creation of a new type of meta-DNA structures that will open up the fields of optoelectronics (including information storage and encryption) as well as synthetic biology.

Leather is used as a durable and flexible material in many aspects of everyday life including furniture and clothing. Leather substitutes derived from fungi are considered to be an ethical and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional bovine leather.

Sharks' non-bony skeletons were thought to be the template before bony internal skeletons evolved, but a new fossil discovery suggests otherwise.

An innovative genetic study of blood protein levels has demonstrated how genetic data can be used to support drug target prioritization by identifying the causal effects of proteins on diseases.

A fifth of carbon dioxide emissions come from multinational companies' global supply chains, according to a new study that shows the scope of multinationals' influence on climate change.

Hundreds of innovators, research pioneers, clinicians, industry leaders and policy makers from all around Europe are united by a vision of how to revolutionize healthcare. Scientists now present a detailed roadmap of how to leverage the latest scientific breakthroughs and technologies over the next decade, to track, understand and treat human cells throughout an individual's lifetime.

Ocean warming is paradoxically driving bottom-dwelling invertebrates -- including sea scallops, blue mussels, surfclams and quahogs that are valuable to the shellfish industry -- into warmer waters and threatening their survival, a new study shows.