Natural short sleepers seem to have won the genetic lottery, which allows them to thrive on very little sleep. (Credit: Shutterstock)
Your sleep needs are probably influenced by your genes.It’s a new way of thinking about sleep that's gaining steam, thanks to a rare group of people known as natural short sleepers, or those who can function normally on less than six hours of sleep a night.
And now, a team of researchers at the University of California, San Francisco — who identi ...read more
Saharan silver ants. The insects can move at blistering speeds across fiery desert sands. (Credit: Pavel Krasensky/Shutterstock)
Around noon each day in the Sahara Desert, silver ants emerge from their underground nests. Despite this being the hottest part of the day, they come out to scavenge dead insects, which are most likely to drop dead when sand temperatures can reach 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius). The ants have to be quick, though. Their prey is scarce, and they have lot ...read more
Kids these days, amiright? (Credit: aastock/Shutterstock)
Ugh. Kids these days. They've got no respect. They dress all weird. They're always on their phones. And don't get me started on their music!
Versions of this argument have echoed through editorials, taverns, hair salons and Roman bathhouses for millennia. Kids these days just aren't what they used to be.
To hear the various ills of youth, one might well think that Western civilization has been in decline since it started. T ...read more
Our feline companions can pass parasites, pathogens and more on to us. (Credit: Lario/Shutterstock)
A good snuggle with a cat can improve anyone’s day — well, assuming you don’t have allergies. But like any other animal, our domestic felines can carry disease, and sometimes those illnesses pass to us.
Updated guidelines from the American Association of Feline Practitioners include a list of which diseases cat owners might be at risk for.
Zoonotic Worries
The 36 ...read more
Caster Semenya (right) competes during the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Semenya filed a discrimination lawsuit against the International Association of Athletics Federations, challenging a rule that female athletes' testosterone levels must be below a certain limit. (Credit: CP DC Press/Shutterstock)
New research finds that women with boosted testosterone levels develop more lean muscle mass and can run longer before getting tired.
Though some researchers and activists think t ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine