A traditional Amazonian psychedelic brew is an effective and rapid-acting antidepressant, according to a paper just published. But the new study revives some long-standing questions.
Ayahuasca is a mixture of herbs, traditionally used for spiritual and therapeutic purposes. The main active ingredients are N,N-DMT, a potent psychedelic, and several molecules that inhibit the enzyme MAO. The MAO inhibitors serve to prevent the N,N-DMT from being broken down by the digestive system, allowing it to ...read more
Here is how sea surface temperatures differed from the the 1981-2010 average during May of 2018. (Source: ENSO Blog/Climate.gov)
While 2019 is still a long way off, we’ve now got some strong hints that the coming year could bring even warmer global temperatures, plus droughts in some regions, and floods in others.
These climatic and weather effects would come from an El Niño that seems to be gestating in the tropical Pacific.
A warming of tropical Pacific ...read more
By Caroline Nickerson
Over the past few months, members of the SciStarter team have been working around the country to share new citizen science projects at science festivals. It’s been so much fun to join others excited about science and get a chance to meet some of you!
Organizing a science festival is a labor of love, fueled by the passion of the coordinators, exhibitors, and participants.
The Cambridge Science Festival was one of the first of its kind in the United S ...read more
A composite image of over 500 U.S. Christian’s perceptions of what God looks like. (Credit: Joshua Jackson Et Al)
What would you say if you saw this stranger on a bus? Well, if you’re Christian, you might say he’s God.
Psychologists from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill surveyed 511 Christians in the U.S. and, based on the participants’ combined perceptions, this is roughly what they thought Go ...read more
An urban fox scavenges on the edge of a park. (Credit: Shutterstock)
For their first 100 million years on planet Earth, our mammal ancestors relied on the cover of darkness to escape their dinosaur predators and competitors. Only after the meteor-induced mass extinction of dinosaurs 66 million years ago could these nocturnal mammals explore the many wondrous opportunities available in the light of day.
Fast forward to the present, and the honeymoon in the sun may be over for mammals. Theyâ ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine
