The funny thing about volcanic eruptions is that people (broadly speaking) pay attention when (1) a volcano that hasn't erupted recently erupts; (2) a volcano near people erupts and (3) a new eruption begins where a famous previous eruption occurred. The media descends and you can find volcanologists (like me!) being interviewed about the ramifications of this, that and the other volcanic thing. That's great (at first), because awareness of the volcanic activity on Earth means that people may be ...read more
Dental problems have tormented humans for ages, but the recent discovery and analysis of two 4,000-year-old teeth reveal how the bacteria populating our mouths have changed over time. The teeth, found in a limestone cave in Killuragh, County Limerick, Ireland, along with other skeletal remains, have helped researchers piece together a timeline of oral health. Their findings have been published in a new paper released in Molecular Biology and Evolution. Although fossilized teeth and their DNA ar ...read more
More than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease; a figure experts project to double by the year 2050. Alzheimer’s is the seventh leading cause of death and the number one cause of dementia in the U.S.While lifestyle factors like eating brain-boosting foods and managing high blood pressure can help prevent it, many adults are still at high risk. However, recent research suggests another lifestyle habit — the ancient yet powerful practice of yoga — may be especially effecti ...read more
Cataract surgery is one of the most popular and commonly performed procedures in the world. The vast majority of patients have excellent outcomes with few complications.Here are the numbers:As ophthalmologists who have performed thousands of these procedures, we know that many patients have misconceptions about both cataracts and the surgery. For example, some think a cataract is a growth on the eye’s surface.We like to compare a cataract with the frosted glass of a bathroom window, where ligh ...read more
Ancient megalithic temples dating back to the European Stone Age drive popular imagination. Places like Stonehenge give rise to theories that include everything from ancient druids to signs of the influence of aliens on ancient human civilizations.The reality is we often know relatively little about these neolithic megastructures. The Near East saw the development of cities like Göbekli Tepe more than 10,000 years ago. At the same time, the Fertile Valley gave birth to various cities and civili ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine