Neat News - Neat things do happen

Many people start the New Year with resolutions, but only few stick to them. New research suggests that streaks, that is, tracking a series of winning rounds, as used in apps and platforms as Wordle, Duolingo, or Snapchat, are a powerful tool to stick to New Year resolutions. We wish you a good start of the New Year 2024!

related: #streak #New_Year_resolution

A new study finds that adolescents who do a five minute mindfulness training before reading improve their reading skills more than others. The mindfulness training involves self-aware breathing and cultivating positive thoughts.

related: #mindfulness #reading

New research has gained a better understanding how some jellyfish can regrow tentacles within days. Crucial seem to be their ability to generate a clump of undifferetiated cells that then can repair damage and even grow into tentacles. In the long run, the insight may help to improve human regenerative abilities.

related: #jellyfish #repair #regrow

A Swedish company has started to build tall wind turbine towers of wood, which have the advantage that they can be more easily assembled of smaller wooden parts and glue and that the carbon footprint of the raw materials is smaller than that of traditional steel towers.

related: #wind #wood

Certain tipping points must be avoided in order not to damage our environment irrevocably. As a new study points out there are, however, certain positive tipping points which when achieved gain so much momentum that humanity can get on top of the problem by rapid decarbonization. As an example, they mention how Norway managed to make a transition from less than 10 percent to almost 90 percent electric vehicles in less than a decade.

related: #tipping_point #decarbonization #climate

Babies react differently to the language they hear before they are born than to other languages. This gives evidence to the assumption that prenatal experiences have a formative influence and contribute to language learning.

related: #language #learning #baby #prenatal

Staying focused is important for achieving goals and can be difficult when the task is boring and/or time consuming. Scientists studied how to keep on the task and not be distracted. They found that setting concrete goals enhanced sustained attention.

related: #focus #goal #distraction

Scientists studied the sleeping and ruminating pattern of reindeer and found that they can multitask and sleep and ruminate at the same time. It is speculated that this allows them to spend more time feeding during summer when the nights are very short high in the north and still get some time for sleep.

related: #reindeer #ruminate #sleep

A new study looked into the protein content of algae commonly used as food and established that they can replace meat as a source of protein in maintaining and building up of muscle in young healthy adults.

related: #algae #food

A new study finds that HIV patients who take antiretroviral drugs have only about half the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (for women an even more than 70 percent reduced risk) as the general population. To some degree the effect is due to the immune suppression in HIV patients, but partly also to the medication. More research is needed.

related: #MS #HIV #antiretroviral

Declining an invitation may be disappointing or even offending and so people often accept an invitation even if they do not really want to. However, new research finds that occasionally declining is less severe than generally expected.

related: #invitation #decline

New research with mice points to the fact that some patients with diabetes type 2 have heightened levels of a newly discovered enzyme, which when inhibited makes the classical symptoms of diabetes go away. This approach may offer a new treatment for at least some patients with diabetes 2.

related: #diabetes2 #enzyme

At the same time as stopping nuclear energy, Germany has increased the amount of electricity produced from renewable sources (above all wind and solar) by 5 percentage points compared to last year to now almost 52 percent.

related: #renewable_energy #electricity #Germany

A new study shows that when the gut bacteria are diverse that then harmful bacteria are blocked in their growth since they do not find the nutrients they need for propagation.

related: #bacteria #gut #diversity

Studying the faeces of 112 babies, a new study finds that breastfeeding changes the makeup of the baby's gut so that it has a positive effect on the brain development. Even some breastfeeding helps.

related: #breastfeeding #brain

What is better against climate change in an arid area, to plant trees or to build a solar farm? A new study finds that it is by far better to build a solar farm.

related: #solar #reforestation

Although giving care for somebody can be very stressful and can have other negative health aspects, it seems to make people more resilient and is linked to a reduced risk of depression.

related: #care #depression

In a phase III trial, a new combination treatment with individualized cancer growth blocking drugs for leukaemia in adults was studied. More than 95 percent of the patients were in remission three years after the start of the treatment, considerably more than with standard treatment.

related: #leukaemia #growth_blocker #combination

Many have hoped for more decisive action against climate change at the UN climate summit in Dubai. Still, all almost 200 countries represented agreed for the first time on a transition away from fossil fuels.

related: #climate #fossil_fuel

In a new meta-study it has been found that certain symptoms in patients with mild forms of Alzheimer's such as sleep disorder can be alleviated by light therapy, where patients are exposed, for example, for 30 minutes per day to very bright light mimicking the sun.

related: #Alzheimer #light_therapy

It has been known that people in green environments are healthier than others. Now studying the DNA of more than 7800 people it has been found that they tend to have younger biological ages than actual ages when looking at the shape of their body cells, regardless of race, economic status, or drinking or smoking habits.

related: #biological_age #green #environment

Tiny antibodies found in llamas have surprisingly the ability to neutralize different human noroviruses (outside the body). The finding may lead in the long term to a new treatment against noroviruses.

related: #llama #antibody #norovirus

A new study finds that for 90 percent of patients with severe asthma the therapy with high-dose inhaled steroids - which can have significant side effects - can be replaced by a treatment with a monoclonal antibody called benralizumab, which has much reduced side effects.

related: #asthma #treatment

In a proof-of-concept study with more than 400 babies born with HIV it was found that many who received antiretroviral therapy (ART) within 48 hours after their birth seem to be HIV free without the need for life long treatment. Normally, for adults the virus returns after a month when ART is stopped.

related: #HIV #newborn #antiretroviral

Coral reefs are threatened because of global warming. Now a study finds that the recovery of coral reefs is helped by the neighbourhood of bird colonies, since the bird droppings contain important nutrients for the reefs.

related: #reef #birds

Studying the impact of an 18-month long meditation programme on elder people it was found that it improved their well being, in particular for those people who start with a low level of psychological well being.

related: #meditation #well_being

Students in a school in Sheffield, UK, planted a rowan tree to take a concrete step against the polluted air in their area. Their hope is that there will be a hundred million more.

related: #tree

A new study finds that B12 is particularly important for the development of the brains and bodies of babies. They would typically get it from the breast milk of their mothers. However, when the mother's diet provides only insufficient amounts of vitamin B12, supplements are important for the development of the baby.

related: #vitamin_B12 #development #baby

In experiments with mice, researchers managed for the first time (except for immediate treatment within 4-5 hours) to partially restore the nerve function lost in a stroke by treating them with a class of substances that inhibit the metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR5). A positive effect shows after 30 minutes. However, a treatment of several weeks is necessary to make the positive effect permanent. More experiments are needed.

related: #stroke #treatment

People with alcohol use disorder often show thinning regions in their brains. After 7.3 months of alcohol abstinence typically the thickness of the damaged cortex regions is restored, a new study shows.

related: #alcohol #brain #abstinence

In 27 years, a wildlife vet in Uganda has helped to increase the number of mountain gorillas from 300 to around 500. She monitors the health situation and educates local people to mediate the effects of climate change to protect the mountain gorillas and has founded the "Conservation Through Public Health Trust".

related: #gorilla #wildlife #protection #climate_change