Neat News - Neat things do happen

In 1963, the arguably most important gold treasure ever found in Europe was discovered. As it turns out it contains also two iron artefacts that may be even more interesting since they seem from a time before terrestrial iron was produced, that is, it is assumed that it is made of meteoritic iron.

related: #Villena #meteor #iron

Scientists have examined the brains of 5000 people who died with a brain disease. Only 12 of these had not the cognitive decline typical for Alzheimer patients. They found that their brains were particularly good at clearing out the toxic proteins from the brain so that they could not build up. The insight may point to a direction for medication against Alzheimer's disease.

related: #Alzheimer #cognition #toxic_protein

A new study finds that intermittent fasting and spreading the protein intake throughout the day leads to a better gut health. [Note, however, that by now there is also some evidence that intermittent fasting may lead to a significantly increased risk of cardiovascular death.]

related: #intermittent_fasting #gut #cardio

In a new study, it has been found that one month of urban gardening by town people increased the diversity of bacteria on their skin and resulted in higher levels of anti-inflammatory molecules in their blood.

related: #gardening #health

A new blood test has been developed that can establish the strength of the damaging autoimmune response found in patients with multiple sclerosis. The test may help to gain a better understanding of the illness and its connection with the Epstein-Barr virus.

related: #blood_test #multiple_sclerosis

A 13 year study with 184,000 participants has found some evidence that people who drink coffee have a reduced risk of developing Parkinson's disease than those who do not. The quarter that drank most coffee had a 40 percent reduced risk.

related: #coffee #Parkinson

Adults, in particular parents, sometimes seem to think that their advice given to (their) children is useless and bears no fruit. A new study finds, however, that even when children are apparently dismissive, they benefit from their mother's advice.

related: #advice

A new study, which rather than asking people what they eat determined the diet by analyzing the blood, found that a diet with fatty acids (as found in fish and olive oil), with vitamin E (as found in spinach and almonds), and carotenoids (as found in carrots and pumpkin) can slow down the ageing of the brain.

related: #brain #health #fish #olive #vitamin_E #carrot

In experiments with mice, it has been found that a substance called urolithin A can help in improving the memory of those infected with Alzheimer's disease. Urolithin A occurs naturally in pomegranates, strawberries, and walnuts.

related: #Alzheimer #memory #pomegranates #strawberries #walnuts

First steps have been taken to develop a drug that can target the flu virus before it has established itself and prevent it from taken hold by blocking the virus from entering human cells.

related: #flu #medication

Lithium plays a big role in making batteries, e.g. for electric cars. Now it has been found that lithium can be extracted from wastewater produced by Pennsylvania's (USA) gas fracking industry.

related: #lithium #electric_car

A vaccine has produced some low level of broadly neutralizing HIV antibodies in a small group of people in a clinical trial that started in 2019. This gives some hope that an effective vaccine against HIV may be built in the future.

related: #HIV #vaccine

In a new study across five European countries it was found that although many consumers care for sustainability issues, they value animal welfare higher in their purchasing decisions for meat and diary products.

related: #animal_welfare #consumer_decision

In a new study with mice it has been found that inhaling menthol can improve cognitive abilities and reduce the damage to the brain that Alzheimer's disease causes.

related: #menthol #Alzheimer

A new gel has been developed that can be applied orally and transform alcohol into acetic acid, thereby protecting organs (above all the liver) from taking damage by the alcohol.

related: #alcohol #detoxification

In Belgrade, Serbia, the LIQUID3 project has started to clean the air by using so-called liquid trees, that is, aquariums containing algae which use the daylight to purify the air in areas where there is no space for trees. Two such liquid trees are currently installed in Belgrade, another one in Užice, Serbia.

related: #air_quality #liquid_tree #algae

A plant based diet with fruits, vegetables, nuts, olive oil, tea, and coffee can almost half (reduce by 47 percent) the risk of the cancer progressing (compared to those eating mostly animal products), new research finds.

related: #prostate_cancer #diet

For the last 50 years, Ludington reservoir at Lake Michigan has been used to pump up water about 110 metres when there is surplus electricity and used when it is needed, thereby providing electricity for up to 1.7 million households.

related: #electricity #storage #water

Many people depend on coal, so phasing it out for combating climate change will require money to compensate these people. New research now estimates the cost: it would cost in all countries except China and India combined some payable USD 200 billion. However, including the two countries it may cost about ten times the amount.

related: #coal #phasing_out

The small change of replacing one meat-based meal per day can make a big difference to people with liver cirrhosis, since this change reduces the amount of ammonia with which their livers have to deal, new research found.

related: #liver #cirrhosis #no_meat

Even in regions were you normally cannot see auroras, they are currently visible at night due to a strong geomagnetic storm coming from our Sun.

related: #aurora #geomagnetic #Sun

A young girl who was born deaf and suffered from a gene deficiency, which meant that a certain protein was not produced, which is responsible for the communication of the ear to the brain, has successfully been treated with some gene therapy, which means that she can hear first the first time in her life and hopefully can be considered as cured.

related: #hearing #deafness #gene_therapy

New research found that people who took a common sleeping pill, suvorexant, have a slightly reduced amount of two proteins that are related to Alzheimer's disease. This insight may lead to a a new treatment for Alzheimer's disease.

related: #sleeping_pill #Alzheimer

New research has found an additional piece of evidence for the health benefits of a Mediterranean diet: A spoonful of olive oil per day in the food seems to lower the risk of dementia related death by 28 percent.

related: #Mediterranean_diet #olive_oil #health

The body has several clocks, in particular, the central circadian clock (related to the brain) and peripheral circadian clocks (controlling cellular processes in organs). New research finds that keeping these and external clocks (day/night) in sync seems to be very important for slowing down ageing.

related: #ageing #body_clocks

Although bumblebees typically forage on their own, in experiments scientists set up an environment were they had to cooperate in order to solve a problem to get a sugary liquid, and surprisingly they did.

related: #bumblebee #cooperation

A study with more than 350,000 people in the UK found that good lifestyle choices such as not smoking, exercising, sleeping sufficiently, and eating healthily, can offset the risk of dying young because of genetic risk by 62 percent.

related: #lifestyle #health

A new study following up on 10,000 Australian women for 15 years, found that those who did regular exercise of at least 150 minutes a week at an age of 47 to 52 had a better physical health later in life.

related: #exercise #health

In new research, it has been found that in the brains of Alzheimer's patients microglia cells were more frequently in a preinflammatory state, so that they have less protective abilities to flash out dead cells. This insight may offer a new approach to treating Alzheimer's.

related: #Alzheimer #cause #treatment

Not only humans can treat wounds with medicine, but chimpanzees have done so and recently a Sumatran orangutan has been observed to apply a wound in his face with some leaf pulp until the wound was completely covered. Since he did not smear any other body part, the observers assume that he was intentionally treating his wound.

related: #wound #treatment #animal

A new study finds that in North America schemes to support low income people when they buy an e-bike are worthwhile, since buying an e-bike leads on average to a reduction of car travel (and corresponding CO₂ emissions) between 30 and 40 percent.

related: #e_bike #carbon