Latest News Releases 14 April

Little birds’ personalities shine through their song – and may help find a mate

Flinders University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In birds, singing behaviours play a critical role in mating and territory defence.

Although birdsong can signal individual quality and personality, very few studies have explored the relationship between individual personality and song complexity, and none has investigated this in females, say Flinders University animal behaviour experts.

Journal: Royal Society Open Science
Funder: Australian Research Council

Foraging on the wing: How can ecologically similar birds live together?

Penn State
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study used modern methods to reassess a foundational study in biology that explained how ecologically similar species of wood warblers coexist. The research team examined foraging behavior, physical characteristics, diet and evolutionary history of 13 warbler species and found that how these songbirds coexist is more nuanced than originally proposed.

Journal: Biology Letters
Funder: U.S. National Science Foundation, Schmidt Sciences, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Penn State Eberly College of Science, Pennsylvania State University

Rapid rise in vaping in Britain has stalled

University College London
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The rapid rise of vaping that began when disposable e-cigarettes became popular in 2021 appears to have stalled in Great Britain, according to a new study by UCL (University College London) researchers.

Journal: Addiction
Funder: Cancer Research UK

Growing wildflowers on disused urban land can damage bee health

University of Cambridge
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Wildflowers growing on land previously used for buildings and factories can accumulate lead, arsenic and other metal contaminants from the soil, which are consumed by pollinators as they feed, a new study has found.

Journal: Ecology and Evolution
Funder: USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture

Brain areas necessary for reasoning identified

University College London
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A team of researchers at UCL and UCLH have identified the key brain regions that are essential for logical thinking and problem solving.

Journal: Brain

Symptoms of ice cold feet + heaviness in legs strongly linked to varicose veins

BMJ Group
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Hypersensitivity to the cold, especially ice cold feet, as well as a feeling of heaviness in the legs, are linked to the presence of varicose veins, finds a large study published in the open access journal Open Heart.

Journal: Open Heart

Single mid-afternoon preventer inhaler dose may be best timing for asthma control

BMJ Group
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A single daily preventer dose of inhaled corticosteroid (beclomethasone), taken mid afternoon, may be the best timing for effective asthma control as it suppresses the usual nocturnal worsening of symptoms more effectively than dosing regimens at other times of the day, suggest the results of a small clinical trial published in the journal Thorax.

Journal: Thorax
Funder: JP Moulton Charitable Foundation (research)

Brisk walking pace + time spent at this speed may lower risk of heart rhythm abnormalities

BMJ Group
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A brisk walking pace, and the amount of time spent at this speed, may lower the risk of heart rhythm abnormalities, such as atrial fibrillation, tachycardia (rapid heartbeat), and bradycardia (very slow heartbeat), finds research published online in the journal Heart.

Journal: Heart

Common genetic variants linked to drug-resistant epilepsy

University College London
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Certain common genetic changes might make some people with focal epilepsy less responsive to seizure medications, finds a new global study led by researchers at UCL and UTHealth Houston.

Journal: EBioMedicine

Gene-based blood test for melanoma may catch early signs of cancer’s return

NYU Langone Health / NYU Grossman School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Monitoring blood levels of DNA fragments shed by dying tumor cells may accurately predict skin cancer recurrence, a new study shows.

Journal: The Lancet Oncology
Funder: Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation

First confirmed footage of a colossal squid—and it’s a baby!

Schmidt Ocean Institute
Reports and Proceedings

An international team of scientists and crew on board Schmidt Ocean Institute’s research vessel Falkor (too) was the first to film the colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) in its natural environment. The 30-centimeter juvenile squid (nearly one foot long) was captured on video at a depth of 600 meters (1968 feet) by the Institute’s remotely operated vehicle (ROV) SuBastian. The sighting occurred on March 9 on an expedition near the South Sandwich Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. This year is the 100-year anniversary of the identification and formal naming of the colossal squid, a member of the glass squid family (Cranchiidae).

Anxiety felt by today's young adults may be due to conflicting pressures to hurry up -- and wait

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, News Bureau
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The developmental anxiety felt by today's young adults may be associated with conflicting pressures, some of which aim to speed up their maturation and shouldering of adult responsibilities, while others delay their ability to achieve adult perks such as financial independence, living away from their parents, buying homes and having children.

Journal: Journal of Family Theory & Review

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13 April

NTU Singapore receives S$110 million gift from UOB and Wee Foundation which will support new educational initiatives

Nanyang Technological University

Communicator award goes to German language education expert Petra Anders

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft

Universal Japanese school lunch program significantly reduces obesity among teenagers, especially those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds

Sophia University

13 April