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Science / Mind & Body

New research with rats indicates that mental activity can continue for 30 seconds after the heart stops beating—perhaps explaining out-of-body experiences.

A Last-Second Surge of Brain Activity Could Explain Near-Death Experiences

Near-death sightings of light at the end of a tunnel may be related to the 30 seconds of activity in rats’ brains after their hearts stop

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Science Can Help Us Live Longer, But How Long Is Too Long?

Will 100 become the new 60? And do we really want that to happen?

Regular caffeine use alters your brain’s chemical makeup, leading to fatigue, headaches and nausea if you try to quit.

This Is How Your Brain Becomes Addicted to Caffeine

Regular ingestion of the drug alters your brain’s chemical makeup, leading to fatigue, headaches and nausea if you try to quit

Researchers recently pinpointed the molecule responsible for the searing pain of a sunburn—and may have found a new way of eliminating it entirely.

Did Scientists Just Discover a Cure for Sunburn Pain?

Researchers pinpointed the molecule responsible for the searing pain of a burn, and may have found a new way of eliminating it entirely

Getting away from artificial light and basking in sunlight can reset your internal clock, new research shows.

A Week of Camping Can Turn You Into a Morning Person

Getting away from artificial light and basking in sunlight can reset your internal clock, new research shows

New research suggests that an apple might be the safer choice for pregnant eating.

Could Over-Snacking While Pregnant Predispose Children to Be Obese?

Women who constantly binge on junk food while pregnant might pass their penchant for sweet and fatty food on to their children, a new study suggests

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Nobel Prize Winners Are Put to the Task of Drawing Their Discoveries

Volker Steger photographs Nobel laureates posing with sketches of their breakthrough findings

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The Macabre Beauty of Medical Photographs

An artist-scientist duo shares nearly 100 images of modern art with a ghastly twist—they’re all close-ups of human diseases and other ailments

Kalelicious Smoothie Pops: A big hit at the Fancy Food Show

Food Science Brings Us Kale on a Stick and Twinkies That Last Longer

With so much interest in what’s in our meals, food innovators are focusing on making the healthy palatable.

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Ask Smithsonian 2017

Wait, Have I Been Here Before? The Curious Case of Déjà Vu

Although the strange sensation’s cause remains unknown, scientists are searching for ways to induce that nagging feeling of familiarity

Being a Lifelong Bookworm May Keep You Sharp in Old Age

Reading, writing and other mental exercises, if habitual from an early age, can slow down the age-related decline in mental capacity

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VIDEO: Functional Liver Tissue Can Now Be Grown From Stem Cells

By mixing different types of stem cells in petri dishes, researchers created liver “buds” that effectively filtered blood when implanted in mice

The habitual use of antibiotics at industrial farming operations to promote growth can lead to the development of bacteria resistant to the drugs.

Factory Farms May Be Ground-Zero For Drug Resistant Staph Bacteria

Staph microbes with resistance to common treatments are much more common in industrial farms than antibiotic-free operations

How do we resist when burgers and bacon beckon?

Can We Be Tricked into Not Eating So Much?

Just posting calorie counts isn’t very effective. What may work, though, is framing overeating in terms everyone understands

Researchers don't have to turn back the clock with this new stem cell breakthrough.

Cracking the Code of the Human Genome

The Rise of the Multi-Talented Adult Stem Cell

A new type of cell could lead to dramatic cures—and avoid ethical controversy

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Why Do We Yawn and Why Is It Contagious?

Pinpointing exactly why we yawn is a tough task, but the latest research suggests that our sleepy sighs help to regulate the temperature of our brains

Our uncommon shoulder flexibility allows us to throw extremely fast, as compared to other primates—a trait we likely evolved two million years ago to aid with hunting.

How the Human Body Evolved to Throw Fastballs

Our shoulder flexibility allows us to hurl things at high speeds compared to other primates—a trait we likely evolved for hunting two million years ago

Research says dogs have learned to behave like children.

Are Dogs Now Just Furry Kids?

Research is showing how much the bonds between dogs and their owners have become like a parent-child relationship

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Why We Should Study Cancer Like We Study Ecosystems

Like pine beetles sickening a forest as they spread, cancer can be seen as a disruption in the balance of a complex microenvironment in the human body

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What Scientists Now Know About Repairing Memories

Recent research suggests that the brain rebuilds a memory every time it is recalled. And that creates a window of opportunity for changing it

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