Brain

How do animals think and feel?

Do Animals Experience Grief?

A growing body of evidence points to how animals are aware of death and will sometimes mourn for or ritualize their dead

New research shows that fish can tell the differences between quantities. What does that mean for our special human brains?

One Fish, Two Fish, Fish Can Count(ish?)

New research shows—again—that fish “count” like humans do. Are our cognitive evolutionary roots fishier than we thought?

The couch on which Freud’s patients lay became identified with psychoanalysis itself. He shipped it to London when he left Vienna.

What Drove Sigmund Freud to Write a Scandalous Biography of Woodrow Wilson?

The founder of psychoanalysis collaborated with a junior American diplomat to lambaste the former president

Bonobos are known to make at least 38 distinct calls

Why Humans Are the Only Primates Capable of Talking

New study suggests ape vocalizations vary according to neural abilities, not vocal anatomy

The New Zealand Tomtit is one of the island-dwelling species included in the study

Why Island Birds Have Bigger Brains Than Their Mainland Counterparts

Researchers measured the brain sizes of 11,554 birds, including representatives of 110 island-dwelling species and 1,821 continental species

Aggressive or sexual behavior in crows interacting with dead bodies might happen more often when sex hormones run rampant.

It's Not Without Caws That Crows Desecrate Their Dead

What dead crows can teach us about the connections between sex and aggression

If you've waited this long for it, it must be good, right?

Both Mice and Men Struggle to Abandon Their Best-Laid Plans

Rodents suffer from the same sunk cost fallacy that makes it so hard for humans to call it quits

Male bat-eared foxes spend much of their time with their offspring, grooming, engaging them in play and teaching them to forage.

This Is Your Brain on Fatherhood

What clownfish stepfathers and Dad-of-the-Year foxes teach us about paternal neurochemistry in the animal kingdom

The History and Psychology of Roller Coasters

Researchers take you on a wild ride through endorphins, brain chemistry and stress science to explain the allure of theme park thrill

We may see them as pests, but raccoons see humans as ripe for plundering. According to Suzanne MacDonald, they are "the only animal that would break into captivity because they think it’s a better deal."

How Humans Created the Ultimate Superpests

As urbanization continues to push wildlife to the brink, humans may need to reevaluate their role in habitat destruction

An African grey parrot, probably thinking intelligent thoughts.

Unique Brain Circuitry Might Explain Why Parrots Are So Smart

Their bird brains are not bird-brained

HHV-6, one of the viruses found in the brains of Alzheimer's patients.

Childhood Virus May Have a Role in Alzheimer's Disease

A study of 1,000 brains found two common types of herpes viruses were more prevalent in those suffering from the dementia-inducing disease

Australian researchers have shown that bees can distinguish nothing from various positive numbers.

Bees May Understand Zero, a Concept That Took Humans Millennia to Grasp

If the finding is true, they'd be the first invertebrates to join an elite club that includes primates, dolphins and parrots

Disgusting Things Fall Into Six Gross Categories

Open sores, body odors and other indicators of possible disease transmission top the list of things that gross us out

For most humans, meditating in the snow would be highly uncomfortable. For Wim Hof, it's euphoric. Note: Wim Hof not pictured.

Science Explains How the Iceman Resists Extreme Cold

MRI scans reveal that Wim Hof artificially induces a stress response in his brain

Aplysia californica crawls about in a tide pool in Abalone Cove Shoreline Park, California.

Scientists Say They Have Transferred ‘Memories’ Between Snails

A controversial new study suggests that RNA may play an important role in memory storage

The Versatile Extra-Sensory Transducer, or VEST, has 32 vibrating motors distributed around the torso.

Could This Futuristic Vest Give Us a Sixth Sense?

For starters, the new technology—appearing on 'Westworld' before hitting the market—could help the deaf parse speech and ambient noise

A lithograph by French caricaturist J. J. Grandville depicts the torture of too much noise.

Why Are We Always Searching For "A Quiet Place?"

Perhaps the real monster is not noise, but instead our own intolerance of unwanted sounds

This advertisement from San Francisco-based electronic cigarette company JUUL calls back the tobacco advertisements from the mid-20th century.

Ads for E-Cigarettes Today Hearken Back to the Banned Tricks of Big Tobacco

A new 'Joe Camel'-esque phenomenon may be igniting as the new fad takes a 21st-century page out of an old playbook

When persons with dementia engage with others who share their passion for the game, colorful memories can emerge.

A New Therapy Has People With Dementia Sharing Baseball Memories

Where were you when Willie Mays made 'The Catch?' Chatting with other fans, watching footage of old games and even playing wiffle ball can be therapeutic

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