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What a locust can teach us about how neuromodulators alter odor processing

When you walk into a bakery and smell fresh cookies, the enticing smell draws you in. After you eat a handful of cookies, though, the same smell likely doesn't send you back for more. Researchers in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis sought t

Brief phys.org · 1h ago · 1 min
Assembly pathway reveals how bacteria build protein coils that extend in acid

The assembly pathway behind refractile-body proteins may have finally been resolved, researchers from Science Tokyo report. Using genetic engineering and several techniques for analyzing protein structure, they investigated how four proteins work together to produce the correct a

Brief phys.org · 7d ago · 1 min
Molecular network resource identifies unknown compounds for biomarker discovery

Medical researchers, clinicians and pharmaceutical scientists often study small molecules called metabolites, which are produced in living cells through a variety of processes, including the breakdown of food, chemicals or drugs. This area of study is known as metabolomics, and i

Brief phys.org · 10d ago · 1 min

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What a locust can teach us about how neuromodulators alter odor processing

When you walk into a bakery and smell fresh cookies, the enticing smell draws you in. After you eat a handful of cookies, though, the same smell likely doesn't send you back for more. Researchers in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis sought t

phys.org · 1h ago
Attention can't be bought, so brands turn to memes

The funniest post you saw this week may not have come from a friend; it may have come from a brand. Whether it is Kohl's, Wendy's, or Netflix, brands are behaving more like internet users than traditional advertisers.

phys.org · 31m ago
Unusual senses: The secret superpowers of amphibians and reptiles

The Surinam toad is one of the strangest frogs on Earth. Flat-bodied, tiny-eyed and adapted to the murky waters of the Amazon basin, it hunts well despite having very poor vision. When a fish swims close, the frog suddenly opens its mouth and sucks the prey inside in a fraction o

phys.org · 51m ago
Rare insect discovery reveals a new species from the dinosaur age

Some 99 million years ago, during the age of the dinosaurs, a tiny insect belonging to a species previously unknown to science became trapped in tree resin. The resin hardened and turned into amber, and the fossil preserved within it has now enabled a team of researchers from the

phys.org · 2h ago
How psychopathic traits shape language

Popular culture often depicts people with psychopathy as cold, emotionless and hollow, but a recent University of Mississippi study found that the language associated with psychopathic traits is more complicated than often described.

phys.org · 2h ago

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