ELI5: How is it possible for a nap as short as 15-20 minutes to significantly boost our alertness for the rest of the day? Especially considering the fact that it doesn't involve a deep sleep stage?
TIL of 'Shifting Baseline Syndrome.' This is when significant systemic changes occur over time in a way that makes them extremely difficult for humans to perceive. 'New normals' are established which are experienced as though little to no change has taken place.
Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) - the relaxing 'brain tingles' experienced by some people in response to specific triggers, such as whispering, tapping and slow hand movements -- may have benefits for both mental and physical health, according to new research.
Water is transported from the blood into the brain via an ion transporter and not by osmosis as was previously speculated, a new study on mice reveals. If the mechanism can be targeted with medicine, it may prove relevant to all disorders involving increased intracranial pressure.
The “self/other” dichotomy is the idea that you are ultimately a separate thing from your environment, and your environment is ultimately a separate thing from you. Alan Watts calls this the “great social lie.”
TIL there is a specied of bird called 'Honeyguide' (in Africa) that reponds to humans' calls by guiding the humans to wild bees' hive, waiting until the humans have smoked out the bees and felled the tree with the hive and harvested the honey, and feed on the wax in the leftover bees' hive.
Rats with spinal cord injuries have regained the use of their paws after being given a groundbreaking gene therapy that helps to mend damaged nerves in the spine, by producing an enzyme called chondroitinase which breaks down scar tissue, as reported in a new study in the journal Brain.