Colors Nutritional For Trees

Research shows that fall's bright red leaves deliver more nutrients to trees than if they were not so colored.

Trees in nutrient-poor soil produced more red pigment, backing a 2003 discovery that blocking red pigment production makes leaves ultra-sensitive to sunlight, causing less nutrients to be delivered to the plant.

This means that when the soil is poor, making the red pigment keeps those leaves working longer.

Marketing to Toddlers

American food and beverage industries effectively spend $10+ billion/year in marketing to children.

One study reveals that preschoolers were given the exact same food in unmarked or McDonald’s packaging. All the kids liked the marked packaging better - even if it was carrots. The effect may be observable in 2 year old's.

Travelling Light

Because photons impart momentum, physicists demonstrated that light can move insect's wings.

A wing experiences different pressures on its top and bottom side to stay in flight. But aside from air, light can also create pressure. When photons pass through or reflect off of something, they induce momentum in that object. Researchers zapped a tiny wing-shaped rod with a laser beam causing the wing to move.

Happiness Is Contagious

Research shows a happy person influences those around them to be happy to 3 degrees of separation.

Findings indicate that the effect's strength is inversely proportional to distance - next-door neighbors and friends living nearby were affected the most. Strangely, sadness had little affect on social networks.

Brain Smarter Than Person Using It

Research indicates our subconscious brain is excellent at making decisions based on data

Subjects stared at randomly moving dots and a set number were moving right or left. When asked if the dots were moving left or right, the longer subjects stared at the screen, the more confirmed their answers became. If dots moved to the right, a part of the brain that recognizes right-direction movement became activated and increased as time passed until the subjects gave a definitive answer ... meaning subjects were subconsciously gathering information until they finally felt sure of the answer.

Tetris Good For Brain

Prolonged Tetris exposure can lead to more efficient brain activity as energy consumption decreases (measured by glucose consumption) - meaning the brain is operating more efficiently. 1/2 hr/day for 3 months can increase "critical thinking, reasoning, language and processing" and increase cerebral cortex thickness.

New Life Form Found on Earth

NASA announced today that it has discovered a microorganism that lives off arsenic. It has been dubbed microbe GFAJ-1 and is the first known life to have a DNA structure different than all other life forms. 6 elements are considered the building blocks of life on earth - arsenic not being one of them. Before this, scientists thought an environment without these elements (especially phosphorus) could not support life.

The discovery lends support to life existing elsewhere in the universe.