Curiosity Weekly

Today, you’ll learn about a toxic fish that could help save lives, new secrets about the people who once lived in Machu Picchu, and a study that looked at the benefits of breastfeeding. 

Korean Rockfish Power

• “This fish delivers a nasty sting. Could it also save lives?” by Phie Jacobs. 2023. 
• https://www.science.org/content/article/fish-delivers-nasty-sting-could-it-also-save-lives
• “Rockfish.” Monterey Bay Aquarium. N.d.
• https://www.montereybayaquarium.org/animals/animals-a-to-z/rockfish
• “What Is Cystic Fibrosis?” NIH. 2022. 
• https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/cystic-fibrosis

Machu Picchu DNA

• “Machu Picchu’s servants hailed from distant lands conquered by the Incas, genetic study finds.” by Kristina Killgrove. 2023.
• https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/machu-picchus-servants-hailed-from-distant-lands-conquered-by-the-incas-genetic-study-finds
• “The discovery of Machu Picchu.” by Richard Cavendish. 2011. 
• https://www.historytoday.com/archive/months-past/discovery-machu-picchu
• “Machu Picchu History and Discovery.” Discover Peru. n.d. 
• http://www.discover-peru.org/machu-picchu-history/

Breastfed Benefits 

• “Breastfeeding is associated with a 33% reduction in first-year post-perinatal infant mortality.” EurekAlert! 2023. 
• https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/996448
• “How Reliable Are the Birth Certificate Variables for Mothers with Medicaid Coverage?” by Embry M. Howell, et al. 2021. 
• https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/104257/how-reliable-are-birth-certificate-variables-for-mothers-with-medicaid_1.pdf
• “What do we know about infant mortality in the U.S. and comparable countries?” by Rabah Kamal, et al. 2019. 
• https://www.healthsystemtracker.org/chart-collection/infant-mortality-u-s-compare-countries/#Infant%20death%20rate%20per%201,000%20live%20births,%202007-2017
• “Infant Mortality.” CDC. 2022. 

https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternalinfanthealth/infantmortality.htm

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Today, you’ll learn about how researchers are using stem cells to cure infertility in mice, the health benefits of honey made by ants, and the potential emotional toll of using AI at work. 

Ovarian Failure Cure 

• “Stem Cell Therapy Restores Fertility in Mouse Model.” by Katie Brighton. 2023. 
• https://www.technologynetworks.com/tn/news/stem-cell-therapy-restores-fertility-in-mouse-model-376618
• “Fertility restoration in mice with chemotherapy induced ovarian failure using differentiated iPSCs.” by Kevin M. Elias, et al. 2023. 
• https://www.thelancet.com/journals/ebiom/article/PIIS2352-3964(23)00280-3/fulltext
• “Pathogenesis and Causes of Premature ovarian Failure: An Update.” by Mahbod Ebrahimi, M.D. & Firoozeh Akbari Asbagh, M.D. 2011. 
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4059950/
• “Mechanisms of epigenetic memory.” by Agustina D’Urso & Jason H. Brickner. 2014. 
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168952514000584

Honeypot Ants 

• “Western science catches up with First Nations’ medicinal use of ant honey.” The University of Sydney. 2023. 
• https://www.scimex.org/newsfeed/western-science-catches-up-with-first-nations-medicinal-use-of-ant-honey
• “Honeypot Ant Facts.” Fact Animal. N.d. 
• https://factanimal.com/honeypot-ant/
• “Honeypot Ant: Good At Sharing.” San Diego Zoo Wildlife Explorers. 2023. 
• https://sdzwildlifeexplorers.org/animals/honeypot-ant

AI Insomnia

• “Loneliness, insomnia linked to work with AI systems.” American Psychological Association. 2023. 
• https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230612114659.htm
• “Loneliness, insomnia linked to work with AI systems.” American Psychological Association. 2023. 
• https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2023/06/loneliness-insomnia-ai-systems

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Today, you’ll learn about gene therapy eye drops, a diamond’s journey to the surface, and the growing creativity of AI.

Genetic Eye Drops

• “Gene-therapy drops restore teen’s vision after genetic disease left his eyes clouded with scars.” by Nicoletta Lanese. 2023. 
• https://www.livescience.com/health/genetics/gene-therapy-drops-restore-teens-vision-after-genetic-disease-left-his-eyes-clouded-with-scars
• “Gene therapy eyedrops restored a boy’s sight. Similar treatments could help millions.” by Laura Ungar and Freida Frisary. 2023. 
• https://apnews.com/article/gene-therapy-blindness-rare-diseases-58f81838894dfb8568affde0b7e4d2f1
• “Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa.” by Ellen G Pfendner, PhD & Anne W Lucky, MD. 2018. 
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1304/

Kimberlite Explosion 

• “When Ancient Eruptions Pumped Diamonds to Earth’s Surface.” by Maya Wei-Haas. 2023. 
• https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/26/science/kimberlite-diamonds-volcano-eruptions.html?smtyp=cur&smid=tw-nytimesscience
• “Rift-induced disruptions of cratonic keels drives kimberlite volcanism.” by Thomas M. Gernon, et al. 2023. 
• https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06193-3
• “What are Kimberlites?” Kansas Geological Survey. 2000. 
• https://www.kgs.ku.edu/Publications/pic16/pic16_2.html

Creative Bots  

• “AI tests into top 1% for original creative thinking.” The University of Montana. 2023. 
• https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/07/230705154051.htm
• “The Turing Test and AI Large Language Models (LLMs).” by “Mike.” 2023. 
• https://microrealestate.leptonic.io/the-turing-test-and-ai-large-language-models-llms/
• “8 Potentially Surprising Things To Know About Large Language Models LLMs.” by Dhanshree Shripad Shenwai. 2023. 

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Today, you’ll learn about self-healing robots, Afib detection in the produce aisle, and hurricanes on worlds orbiting distant stars. 

Find episode transcripts here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/healing-electronics-grocery-cart-sensors-large-telescopes

Healing Electronics 

• “Shape-Shifting, Self-Healing Machines Are Among Us.” by Simon Makin. 2023.
  • https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/shape-shifting-self-healing-machines-are-among-us/
• “Bizarre Material Combines the Best Traits of Gel and Metal.” by Sophie Bushwick. 2023.
  • https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/bizarre-material-combines-the-best-traits-of-gel-and-metal1/

Grocery Cart Sensors 

• “Grocery store carts set to help diagnose common heart rhythm disorder and prevent stroke.” n.a. 2023.
  • https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230623105504.htm
• “Atrial Fibrillation (Afib).” Cleveland Clinic. 2022.
  • https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/16765-atrial-fibrillation-afib
• “What is an electrocardiogram (ECG)?” NIH. 2022.
  • https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK536878/

Long Telescopes 

• “Using Cosmic Weather To Study Which Worlds Could Support Life.” by Tatyana Woodall. 2023.
  • https://news.osu.edu/using-cosmic-weather-to-study-which-worlds-could-support-life/
• “Mapping the Skies of Ultracool Worlds: Detecting Storms and Spots with Extremely Large Telescopes.” by Michael K. Plummer & Ji Wang. 2023.
  • https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/accd5d
• “Meet the Giant Magellan Telescope.” Giant Magellan Telescope. N.d.
  • https://giantmagellan.org/

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Calli and Nate — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

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Today, you’ll learn about the pain people will endure to avoid uncertainty, a possible link between nearsightedness and education, and a social media app that is helping improve the accuracy of doctors’ diagnosis decisions. 

Find episode transcripts here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/pain-of-uncertainty-nearsightedness-doctors-join-forces

Pain of Uncertainty 

• “Humans will trade pain for useless information.” by Phie Jacobs. 2023.
  • https://www.science.org/content/article/humans-will-trade-pain-useless-informatin
• “Monkeys are curious about counterfactual outcomes.” by Maya Zhe Wang and Benjamin Hayden. 2019.
  • https://www.researchgate.net/publication/332082380_Monkeys_are_curious_about_counterfactual_outcomes

Nearsightedness

• “The Causal Effect of Education on Myopia: Evidence That More Exposure to Schooling, Rather Than Increased Age, Causes the Onset of Myopia.” by Xiaohu Ding, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10132316/
• “Myopia: A close look at efforts to turn back a growing problem.” NIH. 2017, ‘
  • https://www.nei.nih.gov/about/news-and-events/news/myopia-close-look-efforts-turn-back-growing-problem

Doctors Join Forces

• “Experimental evidence for structured information-sharing networks reducing medical errors.” by Damon Centola, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2108290120
• “One way to reduce medical errors? Connect doctors with other doctors.” University of Pennsylvania. 2023.
  • https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/996099

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Calli and Nate — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

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Today, you’ll learn about Locked-in Syndrome, the connection between social anxiety and nostalgia, and how continental shift is knocking GPS out of whack. 

Find episode transcripts here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/locked-in-syndrome-anxiety-nostalgia-continental-shift

Locked-in Syndrome

• “Demographic, Medical, and Clinical Characteristics of a Population Based Sample of Patients With Long-lastic Locked-in Syndrome.” by Helle Walseth Nilsen, et al. 2023.
  • https://n.neurology.org/content/early/2023/07/13/WNL.0000000000207577
• “Locked-In Syndrome.” by Joe M Das, et al. 2022.
  • https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK559026/
• “Voicing Inner Thoughts Matters Kate Allatt TEDxSheffieldHallamUniversity.” YouTube. 2015.
  • https://youtu.be/SptlyNYjtIU

Anxiety & Nostalgia 

• “Nostalgia Counteracts Social Anxiety and Enhances Interpersonal Competence.” by Yuwan Dai, et al. 2023
  • https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/19485506231187680?journalCode=sppa
• “Social anxiety in young people: A prevalence study in seven countries.” by Philip Jefferies and Michael Ungar. 2020.
  • https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0239133
• “Social Anxiety Disorder: More Than Just Shyness.” NIH. n.d.
  • https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/social-anxiety-disorder-more-than-just-shyness

Continental Shift 

• “Australia on the move: how GPS keeps up with a continent in constant motion.” by Chris Rizos & Donald Grant. 2017.
  • https://theconversation.com/australia-on-the-move-how-gps-keeps-up-with-a-continent-in-constant-motion-71883
• “Australia Is Drifting So Fast GPS Can’t Keep Up.” by Brian Clark Howard. 2016.
  • https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/australia-moves-gps-coordinates-adjusted-continental-drift?loggedin=true&rnd=1690986363340
• “GPS Accuracy.” GPS.gov. 2022.
  • https://www.gps.gov/systems/gps/performance/accuracy/

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Calli and Nate — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

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Today, you’ll learn about how metal was discovered to be able to heal itself, a potential cure for sensitive teeth, and the truth about sports supplements. 

Find episode transcripts here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/healing-metals-sensitive-teeth-sports-supplements

Healing Metals 

• “Metals Have the Intrinsic Ability to Heal Themselves, New Research Finds.” by Alexander Beadle. 2023.
  • https://www.technologynetworks.com/applied-sciences/news/metals-have-the-intrinsic-ability-to-heal-themselves-new-research-finds-376457
• “Autonomous healing of fatigue cracks via cold welding.” by Christopher M. Barr, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06223-0

Sensitive Teeth 

• “Mineral-Building Lozenge Offers Long-Term Fix for Tooth Sensitivity.” by Paul McClure. 2023.
  • https://newatlas.com/science/dental-lozenge-rebuilds-lost-tooth-minerals/
• “Biomimetic Dentin Repair: Amelogenin-Derived Peptide Guides Occlusion and Peritubular Mineralization of Human Teeth.” by Deniz T. Yucesoy, et al. 2023.
  • https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.2c01039

Sports Supplements

• “Presence and Quantity of Botanical Ingredients With Purported Performance-Enhancing Properties in Sports Supplements.” by Pieter A. Cohen, MD. 2023.
  • https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2807343
• “Nearly 90% of herbal sports supplements are mislabeled. One in ten contain prohibited substances.” by Tibi Puiu. 2023.
  • https://www.zmescience.com/medicine/nearly-90-of-herbal-sports-supplements-are-mislabeled-one-in-ten-contain-prohibited-substances/
• “What’s In Those Supplements Again?” by Derek Lowe. 2023.
  • https://www.science.org/content/blog-post/what-s-those-supplements-again

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Calli and Nate — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

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Today, you’ll learn about a new study on our perception of time, a breakthrough in the tech behind heart transplants, and about the crazy way ticks fly.

Find episode transcripts here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/time-perception-heart-in-a-box-flying-ticks

Time Perception

• “The Timekeeper Within: New Discovery on How the Brain Judges Time.” by Hedi Young. 2023.
  • https://www.fchampalimaud.org/news/timekeeper-within-new-discovery-how-brain-judges-time
• “Using temperature to analyze the neural basis of a time-based decision.” by Tiago Monteiro, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-023-01378-5

Heart in a Box

• “Multicenter Trial Finds Using Circulatory Death Donors is Safe and Effective for Heart Transplantation.” n.a. 2023.
  • https://news.feinberg.northwestern.edu/2023/06/14/multicenter-trial-finds-using-circulatory-death-donors-is-safe-and-effective-for-heart-transplantation/
• “Transplantation Outcomes with Donor Hearts after Circulatory Death.” by Jacob N. Schroder, M.D. 2023.
  • https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2212438
• “Establishing the new standard of care for organ transplantation.” TransMedics Website. N.d.
  • https://www.transmedics.com/

Flying Ticks

• “Ticks Fly Through the Air Via the Power of Static Electricity.” by Christie Wilcox. 2023.
  • https://www.science.org/content/article/watch-ticks-fly-through-air-power-static-electricity
• “Static electricity passively attracts ticks onto hosts.” by Sam J. England, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(23)00772-8?_returnURL=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0960982223007728?showall%3Dtrue
• “Tick-borne Diseases.” Washington State Department of Health. N.d.
  • https://doh.wa.gov/you-and-your-family/illness-and-disease-z/tick-borne-diseases
• “Economic Burden of Reported Lyme Disease in High-Incidence Areas, United States, 2014-2016.” CDC. 2022.
  • https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/28/6/21-1335_article
• “Guide to Tick-Borne Diseases.” Nayana Ambardekar, MD. 2021.
  • https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/ss/tick-borne-diseases

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Calli and Nate — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

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Today, you’ll learn about a new study that gives us a hint at who we might be attracted to, scientists growing new trees from the genes up, and how aggressive people might actually have more self-control than you’d think. 

Find episode transcripts here:https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/partner-look-alikes-crispr-wood-aggressive-self-control

Partner Look-alikes

• “UQ Research Could Explain Why Some People Look Similar to Their Partner.” N.A. 2023.
  • https://www.uq.edu.au/news/article/2023/07/uq-research-could-explain-why-some-people-look-similar-their-partner
• “Speed Dating is Making a Comeback.” by Carly Mallenbaum. 2023.
  • https://www.axios.com/2023/06/25/speed-dating-app-fatigue-social

CRISPR Wood

• “Genetically Edited Wood Could Make Paper More Sustainable.” by Robert F. Service. 2023.
  • https://www.science.org/content/article/genetically-edited-wood-could-make-paper-more-sustainable
• “History of Papermaking Around the World.” Robert C. Williams Museum of Papermaking. N.d.
  • https://paper.gatech.edu/sites/default/files/2021-04/History%20of%20Papermaking%20Around%20the%20World.pdf
• “What Is CRISPR?” The Jackson Laboratory. 2023.
  • https://www.jax.org/personalized-medicine/precision-medicine-and-you/what-is-crispr

Aggressive Self-Control

• “Aggression As Successful Self-Control.” by David S. Chester. 2023.
  • https://compass.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/spc3.12832
• “Controlled cruelty: New study finds aggression can arise from successful self-control.” n.a. 2023.
  • https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/07/230713141930.htm#

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Calli and Nate — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

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Today, you’ll learn about some tantalizing molecules found on Mars, a new study that shows how cognitive flexibility can help teachers keep their cool, and how a new scientific method revealed an unexpected truth about women in the Copper Age.  

Find episode transcripts here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/mars-organics-cognitive-flexibility-copper-age-leadership

Mars Organics 

• “Diverse Organic-Mineral Associations in Jezero Crater, Mars.” by Sunanda Sharma, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06143-z
• “NASA’S Perseverance Rover Finds Preserved Organic Molecules on Mars.” by Isaac Schultz. 2023.
  • https://gizmodo.com/nasa-perseverance-rover-preserved-organic-matter-mars-1850630956
• “Fly over Perseverance rover’s Mars stomping grounds in new video.” by Robert Lea. 2023.
  • https://www.space.com/jezero-crater-perseverance-rover-mars-express-video
• “Distinguish between organic and inorganic molecules?” by Nam D. 2018.
  • https://socratic.org/questions/distinguish-between-organic-and-inorganic-molecules

Cognitive Flexibility 

• “The Role of Cognitive Flexibility in Moderating the Effect of School-Related Stress Exposure.” by Orly Harel, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-31743-0
• “Study Finds That Cognitive Flexibility Helps Teachers Deal With Stress.” Staff Writer. 2023.
  • https://www.mentaldaily.com/article/2023/07/study-finds-that-cognitive-flexibility-helps-teachers-deal-with-stress
• “Demystifying cognitive flexibility: Implications for clinical and developmental neuroscience.” by Dina R. Dajani & Lucina Q. Uddin. 2015.
  • https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5414037/
• “7 Ways to Develop Cognitive Flexibility.” by Marianne Stenger. 2017.
  • https://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/features/7-ways-develop-cognitive-flexibility/

Copper Age Leadership  

• “New Scientific Method Reveals Female Leadership in Copper Age Iberia.” News Staff. 2023.
  • https://www.sci.news/archaeology/ivory-lady-12075.html
• “Amelogenin peptide analyses reveal female leadership in Copper Age Iberia (c.2900 - 2650 BC). by Marta Cintas-Peña, et al. 2023.
  • https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-36368-x

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Calli and Nate — for free! Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.

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