Curiosity Weekly

Learn about why cavities are so cold-sensitive; an ant that shrinks its brain; and why swimming makes you extra hungry.

Here's why dental cavities are so sensitive to cold by Cameron Duke

• Bernal, L., Sotelo-Hitschfeld, P., König, C., Sinica, V., Wyatt, A., Winter, Z., Hein, A., Touska, F., Reinhardt, S., Tragl, A., Kusuda, R., Wartenberg, P., Sclaroff, A., Pfeifer, J. D., Ectors, F., Dahl, A., Freichel, M., Vlachova, V., Brauchi, S., & Roza, C. (2021). Odontoblast TRPC5 channels signal cold pain in teeth. Science Advances, 7(13), eabf5567. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abf5567
• How teeth sense the cold. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-03/hhmi-hts032421.php

There’s an ant that shrinks its brain to try to become the queen by Cameron Duke

• Annie, R. (2021, April 13). These Ants Shrink Their Brains for a Chance to Become Queen. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/science/ants-brains-queen.html
• Penick, C. A., Ghaninia, M., Haight, K. L., Opachaloemphan, C., Yan, H., Reinberg, D., & Liebig, J. (2021). Reversible plasticity in brain size, behaviour and physiology characterizes caste transitions in a socially flexible ant ( Harpegnathos saltator ). Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 288(1948). https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.0141
• Urbani, C. B., Boyan, G. S., Blarer, A., Billen, J., & Musthak Ali, T. M. (1994). A novel mechanism for jumping in the indian antHarpegnathos saltator (Jerdon) (Formicidae, Ponerinae). Experientia, 50(S1), 63–71. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf01992052

Swimming Really Does Make You Hungrier Than Other Forms of Exercise by Ashley Hamer

• Harvard Health Publishing. (2021). Calories burned in 30 minutes for people of three different weights - Harvard Health. Harvard Health; Harvard Health. https://www.health.harvard.edu/diet-and-weight-loss/calories-burned-in-30-minutes-of-leisure-and-routine-activities
• Exercise In Cold Water May Increase Appetite, UF Study Finds. (2021). ScienceDaily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/05/050504225732.htm
• Sportscience Compeat: Swimmers: Body fat mystery! (1997). Sportsci.org. http://www.sportsci.org/news/compeat/fat.html
• Harmon, K. (2011, May 10). Sink or Swim: Muscle versus Fat. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/muscle-versus-fat/

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Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/why-cavities-are-so-sensitive-to-the-cold

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Learn about dog jealousy; physical activity at work vs. at play; and why only certain parts of us get pruney when wet.

Dogs act jealous of their owner's attention to other dogs even when they can't see the dog by Steffie Drucker

• Dogs act jealously even when they don’t see their rival. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-04/afps-daj040821.php
• Bastos, A. P. M., Neilands, P. D., Hassall, R. S., Lim, B. C., & Taylor, A. H. (2021). Dogs Mentally Represent Jealousy-Inducing Social Interactions. Psychological Science, 095679762097914. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797620979149
• Coren, S. (2017, January 19). Do Dogs Feel Jealousy or Envy? American Kennel Club; American Kennel Club. https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/lifestyle/do-dogs-feel-jealousy-or-envy/

Physical activity for leisure is good for your health, but physical activity on the job is not by Kelsey Donk

• Leisure physical activity is linked with health benefits but work activity is not. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-04/esoc-lpa040721.php
• Holtermann, A., Schnohr, P., Nordestgaard, B. G., & Marott, J. L. (2021). The physical activity paradox in cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality: the contemporary Copenhagen General Population Study with 104 046 adults. European Heart Journal, 42(15), 1499–1511. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehab087

Why do our fingers get pruney in water but not our mouths? by Ashley Hamer (Listener question from Ethan in Ithaca)

• Summers, B. (2013). Science gets a grip on wrinkly fingers. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature.2013.12175
• Yong, E. (2011). Pruney fingers grip better. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/news.2011.388
• Water-induced finger wrinkles improve handling of wet objects | Biology Letters. (2013). Biology Letters. https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsbl.2012.0999

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Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/is-exercise-for-work-as-good-as-exercise-for-play

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Learn about “brain fog” in menopause; NASA’s patent prevalence; and a plant gene found in an insect for the first time.

Additional resources from Dr. Jen Gunter:

• Pick up "The Menopause Manifesto" from Amazon: https://amzn.to/33dlIYy
• Website: https://drjengunter.com/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrJenGunter
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrJGunter/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drjengunter/

People Working On NASA Projects Rack Up Every One In 1,000 Patents by Joanie Faletto

• NASA - NASA Engineers and Scientists-Transforming Dreams Into Reality. (2014). Nasa.gov. https://www.nasa.gov/50th/50th_magazine/scientists.html
• Home | NASA Spinoff. (2021). Nasa.gov. https://spinoff.nasa.gov/
• 40 Years of NASA Spinoff. (2011). NASA. https://www.nasa.gov/offices/oct/40-years-of-nasa-spinoff
• Memory Foam Supports and Shapes in Women’s Apparel | NASA Spinoff. (2019). Nasa.gov. https://spinoff.nasa.gov/Spinoff2019/cg_4.html

A plant gene was found in an insect for the first time by Cameron Duke

• Plant gene found in insect, shields it from leaf toxins. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-03/cp-pg031721.php
• Xia, J., Guo, Z., Yang, Z., Han, H., Wang, S., Xu, H., Yang, X., Yang, F., Wu, Q., Xie, W., Zhou, X., Dermauw, W., Turlings, T. C. J., & Zhang, Y. (2021). Whitefly hijacks a plant detoxification gene that neutralizes plant toxins. Cell, 184(7), 1693-1705.e17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2021.02.014

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free!

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/how-a-plant-gene-ended-up-in-an-insects-dna

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Learn about what antimatter is and how we discovered it. Then, Dr. Gen Gunter will demystify menopause.

How we discovered antimatter by Briana Brownell

• Marco Gersabeck,The Conversation. (2019, March 21). Why Is There More Matter Than Antimatter? Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-is-there-more-matter-than-antimatter/
• Antimatter from bananas. (2015). Symmetry Magazine. https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/2009/07/23/antimatter-from-bananas
• Dirac’s equation predicts antiparticles | timeline.web.cern.ch. (2021). Cern.ch. https://timeline.web.cern.ch/diracs-equation-predicts-antiparticles
• Thompson, A. (2017, June 23). In 1928, One Physicist Accidentally Predicted Antimatter. Popular Mechanics; Popular Mechanics. https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a27049/in-1928-one-physicist-accidentally-predicted-antimatter/
• Vidmar, D. (2011). The Dirac equation and the prediction of antimatter. PDF document provided on the internet by the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul.

Additional resources from Dr. Jen Gunter:

• Pick up "The Menopause Manifesto" from Amazon: https://amzn.to/33dlIYy
• Website: https://drjengunter.com/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrJenGunter
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrJGunter/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drjengunter/

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free!

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/whats-the-deal-with-hot-flashes-w-ob-gyn-dr-jen-gunter

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Learn about the “Monkeydactyl” fossil; whether it’s safe to eat food with freezer burn; and post-death “zombie genes.”

Newly discovered "Monkeydactyl" fossil has the oldest known opposable thumb by Grant Currin

• New Jurassic flying reptile reveals the oldest opposed thumb. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-04/uob-njf041221.php
• Zhou, X., Pêgas, R. V., Ma, W., Han, G., Jin, X., Leal, M. E. C., Bonde, N., Kobayashi, Y., Lautenschlager, S., Wei, X., Shen, C., & Ji, S. (2021). A new darwinopteran pterosaur reveals arborealism and an opposed thumb. Current Biology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2021.03.030
• Fox, A. (2021, April 16). A Prehistoric Flying Creature Nicknamed “Monkeydactyl” May Have Climbed Trees Using Opposable Thumbs. Smithsonian Magazine; Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/monkeydactyl-may-have-climbed-using-opposable-thumbs-180977531/
• Specktor, B. (2021, April 16). Tiny Jurassic “Monkeydactyl” has the oldest pair of thumbs on Earth. Livescience.com; Live Science. https://www.livescience.com/pterosaur-monkeydactyl-oldest-animal-thumbs.html

Is It Safe to Eat Food That Has Freezer Burn? Originally aired April 26, 2018 https://omny.fm/shows/curiosity-daily/freezer-burn-science-a-giant-flying-reptile-and-ho

Some genes activate in your brain after you die by Cameron Duke

• Dachet, F., Brown, J. B., Valyi-Nagy, T., Narayan, K. D., Serafini, A., Boley, N., Gingeras, T. R., Celniker, S. E., Mohapatra, G., & Loeb, J. A. (2021). Selective time-dependent changes in activity and cell-specific gene expression in human postmortem brain. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 6078. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-85801-6
• “Zombie” genes? Research shows some genes come to life in the brain after death. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-03/uoia-gr032321.php?s=09

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free!

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/the-worlds-oldest-thumb-belongs-to-a-dinosaur

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Learn about 5G’s wireless power grid potential; the emotions of human screams; and the 3 categories of friendships.

We could use 5G as its own wireless power grid by Grant Currin

• Leveraging the 5G network to wirelessly power IoT devices. (2021). ScienceDaily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/03/210325150019.htm
• Eid, A., Hester, J. G. D., & Tentzeris, M. M. (2021). 5G as a wireless power grid. Scientific Reports, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-79500-x
• Gaura, E., & James Peter Brusey. (2021, April 9). Nikola Tesla: 5G network could realise his dream of wireless electricity, a century after experiments failed. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/nikola-tesla-5g-network-could-realise-his-dream-of-wireless-electricity-a-century-after-experiments-failed-158665

Human screams communicate at least six different emotions by Steffie Drucker

• Human screams communicate at least six emotions. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-04/p-hsc040721.php
• Kiefer, P. (2021, April 15). The human scream that’s the most recognizable | Popular Science. Popular Science. https://www.popsci.com/story/science/human-scream-study/
• JV Chamary. (2021, April 23). Are Humans More Sensitive To Screams From Sex Than Fear? Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jvchamary/2021/04/14/science-human-screams/?sh=2be610c12fc2
• Frühholz, S., Dietziker, J., Staib, M., & Trost, W. (2021). Neurocognitive processing efficiency for discriminating human non-alarm rather than alarm scream calls. PLOS Biology, 19(4), e3000751. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000751
• Screams used with permission from Sascha Frueholz

Friendships fall into three categories by Anna Todd

• McCabe, J. (2016). Friends with Academic Benefits. Contexts, 15(3), 22–29. https://doi.org/10.1177/1536504216662237
• Wang, A. X. (2016, October 26). Ivy League research says there are three types of social friendships people make. Quartz; Quartz. https://qz.com/819754/ivy-league-research-says-there-are-three-types-of-social-friendships-people-make/
• Most People’s Friendships Fall Into One of Three Categories. (2017, January 6). Mentalfloss.com. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/90636/most-peoples-friendships-fall-one-three-categories

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free!

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/human-screams-communicate-a-rainbow-of-emotions

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Learn how mushrooms are more like humans than plants; why your tongue isn’t a muscle; and ferret-training robot badgers.

Mushrooms are more like humans than plants by Grant Currin

• More from this author. (2016, January 12). How Are Mushrooms More Similar to Humans than Plants?» Science ABC. Science ABC. https://www.scienceabc.com/nature/how-are-mushrooms-more-similar-to-humans-than-plants.html
• Inglis-Arkell, E. (2012, September 7). Why are mushrooms more like humans than they are like plants? io9. https://io9.gizmodo.com/why-are-mushrooms-more-like-humans-than-they-are-like-p-5940434
• Steenkamp, E. T., Wright, J., & Baldauf, S. L. (2005). The Protistan Origins of Animals and Fungi. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 23(1), 93–106. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msj011
• Baldauf, S. L., & Palmer, J. D. (1993). Animals and fungi are each other’s closest relatives: congruent evidence from multiple proteins. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 90(24), 11558–11562. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.90.24.11558
• Burki, F., Roger, A. J., Brown, M. W., & Simpson, A. G. B. (2020). The New Tree of Eukaryotes. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 35(1), 43–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2019.08.008

Why do people say the tongue is the strongest muscle in the body? by Ashley Hamer (Listener question from Dave)

• Julia Calderone,Ben Fogelson. (2014, August 15). Fact or Fiction?: The Tongue Is the Strongest Muscle in the Body. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/fact-or-fiction-the-tongue-is-the-strongest-muscle-in-the-body/
• Katherine Harmon Courage. (2014, January 10). Octopus Arms, Human Tongues Intertwine for Science. Scientific American Blog Network. https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/octopus-chronicles/octopus-arms-human-tongues-intertwine-for-science/
• The Tongue - Muscles - Innervation - Vasculature - TeachMeAnatomy. (2015). Teachmeanatomy.info. https://teachmeanatomy.info/head/muscles/tongue/

Wildlife conservationists tried to train black-footed ferrets with robots by Cameron Duke

• Andrews, R. M. (1989, August 26). “Robo-Badger” Is Scary, But Do Friendly Ferrets Think So? AP NEWS; Associated Press. https://apnews.com/article/3f45b4ae40266310acf8e4fffc70f01a
• Biggins, D. E., Vargas, A., Godbey, J. L., & Anderson, S. H. (1999). Influence of prerelease experience on reintroduced black-footed ferrets (Mustela nigripes). Biological Conservation, 89(2), 121–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0006-3207(98)00158-x
• Edwards, M. C., Ford, C., Hoy, J. M., FitzGibbon, S., & Murray, P. J. (2021). How to train your wildlife: A review of predator avoidance training. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 234, 105170. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2020.105170
• Heim, M. (2011, February). Survival Training, Ferret Style. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/survival-training-ferret-style-32562/
• Saving the Black-footed Ferret. (2021). Biologicaldiversity.org. https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/black-footed_ferret/index.html

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free!

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/mushrooms-are-more-like-humans-than-plants 

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Learn about emotions in online reviews; how flowers smell in space; and how water efficiency affected human evolution.

Emotions matter more than ratings when it comes to online reviews by Kelsey Donk

• “Emotional” reviews predict business success, new study shows. (2021). Northwestern.edu. https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2021/04/emotional-reviews-predict-business-success-new-study-shows
• Rocklage, M. D., Rucker, D. D., & Nordgren, L. F. (2021). Mass-scale emotionality reveals human behaviour and marketplace success. Nature Human Behaviour. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-021-01098-5

Roses Smell Different In Space—And You Can Smell Like Them Too by Ashley Hamer

• Space Rose Pleases the Senses | NASA Spinoff. (2002). Nasa.gov. https://spinoff.nasa.gov/spinoff2002/ch_1.html
• Space Scents | Science Mission Directorate. (2002). Nasa.gov. https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2002/18dec_scents
• Frequent Questions: The Many Versions of Shiseido Zen. (2010, January 31). Blogspot.com. http://perfumeshrine.blogspot.com/2010/01/frequent-questions-many-versions-of.html
• Impulse Perfumes And Colognes. (2020). Fragrantica. https://www.fragrantica.com/designers/Impulse.html

Human bodies use up to 50% less water than our primate cousins, which may have helped us spread throughout the globe by Cameron Duke

• Humans evolved to be the water-saving ape. (2021). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2021-03/du-het030221.php
• Pontzer, H., Brown, M. H., Wood, B. M., Raichlen, D. A., Mabulla, Audax. Z. P., Harris, J. A., Dunsworth, H., Hare, B., Walker, K., Luke, A., Dugas, L. R., Schoeller, D., Plange-Rhule, J., Bovet, P., Forrester, T. E., Thompson, M. E., Shumaker, R. W., Rothman, J. M., Vogel, E., & Sulistyo, F. (2021). Evolution of water conservation in humans. Current Biology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2021.02.045

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free!

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/roses-smell-different-in-space

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Learn about the “birthday paradox.” Then, George Craford — one of the pioneers of LED lighting — talks LED innovation.

The Birthday Paradox by Cameron Duke

• Science Buddies. (2012, March 29). Probability and the Birthday Paradox. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/bring-science-home-probability-birthday-paradox/
• TED-Ed. (2017). Check your intuition: The birthday problem - David Knuffke [YouTube Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtT_cgMzHx8
• Understanding the Birthday Paradox – BetterExplained. (2021). Betterexplained.com. https://betterexplained.com/articles/understanding-the-birthday-paradox/

Learn more about George Craford and the QEPrize:

• The Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering: https://qeprize.org/
• George Craford's bio: https://www.nae.edu/128635/Dr-M-George-Craford

Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer — for free! You can also listen to our show as part of your Alexa Flash Briefing; Amazon smart speakers users, click/tap “enable” here: https://www.amazon.com/Curiosity-com-Curiosity-Daily-from/dp/B07CP17DJY

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/how-leds-work-w-led-pioneer-george-craford

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Learn about imaginary beams of motion coming from people’s eyes; where lost luggage ends up; and octopus sleep cycles.

Following someone's gaze may involve imagining a beam of motion from their eyes by Grant Currin

• Our Brains “See” Beams Of Motion Emanating From People’s Faces Towards The Object Of Their Attention. (2021, February 25). Research Digest; Research Digest. https://digest.bps.org.uk/2021/02/25/our-brains-see-beams-of-motion-emanating-from-peoples-faces-towards-the-object-of-their-attention/
• Guterstam, A., & Graziano, M. S. A. (2020). Visual motion assists in social cognition. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(50), 32165–32168. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2021325117
• Guterstam, A., & Graziano, M. S. A. (2020). Implied motion as a possible mechanism for encoding other people’s attention. Progress in Neurobiology, 190, 101797. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pneurobio.2020.101797
• Guterstam, A., Wilterson, A. I., Wachtell, D., & Graziano, M. S. A. (2020). Other people’s gaze encoded as implied motion in the human brain. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(23), 13162–13167. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2003110117

This Is Where Most of the Lost Luggage in the US Ends Up originally aired May 10, 2018 https://omny.fm/shows/curiosity-daily/everything-repellent-clothing-resonant-breathing-a

We finally discovered alternating sleep states in an octopus by Cameron Duke

• Medeiros, S. L. de S., Paiva, M. M. M. de, Lopes, P. H., Blanco, W., Lima, F. D. de, Oliveira, J. B. C. de, Medeiros, I. G., Sequerra, E. B., Souza, S. de, Leite, T. S., & Ribeiro, S. (2021). Cyclic alternation of quiet and active sleep states in the octopus. IScience, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2021.102223
• Schnell, A. (2021, April 1). Sleeping octopuses might experience fleeting dreams – new study. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/sleeping-octopuses-might-experience-fleeting-dreams-new-study-158237#:~:text=During%20quiet%20sleep%2C%20octopuses%20are

Subscribe to Curiosity Daily to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer. You can also listen to our podcast as part of your Alexa Flash Briefing; Amazon smart speakers users, click/tap “enable” here: https://www.amazon.com/Curiosity-com-Curiosity-Daily-from/dp/B07CP17DJY

Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/octopuses-have-sleep-cycles-too

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