Thousands of science kitties have gathered in Chicago this week for the AAAS Annual Meeting, where they get together to discuss the latest research on catnip addiction and hold panels on the causes of dogs’ inability to read. You can follow along on twitter with hashtag #AAASmtg or see some sessions live-streamed online.
Over the last several years, scientists have made huge strides in understanding the microbiome – that is, the community of microorganisms populating our air, water and soil, as well as our bodies. In a blogpost this week, UC Davis biologist Jonathan Eisen draws attention to two new studies of the microbiome of the built environment – one on the microbial profile of a hospital NICU and one on the relationship between architectural design and the biogeography of buildings.
Eisen points out that a thorough understanding of microbial environments is crucial to changing the widespread fear of microbes, most of which are not only not harmful, but possibly crucial to maintaining healthy living spaces. He points out, “Just as we would not argue for killing all mammals simply because one might be annoying us, we need to stop trying to kill all germs just because some do us harm.”
Since it’s Caturday, we should point out that, besides being a very smart guy, Jonathan Eisen is a friend of kitties (evidence). He has served as a senior advisor on the not-terribly-serious Kitten Microbiome Project and also compiled a handy list of more rigorous scholarship on kitty gut bug microbiology on Mendeley. And he provided us with a great excuse to re-use these lolcats.
As much of the United States shivers through a wave of brutally cold temperatures, house cats around the country are reporting that they are quite comfy, thanks. Could the magnetic properties of kitties be responsible? Discuss.
photo via Cheezburger.com
Best news we’ve heard all year: science sez cute kitty photos can help you learn stuff.
A language-learning app development company called Memrise looked at lots of data to see what helped their users retain information. After finding links between using the funny photos and students’ ability to recall phrases, they broke down the results of memory tests to see which photos worked best.
“We wanted to know what kinds of visual mnemonics were most effective at helping people to learn fast,” Ben Whately, chief operating officer at Memrise, told BBC News. “The pattern began to emerge that pictures of cats always featured disproportionately among the most effective,” he says.
Memrise used this research to develop CatAcademy, an app that shows funny photos of cats along with corresponding phrases in Spanish.
Want to know why this works? Of course you do. Because SCIENCE! Japanese researchers published a paper in PLoSOne last year showing that study “participants performed tasks requiring focused attention more carefully after viewing cute images.”
Experts agree! Looking at lolcats is good for your brain, if not ur grammerz.
Teh red dot wuz always a thingie of majestic but utterly mysterious power.
Until suddenly one day, a kitty thinked something.
Dis just a theory, of course, but still:
OK, thinking over. Nap tiemz.
All images via Cheezburger.com
The Finch and Pea 