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Melinda Wenner's blog

Commons

Get Smarter & Save the World

Melinda Wenner

A free online vocabulary game gives rice to the poor.

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2-20-08

Psyche

Virtual Universe

Melinda Wenner

Was The Matrix more relevant than we thought? A New Zealand physicist suggests that the universe is nothing more than virtual reality. (more)

1-11-08

Life

The Ecstatic Brain

Melinda Wenner

Scientists hope to treat post-traumatic stress disorder with a little white pill: ecstacy. (more)

12-11-07

Life

Mouse Trips and Traps

Melinda Wenner

The Mouse Party, an animated project developed by the University of Utah, explores what really happens to your brain on drugs.

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12-3-07

Eco

Free Willy

Melinda Wenner

The U.S. Navy is threatening to perform sonar exercises near a migratory route for endangered whales, but you can do something about it today.

 (more)

11-21-07

Life

Sleep to Stay Sane

Melinda Wenner

Sleep deprivation wreaks havoc on your emotional health and may be linked to depression and anxiety, according to a new study. (more)

11-2-07

Life

Sung Back Home

Melinda Wenner

After a dramatic rescue attempt, a beached humpback whale returned to the ocean only after two men serenaded it with a traditional Haida song.

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9-17-07

Arts

SuperART Hero

Melinda Wenner

 

 

 

 

Artist and poet Ramekon O'Arwisters uses food and fashion as coded carriers of social and political commentary. (more)

9-11-07

Tech

Harnessing Our Own Energy

Melinda Wenner

MIT scientists turn energy from our body's movements into electricity. (more)

8-8-07

Eco

The Ashevillage Building Convergence

Melinda Wenner

Asheville pulls more than its weight in promoting sustainable living.(more)

8-3-07

Life

Ending the Medical Marijuana Monopoly

Melinda Wenner

Members of Congress press the DEA to end a 40-year monopoly on supplies of medicinal marijuana.(more)

7-23-07

Eco

Hollywood's Green Ark

Melinda Wenner

Evan Almighty arrives as the first green movie and a timely warning about climate change. (more)

7-20-07

Arts

Walking Sculptures

Melinda Wenner

Since 1980 Theo Jansen has been creating wind- powered sculptures that he calls part of "new nature." (more)

7-16-07

Life

Brain Scans Show Meditation's Effects

Melinda Wenner

New research suggests that meditation calms the part of the brain associated with emotional processing. (more)

7-6-07

Tech

Simulated Schizophrenia

Melinda Wenner

What does it feel like to be mentally ill? A Virtual Hallucinations device is showing people just that. (more)

6-27-07

Life

Family Ties

Melinda Wenner

Plants behave differently depending on whether they are situated next to kin or strangers, according to a fascinating new study.
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6-18-07

Life

The Mindful Brain

Melinda Wenner

In his new book, Daniel Siegel describes the potentially powerful effects of meditation from a neuroscience perspective. (more)

6-15-07

Life

Medicine for Mania

Melinda Wenner

The psychoactive plant Salvia divinorum has become the focus of research for scientists who believe it holds promise as a medication for mania. (more)

6-13-07

Abu Dhabi sets a very green example

Melinda Wenner

Abu Dhabi might be one of the most oil-rich cities in the world, but that's not stopping its government from going green.

 

 

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6-9-07

Life

A Plant to Keep Us Young

Melinda Wenner

A desert shrub used by Native Americans as a healing remedy is showing promise as an anti-aging medicine. (more)

6-5-07

Life

A Call for Intuitive Medicine

Melinda Wenner

 

 

 

 

Psychologist Gerd Gigerenzer says that doctors should follow rules of thumb rather than weigh numerous factors when treating patients.(more)

5-25-07

Life

Bringing Kabbalah to Medicine

Melinda Wenner

Imagine a world of mind-over-matter, where a psychological snap of the fingers takes you into a parallel universe of perfect health and unlimited happiness.

Sound like a video game? Or maybe a movie you saw a few years ago? Well, it is called “The Matrix,” but according to Dr. Raphael Kellman, it’s not fiction.(more)

5-22-07

Arts

The TreeSpirit Project

Melinda Wenner

 

 

 

 

Jack Gescheidt's powerful images bring people and trees together.(more)

5-21-07

Life

The War Against War Metaphors

Melinda Wenner

Is the way we characterize science, nature and disease influencing our approach to them? Some scientists say yes--and that we need to ditch the "war" mentality. (more)

5-18-07

Tech

Cyanobacteria to The Rescue

Melinda Wenner

Could this weird- looking microbe save the world? A biologist at the University of Hawai'i has harnessed the power of cyanobacteria to develop a technology that could turn harmful atmospheric carbon dioxide into ethanol for fuel. (more)

5-16-07

Arts

Art Tackles Big Pharma

Melinda Wenner

The home page for the drug Havidol features an attractive person smiling contentedly, a link to prescribing information (including a chemical formula), and the standard side effects spiel now familiar to anyone who's seen TV drug commercials. But neither the drug, nor the condition it treats, are real. (more)

5-14-07

Psyche

Science Agrees with Buddha...Again

Melinda Wenner

Science is finally revealing the benefits of meditation -- and there are lots of them. (more)

5-11-07

Psyche

Recipe for Happiness

Melinda Wenner

Doing good makes you feel good, according to new research. Well, we had an inkling.(more)
5-7-07

Eco

Camel Fever!

Melinda Wenner

The UK's EDGE of Existence program bases the need for conservation action not only on a species' extinction status, but also on its level of "evolutionary distinction." If an endangered species is one of the few species of its type left on the planet, a disproportionate amount of unique evolutionary history would be lost with its extinction – which conservation efforts should reflect. This year, EDGE focuses on the wild Bactrian camel.
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4-21-07