Alzheimer’s Disease

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, March 5-11, 2023

/ Melanie Marttila / Leave a comment

Welcome to thoughty Thursday, your opportunity to kick your brain into gear n time for the weekend. What are you waiting for? Get your mental corn popping!

Melissa Denes shares Elizabeth Stanko’s mission to change the way police investigate rape: “I know where the bodies are buried.” The Guardian

Anna Louie Sussman introduces us to a world without men. The Cut

Brandy Schillace reveals the forgotten history of the world’s first trans clinic. Scientific American

Brandon Chase: expert systems may help detect Alzheimer’s Disease from routine brain imaging tests. Massachusetts General Hospital

The world’s first horse riders found near the Black Sea. Phys.org

Edna Tarigan and Victoria Milko: Indonesia unveils construction site of new capital city. Associated Press

Christina Larson and Patrick Whittle report that nations reach accord to protect marine life on high seas. Associated Press

Vaccines for honeybees. SciShow

Will Dunham: dwarf elephants and giant rats indicate strange island creatures at high risk. Reuters

Lina Zeldovich takes us inside Canada’s polar bear jail. Atlas Obscura

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you took away something to inspire a future creative project.

Until my next chapter weekly update, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, Dec 25-31, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

It is time, for the first time in 2023, to get your mental corn popping!

32 ways to be better at life. Facetious and personal, but fun. Struthless

New biomarker test can detect Alzheimer’s neurodegeneration in blood. University of Pittsburg Medical Centre

Yasemin SaplaKoglu: what causes Alzheimer’s? Scientists are rethinking the answer. Quanta

NIH researchers use 3D bioprinting to create eye tissue. It’s being used for research for now, but could there be other applications? The National Institutes for Health | National Eye Institute

Watch the latest water satellite unfold its solar panels. Phys.org

23 astronomical events to look for in 2023. Stacker

Tim Stephens reveals that the Bering Land Bridge formed surprisingly late during the last ice age. UC Santa Cruz

Molly Rosbach and Loren Davis report that Oregon State archaeologists uncover the oldest known projectile points in the Americas. Oregon State University

Polar bears disappearing from Churchill, Manitoba (Canada), the polar bear capital of the world. The Guardian

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you took away something to inspire a future creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, Oct 2-8, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s thoughty Thursday, and you know what that means: tomorrow’s Friday! Celebrate by getting your mental corn popping in time for the weekend 🙂

Sean Lahman and Kayla Canne report that Rochester to pay $12M to settle lawsuit filed by Daniel Prude family, largest civil rights settlement in city’s history. Democrat & Chronicle

Livia Gershon considers women leaders in Africa: the case of the Igbo. JSTOR Daily

Errin Haines: it’s almost 100 days since Dobbs. What has changed? 19th News

Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha says able-bodied leftists cannot abandon disabled solidarity to “move on” from covid. Truthout

Hugo Bachega and James Fitzgerald: Russian troops forced out of Lyman in eastern Ukraine. BBC

Nine NATO members urge support for Ukraine after annexation. Associated Press

Hyung-Jin Kim, Kim Tong-Hyung and Mari Yamaguchi report that North Korea sends missiles soaring over Japan in escalation. Associated Press

Study is first to show role of genomic changes in specific brain cells in Alzheimer’s disease. University of Exeter

Mechanism used by metastatic cancer to infiltrate liver found. Osaka Metropolitan University

New route to evolution: how DNA from our mitochondria gets into our genome. University of Cambridge

Anne Cleary: what is déjà vu? Psychologists are exploring the creepy feeling of having lived through an experience before. The Conversation

Nostalgia, the gift that keeps getting rebooted. Khadija Mbowe

Clark Quinn: myth persistence (in learning design). Learnlets

Renee Dudley and Daniel Golden introduce us to the self-taught tech geniuses fighting cybercrime: ransomware hunters. The Guardian

Michael Sheetz reports that SpaceX launches Crew-5 mission for NASA, carrying astronauts to space station. CNBC

How to Build for Human Life on Mars | Melodie Yashar | TED

Ronan O’Connell takes us inside the Irish “hell caves” where Hallowe’en was born. National Geographic

Pacific Ocean set to make way for world’s next supercontinent … in 200 to 300 million years from now. Phys.org

Your city is full of fake buildings. Here’s why. Answer in Progress

Mélissa Godin introduces us to the women fighting fire with fire. Atmos

Aysha Khan says that plants by school playgrounds protect kids from road pollution. Next City

Scientists crack upcycling plastics to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, advancing a recent study. University of Illinois

Damian Carrington: wax worm saliva rapidly breaks down plastics. The Guardian

Eleanor Cummins takes us inside one of the world’s first human composting facilities. The Verge

Livia Gershon offers a natural history of dragons. JSTOR Daily

Talia Ogliore: study reports first evidence of social relationships between chimpanzees and gorillas. Washington University in St. Louis

Haley Weiss: dark extinction has scientists worried. Here’s what they’re doing about it. CNET

Nancy Darling explains why your dog likes to flirt with other people. Psychology Today

Thank you for visiting. I hope you took away something to inspire a future creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, Sept 18-24, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

As we say farewell to September, fortify yourself for the last quarter of the year by getting your mental corn popping 🙂

Janelle Griffith: ex-Minneapolis police office sentenced to three years in George Floyd’s murder. NBC News

Erin Doherty: Cambridge joins elite universities grappling with ties to slavery. Axios

Erin Doherty reports that another nuclear power plant is at risk from Russian missiles. Axios

Karl Ritter: Putin issues partial military call-up, risking protests. Associated Press

Kim Fahner says Laurentian must rebuild, appeal to a variety of students. The Sudbury Star

The sharp axe method. Struthless

Theresa Massony says six planets are retrograde right now, which explains everything. Pop Sugar

Lori Cuthbert explains why the autumn equinox ushers in fall. National Geographic

Emily Zarevich introduces us to the lady who might have been Queen of England. JSTOR Daily

Rachel E. Gross: “feminist science” is not an oxymoron. Slate

Marshall Sheppard shares lessons from a mermaid about representation in science and engineering. Forbes

Mitochondia are the powerhouses of … Alzheimer’s? SciShow

Leila Gray take us beyond AlphaFold: AI excels at creating new proteins. University of Washington (UW) Medicine

Moss repair team also works in humans. Potential progress for the treatment of hereditary diseases. University of Bonn

Nina Bai announces that Emmanuel Mignot wins Breakthrough Prize for discovering the cause of narcolepsy. Stanford Medicine

New and ancient lessons from lunar eclipses. SciShow Space

NASA’s InSight “hears” its first meteoroid impacts on Mars. NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Robert Lea: JWST’s first images of Mars reveal atmospheric secrets. Space.com

Laura Betz, Hannah Braun, and Christine Pulliam: new Webb image captures the clearest view of Neptune’s rings in decades. NASA

Grace Ebert: a rare glimpse of Comet Leonard’s last moments wins Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest. And the runners up aren’t bad, either. This is Colossal

Why it took 200,000 years to invent the wheel. Answer in Progress

Jesus Diaz says this new wind turbine concept isn’t like any we’ve seen before. Fast Company

Check out Audubon’s new Bird Migration Explorer! I could get lost in this for HOURS.

Rivka Galchen: peak cuteness and other revelations from the science of puppies. The New Yorker

Thanks for visiting! I hope you took away something to inspire a future creative project.

I should be posting my next chapter update for September this weekend.

Until then, keep staying safe and well!

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, Aug 21-27, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

And hello, September! Can I trot out the pumpkin spice guinea pigs, yet? Lots of stuff to get your mental corn popping this week.

Andrew Wolfson and Billy Kobin: former Louisville police officer pleads guilty to lying on Breonna Taylor search warrant. USA Today

Guy Foulconbridge provides this explainer: blood, treasure, and chaos — the cost of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Reuters

Rozina Ali: the Afgan women left behind. The New Yorker

Terry Spencer reports that defense for Parkland school shooter’s trial set to present its case. Associated Press

Singapore to end colonial-era ban on gay sex after years of debate. France24

Andrew Marshall and Josef Tanfani report on “Skew-Tube”: the new breed of video sites thriving on misinformation and hate. Reuters

Amy Meeker says, to keep people from procrastinating, don’t give them a deadline. Harvard Business Review

Jessica Stillman reveals that remote workers are wasting more than an hour a day on “productivity theatre,” new report finds. Inc.

Men are lonely … but should we care? Khadija Mbowe | You Can Always Change Your Mind

When Alzheimer’s degrades cells that cross hemispheres, visual memory suffers. The Picower Institute at MIT

The role of dementia proteins in normal memory. Flinders University

Noah Fromson: early blood tests predict death, severe disability for traumatic brain injury. University of Michigan Health Lab

Catherine Caruso explains what happens when recovery goes awry. Harvard Medical School

Matt Shipman reports that ancient skulls may place human and neanderthal interbreeding. Futurity

Brian Handwerk reveals that seven million years ago, the oldest-known early human was already walking. The Smithsonian Magazine

Daniel Jones and Hui Li report that scientists have discovered how to destroy “forever chemicals” (PFAS). Fast Company

Lauren Saria: this restaurant is run entirely by robots. Eater

The crime wave we can blame on … neutron stars? Be Smart

Devan McGuinness reports NASA just revealed what a black hole sounds like … and it’s haunting. Fatherly

Alise Fisher reveals Webb’s images showcasing Jupiter’s auroras and hazes. NASA JWST

Dr. Alfredo Carpineti: JWST detects “unequivocal” carbon dioxide in an exoplanet’s atmosphere for the first time. IFLS

Will Dunham announces that rock-hunting NASA rover reveals crater’s surprising geology. Yup. Percy’s still at it 🙂 Reuters

Vishwam Sankaran reports that researchers identify the first plant that should be grown on Mars. The Independent

Jack Wallington recommends a drought-resistant garden for a changing climate. The Guardian

Katie Hunt reports that dogs’ eyes well up with tears of joy when reunited with their people. CNN

And that was thoughty Thursday. Thanks for stopping by! I hope you took away something to inspire a future creative project.

This weekend, I should be posting my next chapter update for August.

Until then, keep staying safe and well.

Thoughty Thursday: Popping your mental corn, March 20-26, 2022

/ Melanie Marttila

Bid farewell to March by getting your mental corn popping! Fortify yourself for April Fool’s Day and everything that comes after.

Li Zhou: the Stop Asian Hate movement is at a crossroads. Vox

Murray Brewster: the war in Ukraine could force Canada to shed its peacekeeper image. CBC

Stephanie Halasz and George Ramsey report that jailed Kremlin critic, Alexey Navalny found guilty of fraud and sentenced to nine more years in prison. CNN

Celebrity relationships won’t save yours. Khadija Mbowe

Stephanie Vozza wonders which comes first, happiness or success? Fast Company

Harold Jarche says knowledge flows at the speed of trust.

Clark Quinn considers emphasis and effort. Learnlets

Molly Hayes, Elizabeth Renzetti, and Tavia Grant: coercive control can be a life-or-death issue in relationships, but few people know how to recognize it. The Globe and Mail

Imogen West-Knights introduces us to Angela Gallop, the queen of crime-solving. The Guardian

An Alheimer’s drug that doesn’t treat Alheimer’s? SciShow

How evolution beat cancer (in whales, at least). Be Smart

In cosmic milestone, NASA confirms 5,000 exoplanets. Phys.org

Séan McCann – Take off My Armour

Thanks for taking the time to visit, and I hope you found something to inspire a future creative project.

This weekend, I should be posting my next chapter update for March 2022. Until then, be well and stay safe; be kind and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, June 6-12, 2021

/ Melanie Marttila / 1 Comment

Let’s get your mental corn popping, shall we?

Benjamin Wallace-Wells: what do conservatives fear about critical race theory? The New Yorker

Algorithms and skin tone bias, or, being dark on “breadtube.” Kadija Mbowe, your cool, millennial aunty

Pope calls for reconciliation and healing over Kamloops residential school discovery but falls short of true apology. CBC (via Reuters)

Andrew Lupton and Kate Dubinski: what we know about the Muslim family in the fatal London, ON truck attack. CBC

Jacqueline Howard: in controversial decision, FDA approves first new Alzheimer’s disease drug in nearly 20 years. CNN

Matt Grossman reports that Jeff Bezos and his brother will be on Blue Origin’s first human space flight. The Wall Street Journal

The “slow” crisis of space junk. PBS Space Time

Joe Hernandez shares pictures of the June 10th “ring of fire” solar eclipse for those who, like me, missed it. NPR

Joe Hernandez: scientists finally know (for sure) what causes the northern lights. NPR

Amanda Parrish Morgan: The Hunt of the Unicorn tapestries present a virgin capture legend. JSTOR Daily

Why do flamingos stand on one leg? SciShow

Alex Fox reports that puppies are born ready to communicate with humans. The Smithsonian Magazine

True facts about the dangerous tick. Ze Frank

Thank you for visiting. I hope you took away something to inspire a future creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well and stay safe, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Apr 7-13, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

I’ve got a bunch of resources here to get your mental corn popping.

Akshat Rathi: how we get to the next big battery breakthrough. Quartz

James Griffiths warns that Welsh and Hawaiian have been saved from extinction, but other languages may not be so lucky. CNN

Sandee LaMotte reports on the 99-year-old woman with all her organs in the wrong places. CNN

Jonathan D. Grinstein reveals a new way to detect Parkinson’s—by smell. Scientific American

Karen Weintraub: the adult brain does grow new neurons, after all. Scientific American

Antonio Regalado reports that doctors plan to test a gene therapy that could prevent Alzheimer’s. MIT Technology Review

It’s okay to be smart … about the AMAZING monarch butterfly.

 

To save the monarch butterfly, scientists are moving a forest 1,000 feet up a mountain. Kate Linthicum for the LA Times.

Before the image was released, Veritasium explains what it will look like and why (damned awesome, ‘cause he’s right on the money).

 

Mary Beth Griggs: see the first ever image of a supermassive black hole. The Verge

Natalie Grontcharova gives us a more complete picture: meet Katie Bouman, the woman behind the first image of a black hole. Refinery 29

After the image was released, Veritasium released a second video:

 

Mary Robinette Kowal: if space is the future, that future needs to include everyone. The Washington Post

Kate Sierzputowski shows us the Utrecht apartment transformed into a three storey tromp l’oeil bookcase. This is Colossal

Thanks for dropping by and I hope you found something to inspire a new creative project.

Until next tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories.

thoughtythursday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Mar 3-9, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to get your mental corn popping!

Maya Wei-Haas says, if you’re tired of Daylight Savings Time, check out these places that are trying to end it. National Geographic

Chris Baraniuk: the new weapon in the fight against crime. BBC

AC Shilton lists nine ways to stop using so much single-use plastic. Outside Online

Laura Staugaitis shows us an art installation in the Hebrides that demonstrates the impact of climate change. This is Colossal

Scott Wilson wonders, could the massive aquifer under the Mojave Desert help solve California’s water problem? The Washington Post

Caren Chesler writes about the technological vision quest. It’s not all about a cure (though at least one man is waiting for just that). It’s more about giving those with limited to no vision technological aids so that they can more easily navigate the world on their terms. Popular Mechanics

Michael Greshko examines how we make, remember, and forget memories. National Geographic

Deborah MacKenzie: we may finally know what causes Alzheimer’s—and how to stop it. New Scientist

Apoorva Mandavilli reports on the second patient cured of H.I.V. and why this is a milestone in the global AIDS epidemic. The New York Times

Gianluca Mezzofiore: two astronauts will perform the first all-female spacewalk in history. CNN

SciShow Space news edumacates us about Mars’ ancient underground lakes and SpaceX’s successful Demo 1 mission.

 

Physics Girl explains Stephen Hawking’s final theory about black holes. It involves soft hair.

 

Deborah Netburn digs into an archaeological find: more than 140 children may have had their hearts torn out in ancient Peru. L.A. Times

Louise Pryke introduces us to Enheduanna, princess, priestess, and the worlds first author. The Conversation

Open Culture shares the news: The Book of Kells has now been digitized.

PBS Eons looks at the islands of huge hamsters and giant owls.

 

Bored Panda shares the photographs of Lisa, AKA ostdrossel, who set cameras in front of her birdfeeders. They’re amazing and hilarious.

Linda Lombardi wonders, do anxious owners make for anxious dogs? National Geographic

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you found something to fuel your creative efforts.

Until next tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

thoughtythursday2016

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Jan 20-26, 2019

/ Melanie Marttila

There’s just a little bit of thoughty for you this week. Still, I hope something pops your mental corn.

Rob Dunn shares the microscopic wonders of herbs. National Geographic

Rick Tetzeli reports on a radical new approach to Alzheimer’s that could mean a breakthrough. Fortune

Megan Scudellari: a 3D bioprinter makes a spinal implant in 1.6 seconds. Spectrum

SciShow looks into the uncomfortable phenomena of traveller’s constipation. [I just had to know: how do you deal with this lack of shit?]

 

Filmmakers Audrey Buchanan, Carlos Reyes, and Kaylee Cole explore how skateboarding helps members of the San Carlos Apache tribe reclaim their stories and culture. National Geographic

Thanks for stopping by!

Until next tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories!

thoughtythursday2016