Scientists develop method for discovering rare cells
Scientists of the Hubrecht Institute Utrecht developed a new method for identifying rare cell types by single-cell mRNA sequencing. The newly developed algorithm, called RaceID, is very useful for...
View Article'Sex and romance' among Dutch teenagers described
Project STARS has carried out the first long-term study into romantic relationships and sexuality among Dutch teenagers. Interestingly, the diaries the teenagers kept for the researchers reveal that...
View ArticleGender affects awarding of research funding
Women are still underrepresented in top academic positions. One of the possible explanations for this is the increasing importance of obtaining research funding. Women are often less successful in this...
View ArticleThe earliest known abecedary
A flake of limestone (ostracon) inscribed with an ancient Egyptian word list of the fifteenth century BC turns out to be the world's oldest known abecedary. The words have been arranged according to...
View ArticleDisappointed patients in Ghana
A recent study published in PloS One reveals that the quality of healthcare by Ghanaian providers is perceived a lot better by healthcare staff as compared to their clients. For example, health workers...
View ArticleHuman rights violations and armed groups—a legally grey area
With increasing frequency the United Nations accuses armed rebel groups in conflict areas of violating human rights but there is a considerable lack of clarity about the legal basis on which this is...
View ArticleInvolve young and female Maasai in land reform in Kenya, says researcher
Management of pastures in Kenya is due for major overhaul: only then the negative developments around the privatization wave of the past few decades may be restored. To avoid social unrest and create a...
View ArticleCorrupt village chiefs provoke disinterest in rural Liberian farmers
A corrupt village chief in rural Liberia has a crippling effect on investments made by the farming community. However, if such a chief is entirely honest then this is reflected in his villagers'...
View ArticleBrain turns down volume of background noise in a busy cafe
In a busy cafe, on the street, on the telephone or even in a lecture theatre: speech sounds are often lost in a sea of background noise. However our brain still manages to fill in the 'gaps'. You seem...
View ArticleConservative Protestant rural youth more violent than their urban counterparts
Conservative Protestant rural youth are more often involved in violent crimes than their counterparts in urban areas, who also use less violence than average. The relationship between alcohol use and...
View ArticlePlaying hide and seek below the soil
Below the soil of a diverse grassland area you'll find a jungle of plant roots. It is also home to a wide variety of bacteria and fungi, of which some are pathogenic and looking for a host in the...
View ArticleUnhealthy' image influences adolescents' food choices
Adolescents more readily choose an unhealthy snack if they've been shown a picture of, for example, crisps or chocolate. This is the main finding of research conducted among Amsterdam schoolchildren by...
View ArticleYoung child just as reliable a witness as an adult
The eyewitness account of a young child is no less reliable than that of an adult. Depending on the material 'to be recalled', older children and adults produce more false memories than young children...
View ArticleTackling negative body image among women by emphasising functionality
Women who nurse negative thoughts about their appearance think that people look at them just as disapprovingly. Such a negative body image can lead to a wide range of complaints, from depression to...
View ArticleYou are willing to pay more for a house when it is cold
With a Veni grant, psychologist Hans IJzerman is doing research into the function of temperature and body temperature in social relations. And guess what he found? A cold environment changes a house...
View ArticleProcessing of music and language in our brain more complex than previously...
Some parts of our brain that process sound have a subsequent spot for each pitch, just like the keyboard on a piano. One part – the auditory part of the thalamus – even processes each sound on two...
View ArticleBearing the costs of illness
Although there is evidence that households are able to foresee health expenses to some degree, there is little or no evidence that these expectations have an effect on the actual take up of health...
View ArticleEuropean top managers would rather offer flexibility than part-time work
In the area of work-life policy, European top managers place the interest of the organisation above that of their employees. Schemes intended to make it easier for employees to combine their work and...
View ArticleClimate change not the main cause for increase in flood risk in flood prone...
Worldwide economic losses from river flooding could increase 20-fold by the end of the 21st century if no further actions on flood risk reduction are taken. Over 70% of this increase can be attributed...
View ArticleYellow Sea a narrowing bottleneck for migratory birds
The shrinking of mudflats along the coasts of the Chinese Yellow Sea is an increasing problem for migratory birds that travel between Siberia and Australia. Research by an international team of...
View ArticleNeanderthals may have deliberately sourced manganese dioxide for use in fire...
Several Neanderthal sites in France have yielded large numbers of small black blocs. Neanderthals used these 'manganese oxides' in fire-making and not as previously thought for colouring.
View ArticleFeeding stock with rubber seed proteins
Residues from rubber seeds can be used to enrich animal feed. Besides reducing waste during the production of rubber, this can also result in higher revenues for the farmers since feed is the highest...
View ArticlePolicy brief on sexual and gender based violence in South Sudan
This policy brief examines sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Unity State and offers a number of policy options to help reduce the use of SGBV as a weapon of war in South Sudan moving forward....
View ArticleSalacious alibi more credible if you lie about it at first
If you are suspected of a crime, you might be better off if you lie about an alibi in the first place and subsequently admit that you were in the company of an adulterous lover: it is even more...
View ArticleMotivation as a source of energy against mental fatigue
During periods of mental fatigue, motivation can play a large role in enabling you to carry out your task for a longer period of time. If your 'battery' runs on empty, then a good dose of motivation...
View ArticleWidespread land-use change and measures to maintain forests, carbon stocks...
Deforestation in North and East Kalimantan in Indonesia can be prevented, but only with strict measures such as using underutilised lands and accounting for land tenure and the maintenance of forests...
View ArticleBorder fences need not harm large fauna
Although the increasing number of fences and walls along national boundaries is intended to prevent human migration, these can also have disastrous consequences for the natural spread of large animals....
View ArticleObject that appears to be bigger 'feels' less heavy
The 'Müller-Lyer illusion' is not a phenomenon that sounds familiar to many people. However, most of us have seen the image of two arrow-like lines, one with normal arrowheads at each end and the...
View ArticleDopaminergic drugs cause changes in deep brain areas of Parkinson's patient
A drug like levodopa, which is used by patients with Parkinson's disease, causes changes in the communication between deep brain areas that are important for learning and behaviour. As a result of...
View ArticleMaking teeming masses predictable
Once every three years, millions of Hindus gather for the Kumbh Mela, the biggest religious festival in the world. This spring, 60 to 80 million pilgrims travelled to the banks of the Shipra river, at...
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