Increase your cerebral blood flow – with chocolate! – Ian Macdonald from University of Nottingham, U.K. reported at a recent meeting that consumption of dark chocolate cocoa increased blood flow to the cerebrum for two to three hours. The active ingredient is flavanols, which are also present...

Hot chilies a longtime favorite - Fossil evidence from an ancient Ecuadorian village suggests that people have been using chilies to spice up their food for at least 6,000 years. Scientists identified fossilized starch granules from domesticated chilies on grindstones and pottery. Chili spice became...

Two-Thousand -Year-Old Seed Germinates - a date seed tossed aside as waste 2000 years ago has germinated under the care of Dr. Elaine Soloway of the Arava Institute. This is the oldest seed on record to have been sucessfully germinated. The date tree is aptly named Methuselah after the oldest living...

Happy Darwin Day! – Four years ago, a group of US and UK scientists designated Charles Darwin’s birthday (Feb. 12) “Darwin Day” – a day to celebrate Science. Darwin Day festivities in the U.S. and U.K. promote education about science, and particularly evolution, in community...

Board the windows! - Sheng Yang He at Michigan State University reported in a recent issue of Cell that plants are able to close the small pores on their leaves (stomata) to prevent bacterial invaders from getting inside. Unfortunately for the plant, some kinds of bacteria have already developed...