Popular Post chattius 2,512 Posted June 17, 2022 Popular Post Share Posted June 17, 2022 Some years ago we watched Ice Age, and our third said that Scrat was stupid having only eyes for the acorn and not for the female scrat. My wife said that it is evolution. Very very small mammals loose most of their energy because of their brain. She said poor scrat must have reduced its brain because of the cold (It's Ice Age after all!!!). So all what isn't needed for surviving in winter is removed from the brain - including all reproduction thoughts. Poor Scrat. The up to date research: we hosted some biology students while covid: They weren't able to do expeditions to distant places last two years. One work group is recording songbirds they chipped and/or put a ring on. Songbirds have a similiar surviving strategy, in winter they reduce most of the part of the brain which is needed for reproduction, the part needed for singing. They will record the same bird in different seasons to see how its singing changes. The studies will go for some years more because they want to select dead songbirds and do autopsy and MRT. Neurologists hope that if understanding how the birds change the size of their brain depending on season - the human brain could be restored a bit better after accidents. 2 Link to comment
gogoblender 3,039 Posted June 17, 2022 Share Posted June 17, 2022 Always love seeing the innumerable number of vectors we take to get to better health. Gotta say this one is very, errr.. distinct ... my Ammamma has some challenges with memory in her old age at 97, so this interests me. And, supremely happy that your family is getting to travel again, Covid's long grasp is finally letting go. gogo Link to comment
chattius 2,512 Posted June 21, 2022 Author Share Posted June 21, 2022 On 6/17/2022 at 5:08 PM, gogoblender said: And, supremely happy that your family is getting to travel again, Covid's long grasp is finally letting go. There are other things preventing journeys: We need docs to take the patients of my wife, someone to feed the animals, at work - in summer we check, dismantle and rebuild the electric equip,.. So normally we do a longer 4 week trip every second year. The kids used to do summer camps in the years we weren't travelling. The biology students who go for master would normally have done research at distant places (deep sea black smokers or vulcanic sulphor pits, La Gomera, ...) But as it shows: local animals have many many useful hidden properties. Shrews, mouse weasels reduce amount of bone and brain mass too. Link to comment
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