# s-brain: tweeting in empathic brains ...

<< (..) few positive learning experiences are sufficient to increase empathy. >>

Hein G, Engelmann JB, et al. How learning shapes the empathic brain. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2016 Jan 5;113(1):80-5. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1514539112.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26699464

# s-phyto: versatile SERK1, in shedding and growing ...

<< During  their  life,  plants  constantly  renew  themselves.  They  sprout  new  leaves  in  the  spring  and shed  them  in  the  fall.  >>

<< When  it  is time  to  shed  an  organ,  a  small  hormone  binds  to  this  membrane  receptor  and,  together  with  a helper  protein,  the  abscission  process  is  initiated. >>

<< To  fully  initiate  the abscission  process,  another  player  is  needed:  the  helper  protein  SERK1. >>

<< The  fascinating  thing  about  SERK1  is  that  it  not  only  plays  a  role  in  the  shedding  mechanism  of plant  organs,  but  also  acts  together  with  other  membrane  receptors  that  regulate  totally  different aspects  of  plant  development >>

<< Indeed,  SERK1  is  a versatile  helper  protein  shared  between  different  signaling  pathways.  When  bound  to  another protein  receptor,  it  can  also  for  example  signal  the  plant  to  grow. >>

Unveiling the withering process. April 14, 2016

http://scienmag.com/unveiling-the-withering-process/

Julia Santiago, Benjamin Brandt, et al.
Mechanistic insight into a peptide hormone signaling complex mediating floral organ abscission. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.15075. Published April 8, 2016. eLife 2016;10.7554/eLife.15075

http://elifesciences.org/content/5/e15075v1

# s-acad: no "junk", but only fresh thinking

<< Science  rests  on  data,  of  that  there  can  be  no  doubt.  But  ... >>

<< (..) so  the  next  best  thing  is  precision  medicine,  where  we look  at  how  genetically  similar  people  react  and  then  assume  that  a  given  person  will  respond in  a  similar  way. >>

Peter  Coveney, Edward  R  Dougherty. Big  data  has  not  revolutionised  medicine  we  need  big  theory  alongside  it. 19  April  2016,  16:02  CEST

https://theconversation.com/big-data-has-not-revolutionised-medicine-we-need-big-theory-alongside-it-55356

FonT: ironicamente, chi a suo tempo ha coniato (o usato piu' o meno acriticamente) il termine "junk DNA" forse non ha preso in considerazione il fatto che quella parte di codice, benche' di serialita' (sequenzialita') quasistocastica, avrebbe potuto contenere la parte piu' importante del "sistema operativo" della vita, vale a dire  il kernel dove risiedono le istruzioni di differenziazione, di regolazione, di riparazione sul codice ... e forse anche le banche dati storiche e mnesiche ...  istruzioni e banche dati di "assoluta  precisione", per dire ...

" junk DNA" cfr http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=%22junk+dna%22

# s-behav: two (multi?) step sleeper

A. Roger  Ekirch. Segmented  Sleep  in  Preindustrial  Societies. Sleep. Volume 39,  Issue  03. Letters To The Editor. http://dx.doi.org/10.5665/sleep.5558

http://journalsleep.org/ViewAbstract.aspx?pid=30498.

Bora Zivkovic. What is a `natural' sleep pattern? December 5, 2011

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/a-blog-around-the-clock/what-is-a-natural-sleep-pattern/    

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/a-blog-around-the-clock/2011/08/29/everything-you-always-wanted-to-know-about-sleep-but-were-too-afraid-to-ask/

Richard A. Friedman. Sleep  Disorder?  Wake  Up  and  Smell  the  Savanna. March  14,  2006

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/14/health/14beha.html

http://circadiana.blogspot.com/2006/03/what-is-natural-sleep-pattern.html

# s-psych: in the first moments ... to establish a rank asymmetry

<< You  may  not  win  friends,  but  a  new  study  finds  that  you  can  influence people  simply  by  lowering  the  pitch  of  your  voice  in  the  first  moments  of  a  conversation. >>

<< (..)  people whose  voices  went  down  in  pitch  early  on  in  an  interaction  were  more  likely  to  be  seen  as dominant  and  influential  than  those  whose  vocal  pitch  went  up  early  in  conversation. Those  viewed  as  dominant  also  were  more  likely  to  convince  others  to  go  along  with  their ideas  than  those  seen  as  less  dominant. >>

<< “What  excites  me  about  this  research  is  that  we  now  know  a  little  bit  more  about  how humans  use  their  voices  to  signal  status,”  said (..) Joey  Cheng >>

Diana Yates. Psychology  professor  Joey  Cheng  and  her  colleagues  found  that  changes  in  vocal  pitch coincided  with  dominance,  but  not  prestige,  in  small  groups  working  together  on  a  task. Apr 18, 2016 9:30 AM

https://news.illinois.edu/blog/view/6367/352099

<< Similar  to  the  nonverbal  signals  shown  by  many  non human  animals  during  aggressive conflicts,  humans  display  a  broad  range  of  behavioral  signals  to  advertise  and  augment their  apparent  size,  strength,  and  fighting  prowess  when  competing  for  social dominance.  Favored  by  natural  selection,  these  signals  communicate  the  displayer’s capacity  and  willingness  to  inflict  harm,  and  increase  responders’  likelihood  of  detecting and  establishing  a  rank  asymmetry,  and  thus  avoiding  costly  physical  conflicts. >>

<< Together [ from Study 1 and Study 2],  findings suggest  that  humans  use  transient  vocal  changes  to  track,  signal,  and  coordinate status  relationships. >>

Cheng, Joey  T.,  Tracy, Jessica  L., et al. Listen,  follow  me:  Dynamic  vocal  signals  of dominance  predict  emergent  social  rank  in  humans. Journal  of  Experimental  Psychology:  General,  Vol  145(5),  May  2016, 536-547.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/xge0000166

# rmx-s-astro: terrestrial nanobot swarm to Alpha Centauri

<< The  eventual  goal  is  to  send  thousands  of  spacecraft —  each  weighing  far  less  than  an  ounce — to  the  star  system  nearest  ours,  Alpha  Centauri,  more  than  2,000  times  as  far  as  any  spacecraft has  ever  gone. The  journey  could  take  20  to  30  years. >>

Jack  Encarnacao. Reach  for  the  stars:  Investors  team  with  geniuses. Wednesday,  April  13,  2016

http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/2016/04/reach_for_the_stars_investors_team_with_geniuses

https://twitter.com/MIT/status/721701072230858752

F.on.T: chissa' cosa annoteranno i "Teorici degli Antichi Astronauti" (di talento) abitanti in qualche pianeta in Alpha C. quando vedranno arrivare lo sciame ...

# s-bot: whiskers to approach dark and murky surroundings ...

<< Researchers  have  developed  artificial  whiskers  that  allow  robots  to  “see”  the surroundings  in  dark  and  murky  places  by  analysing  the  way  the  whiskers  respond  to water  and  air  flow. >>

Alison Hadley. Animal-inspired  whiskers  key  to  new  navigation  technology. IOP Publishing. Article Released Fri-15th-April-2016 10:38 GMT

http://www.researchsea.com/html/article.php/aid/9614/cid/2/research/technology/iop_publishing_/animal-inspired_whiskers_key_to_new_navigation_technology.html