All posts tagged: step

Scientists Are One Step Closer to Demystifying ‘Aphantasia’

Scientists Are One Step Closer to Demystifying ‘Aphantasia’

Published by skeptic

This article was originally published by Quanta Magazine. Two years ago, Sarah Shomstein realized she didn’t have a mind’s eye. The vision scientist was sitting in a seminar room, listening to a scientific talk, when the presenter asked the audience to imagine an apple. Shomstein closed her eyes and did so. Then, the presenter asked the crowd to open their eyes and rate how vividly they saw the apple in their mind. Saw the apple? Shomstein was confused. She didn’t actually see an apple. She could think about an apple: its taste, its shape, its color, the way light might hit it. But she didn’t see it. Behind her eyes, “it was completely black,” Shomstein recalled. And yet, “I imagined an apple.” Most of her colleagues reacted differently. They reported actually seeing an apple, some vividly and some faintly, floating like a hologram in front of them. In that moment, Shomstein, who’s spent years researching perception at George Washington University, realized she experienced the world differently from others. She is part of a subset of …

Olympics Photo of the Day: One Step Closer to Gold

Olympics Photo of the Day: One Step Closer to Gold

Published by skeptic

Kadir Caliskan / United World Wrestling / Getty Kotaro Kiyooka of Japan celebrates winning against Tulga Tumur Ochir of Mongolia in the Olympic men’s freestyle 65-kg wrestling semifinal on August 10, 2024, in Paris. Kiyooka advances to the gold-medal match on August 11, against Iran’s Rahman Amouzadkhalili. Previously: August 9: Sha’Carri Richardson secures gold for Team USA August 8: British sport climber Molly Thompson-Smith hangs on by her fingertips August 7: Spain’s Maria Perez wins a gold medal August 6: Artistic swimmers from France show their other faces August 5: Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles bow down to Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade Source link

‘There’s something special about making a difference’: community nurses step up – a photo essay | Nursing

‘There’s something special about making a difference’: community nurses step up – a photo essay | Nursing

Published by skeptic

Community Nursing can trace its roots back to Florence Nightingale and philanthropist William Rathbone. In Liverpool in 1859, William’s wife was ill and he wanted her to be nursed at home. After she died he asked the nurse who had cared for her, Mary Robinson, to provide the same care for others among the city’s poor. Florence Nightingale saw the impact of this and wanted more people to be able to access this care. It was rolled out into the 18 nursing districts of Liverpool, which is where the term “district nursing” originated. The Queen’s Nursing Institute is the oldest nursing charity in the world. It was founded in 1887 with a grant from Queen Victoria and has about 2,500 registered nurses who have spent more than five years working in the community. I spent time with four of its nurses, photographing their work around the country. Meet the Queen’s Nurses Angelina Blair, a Queen’s Nurse and sister at Rowcroft Hospice at Home in Torquay, Devon, says death has become more taboo. Angelina Blair, a …

Biden Steps Aside. How Might Harris Step Up?

Biden Steps Aside. How Might Harris Step Up?

Published by skeptic

With barely 100 days to go before the general election in November, President Joe Biden has announced that he won’t run for a second term, and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him at the top of the ticket. Staff writer Franklin Foer, who wrote a book on the Biden administration, and staff writer Elaina Plott Calabro, who profiled Harris for this magazine, discuss this extraordinary moment in a bonus episode of Radio Atlantic. They share their unique knowledge of these two politicians and where this chaotic election might go next. What does a Harris campaign look like? How might the struggles of her 2020 run become the strengths of her sudden 2024 campaign? And how well (or not so well) did Biden prepare Harris as the “bridge” president he promised to be? Listen to the conversation here: The following is a transcript of the episode: Franklin Foer: Hello. I’m Atlantic staff writer Franklin Foer, and I’m coming to you on this bonus episode of Radio Atlantic because earlier today, President Joe Biden announced …

EU lawmakers step up efforts to combat AI and online disinformation

EU lawmakers step up efforts to combat AI and online disinformation

Published by Sam

FIGHT AGAINST DISINFORMATION An EU task force is working with academics, journalists and technology firms to fight foreign information interference and manipulation. A key tool in their arsenal is the EUvsDisinfo – European Union versus Disinformation – website. The platform collects and counters what it calls examples of disinformation campaigns from Russia, regarded by the bloc as the major culprit. Moscow denies the charge. Since 2015, the database has compiled over 17,000 cases, with EU officials expecting pro-Kremlin activities to intensify whenever elections come around. The EU’s statistics office EUROSTAT is also offering data and fact-checking services for the first time this election season as part of a wider effort to fight misinformation. Officials cite potential threat posed by AI as another major concern. On their part, most EU political parties have signed a voluntary code of conduct, pledging not to produce or spread unlabelled deepfakes and other AI-generated content. Under the new Digital Services Act, the EU is also working with the biggest players in social media to monitor potential threats and ensure clear …

We Finally Know What Causes Morning Sickness – And That’s One Step Closer To A Cure

We Finally Know What Causes Morning Sickness – And That’s One Step Closer To A Cure

Published by skeptic

Have you ever wondered why you suffered from morning sickness, yet your friend didn’t? For example, I was one of the lucky ones who didn’t suffer from nausea and vomiting during my pregnancy, yet most of my friends did. Now, thanks to new research, scientists have found what actually causes some people to suffer from nausea and vomiting during their pregnancy. Until recently the cause was unknown, but a Cambridge-led study has discovered it’s due to a hormone produced by the foetus — a protein known as GDF15. In fact, depending on how much exposure to the hormone the parent had before getting pregnant determines how sick the mother feels. Professor Sir Stephen O’Rahilly, Co-Director of the Institute of Metabolic Science and Director of the Medical Research Council Metabolic Diseases Unit at the University of Cambridge, who led the collaboration, said: “Most women who become pregnant will experience nausea and sickness at some point, and while this is not pleasant, for some women it can be much worse — they’ll become so sick they require …

Brawl breaks out on EVA Air flight, forcing flight attendants to step in

Brawl breaks out on EVA Air flight, forcing flight attendants to step in

Published by skeptic

SINGAPORE: Several EVA Air stewardesses had to intervene after a fight broke out between two passengers on flight BR08 from Taipei to San Francisco on Tuesday (May 7).  The Taiwanese airline told local media outlets TVBS and SET News that the incident occurred about three hours into the long-haul flight. According to EVA Air, one of the men decided to switch seats as another passenger seated nearby was coughing.  However, another man objected as that seat was not empty, leading to punches being thrown. In a minute-long video posted on X, screams to “stop”, “move” and “don’t hold me” can be heard amid the scuffle as other passengers got up from their seats. Both men eventually calmed down and they were moved to different seats away from each other.  The captain assessed that there was no immediate danger and the flight continued to San Francisco without further incident. Both men were handed over to US police upon landing and investigations are ongoing, according to EVA Air. The airline later told Taiwanese media that it had …

Bernie Sanders says Joe Biden’s warning to Benjamin Netanyahu is ‘a good step forward’ but calls for ‘even more’

Bernie Sanders says Joe Biden’s warning to Benjamin Netanyahu is ‘a good step forward’ but calls for ‘even more’

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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said President Biden’s warning to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was a “good step forward” in a Wednesday interview, but he hopes to see “even more” from the president going forward. “Well, I think it’s a good step forward. I think we’ve got to do even more,” Sanders told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in an interview Wednesday. “The bottom line is, Kaitlan, is what Netanyahu has done in Gaza is unconscionable.” “In my view, Netanyahu should not have gotten a nickel so long as he continued this incredibly destructive war. I’m glad to see that the President is beginning – beginning – to move in that direction,” Sanders added. Sanders’s remarks come after Biden warned in an earlier interview that he would stop supplying Israel with offensive weapons like bombs and artillery shells if Israeli forces launch an invasion of Rafah, laying down a clear line amid outcry over the conflict in Gaza. “I made it clear that if they go into Rafah — they haven’t gone in Rafah yet — if …

Sandra Bullock teases return to the movies amid decision to step away for family – and you won’t believe who with

Sandra Bullock teases return to the movies amid decision to step away for family – and you won’t believe who with

Published by skeptic

Sandra Bullock has been living a quiet life over the past couple years, taking the time to be a mother first and foremost to her two children, Louis, 14, and Laila, 11. The actress, 59, shared after making The Lost City in 2022 that she would be devoting herself to spending time off-screen to be there for her family, although that could change sometime soon. Sandra gave an interview to the podcast 50 MPH, one of her first since the death of her partner Bryan Randall from ALS, and it looks like she might be more amenable to a return to the movies than we thought. You may also likeThrough The Years: Sandra Bullock She joined her Speed co-star Keanu Reeves to reflect on the action movie’s 30th anniversary, the film that made Keanu a veritable leading man, Sandra a breakout star, and the action thriller genre as a viable awards contender, after winning two Oscars. The pair were asked about their incredible chemistry together, and whether they were keen on bringing it back to …