Getting a grasp on memory

Yivsam Zagad – … To reveal what occurs in the brain at the moment of insight, the initial viewing session was conducted in a functional MRI (fMRI) scanner. When the scientists looked at the fMRI results, they were surprised to find that among the areas that lit up in the scans – those known to be involved in object recognition, for instance – was the amygdala. The amygdala is more famously known as the seat of emotion in the brain. Though it has recently been found to play a role in the consolidation of certain memories, studies have implied that it does so by attaching special weight to emotion-laden events. But the images used in the experiment – hot-air balloons, dogs, people looking through binoculars, etc. – were hardly the sort to elicit an emotional response. Yet, not only was the amygdala lighting up in the fMRI, the team found that its activity was actually predictive of the subject’s ability to identify the degraded image long after that moment of induced insight in which it was first recognized.

‘Our results demonstrate, for the first time, that the amygdala is important for creating long-term memories – not only when the information learned is explicitly emotional, but also when there is a sudden reorganization of information in our brain, for example, involving a sudden shift in perception,’ says Ludmer. ‘It might somehow evaluate the event, ‘deciding’ whether it is significant and therefore worthy of preservation.’

via Getting a grasp on memory.

What is going on in your amygdala right now?

Ancient Tablet Found: Oldest Readable Writing in Europe

Marks on a clay tablet fragment found in Greece are the oldest known decipherable text in Europe, a new study says.

Considered “magical or mysterious” in its time, the writing survives only because a trash heap caught fire some 3,500 years ago, according to researchers.

Found in an olive grove in what’s now the village of Iklaina (map), the tablet was created by a Greek-speaking Mycenaean scribe between 1450 and 1350 B.C., archaeologists say.

The Mycenaeans—made legendary in part by Homer’s Iliad, which fictionalizes their war with Troy—dominated much of Greece from about 1600 B.C. to 1100 B.C. (See “Is Troy True? The Evidence Behind Movie Myth.”)

So far, excavations at Iklaina have yielded evidence of an early Mycenaean palace, giant terrace walls, murals, and a surprisingly advanced drainage system, according to dig director Michael Cosmopoulos.

But the tablet, found last summer, is the biggest surprise of the multiyear project, Cosmopoulos said.

“According to what we knew, that tablet should not have been there,” the University of Missouri-St. Louis archaeologist told National Geographic News.

First, Mycenaean tablets weren’t thought to have been created so early, he said. Second, “until now tablets had been found only in a handful of major palaces”—including the previous record holder, which was found among palace ruins in what was the city of Mycenae.

Although the Iklaina site boasted a palace during the early Mycenaean period, by the time of the tablet, the settlement had been reduced to a satellite of the city of Pylos, seat of King Nestor, a key player in the Iliad.

“This is a rare case where archaeology meets ancient texts and Greek myths,” Cosmopoulos said in a statement. …

The markings on the tablet fragment—which is roughly 1 inch ( 2.5 centimeters) tall by 1.5 inches (4 centimeters) wide—are early examples of a writing system known as Linear B.

Used for a very ancient form of Greek, Linear B consisted of about 87 signs, each representing one syllable. …

The Mycenaeans appear to have used Linear B to record only economic matters of interest to the ruling elite. Fittingly, the markings on the front of the Iklaina tablet appear to form a verb that relates to manufacturing, the researchers say. The back lists names alongside numbers—probably a property list.

Because these records tended to be saved for only a single fiscal year, the clay wasn’t made to last … “Those tablets were not baked, only dried in the sun and [were], therefore, very brittle. … Basically someone back then threw the tablet in the pit and then burned their garbage,” he said. “This fire hardened and preserved the tablet.”

via Ancient Tablet Found: Oldest Readable Writing in Europe.

I own… one maple tree with a bee’s nest in it … one pine tree with a crane attached … one rock … one radio antenna….

Houston County fire station burns down

A blaze late Monday night destroyed the Houston County Fire Department’s station in McKinnon.

The cause of the 11 p.m. fire, which also destroyed two trucks, is being investigated by the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

According to Houston County Fire Chief David Hardin, one of trucks was a 2,000-gallon tanker bought by the county for $20,000 last year, and the other was a 1972 utility vehicle that was in good working condition.

The chief said he didn’t yet know if the firehouse blaze, plus fires that destroyed a vacant home and an abandoned motel in Erin during the weekend, were related to each other or to three barn fires and a trailer fire in the Erin area last week.

via Houston County fire station burns down | The Leaf Chronicle – Clarksville, Tenn., and Fort Campbell | theleafchronicle.com.

Forgot to change the battery in the fire alarm.

Group reports finding shipwreck in Lake Michigan

In this 2010 photo taken from video and provided by Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates, the stern of an unnamed 60-foot, single-masted sloop, covered in zebra mussels, that may date back to the 1830s, is shown in Lake Michigan.

An organization that documents shipwrecks said it has found the wreck of a 60-foot, single-masted sloop in Lake Michigan that may date back to the 1830s while looking for remnants of a plane that crashed into the lake more than 60 years ago.

The wreck was found off southwestern Michigan in water about 250 feet deep between Saugatuck and South Haven, Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates announced this week. The discovery was made while working with author Clive Cussler and his sonar operator Ralph Wilbanks of the National Underwater & Marine Agency.

The group was searching for the remnants of Northwest Airlines Flight 2501, which crashed into the lake in 1950, killing 58 people.

“Sometimes, when you’re looking for one thing, you come across another,” shipwreck researcher Craig Rich told The Grand Rapids Press of the discovery.

The vessel sits upright and is in relatively good condition, Holland-based Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates said. The sloop’s construction and design are consistent with ships built in the 1820s and 1830s. Video of the wreck is expected to be shown April 16 at a social event in Holland.

“It’s fascinating stuff,” Cussler, who has worked with Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates to locate other wrecks, told the newspaper. “It’s not the Titanic or anything like that. But it is rather historic just for the era in which it sank.”

The ship likely was moving goods across the lake when it went down, Rich said, and it could be the oldest shipwreck discovered by Michigan Shipwreck Research Associates. Rich said the group hopes to identify the ship by the summer and begin researching its story. And the group plans to explore the wreck this year.

“If we can put a name to it, we’ll figure out what the story is and, if not, it’ll be a mystery wreck,” he said.

via Group reports finding shipwreck in Lake Michigan – Yahoo! News.

Here is some video of the Doty, a wooden steamship that went down 60 years later in a Lake Michigan storm (1898).

Caped intruder stabs cocker spaniels in Marple Bridge

Two cocker spaniels have been treated for stab wounds after they were attacked by a caped intruder in Stockport.

The pets’ owner discovered the masked man who had a bin liner tied around his shoulders stabbing the pets as she walked into her lounge.

She had stepped outside for a cigarette when the man and an accomplice struck at 2240 BST on Sunday.

Police condemned the cruelty at the cottage on Holly Vale, Marple Bridge.

‘Not vicious’

Officers believe that the man, who ran off empty-handed, may have used a screwdriver on the animals who suffered minor injuries.

They have described the incident as a burglary – and said they do not believe it was a grudge attack or that the family were known to the raiders.

Det Con Dave Moran said: “Understandably, the woman was very upset to have her beloved pets attacked in this way.

“These are small family pets and not vicious guard dogs that posed any threat to the intruder.”

The men were both described as white and wearing black balaclavas with eye slits and black bin liners tied around their shoulders.

via BBC News – Caped intruder stabs cocker spaniels in Marple Bridge.

I don’t know about the actual dogs that were attacked, but these two I found seem to have some kind of alien laser vision… spooky.

Sex change chicken Gertie becomes Bertie

A SEX change chicken which began life as an egg-laying hen has turned into a crowing cock.

Stunned owner Jeanette Howard, 79, couldn’t believe her eyes or ears when one-year-old Gertie sprouted a distinctive red comb and chin wattle — and started crowing at dawn.

Now she plans to re-name Gertie, Bertie.

Mrs Howard said she first noticed something was up with Gertie when she started to walk differently from her other two hens, Daisy and Gracie.

She has since been reassured by vets that the hen is fine — but that damage to her ovaries could have caused Gertie to develop male characteristics.

Experts say sex changes can affect one in 10,000 animals.

Mrs Howard said: “I bought three chickens a year ago and they were all laying eggs for me until the end of the year.

“They began to moult over the winter and I wasnt taking a lot of notice. Then one day I heard this crowing noise and I thought ‘Where’s that coming from?’

“I looked into the garden at Gertie and I saw it was coming from her or him.”

Mrs Howard, of Needingworth, near Huntingdon, Cambs, said Gertie had suddenly developed a scarlet comb, chin wattle and long tail feathers, which are all male characteristics.

She said: “It had started cock-a-doodle-do-ing and had grown bits all over its face.

“He had really grown and was strutting around with his head up in the air, so proud of himself. …

Delia Richter, from Cromwell Vets in Huntingdon, said damage to the hen’s single ovary or a growth upon it could cause it to exhibit male characteristics.

Miss Richter said: “It would still be a hen but the ovary on the left side degenerates and the right side begins to release testosterone. It’s possible that’s what happened in this case.” …

via Sex change chicken Gertie becomes Bertie | The Sun |News.

Some fathers in the area will reportedly be bringing their sons around to Mrs. Howard to help them “man up”.

Catacomb of secret tunnels packed with mummified remains of EIGHT MILLION dogs is excavated in Egypt

A labyrinth of sacred tunnels packed with the mummified remains of millions of dogs has been excavated under the Egyptian desert.

The catacombs are estimated to contain the remains up to eight million dogs, many of which would have been offered to the gods when they were just hours old.

Others would have been treated as living representatives of the dog or jackal-headed god Anubis and would have lived out their lives in the nearby temple before being preserved and laid to rest in the network of tunnels.

The fascinating details come from Cardiff University scientists, who along with Egyptian colleagues are the first to examine the structure and contents of the complex underground network built 2,500 years ago under the Saqqara desert.

The catacomb, which lies ten to 12metres underground, consists of a long central corridor and a series of smaller passages that branch off it.

Sampling of small areas and bone examination of their contents suggest that the entire network is home to eight million dogs, as well as a handful of cats and jackals.

Some of the dogs were killed and mummified just days or even hours after birth.

With the need to mummify so many animals, perhaps thousands per year, it is likely the animals were bred in puppy farms dotted around the ancient capital of Memphis.

Pilgrims, who were not necessarily particularly well-off, bought the dogs, then paid for them to be mummified, in the hope of currying favour with the canine-headed god, Anubis.

As one of the most important gods of the dead, Anubis was particularly worth pleasing.

Dr Paul Nicholson, of Cardiff University’s School of History, Archaeology and Religion, said: ‘These animals were not strictly “sacrificial”.

‘Rather, the dedication of an animal mummy was regarded as a pious act, with the animal acting as an intermediary between the donor and the gods.’

The excavation, which was funded by National Geographic, also revealed that some dogs were interred individually, in niches in the tunnel walls. …

via Catacomb of secret tunnels packed with mummified remains of EIGHT MILLION dogs is excavated in Egypt | Mail Online.

Bizarre! Do you realize that there is absolutely no picture or mention of Zahi Hawass in this story?!?

375-Pound Shark Leaps Into Texas Fisherman’s Boat

It’s the catch of a lifetime, but it’s not clear whether a Texas fisherman landed an 8-foot shark or it landed him.

Twenty-nine-year-old Jason Kresse of Freeport says he and two crew members were dumping fish guts in the Gulf of Mexico about 3:45 a.m. Monday when they heard splashes in the distance and then something hit the side of their 25-foot boat.A shark in an apparent rush to feed had jumped into the back and was thrashing around. Kresse says the crew couldn’t get close to the 375-pound fish to toss it back in the water.

It died several hours later.

The shark is on display at a seafood business in Freeport, about 55 miles south of Houston. Kresse says he plans to have it mounted.

via 375-Pound Shark Leaps Into Texas Fisherman’s Boat.

Retired Air Force Major Predicts UFO Sightings at Royal Wedding

The upcoming royal wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton is expected to be viewed by more than a billion people worldwide — and possibly a few extraterrestrials, according to at least one former military officer.

George Filer, a retired Air Force major, runs the National UFO Center and says it’s common to see UFOs around important events.

“The craft seem to have an interest in anything important,” Filer told AOL News. “They’ve been sighted recently over Libya and near the Japanese tsunami.”Filer says his center averages more than 1,000 sightings a month, and he expects to get a few UFO reports from the area surrounding Westminster Abbey, the site of the April 29 wedding.

There are two reasons behind Filer’s prediction: In the last few weeks, he’s been getting reports from British Royal Air Force pilots who reported seeing UFOs over the English Channel, and, more importantly, he says the royal family is very interested in the UFO phenomenon.

Filer knows this personally because he once had a conversation about UFOs with William’s grandfather, Prince Philip.”It was around 1961 or ’62, when I was a navigator in a tanker,” Filer said. “He met with a group of us after a dinner because he wanted to talk about UFOs. He told us that the RAF had stopped sending fighters after UFOs because some of them didn’t come back.

“They decided to send tankers, which were nearly as fast as the fighters but could hold 15 hours of fuel, compared to two for the fighters.”

Filer says the prince also revealed that his interest in UFOs was more than just concerns of national security — it was personal.”I asked him why he was so interested in UFOs and he explained that his uncle, the Earl Mountbatten, had seen them up close,” Filer said.

Even though the meeting took place during the Cold War, Filer discounts the underlying possibility that the UFOs seen during the period were actually Soviet craft.

“That was always a possibility, but it seemed unlikely since these craft were bigger than expected — it’s like an aircraft carrier in space,” he said. “However, the Soviets did try to penetrate the airspace of the United Kingdom and the United States quite regularly.” …

via Retired Air Force Major Predicts UFO Sightings at Royal Wedding.

Older and stronger: Progressive resistance training can build muscle, increase strength as we age

Despite being 74 years old, Japanese weightlifter Tsutomu Tosuka shows us you’re never to old to be a bodybuilder anywhere in the world.

Getting older doesn’t mean giving up muscle strength.

Not only can adults fight the battle of strength and muscle loss that comes with age, but the Golden Years can be a time to get stronger, say experts at the University of Michigan Health System.

“Resistance exercise is a great way to increase lean muscle tissue and strength capacity so that people can function more readily in daily life,” says Mark Peterson, Ph.D., a research fellow in the U-M Physical Activity and Exercise Intervention Research Laboratory, at the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Through resistance training adults can improve their ability to stand up out of a chair walk across the floor, climb a flight of stairs — anything that requires manipulating their own body mass through a full range of motions.

Normally, adults who are sedentary beyond age 50 can expect muscle loss of up to 0.4 pounds a year.

“That only worsens as people age. But even earlier in adulthood – the 30s, 40s and 50s – you can begin to see declines if you do not engage in any strengthening activities,” Peterson says.

“Our analyses of current research show that the most important factor in somebody’s function is their strength capacity. No matter what age an individual is, they can experience significant strength improvement with progressive resistance exercise even into the eighth and ninth decades of life,” he says.

Progressive resistance training means that the amount of weight used, and the frequency and duration of training sessions is altered over time to accommodate an individual’s improvements. …

As resistance training progresses and weights and machines are introduced, Peterson recommends incorporating full body exercises and exercises that use more than one joint and muscle group at a time, such as the leg press, chest press, and rows. These are safer and more effective in building muscle mass.

“You should also keep in mind the need for increased resistance and intensity of your training to continue building muscle mass and strength,” he says.

A good fitness professional can help plan an appropriate training regimen, and make adjustments based on how you respond as you progress.

“We firmly believe based on this research that progressive resistance training should be encouraged among healthy older adults to help minimize the loss of muscle mass and strength as they age,” Peterson says. …

via Older and stronger: Progressive resistance training can build muscle, increase strength as we age.