Avatars can walk-the-walk — can you? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Walking? Piece of cake! We’ve been doing it since we were babies. BUT retraining these motor skills after injury or surgery can take YEARS of physical therapy. Is there a way to speed
Continue readingTag: health
Bacteria Army
Bacteria trained for the mission … impossible! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Ever seen bacteria in petri dishes? They’re like bad disco dancers – all over the place! But is there more to these troublemakers than just randomly dancing around? Enter Taras Turiv and
Continue readingGait Aid
Could a new pair of kicks kick-start a healthy habit? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Ah, an early morning run! Fresh air, golden sunshine, lush scenery… huffing-and-puffing, chest pains, shin splints! How can we have the FUN of running without all that hard work?
Continue readingIndoor Smog
How’s the air quality today…at home? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. When you hear the words “air quality,” most people think of smog. That nasty brown stuff in the air. On a bad day, you try to stay indoors and avoid it. But is
Continue readingA Squat a Day
Can hunter-gatherers teach us healthier habits? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. I always wear my Fit-Bit! But it doesn’t do much good when we mostly sit on our butts all day. Humans weren’t meant to be so sedentary, right? Brian Wood at UCLA and
Continue readingStressed Out
Stressed out over grey hair?! Join the club! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Blonde, brunette, redhead — where do all those shades come from? As our hair grows, pigment-producing stem cells slowly turn into colored cells. BUT over time, we start to see some
Continue readingSpider Stitches
Did I just walk into a spider web? Eeew! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with The Loh Down on Science. Having surgery? That means…stitches!. And getting stitches is about as fun as… well, getting stitches. Any way we can avoid those needles? Hyunwoo Yuk and Claudia Varela from MIT took
Continue readingBitter or Sweet?
Kale again? Yuck! I hate bitter greens! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. I know, I know – eating greens is healthy. But my taste buds disagree! What’s the secret to eating those bitter greens happily? Meet Laura Martin and colleagues from the University of
Continue readingSlimy Solution
What’s slippery, slimy, and soon to be in your medicine cabinet? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. The answer? Sea snails, of course! Specifically, the Australian white rock sea snail. These escargot secrete a slime that has chemicals also found in prescription drugs. They’re called
Continue readingBinge-Eating Mind
In the immortal words of Homer, “mmmm… donuts!” This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. What’s today’s most common eating disorder? Binge eating! And it’s a major health crisis—more prevalent than breast cancer and HIV. Scientists are hard at work trying to find a solution. Enter
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