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The researchers also gathered behavioral data, asking participants how strongly they felt the emotions described in each story and how similar these feelings were across different objects of love. This helped the team link subjective emotional experiences to the observed brain activity.

“We use state-of-the-art technology to measure what happens in the brain when a person feels love,” Rinne told PsyPost. “We studied many different types of love and were able to show how different types of love activate the brain in different ways. Our results help explain why the word ‘love’ is used in so many different contexts. Our research also offers insights into why we feel stronger affection for those we are close to compared to strangers, even though the underlying brain processes of affection are the same for all types of interpersonal relationships.”

The study found that different types of love engage both shared and distinct regions of the brain. At a general level, all types of love activated areas associated with social cognition, including the medial prefrontal cortex, the temporoparietal junction, and the precuneus. These regions are involved in understanding others’ thoughts and emotions, a process known as theory of mind. This suggests that even when we experience love for non-human objects, like nature, our brain still engages these neural pathways.

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A team of microchip engineers at Pragmatic Semiconductor, working with a pair of colleagues from Harvard University and another from Qamcom, has developed a bendable, programmable, non-silicon 32-bit RISC-V microprocessor. Their research is published in the journal Nature.

Over the past several years, hardware manufacturers have been developing bendable microprocessors for use in . A bendable device with bendable components would allow for the creation of 24-hour sensors that could be applied to any part of the body.

For this new project, the research team developed an inexpensive circuit board that could be bent around virtually any curved object. The material was made using indium gallium zinc oxide instead of the more rigid silicon.

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While 3D printing has exploded in popularity, many of the plastic materials these printers use to create objects cannot be easily recycled.

The automatically generated parameters can replace about half of the parameters that typically must be tuned by hand. In a series of test prints with unique materials, including several renewable materials, the researchers showed that their method can consistently produce viable parameters.

This research could help to reduce the environmental impact of additive manufacturing, which typically relies on nonrecyclable polymers and resins derived from fossil fuels.

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A Princeton-led team of scientists has created the first detailed connectome of an adult fruit fly brain, a complex network with almost 140,000 neurons. This significant step in neuroscience was featured in Nature and involved contributions from various global institutions, highlighting both the complexity of the fly’s brain and the potential insights it offers into human neurological diseases.

Groundbreaking Brain Mapping: A Connectome for the Adult Fruit Fly

Researchers led by Princeton University have constructed the first detailed neuron-by-neuron and synapse-by-synapse roadmap through the brain of an adult fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster), achieving a major milestone in brain research. This study is the flagship article in the October 2 special issue of Nature, which is devoted to the new fruit fly “connectome.”

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The precise geometry of the protected area encompassing an iconic New Zealand volcano, Mount Taranaki, is unmistakable from space, highlighting its status as New Zealand’s second national park.

This conical, often snow-capped volcano not only captivates with its natural beauty but also serves as a critical area for scientific research due to its unstable geological history and ongoing volcanic threats. In 2017, Mount Taranaki was granted the same legal rights as a person, emphasizing its profound cultural significance to the Indigenous Māori people.

Mount Taranaki

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