BRAIN DRAIN:
If you are slothful, your IQ will suffer. That is the conclusion of Siegfried Lehrl, a German researcher who has analyzed 35 years of hospital data. In an October issue of Oslo’s Aftenposten, Lehrl claimed three weeks of mental inactivity can cause an IQ loss of 20 points and a noticeable shrinkage of vocabulary. Worse, he suggests that full recoveries from extended periods of inactivity are unlikely.
INFRARED BANDAIDS:
Astronauts must be careful shaving because nicks and other minor wounds do not heal well in space. For unknown reasons, the mitochondria that power cells work poorly in zero-gravity. But last September Harry Whelan, a neurologist at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, reported that radiating the mitochonidria with infrared light prompts them to go back to work. He is testing infrared –emitting LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes)to help the astronauts heal in orbit.
MYSTERIOUS PLANET:
A third of ...
