The secrets of supermassive black holes
Astronomers have spotted the most enormous black holes ever detected, inspiring new theories about how such pockets of extreme gravity form. Together, the two objects, which are roughly 300 million light-years away, have more mass than 30 billion suns, University of California at Berkeley astrophysicist Chung-Pei Ma tells the Associated Press. “They are monstrous,’’ she says. The smaller of the two black holes is 54 percent bigger than any ever found before. Black holes are regions of space where gravity is so intense that not even light can escape; they can form when stars run out of energy and collapse into themselves. Every galaxy, including our own Milky Way, appears to have a black hole at its center, but until now all of those found have been much smaller. Since these new “supermassive” finds are far bigger than those left by any single dead star, scientists now wonder if they expanded by gobbling galactic matter or by merging with black holes inside other galaxies. Ma says these black holes might also be remnants of quasars that burned out in bright bursts of extreme energy during the early phase of the universe.
Taming temper tantrums
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There’s a rhythm to childhood temper tantrums, and understanding it can help parents know when it’s best to intervene. In a new study, researchers planted microphones in toddlers’ clothes and recorded the sounds the children made during tantrums. As expected, they heard lots of screams and yells linked to anger, and plenty of cries and whimpers expressing sadness. But they were surprised to find that the tantrums did not follow a direct path from an angry to a sad phase. “The impression that tantrums have two stages is incorrect,’’ Michael Potegal, a pediatric neuropsychologist at the University of Minnesota, tells NPR.org. The data show instead that sad sounds occur throughout a tantrum, punctuated by sharp peaks of anger. During a screaming burst, there’s little point in trying to comfort—let alone reason with—a child, says Potegal’s co-author, James A. Green. When children are screaming and kicking, “it’s difficult for them to process information,” even if it comes in the form of a gentle question as to what’s wrong. Parents are better off waiting to offer comfort until the toddler’s sadder sounds indicate that he or she is actually seeking it.
Closing in on alien life?
Astronomers using NASA’s Kepler space telescope say they’ve discovered the most Earth-like planet yet, and that conditions there could support life as we know it. Kepler-22b, located some 600 light-years away, “orbits a star very, very similar to our own sun” at just the right distance to create surface temperatures of around 72 degrees, Kepler astronomer Natalie Batahla tells The Washington Post. The planet is 2.4 times the size of Earth, and scientists can’t yet say much about its surface or its atmosphere, which could greatly affect temperatures. Even with that caveat, Kepler scientists say the find is more promising than two other Earth-like planets, Gliese 581d and HD 85512b, which were identified earlier this year by European researchers; both are thought to be larger and colder than the new find. Kepler-22b is one of 2,326 “candidate planets” that the Kepler telescope has spotted since it was launched in 2009; only about 10 of those draw special interest because of their moderate sizes and their orbits within the “habitable zone,” where temperatures are mild enough to allow water to exist as a liquid. Researchers at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute have begun examining Kepler-22b with radio telescopes for signs of aliens. “We won’t know if they’re there unless we look,” says SETI scientist Jill Tarter.
How fish can fight Alzheimer’s
Eating more fish—as long as it’s not fried—could help keep your mind sharp as you age. A new study found that 70-year-olds who ate at least one serving of fish per week had bigger brains after 10 years than those who didn’t; the difference was most marked in regions linked to learning and memory. Those with more gray matter were also only a fifth as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. The study backs previous research suggesting that a fish-heavy diet reduces the risk of dementia, but it’s “the first to establish a direct relationship between fish consumption, brain structure, and Alzheimer’s risk,” researcher Cyrus Raji, of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, tells WebMD.com. Many experts think the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s by improving blood flow to the brain and preventing inflammation. But the new evidence that only baked and broiled fish proved beneficial suggests that “other factors” could be involved, says neurologist Richard Lipton of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Maybe it’s not the fish itself that offers protection but the tendency of people with healthy eating habits to “exercise more or eat less total calories.”
