November 8, 2011

Google Logo Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm

Editor's Selections: Candy, Cocaine, Autism and Schizophrenia

By Jason G. Goldman

Join Our Community of Science Lovers!

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American

Here are my Research Blogging Editor's Selections for this week.

Lots of good stuff as usual, this week.

  • Do you still have leftover Halloween candy? While eating that "fun size" candy bar while nobody is watching, consider that eating sweets may actually make you sweeter. Juli, writing at Psych Your Mind, has the details.

  • People have long been fond of calling marijuana a "gateway drug." But can the same be true of nicotine? Maybe. A new paper is described at United Academics, where the blogger writes, "In a study published this week in Science Translational Medicine, Kandel and her team now show that, in mice at least, nicotine causes epigenetic changes — long-lasting changes in the control of gene expression — that subsequently boost the response to cocaine."

  • There's a theory that autism and schizophrenia are, in a sense, opposite sides of the same coin. Or, more specifically, disorders that lie on opposite ends of a spectrum. The idea is that "natural variations in several factors such as sense of self, gaze, agency, social cognition, local versus global processing and others creates a spectrum at the end of which lie the two disorders." Find out more at NeuroJC. By apparent coincidence, Bjorn Brembs also has a fascinating post this week on the same theory!

On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.

That's it for this week... Check back next week for more great psychology and neuroscience blogging!

Jason G. Goldman is a science journalist based in Los Angeles. He has written about animal behavior, wildlife biology, conservation, and ecology for Scientific American, Los Angeles magazine, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the BBC, Conservation magazine, and elsewhere. He contributes to Scientific American's "60-Second Science" podcast, and is co-editor of Science Blogging: The Essential Guide (Yale University Press). He enjoys sharing his wildlife knowledge on television and on the radio, and often speaks to the public about wildlife and science communication.

More by Jason G. Goldman

It’s Time to Stand Up for Science

If you enjoyed this article, I’d like to ask for your support. Scientific American has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.

I’ve been a Scientific American subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.

If you subscribe to Scientific American, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.

In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can't-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world's best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.

There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you’ll support us in that mission.

Thank you,

David M. Ewalt, Editor in Chief, Scientific American

Subscribe