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Slowing Parkinson’s Progression: The Tai Chi Advantage

Lead Image: Research indicates that Tai Chi, a traditional Chinese martial art, may provide long-term relief from Parkinson’s disease symptoms. Practitioners of Tai Chi experienced slower disease progression, reduced medication needs, improved cognitive function, better sleep quality, and a lower incidence of complications. While the study has its limitations, the findings suggest that Tai Chi could offer Parkinson’s patients enhanced life quality and reduced caregiver burden. Associated with slower disease progression and lower doses of required drugs. Tai Chi, the Chinese martial art that involves sequences of very slow controlled movements, may curb the symptoms and complications of Parkinson’s disease…

Hidden Martian Secrets: NASA’s InSight Lander Uncovers Mars’ Molten Mystery

Lead Image: Artist’s view of the internal structure of Mars showing the propagation of diffracted waves from the September 2021 meteorite impact to the SEIS seismometer of the InSight mission. Their trajectory passes through the lower, completely molten part of the silicate layer at the base of the mantle, where seismic velocities are low. Credit: IPGP / CNES / N. Starter Recent data challenges initial NASA InSight Mars Lander mission findings about Mars’ internal structure. Researchers have discovered a molten silicate layer at the Martian mantle’s base, suggesting a smaller and denser core than previously estimated. The first data from…

Voyager’s New Horizon: NASA Engineers Tackle Thruster Buildup & Software Glitches

Lead Image: NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft is depicted in this artist’s concept traveling through interstellar space, or the space between stars, which it entered in 2012. Traveling on a different trajectory, its twin, Voyager 2, entered interstellar space in 2018. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA’s Voyager mission team is addressing challenges to ensure prolonged functionality of the two spacecraft. They’re mitigating thruster fuel residue issues and implementing a software patch to rectify a previous Voyager 1 glitch. The efforts should help extend the lifetimes of the agency’s interstellar explorers. Engineers for NASA’s Voyager mission are taking steps to help make sure both…

Stanford Study Uncovers Surprising Twist in Ketamine’s Effect on Depression

Lead Image: Stanford researchers found that both ketamine and placebo treatments reduced depression symptoms in participants. Positive expectations may play a vital role in treatment outcomes, suggesting that ketamine’s therapeutic effects might be separate from its psychedelic properties. In an unusual trial, Stanford Medicine researchers found that a patient’s belief that they had received ketamine, even if they didn’t, could improve their depression. In study after study, the psychoactive drug ketamine has given profound and fast relief to many people suffering from severe depression. But these studies have a critical shortcoming: Participants usually can tell whether they have been given…

Stellar Solutions: How Neutron Star Collisions May Solve the “Crisis in Cosmology”

Lead Image: Artist’s impression of two neutron stars colliding, known as a “kilonova” event. Credit: Elizabeth Wheatley (STScI) Astrophysicists propose observing colliding neutron stars (kilonovae) as a new method to address inconsistencies in measuring the Universe’s expansion rate, aiming to resolve the ongoing “Hubble Tension.” According to some in the astrophysical community, there has been something of a “Crisis in Cosmology” in recent years. Though astronomers are all aware that the Universe is in a state of expansion, there has been some inconsistency when measuring the rate of it (aka. the Hubble Constant). This issue arises from the Cosmic Distance…