Are humans meant to be happy? What would the world be like without the Moon? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of July 15 - July 21, 2019 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm.

In this week's best and brightest from the world of science news, discover the evolutionary basis for cuteness and find out how scientists are beginning to be able to see quantum phenomena. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• Humans aren't designed to be happy – so stop trying by Rafael Euba for The Conversation UK.

What if happiness is a social construct that humans are not designed for?
Credit: Jean Marconi via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

• Evolutionarily adorable by A Short Scientist.
• Sexual images are just as arousing for women as they are for men by Clare Wilson for New Scientist.
• Neurons and cancer cells are a dangerous duo by Claudia Lopez for Massive Science.
• Sniffing out cancer by Rachel Cherney for OncoBites.
• Gut microbes protect against neurologic damage from viral infections by Science Beta.
• How vegetarian burgers, that look & taste like meat, are made by Julie Mal at Food Crumbles.
• WHO to reconvene IHR Emergency Committee on Ebola in DRC by Michael Coston at Avian Flu Diary.
• Is it time to create artificial blizzards in Antarctica? by Richard A. Lovett for Cosmos magazine.
• How the first men on the moon got ready to geologize there by David Bressan for Forbes.
• The world without the Moon by Caleb Scharf for Scientific American.
• 50 moon facts to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing by Physics Central.
• Imaging quantum entanglement by Gianluigi Filippelli at Doc Madhattan.
• Elon Musk’s startup eyes human testing for brain-computer interface by Kelly Servick for Science magazine.
• [Infographic] U.S. venture funds near 20-year highs by Alan Kotok at Science and Enterprise.
• Personal safety at scientific conferences by DoctorAl.

Check back next week for more great picks!

How can cuttlefish ink be used to treat tumours? Why is fat stigma a bigger problem than obesity? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of July 8 - July 14, 2019 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm.

In this week's best and brightest from the world of science news, find out why the stigma that comes with being overweight is more damaging than obesity itself, and explore how gut bacteria could be employed to overcome blood shortages. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• Fat is not the problem-fat stigma is by Linda Bacon and Amee Severson for Scientific American.
• Bacteria from our guts have the tools to solve blood bank shortages by Lauren Sara McKee for Massive Science.
• Treating tumors with cuttlefish ink by Marina Philip for Chembites.

  

  One of the ocean's most colorful and intelligent animals may have just gotten even more amazing!
  Credit: Peter Hellberg via Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)

• How a mother’s odour helps her baby develop a sensitivity to faces by Emma Young via BPS Research Digest.
• Bonobos' penchant for aquatic herbs might be why we have such big brains by Darcy Shapiro for Massive Science.
• Climate grief: when hope (doesn't) spring eternal by Wiida Fourie at SciBraai.
• Global farming trends ‘a threat to food security’ by Natalie Parletta for Cosmos magazine.
• Curing “Plant Blindness” with Botanical Gardens and Farms by Niha Jain for Science Connected magazine.
• Could massive SoCal earthquakes trigger the 'Big One' on the San Andreas Fault? by Tia Ghose and Jeanna Bryner for Live Science.
• How to improve communication with your PhD supervisor in 5 easy steps by Carmen Rietdjik for Next Science.
• This is how mastering dark matter could take us to the stars by Ethan Siegel at Starts With A Bang.

Check back next week for more great picks!

Stress in Dogs, at Work and How Exercise and Scary Movies Can Be Helpful: ScienceSeeker Psychology Picks from June 2019

Did you know that dogs can pick up stress from their owners? Or that being too engaged with work can make you defensive and unwilling to share knowledge? These are among the subjects reported in the best coverage of psychology research from June 2019 according to ScienceSeeker editor Antanas Spokas. He has made the video below to summarise them - and to read the posts themselves, access them from our ScienceSeeker picks posts from June.

What does a volcano look like from space? How can you tell if something is conscious? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of July 1 - July 7, 2019 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm

In this week's best and brightest from the science news blogosphere, watch the seasons change in a beautiful visualisation of the Earth's yearly fluctuations, and find out how far we are from being able to play games telepathically. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• NASA astronauts and satellites capture breathtaking images of an awakening volcano from space by Ethan Siegel at Starts With A Bang.

  

  Raikoke volcano, which had been dormant for 95 years, erupted without warning on June 22, 2019, emitting a vast plume of ash and volcanic gases from its 700 meter (2,300 feet) wide crater. While several satellites imaged it, this spectacular photo was taken from astronauts aboard the International Space Station.
  Credit: Text - Ethan Siegel, Image - NASA/ISS.

• Gif: Earth datasets of Arctic sea ice and vegetation by Eleanor Lutz at Tabletop Whale.

  

  This beautifully steampunk gif allows you to see the seasons change globally.
  Credit: Eleanor Lutz via Tabletop Whale.

• Brain games: Computer interface lets multiple people play video games telepathically by Sarah McQuate for the Genetic Literacy Project.
• How can you tell if another person, animal or thing is conscious? by Tam Hunt for The Conversation.
• A genetic ghost hunt: What ancient humans live on in our DNA? by Nathaniel Scharping for The Crux at Discover magazine.
• Agriculture vs. Environment: another false dichotomy by Manu Saunders for Ecology Is Not A Dirty Word
• These scientists don’t think plants think by Stephen Fleischfresser for Cosmos magazine.
• Coastal job: Community aquarium creator Interview with Melanie Knight by Megan Osmond-Jones for Hakai magazine.
• Scientists identify stunning new tropical reef fish that shimmers like an opal by GrrlScientist.
• Don't recycle paper. "Unprint" it by Emily Smith for Massive Science.
• Dead trees and utility poles partially offset the impacts of deforestation on birds by Lindsay Green-Gavrielidis for Envirobites.
• New metalloenzyme system selectively targets cancer cells by Masataka Sasabe for It Ain't Magic.
• Thinking outside of the STEM career box by Soph Talks Science.
• Five unusual, evidence-based ways to get better at a new language by Emma Young for BPS Research Digest.
• The periodic table of element Scrabble scores by Andy Brunning at Compound Interest.

Check back next week for more great picks!

How biodegradable is your biodegradable cup? What's it like being LGBTQ+ in STEM? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of June 24 - June 30, 2019 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm.

In this week's best from the world of science news, find out about the Quantum Supremacy and why it's not as impressive as it sounds, and uncover the science behind Homo sapiens' unique gift for music. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• What's your biodegradable coffee cup made of – and how biodegradable is it? by Andy Brunning at Compound Interest.



Better than non-biodegradable cups, but still a long way to go.
Credit: Andy Brunning via Compound Interest (CC BY NC ND)

• Being openly LGBTQ+ in STEM by Jess and Chloe Robinson on The Biochemist.
• Cambridge scientists create a successful "vaccine" against fake news by Paul Ratner via BigThink.
• 10 medical myths we should stop believing. doctors, too by Gina Kolata at The New York Times.
• Study: People more likely to return lost wallet with more money by Sci-News.com.
• The cleaning revolution: How does this new wave of ultra-cleanliness affect our health? by Emily May Armstrong for The Gist.
• Audio: Elite runners' microbes make mice mightier by Karen Hopkin for Scientific American.
• Genetic factors may help explain athletic sudden death by Nicola Jones for Sapiens.
• The human brain is uniquely tuned for musical pitch by NIH news.
• The hidden light show below by Louise Murray for Hakai magazine.
• Evolution is sweet by Jordan Pennells for LifeApps.
• Quantum Supremacy: What is it and what does it mean? by Sabine Hossenfelder at Backreaction.
• NASA will fly a billion-dollar quadcopter to Titan, Saturn’s methane-rich moon by Paul Voosen for Science magazine.
• Teegarden party: Don’t pack your interstellar travel bags … yet by Ian O'Neill at Astroengine.
• New climate ‘stripes’ reveal how much hotter your hometown has gotten in the past century by Eli Kintisch for Science magazine.
• This cave in the Philippines has over 2 million bats. It needs to get bigger by Tristan Manalac at FlipScience.
• For more than 111 years, scientists puzzled over the Tunguska event by David Bressan for Forbes.

Check back next week for more great picks!