Sense of smell drove brain evolution

Paleontologists have now discovered that an improved sense of smell jumpstarted brain evolution in the ancestral cousins of present-day mammals. The research appears in the 20 May 2011 issue of the journal Science.
    The findings may help explain why mammals evolved such large and complex brains, which in some cases ballooned 10 times larger than relative body size. By reconstructing fossils of two Early Jurassic Period mammals--Morganuocodon and Hadrocodium--the authors provide new evidence that the mammalian brain evolved in three major stages: 
- first by improvements in sense of smell or olfaction; 
- next by an increase in touch or tactile sensitivity from body hair; 
- and third by improved neuromuscular coordination or the ability to produce skilled muscle movement using the senses.
    Paleontologists pondering why mammals, including humans, evolved larger brains than other animals say it may have been to facilitate an acute sense of smell.
    In a paper published in the journal Science, researchers say they also noticed enlargement in the areas of the brain that correspond to the ability to sense touch through fur, a sense acutely developed in mammals.
    Zhe-Xi Luo of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh was part of a team that used high-resolution CT scans to study rare 190-million-year-old fossil skulls of Morganucodon and Hadrocodium, two of the earliest known mammal species.
    The scans revealed the tiny mammals from the Jurassic fossil beds of China had much larger brains than expected for specimens of their period, a Carnegie release reported Thursday.
    "Our new study shows clearly that the olfactory part of the brain and the part of the brain linked to tactile sensation through fur were enlarged in these early mammals," Luo said. "A sophisticated sense of smell and touch would have been crucial for mammals to survive and even thrive in the earliest part of our evolutionary history.
    "I have spent years studying these fossils, but until they were CT scanned it was impossible to see the internal details unless you were willing to destroy the skulls to look inside," Luo said. "I was absolutely thrilled to see the shape of the brain of our 190-million-year-old mammal relatives."
Even that long ago, the researchers said, the brains of the earliest mammals were notably large relative to body mass, with brain-to-body sizes approaching the proportions seen in modern mammals.


Read more: 
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2011/05/19/Sense-of-smell-drove-brain-evolution/UPI-44821305848041/#ixzz1NWn8f000
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2011/05/19/Sense-of-smell-drove-brain-evolution/UPI-44821305848041/
http://esciencenews.com/articles/2011/05/19/sniff.sniff.smelling.led.smarter.mammals.researchers.say
http://www.digimorph.org/

What Does Urine Tell You?

Glucose Test Strip	Urine Glucose Test Strip
Measures the glucose level at the moment you took the blood sample	Measures an average glucose level since the last time you urinated
Gives an exact reading	Gives a rough reading
Measures both high and low glucose levels	Measures only high glucose levels
Is appropriate for both type 1 and type 2 diabetics	Is not appropriate for type 1 diabetics and for type 2 diabetics on insulin
Can be used for adjusting insulin levels	Cannot be used for adjusting insulin levels

What Your Hands Reveal About Your Health

Your bodies are pretty good at sending out red flags when something’s wrong with our health—such as a fever due to infection or itchy hives from an allergic reaction. But sometimes the signs are misleading or easy to miss, even when they’re on one of the body parts you look at most: your hands! For instance, did you know that the length of your fingers, the state of your nails and even the shade of your palms can help predict you how healthy you’ll be in the future?
Swollen Fingers 
Red Palms
Pale Fingernails
Numb, Blue Fingertips
Discolored Nails
Short Index Fingers 
http://health.yahoo.net/experts/healthieryou/what-your-hands-reveal-about-your-health

Cute Drawing

Spirit

There were three basic attitudes of spirit: the scientific, the artistic and the religious.

- David Bohm, On Creativity