EPIDAPO’s, Emmanuel Didier, has co-edited the Historical Social Research Volume 41, 2016 No.2 “Conventions and Quantification – Transdisciplinary Perspectives on Statistics and Classifications.”

A recent study suggests that who we are might be more integrated with where we are than previously thought. “The built environment can restrict or promote spatial cognition, which can influence one’s self-hood,” the researchers explain. “Our spatial coordinates and our ‘selves’ are intertwined.” The fact that experience can shape individual differences,…

New research from an international team of evolutionary biologists, led by the University of Oxford, has used bacteria to show that acquiring duplicate copies of genes can provide a ‘template’ allowing organisms to develop new attributes from redundant copies of existing genes. The researchers allowed 380 populations of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria to…

Loyola University Chicago researchers are among the co-authors of a groundbreaking study that found humans have a higher metabolism rate than closely related primates, which enabled humans to evolve larger brains. The study, published in the journal Nature, found that humans also have a higher percentage of body fat, providing the energy…

People who empathize easily with others do not necessarily understand them well. To the contrary: Excessive empathy can even impair understanding as a new study conducted by psychologists from Würzburg and Leipzig has established. “Successful social interaction is based on our ability to feel with others and to understand their thoughts and…

New research published today in PLOS ONE reveals an improved annotation of microRNAs in the dog genome to further understand its biological role. Providing a platform for future studies into biomedicine, evolution and the domestication of important animals including dogs, cows, horses and pigs. This discovery provides a significant opportunity not only…

High-fructose corn syrup is a grocery store staple, an inexpensive additive found in everything from soda to spaghetti sauce. We already know that diets heavy in it are a likely road to obesity and diabetes, but according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health, fructose may also be…

Professor Michael Alfaro, a professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, is this year’s Faculty Student Development DEI Award recipient. In the Spring of 2014, Professor Alfaro was one of the campus leaders who was tasked with developing a proposal to establish a diversity course requirement for undergraduate students in…

How does a formerly innocuous and obscure virus like Zika transform itself into a feared pathogen inflicting a devastating impact on global health? A new UCLA study suggests that the virus possesses the ability to mutate rapidly, allowing the current outbreak to spread swiftly around the world. The Cell Press journal, Cell…

While research has identified hundreds of genes required for normal memory formation, genes that suppress memory are of special interest because they offer insights into how the brain prioritizes and manages all of the information, including memories, that it takes in every day. These genes also provide clues for how scientists might…

Lauren Phinney, an HBS major, has been selected to receive the jane b semel HCI Appreciation & Recognition Award for 2016. The award was created to recognize UCLA community members who actively demonstrate their support of the principles of the Healthy Campus Initiative in striving to improve the health and wellness of…

Evolution is thought to proceed through the gradual accumulation of independent mutations in each new generation. In a study published online today in Genome Research, researchers analyzing hominid genomes have discovered thousands of clustered mutations likely resulting from the coordinated activity of APOBEC enzymes, leading to accelerated changes in DNA. Mutations occur…