Nifty Stories from This Week
I really like the mind-control, I mean memory enhancing or erasing, story from a couple of days ago and I'd love to highlight that one. By controlling an enzyme in rat brains, one can either enhance or get completely rid of a memory, no matter how long it's been since that memory was initially formed. This has the initially obvious uses like helping people with anxiety problems, recovered memories, loss of memory, etc., but if you ask me, points directly toward this:
Second for today is a particularly creepy article about four new species of fungus found in the Brazilian rainforest. You know that parasite that gets into an ant's brain, makes it walk up to the top of a blade of grass, and forces it to wait there to be ingested? This is kind of like that, except these fungi turn the ants into zombies, makes them crawl onto some kind of vegetation above the forest floor, locks their jaws onto the plant/thing, and sprouts out of the back of their neck to release spores that fly off into the sunset. Holy ew.
Okay, I gotta run!!! See you guys tomorrow!
-Miss Mouse
References and Links:
Memory Zapper:
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-03-enzyme-erases-long-term-memories-rats.html
Zombie Ants:
http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-03-parasitic-fungi-ants-zombies.html
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