Matilda's Lab
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matildaslab.bsky.social
Matilda's Lab
@matildaslab.bsky.social
67 followers 55 following 770 posts
Science nerd Dad who engages his kids with science through music, drawing and writing by making it fun.
Sharing my content too help others share their own journeys of discovery.
https://linktr.ee/chrismacalister
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matildaslab.bsky.social
Is there any aspect of our life that is not influenced by the microbes that live within us? It's now clear that the microbiome is linked to sleep disorders.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Groundbreaking review reveals how gut microbiota influences sleep disorders through the brain-gut axis
A comprehensive review published in Brain Medicine demonstrates that disruptions in gut microbiota composition are closely linked to sleep disturbances across multiple disorders, including insomnia, o...
www.eurekalert.org
November 13, 2025 at 6:43 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
An anemone for a crab, a hermit crab. When one animal evolves into an accessory for another it creates a beautiful synbiosis.
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#sciencenews
A new pink sea anemone that “builds a home” for hermit crabs discovered off Japan’s deep-sea coast
Researchers from Kumamoto University and collaborating institutions have discovered a new species of deep-sea sea anemone that builds shell-like “homes” for hermit crabs — an extraor...
www.eurekalert.org
November 12, 2025 at 10:33 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Persuasion in the brain. If you want to resonate with people, you need to make them anticipate a reward or make them empathise with someone else.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Seeing persuasion in the brain
An analysis of brain scans from 572 people reveals that activity in brain regions linked to reward and social processing can predict how effective messages will be.
www.eurekalert.org
November 12, 2025 at 4:59 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Making adults work like kids. When faced with constant distraction, the grown-up working memory takes a hit.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Distracting adults during task makes them behave like children
Researchers have known that children often don’t focus on tasks and tend to “over explore” instead of paying attention to what they should be doing. However, why they do has remained...
www.eurekalert.org
November 12, 2025 at 8:13 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Bamboo to the rescue as a potential alternative to plastic.
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#sciencenews
Can bamboo help solve the plastic pollution crisis?
A new research perspective highlights bamboo as a promising and sustainable alternative to traditional plastic materials, offering fresh hope in tackling one of the most pressing environmental issues ...
www.eurekalert.org
November 11, 2025 at 9:38 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Non voters are statistically more likely to be dying. It means that we can't blame our current political woes on the recently departed.
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#sciencenews
Voting behaviour in elections strongly linked to future risk of death
Voting behaviour in elections is strongly linked to the future risk of death, and is likely a stronger determinant of health than education—considered a key influence on health—suggests re...
www.eurekalert.org
November 11, 2025 at 6:28 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Today's featured blog post. Technically, this is a coincidence and the wasp is not actually named after the actor: if it were, it would have to be called "elbai".
matildaslab.wordpress.com/2021/09/16/i...
#scicomm #idriselba
Idris Elba & Idris Elba
Matilda’s Lab ©2021.
matildaslab.wordpress.com
November 10, 2025 at 12:32 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Self censorship. Our ability to hold our tongue is proportional to the potential penalties for transgression.
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#sciencenews
When speaking out feels risky
Arizona State University and University of Michigan researchers have developed a model showing how fear, boldness and surveillance interact to shape when people choose to speak up or stay silent.
www.eurekalert.org
November 10, 2025 at 6:22 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Bias leads us to fake news, on both sides of the political spectrum
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#sciencenews
Right or left, low-quality news links popular on social media
The spread of dubious headlines on social media is common across the political spectrum, according to new research from Cornell University.
www.eurekalert.org
November 9, 2025 at 8:21 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Mad scientists aren't putting kids off
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
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Kids have high trust of scientists, despite TV depictions
Young children have a lot of trust in scientists, and watching superhero TV shows with villainous researchers has little impact – and only in certain situations, a new study shows. Findings...
www.eurekalert.org
November 8, 2025 at 10:49 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
I'd had this one ready to go for a while. Sometimes the universe tells you when it's time to publish.
matildaslab.wordpress.com/2025/11/07/d...
#scicomm #dickcheney
Dick Cheney & Agathidium cheneyi
3 members of the Agathidium genus were named after members of the bush administration in 2005 & Cheney made the cut.
matildaslab.wordpress.com
November 7, 2025 at 12:37 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Are we living in the Matrix?
A new study concludes that...

No, we are not.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
UBCO study debunks the idea that the universe is a computer simulation
It’s a plot device beloved by science fiction: our entire universe might be a simulation running on some advanced civilization’s supercomputer. But new research from UBC Okanagan has math...
www.eurekalert.org
November 7, 2025 at 6:50 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
There has been some uncertainty about the offset of making an electrical vehicle and running one and whether they are actually more environmentally friendly than conventional ones.
It turns out that they are.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Electric vehicles outperform gasoline cars in lifetime environmental impact
After two years of use, lithium-ion battery electric vehicles (BEVs) result in a reduction in cumulative carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions compared to fossil-based internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicl...
www.eurekalert.org
November 6, 2025 at 11:00 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Microbes that control mammalian cell growth
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How microbes control mammalian cell growth
In a recent article published in Nature Cell Biology, University of Chicago researchers identified two small molecules made by gut bacteria, queuine and its chemical precursor pre- queuosine 1 (preQ1)...
www.eurekalert.org
November 6, 2025 at 6:48 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
I don't know how well this one will travel internationally, but for those in the UK, it's timely that this came up in the middle of a series of Strictly.
matildaslab.wordpress.com/2021/09/15/m...
#scicomm #StrictlyComeDancing
Matilda’s Lab Hall of Fame: Oti Mabuse
Who is she? She is a dancer, a champion of Latin American. She is best known for being a professional dancer on the TV show Strictly Come Dancing a show that she has won twice; once with fellow Hal…
matildaslab.wordpress.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:33 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
The patience of the contented
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Dopamine increases willingness to wait for rewards
L-DOPA, a precursor of the neurotransmitter dopamine, makes humans wait longer for rewards, as new research addresses gaps in earlier studies. / publication in the “Journal of Neuroscience&rdquo...
www.eurekalert.org
November 5, 2025 at 6:50 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Today's featured blog post. A man of rock, a "fish" of jelly.
matildaslab.wordpress.com/2021/09/10/h...
#scicomm
Henry Rollins & Amphinema rollinsi
Matilda’s Lab ©2021.
matildaslab.wordpress.com
November 4, 2025 at 1:51 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Stories inform how we deal with pain, and they still carry outdated gender stereotypes.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Boys don’t cry? How picture books can teach gendered ideas about pain
In a new study that analysed hundreds of popular children’s picture books UniSA researchers found that pain and injury are depicted in about one in five stories, with the most common experiences...
www.eurekalert.org
November 4, 2025 at 6:39 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Mosquito killing siren fungus
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Scientists develop floral-scented fungus that lures mosquitoes to their doom
University of Maryland entomologist Raymond St. Leger helped develop a new strain of fungus that mimics flowers to attract and kill mosquitoes, offering a new weapon in the right against disease-carry...
www.eurekalert.org
November 3, 2025 at 11:44 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Grassy trees, like bamboo, palm and banana appear to be super players in ecosystem recovery.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Scientists identify potential climate solutions in “grassy trees”
Bamboo, palm, and banana trees look and act like trees, but are actually closer to grasses in how they grow because—unlike trees—their stems do not grow wider over time. A new analysi...
www.eurekalert.org
November 3, 2025 at 6:39 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Touching nature soothes the mind
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#sciencenews
Stimulating the senses soothes the mind, research confirms
Researcher Michelle Hand finds that music and nature decrease anxiety, stress, and depression
www.eurekalert.org
October 31, 2025 at 11:27 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
Happy Halloween! But more importantly, it's newsletter day.
This week, we celebrate a significant anniversary. We have a living mushroom computer, real-life Spiderman gloves, the medicinal power of music and dance, rational chimps and do we live in the Matrix?
open.substack.com/pub/matildas...
Matilda's Lab Newsletter #98
This week, we celebrate a significant anniversary. We have a living mushroom computer, real-life Spiderman gloves, the medicinal power of music and dance, rational chimps and do we live in the Matrix?
open.substack.com
October 31, 2025 at 4:04 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
You know who loves tourist forest canopy walkways? Resident forest canopy animals.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Rainforest animals are using tourist walkways—offering clues for conservation design
Look up in the woods and you may see a familiar sight: squirrels using tree limbs like a leafy highway, crossing a patch of land without putting their paws on the ground. That’s true in the Ama...
www.eurekalert.org
October 31, 2025 at 3:46 PM
matildaslab.bsky.social
It's not just eating the fat that's the problem. It's precisely when you eat the fat. Winter is the time to be more lean.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Fatty winter snacks may trick the body into packing on the pounds
Next time you’re tempted to raid the pantry for snacks loaded with saturated fat — especially in winter — you might want to consider that the result could be a mounting urge for high...
www.eurekalert.org
October 31, 2025 at 6:52 AM
matildaslab.bsky.social
The emotional strain of calorie counting apps. It's bad enough knowing that you ate the bad thing, but reliving that guilt when updating the app is doing is no favours.
www.eurekalert.org/news-release...
#sciencenews
Emotional strain of fitness and calorie counting apps revealed
Some users of popular fitness and calorie counting apps experience shame, disappointment and demotivation, potentially undermining their health and wellbeing, according to a new study led by researche...
www.eurekalert.org
October 30, 2025 at 10:37 PM