The Brainy Life of Bees Biology Zoology 

The Brainy Life of Bees

By Jonathan Trinastic @jptrinastic The thought of worker bees buzzing about their colonies in service of the queen may not suggest a rich mental life at first. However, two experiments run by separate teams at Queen Mary University of London reveal a surprising potential for bumblebees to learn novel tasks as well as experience mental states similar to human optimism. The findings suggest that bees can transfer learned skills across generations—one of the primary requirements for primitive culture. I’m just pulling your string Crows, apes, and dolphins get plenty of…

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Cat Videos: Bloomington, Indiana's own Lil Bub is one of the more popular felines on the Internet. (Photo by Mike Bridavsky/www.lilbub.com) Citizen Science Health Zoology 

Cat Videos Boost Energy, Good Feelings

Do you get a warm, fuzzy feeling after watching cat videos online? If so, that emotional effect may be more profound than you realize. The Internet phenomenon of watching cat videos, from Lil Bub to Grumpy Cat, apparently does more than simply entertain. It boosts viewers’ energy and positive emotions while decreasing negative feelings, according to a new study from Indiana University Media School. Can a Cat Video a Day Keep the Doctor Away? The study, by assistant professor Jessica Gall Myrick, surveyed almost 7,000 people about their viewing of…

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