Category Archives: Medicine

How the Brain Tunes in to the Music of Speech

Ken Probst/UCSF

Human voices convey meaning and emphasis by changing pitch. Now, scientists at University of California, San Francisco believe they have found the brain area that makes this possible.

Scientists increasingly believe home sapiens achieved language not only by evolving a sophisticated larynx, or voice box, but also by developing the neurological capacity to use it in a variety of ways.

Read/listen to my full story at KJZZ’s Arizona Science Desk:
Scientists Identify The Brain’s Pitch Area, Essential For Language

Vaginal Microbes Might Explain Why Only Some HPV Cases Result in Cancer

Lactobacillus organisms and vaginal squamous epithelial cell. Photo courtesy CDC.

A new study could help explain why some women with HPV develop cervical cancers while others do not.

The research suggests healthy vaginal microbes correspond to reduced risk of cervical cancer.

Read/listen to my full story at KJZZ’s Arizona Science Desk:
Arizona Study Links HPV, Cervical Cancer to Vaginal Microbes

Shade Parking Offers Little Protection for Kids in Cars

Photo by Riley from Christchurch, New Zealand.

‘Tis the season for 110-degree days, excessive-heat warnings and trolling the parking lot for a shady spot. But new research suggests those in the shade might not have it made after all — especially if they are young children.

Read/listen to my full story at KJZZ’s Arizona Science Desk:
For Children In Cars, Shade Offers Little Protection From Lethal Heat

Behind the Police Tape at a Forensic Science Program

This doll lists all of the symptoms of abrin, the toxin of the rosary pea (Abrus precatorius) seed. The red and black beans are often made into jewelry like the doll’s necklace. Photo by Nicholas Gerbis/KJZZ.

Every great investigator tells a story about the one that got away.

For Kimberly Kobojek, director of the forensic science program at Arizona State University’s West campus, formerly of the Phoenix Police Crime Lab, that white whale was a reddish brown stain.

Read/listen to my full story at KJZZ’s Arizona Science Desk:
Forensic Science Education at ASU: a Peek Behind the Police Tape

Tempe, ASU Team Up to Map Drugs in Wastewater

Everything – drugs included – sooner or later travels the sewers.

So Tempe and ASU plan to study wastewater as part of a public health effort to identify substance abuse hotspots and evaluate efforts to reduce opioid prescriptions.

Read/listen to my full story at KJZZ’s Arizona Science Desk:
Tempe Partners With ASU to Detect Drugs in Wastewater