Behavioral Research Blog

How males and females are different: can this explain autism?

Women and Venus, men and Mars, right? In mice, the establishment of social hierarchies is sex-dependent.

Why non-verbal behavior matters

Basil Preisig and his colleagues at the University of Bern, Switzerland, were especially interested in communicative development of people diagnosed with language disorders like aphasia.

How young zebrafish cope with stress

Stress is a natural thing, and how we cope with it differs from person to person. In research, we use the term coping style, something that emerges early on in life for zebrafish.

Zinc deficiency, depression and electrical signals in the brain

Depression has a dramatic effect on quality of life because it results in a persistent low mood that is accompanied by a low self-esteem and a loss of interest in things that give pleasure.

Fearful chicken: Fear affects stress, behavior patterns, and other individuals

Elske de Haas, Ph.D. studied the effects of fearfulness on the chickens' own behavior and physiology, but also what it did to other individuals.

The impact of health information technology on doctor-patient interaction

Embracing the technological advances of the last decade, many health care professionals have incorporated information technology into their daily routines.

Ladybugs and lacewings do not spy on their prey’s alarm pheromone

Leaf sucking creatures like plant aphids are common and can cause considerable damage to plants. Therefore, quite a lot of effort is made to control these tiny creatures.

How to really challenge mice cerebellar plasticity

Jan-Willem Potters used the ErasmusLadder in his thesis research to study the role of specific mutations of plasticity in the cerebellar microcircuit of mice.

Picky cats and tasty food – sniffing is an indicator for tastiness

Cats can be extremely picky when it comes to food. If the cat doesn’t like it, it will refuse to eat. Reason enough for the pet food industry to try to find out what cats really like.

A high-throughput method to screen natural behavior of mice

Traditional standard tests with rats or mice are carried out immediately after human interference. Therefore, the behavior of the animals may not be natural and spontaneous.

Making sense of the senses: The real cost of paying attention

We live in a demanding world: the snort of an email, the squeal of a text, fare alerts, breaking news, SQUIRREL! What was I saying? Oh yes, we live in a distracted world.

Anxiety is ancient – how crayfish resemble vertebrates

Fear is something we all know. It changes our behavior: we freeze, try to escape, or respond with aggression. Fear can also cause anxiety, which is a more complex phenomenon.