Behavioral Research Blog

Facial expressions - reactions to bitter food vary between high and low BMI

Overweight and obese individuals are at increased risk for many diseases and health conditions. By 2050, as much as 50% of the UK population could be obese at a cost of £50 billion a year.

Measuring the creative process

How can you come to better understand what is going on in the creative process? A living lab studying the work of a writer, painter, musician or other creative person might provide the answer.

Behavior predicts success of family-based treatment in anorexia

Anorexia nervosa is a horrible eating disorder that affects many people around the world. Looking at the United States only, between 0.5–1% of all women suffer from anorexia.

Primate behavior - cracking the nut, fur rubbing & mating behavior

Interested in primatology? Today we present to you three blog posts and a couple of interesting websites!

Making the impossible possible – Tracking under water in the dark

European eels (Anguilla anguilla) have a life cycle in which both larvae and adults travel incredible distances. The eggs hatch in the Sargasso Sea near North America and the larvae swim all the way to Europe.

Smelly feet and heat – how malaria mosquitoes find their hosts

It seems that mosquitoes use human body odor to locate suitable hosts, and different people smell differently to mosquitoes.

Testing PCBs toxicity - behavior in zebrafish and their offspring

PCBs are synthetic molecules that were used in transformers, electric motors, and more applications. It was quickly discovered that these molecules are toxic, and subsequently, they were banned.

Unraveling the chemistry of mood disorders

The most common psychiatric disorders are mood and anxiety related. However, the underlying mechanisms of these diseases are still largely unknown. This complicates the development of effective treatment and drugs.

Effective security screening and airport processes

Do you know this feeling? You are impatiently waiting in line for the security screening. There is a lot going on at an airport and the security screening is just one of the activities.

Standing cows

Does it matter how much time a cow spends standing up or lying down? Bert Tolkamp thought that it did matter, and he proved his point by winning an IgNobel prize for his work on this.

How zebrafish and optogenetics are great for investigating stress

By this point, we do not need to tell you how popular zebrafish are. We also probably do not need to point out the great technological advances that are being made in research because of the use of optogenetics.

Using CatWalk gait analysis to study monoarthritis in mice

Researchers are always looking for new ways to alleviate symptoms of arthritis. The CatWalk XT has been shown to be very useful in research involving arthritis in rodent models.