Karen Hopkin
Scientific American
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Past articles by Karen:
Why Your Dog Might Think You're a Bonehead
The verdict is in: female dogs actively evaluate human competence. → Read More
It's the Bass That Makes Us Boogie
Concert goers danced more when music was supplemented with low-frequency bass tones. → Read More
A Remote Controlled Carnivorous Plant?
Researchers design an artificial neuron that can trigger closure of a Venus flytrap. → Read More
Hedgehogs Host the Evolution of Antibiotic Resistance
Bacteria resistant to methicillin emerged in hedgehogs long before the drug was prescribed to treat infections. → Read More
Meerkats Are Getting Climate Sick
For meerkats in the Kalahari Desert, rising temperatures spark deadly outbreaks of tuberculosis. → Read More
Science, Finally, Has a Good Idea About Why We Stutter
A glitch in speech initiation gives rise to the repetition that characterizes stuttering. → Read More
Your Brain Does Something Amazing between Bouts of Intense Learning
New research shows that lightning-quick neural rehearsal can supercharge learning and memory. → Read More
Male Lyrebirds Lie to Get Sex
It seems like the males will do anything, even fake nearby danger, to get females to stick around to mate. → Read More
Eye Treatment Stretches Mouse Sight Beyond Visible Spectrum
Nanoparticles that attach to photoreceptors allowed mice to see infrared and near-infrared light for up to two months. → Read More
In Bee Shortage, Bubbles Could Help Pollinate
Soap bubbles are sticky enough to carry a pollen payload and delicate enough to land on flowers without harm. → Read More
Unread Books at Home Still Spark Literacy Habits
Growing up in a home filled with books enhances enhances intellectual capacity in later life, even if you don't read them all. → Read More
Targeting Certain Brain Cells Can Switch Off Pain
By turning off certain brain cells, researchers were able to make mice sense painful stimuli—but not the associated discomfort. Karen Hopkin reports. → Read More
You Gotta Scratch That Itch
A particular set of brain neurons may be behind registering itch and inducing us to scratch. → Read More
Iridescence Could Help Critters Hide in Plain Sight
Iridescence appears to break up the recognizable shape of objects—making them harder to spot. Karen Hopkin reports. → Read More
Neandertal Face Shape Was All Over the Air
The jutting midface of Neandertals seems to have evolved to help get large volumes of air into an active body that needed lots of oxygen. → Read More
Repetitive Sounds Are Music to the Brain
Repeating something can render that thing melodious—even the sound of a shovel being dragged across the pavement. Karen Hopkin reports. → Read More
Dogs Bow to Wolves as Cooperators
Wolves appear to have better cooperation skills than dogs—unless the pups partner up with humans. Karen Hopkin reports. → Read More
To Buy Happiness, Spend Money on Saving Time
Volunteers who used money to save themselves time were more content than volunteers who purchased themselves physical stuff. Karen Hopkin reports. → Read More
Screams Heard Round the Animal World
Humans appear well equipped to recognize the alarm calls of other animals—perhaps because sounds of distress tend to have higher frequencies. Karen Hopkin reports. → Read More
To Buy Happiness, Spend Money on Saving Time
Volunteers who used money to save themselves time were more content than volunteers who purchased themselves physical stuff. Karen Hopkin reports. → Read More