News

Smoking among young teens has become an increasingly challenging and costly public healthcare issue.  Despite legislation to prevent the marketing of tobacco products to children, tobacco companies have shrewdly adapted their advertising tactics to circumvent the ban and maintain their access to this impressionable—and growing—market share. 

A recent archeological dig in central Israel unearthed evidence that Homo sapiens, humans that inhabit the earth today, likely lived alongside a group of archaic humans known as the Middle Pleistocene Homo.  This discovery, and the international collaborations that made it possible, provide the first evidence that the two human types lived at the same time and interacted with one another.  Their findings were published today in Science.

Happiness might lead to better health but does it help you live longer? That’s a question that researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HU) took on in a longitudinal study they began back in the 1990s.  They looked at the impact of optimism on longevity and found that maintaining a positive outlook can directly extend your life. Professor Jochanan Stessman, Director of HU’s Institute on Aging led the study, along with HU’s Prof. Jeremy Jacobs and Dr. Yoram Maaravi.  They published their findings in The Journals of Gerontology.

In an effort to increase agricultural productivity and limit waste, a team of researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HU)’s Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment developed a method to detect signs of stress before the plant is damaged.

A long-standing, unresolved puzzle concerns the taste of heavy water.  Regular water has no distinct taste but rumors indicate that heavy water tastes sweet.  Why is this so if heavy water, D₂O, is practically identical to ordinary water, H₂O? 

Infants are born unable to care for themselves. Their survival and development depend on their caregivers. Studies show that early social bonding with a primary caregiver is necessary for mental and physical health and is associated with greater well-being and success in adulthood.

Featuring Dr. Nathan Steiger, The Fredy and Nadine Hermann Institute of Earth Science in the Faculty of Science This week we celebrate Earth Day – a day that promotes clean living and a healthy, sustainable habitat for people and wildlife alike. A main component to a cleaner environment is climate education. At The Fredy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences at The Hebrew University they are doing just that – focusing on the latest in the fields of climate change, water resources and natural hazards.