Scientists have finally found something good about having a cold—it makes you less likely to be infected by Covid-19. A study in the Journal of Experimental Medicine finds that being exposed to rhinovirus, the most frequent cause of the common cold, can protect against Covid-19 infection. Researchers say the cold virus jumpstarts activity of early response molecules in the immune system, which can keep a subsequent Covid virus exposure from taking hold. Now scientists are trying to find a way to artificially produce early response molecules… without giving you a cold.
Childhood exposure to lead may affect your personality later. A 38-nation study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that when children live where there are high levels of lead in the air… they grow up to be less conscientious, less agreeable, and more neurotic than children who grow up with less lead exposure. Those three personality traits are major markers of a mature, healthy personality… and are strong predictors of success or failure in relationships and at work.
And finally… scientists at North Carolina State University have developed clothing that can prevent 100 percent of mosquito bites. The pesticide-free clothing is either too thick for mosquitoes to bite through…or has pores too small for them to get through. Researchers tested the clothing by sending volunteers into cages with 200 hungry mosquitoes for 10 minutes.
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