Junior Seau's family announced last week that they would donate the deceased football star's brain to science to be studied, but now, they've told the press that they're going to reconsider the decision. more ›

Former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau's family has decided to let his brain be studied by researchers, reports CNN. The ex-football star killed himself this week with a gunshot to the chest. Seau didn't leave a suicide note, but the method he used to take his own life mirrors that of former Chicago Bears safety Dave Duerson. more ›

Go ahead, have that glass of Pinot Noir with dinner, ladies--it could help you prevent breast cancer. New research released today from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. and published in the Journal of Women's Health indicates that moderate consumption of red wine may reduce one of the risk factors for breast cancer, reports City News Service. more ›

A new study by Harvard University researchers made the brilliant discovery that women in their late 50s who averaged three to fifteen drinks per week boasted about 30% higher odds of remaining free of chronic illness and mental health issues at age 70. more ›

No one knows better than bloggers the kind of wrath that can be incurred by not properly noting that a post contains a spoiler, be it the end of a movie or a twist in a TV show. But a recent study out of UC San Diego suggests that spoiler alerts may be for naught -- according to a statement released by the university, researchers found that the pleasure people get from reading or watching something isn't diminished by knowing what's going to happen in the end. more ›

Are you feeling tired, run-down, listless? Do you poop out at parties? Now you can blame the air pollution. A study recently published by Ohio State University claims that "long-term exposure to air pollution can lead to physical changes in the brain, as well as learning and memory problems and even depression." more ›

New research from the New England Journal of Medicine revealed the not so startling news that potato chips rank as the worst snack food for your health ahead of candy, soda and ice cream. more ›

Retail therapy: It's the answer for almost any problem. Girlfriend broke up with you? Didn't get that promotion? Buy yourself something pretty. People like to shop, especially for high-status items, when they're feeling down. But parting with cash is also a painful process, so what gives? In a new paper in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science, researchers Niro Sivanathan of the London Business School and Nathan Pettit of Cornell University describe how they think people resolve this conflict. more ›

The exact location in the brain that influences a gambler's belief that payoff is headed their way has been discovered by Caltech researchers, it was announced on Saturday, reports the Daily News. For example, despite perhaps intellectually knowing that mathematical odds don't change at a slot machine, say, people may sit at the same machine for hours because they think they're "due" for a jackpot. more ›

An accused domestic terrorist today pleaded no contest to three counts of stalking and three of conspiracy to commit stalking in connection to acts against UCLA researchers and employees of POM Wonderful Juice Company, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced. Kevin Rich Olliff, 22, an associate of the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) faces a three-year state prison sentence under terms of a negotiated settlement. more ›

Put those running shoes on for Halloween and dress up like a zombie this Saturday for the inaugural Zombiethon, a fundraiser for brain cancer research Oct. 31 from 4-6 pm at the Silver Lake reservoir. The family friendly event includes a fun run/walk around the reservoir and a zombie costume contest. more ›

Tucked up in a remote corner of the Santa Clarita Valley is something quite unusual. A large swath of near-high desert land is home to 35 gibbons (a newborn is expected to make it 36 this weekend) from 15 difference species. more ›

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's line item cuts to the state budget on Tuesday drastically reduced many programs, including state parks and domestic violence funding. AIDS/HIV programs were also hit particularly bad to the tune of around $85 million, leaving the California’s Office of AIDS with only 20 percent of its funding for programs like HIV education and prevention, HIV counseling and testing, home health and early intervention. more ›

These weasels are so damn cute, but once again their population is dwindling. In the late 19th Century and into the early 20th, the population estimated to be over 100,000 decreased to extreme lows of around 1,000 to 2,000 thanks to the fur trade (in California, the population was specifically around 16,000 which was decimated to around 50). Today they are protected by law and a Monterey Aquarium favorite. more ›

For the second time in recent years, animal activists have incorrectly targeted UCLA employees involved in animal research. more ›

Earlier this week, UCLA researcher and professor Edythe London had an incendiary device left on the porch of her home on the West side. London has been the target of such protest activities before, and remains as such, because of the project she is helming at the school to study nicotine addiction. more ›

A group of enterprising young researchers in UCLA's graduate Computer Science department have discovered a fun new way of using your iPod playlist: Wi-Fi enabled software sends your music preferences to whatever computer is nearby. Then music tailored to your preferences pumps out of the speakers -- can you imagine walking into a coffee shop, and the Carrie Underwood track playing shuts off, and a Matthew Good album slides into the rotation instead? How awesome! What a great way to go about your day! more ›

The LA Times business section has a nice little basic primer on one of LA's favorite pastimes, finding an apartment in Los Angeles. It includes one of the best and overlooked tips ever:You'll want to find a place where you feel safe and at ease. [Mark] Verge [owner of Westside Rentals] recommends driving by a potential apartment multiple times -- on different days, at different hours -- to scope out the neighborhood. "That is one... more ›

According to the Down Syndrome Research and Treatment Fund (DSRTF) website, about one in every 800 American babies is born with Down syndrome and approximately 350,000 people in the U.S. have this condition today. Down syndrome is caused when a child is born with an extra chromosome, more specifically an extra copy of chromosome 21. The genes are all normal, but having an extra throws the delicate balance of the body off, which leads... more ›

As the University of California continues to reform how and why animals are used in research, even with full transparency to the public about their use, animal rights activists still feel the need to aggressively take action against the institution. It doesn’t really matter how strict the regulations are on animal use, or even the fact that countless breakthroughs have been made here through this avenue of research; the activists take issue with the... more ›