Episode Details

Learn about a medical mystery involving blindness and schizophrenia; a new bacteria scientists developed to help protect honeybees; and the surprising strength of helmets used in World War I. No person who was born blind has ever been diagnosed with schizophrenia by Andrea Michelson Love, S. (2020, February 11). People Born Blind Are Mysteriously Protected From Schizophrenia. Vice; vice. https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/939qbz/people-born-blind-are-mysteriously-protected-from-schizophrenia Morgan, V. A., Clark, M., Crewe, J., Valuri, G., Mackey, D. A., Badcock, J. C., & Jablensky, A. (2018). Congenital blindness is protective for schizophrenia and other psychotic illness. A whole-population study. Schizophrenia Research, 202, 414–416. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2018.06.061  Silverstein, S. M., Wang, Y., & Keane, B. P. (2013). Cognitive and Neuroplasticity Mechanisms by Which Congenital or Early Blindness May Confer a Protective Effect Against Schizophrenia. Frontiers in Psychology, 3. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00624  Steve Silverstein’s chart tracking skills associated with blindness and schizophrenia: https://www.frontiersin.org/files/Articles/40106/fpsyg-03-00624-r2/image_m/fpsyg-03-00624-t001.jpg Prediction of adult-onset schizophrenia from childhood home movies of the patients | American Journal of Psychiatry. (2020). American Journal of Psychiatry. https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/abs/10.1176/ajp.147.8.1052?journalCode=ajp&  Pollak, T. A., & Corlett, P. R. (2019). Blindness, Psychosis, and the Visual Construction of the World. Schizophrenia Bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbz098  Scientists have engineered bacteria to protect honeybees from colony collapse by Grant Currin Bacteria Engineered to Protect Bees from Pests and Pathogens - UT News. (2020, January 30). UT News. https://news.utexas.edu/2020/01/30/bacteria-engineered-to-protect-bees-from-pests-and-pathogens/  Leonard, S. P., Powell, J. E., Perutka, J., Geng, P., Heckmann, L. C., Horak, R. D., Davies, B. W., Ellington, A. D., Barrick, J. E., & Moran, N. A. (2020). Engineered symbionts activate honey bee immunity and limit pathogens. Science, 367(6477), 573–576. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aax9039  Ramsey, S. D., Ochoa, R., Bauchan, G., Gulbronson, C., Mowery, J. D., Cohen, A., Lim, D., Joklik, J., Cicero, J. M., Ellis, J. D., Hawthorne, D., & vanEngelsdorp, D. (2019). Varroa destructor feeds primarily on honey bee fat body tissue and not hemolymph. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(5), 1792–1801. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1818371116  US EPA,OCSPP. (2013, August 29). Colony Collapse Disorder | US EPA. US EPA. https://www.epa.gov/pollinator-protection/colony-collapse-disorder ‌ WWI helmets protected against shock waves as well as modern ones by Steffie Drucker WWI helmets protect against shock waves just as well as modern designs. (2020). EurekAlert! https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-02/du-whp021420.php  Op ‘t Eynde, J., Yu, A. W., Eckersley, C. P., & Bass, C. R. (2020). Primary blast wave protection in combat helmet design: A historical comparison between present day and World War I. PLOS ONE, 15(2), e0228802. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0228802  Subscribe to Curiosity Daily to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer. You can also listen to our podcast as part of your Alexa Flash Briefing; Amazon smart speakers users, click/tap “enable” here: https://curiosity.im/podcast-flash-briefing See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.