About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the future of humanity.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/blog/learning-is-powered-by-inspiration-but-not-the-kind-you-think/
Mar 27, 2019...
Get inspired! Breathing in helps us solve problems more quickly, says Prof. Noam Sobel and his team. The group also found that our olfactory system can help us learn (including to quit smoking) while sleeping, and even shaped the evolution of our other senses.
It doesn’t matter if we’re in school, from pre-K to postdoc; working; or pursuing hobbies after retiring, we are always learning – and of course we want to learn smarter.
Dec 18, 2017...
Just three of the scallop’s 200 marvelous eyes. Credit: Dan-Eric Nilsson, Lund University
Sure, your eyes are lovely. But you only have two. The scallop has up to two hundred. And they’re of an incandescent blue with purple and gold centers; like so much of ocean life, they’re so otherworldly as to seem truly alien.
But as if it weren’t interesting enough that scallops have upper and lower rows of these poppy-seed-sized peepers circling their bodies, recent Weizmann Institute (Israel) and Lund University (Sweden) findings, published in Science, show that the eyes are a “master class in precision engineering,” as The Atlantic put it.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/science-tips-november-2007/
Nov 26, 2007...
Some people are oblivious to the odor in the locker room after a game, while others wrinkle their noses at the slightest whiff of sweat. Research by Prof. Doron Lancet and research student Idan Menashe of the Weizmann Institute of Science’s Molecular Genetics Department, which appeared recently in PLoS Biology, has now shown that this difference is at least partly genetic.
Our sense of smell often takes a back seat to our other senses, but humans can perceive up to 10,000 different odors. Like mice, which boast a highly developed sense of smell, we have about 1,000 different genes for the smell-detecting receptors in our olfactory 'retinas.' In humans, however, over half of these genes have, in the last few million years, become defunct — some in all people, while others in just parts of the population.
Jun 22, 2015...
A new study suggests that every individual’s sense of smell differs slightly from other people, based on their genetic makeup.
According to Science News, a newly devised test can tell individuals apart solely based on their sense of smell, meaning a person’s perception of odor is unique to him or her. The findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and released on June 22. Neuroscientist Noam Sobel of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, led a team of researchers to the findings.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/in-the-news/are-you-a-handshake-sniffer/
Apr 07, 2015...
Do you sniff your hand after shaking someone else's?
This isn't a question I ever thought I'd ask myself, or you, but here we go, because, well...science.
The incredible Dr. Noam Sobel of the Weizmann Institute of Science ended up not only in a science journal this week, but in The Economist, with his findings. After handshakes, people are more likely to sniff their hands. But WHY? The piece ponders:
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/in-the-news/smell-that-sadness-female-tears-turn-off-men/
Jan 07, 2011...
Click here to listen to the NPR report.
A team of Israeli scientists is reporting that when your date at the movies starts crying, it may have an effect on you even if you can’t see the tears.
Seeing tears clearly has an effect on people — it tends to turn anger into compassion. But scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science wondered if the effect was strictly visual. Might there be some chemical in human tears that was responsible for the urge to care for someone? So they advertised for people willing to donate tears.
Sep 27, 2019... Fall is here and school is back in session. In the ninth episode of Weizmann in Focus, CEO Dave Doneson shares a simple tip to help prepare for success this academic year. Weizmann Prof. Noam Sobel, who studies the olfactory system, found that people who inhaled when presented with a problem-solving task performed better than those who exhaled. So, the next time you’re faced with a difficult task, take a deep breath!
Dec 05, 2019...
Distinct stink: Mice missing a key autism gene respond similarly to nonsocial and social smells. (Shutterstock)
Neurons in mice that lack an autism gene called CNTNAP2 do not differentiate well between social and nonsocial smells, according to a new study1. These neurons are located in the prefrontal cortex — a brain region that controls social behavior — and fire haphazardly.
The findings suggest that these differences drive the social problems in the mice and perhaps in autistic people with mutations in the gene. The results appeared 25 November in Nature Neuroscience.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/what-s-new-in-brain-research-at-weizmann/
Jun 10, 2019...
Weizmann Institute researchers from across the disciplines are pursuing topics in neuroscience, approaching this crucial field from a number of angles. That’s because understanding our brains – in both health and disease – benefits everyone on this planet.
From Alzheimer’s to autism, Parkinson’s to mental health, memory to aging and beyond, here are just some of the Institute’s neuroscience advances over just the past year:
Nov 29, 2017...
The smell of skydiver sweat was used in a new study to determine the response to the ‘smell of fear’ in people with autism. AFP/Stringer
The lack of ability to “smell fear” may reveal clues about behaviour and brain development in people with autism, according to a new study.
We may not be aware of it, but research suggests many people are able to smell fear.
In fact, the ability to subliminally detect and respond to odours may relate to a variety of emotions we feel, ranging from happiness to aggression.
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