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Jon Hamilton Jon Hamilton is a correspondent for NPR's Science Desk. Currently he focuses on neuroscience, health risks, and extreme weather.
Jon Hamilton 2010
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Jon Hamilton

National

Stormy Year for Hurricanes? Not in 2006

By this time in 2005, four major hurricanes had struck the United States. This year, none have done so, despite predictions that 2006 would be another big year for storms. Forecasters say one reason for the quiet year was the unexpected arrival of El Nino conditions in the Pacific.

Stormy Year for Hurricanes? Not in 2006

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Your Health

Entrepreneurs and Scientists Seek to Market Age-Fighting Substance

Internet entrepreneurs and Harvard scientists have something in common. They both want to market a substance in red wine that appears to extend life, at least in mice. The substance is called resveratrol. Its history involves some unlikely interactions between mainstream scientists and entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs and Scientists Seek to Market Age-Fighting Substance

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Research News

Myostatin Therapies Hold Hope for Muscle Diseases

Mighty Mouse was not just a cartoon. Ten years ago, scientists demonstrated that they could increase an animal's muscle mass by manipulating a protein in mice called myostatin. Now drugs that affect myostatin are being hailed as the best hope yet for people with muscle-wasting diseases.

Myostatin Therapies Hold Hope for Muscle Diseases

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Research News

How the Brain Tames the Eyes' Wild Motions

Our eyes dart around constantly when taking in a scene. Yet the scene appears stable to us. Scientists have spent years trying to figure out how the brain accomplishes this feat. Now they think they know. The key is a brain circuit that monitors every eye movement and tells the brain how to compensate for it.

How the Brain Tames the Eyes' Wild Motions

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Your Health

Does Red Wine Fuel the Fountain of Youth?

Research tests on mice show that a substance found in red wine may let humans enjoy a long and healthful life, even if they are overweight. But the Harvard study shows that being healthy is not as simple as a sip of wine every day.

Does Red Wine Fuel the Fountain of Youth?

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Global Health

Computer Chips Help Rewire Muscle Controls

Scientists are now using computer chips to help repair the human nervous system. A stroke or a spinal-cord injury can cause nerve damage that results in the loss of muscle control. Computer chips can help create new connections in the brain, effectively rewiring the connection between the brain and muscles.

Computer Chips Help Rewire Muscle Controls

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Health

Autistic Brain Has Difficulty Coordinating

Researchers say adults with autism have difficulty coordinating the activity in different parts of their brains. The finding could help explain why people with autism have trouble with skills such as language, which require coordination between several parts of the brain.

Autistic Brain Has Difficulty Coordinating

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Science

Off Africa's Coast, a Hurricane Nursery

One way to dissect a hurricane is to fly into a baby one. A team of government scientists hopes that by learning more about how hurricanes are born, they can better predict their violent ends.

Off Africa's Coast, a Hurricane Nursery

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Opinion

Your Health

Sluggish Parents and Their Full-Throttle Offspring

It's a question that must pop into every parent's head sooner or later: Why has evolution given children so much energy -- and their parents so little? An evolutionary biologist at UC Irvine offers a pretty believable explanation.

Sluggish Parents and Their Full-Throttle Offspring

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Research News

Father's Age May Play Role in Autism Risk

A study of children born in Israel finds that, as a man's age increases, so does his risk of fathering a child with autism. But the study isn't clear enough to help parents decide whether it's too risky to have children based on the father's age.

Father's Age May Play Role in Autism Risk

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Science

It's Hard to Spot a Liquid Threat to Airline Safety

New types of liquid explosives and detonators are difficult to uncover in a passenger's luggage. The problem for airports is that they can no longer look for obvious things like things like timers and sticks of dynamites.

It's Hard to Spot a Liquid Threat to Airline Safety

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Research News

Ultrasound Affects Brains in Mouse Embryos

Researchers have found that high doses of ultrasound cause the brains of mouse embryos to develop abnormalities. While this doesn't suggest that routine ultrasounds should be avoided during pregnancy, it is a reminder that the use of ultrasound should be limited by medical need.

Ultrasound Affects Brains in Mouse Embryos

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Science

Challenging the Reliability of Testosterone Tests

American Tour de France winner Floyd Landis has suggested that the tests showing high levels of testosterone in his body are unreliable. Scientists say the tests are highly accurate because they target very specific molecules that are almost impossible to ingest accidentally.

Challenging the Reliability of Testosterone Tests

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Your Health

NIH Spends Millions to Study Alternative Therapy

The NIH's Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine applies rigorous scientific testing to alternative treatments. It's currently spending $30 million to study a powerful chelation drug called EDTA that's marketed as a way to clean out blocked arteries.

NIH Spends Millions to Study Alternative Therapy

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