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Simply looking at your body reduces pain, according to new research by scientists from UCL (University College London) and the University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy. Published in the journal Psychological Science, the research shows that viewing your hand reduces the pain experienced when a hot object touches the skin.

Dr Stephen Price (UCL Chemistry) is part of a UCL team that has developed a piece of experimental apparatus to study the chemistry of dications: molecules that have two positive charges. Recent studies of the layers at the top of the atmospheres of Earth, Mars, Venus and Titan have proposed that such doubly?charged molecules are present in significant numbers and that the chemistry of these energetic species affects the composition of these atmospheric regions.

Links: Parkinson's research paper in The Lancet vCJD research paper in The Lancet UCL Institute of Neurology UCL Neuroscience Two high profile research papers from UCL Institute of Neurology scientists have been published this week. Professor Alan Thompson, Director of the UCL Institute of Neurology and Interim Head of UCL Neuroscience domain, said: "These two important studies, both published in The Lancet this week, are a testament to the breadth and significance of neuroscience research at UCL.

Press release Links: UCL Epidemiology & Public Health UCL Bartlett School of Graduate Studies Increases in winter indoor temperatures in the United Kingdom, United States and other developed countries may be contributing to rises in obesity in those populations, according to UCL research published today.

There are no differences between heterosexuals and homosexuals or between women and men in terms of the brain systems regulating romantic love, according to new UCL research published in the latest issue of PLoS One. The study, by Professor Semir Zeki and John Romaya from the Wellcome Laboratory of Neurobiology at UCL, is a continuation of earlier work from the same lab which described brain activity in terms of romantic and maternal love.

If you listen to Radio 4's Today Programme on any given day, you'll inevitably hear a spectrum of politic views from socialist through liberal to conservative. You may find yourself agreeing with the interviewee or irked by their politics depending on your own political persuasion. Liberals and conservatives may find themselves disagreeing on issues as wide-ranging as the future of the NHS, the UK's involvement in Afghanistan and whether students should pay tuition fees at university, but could these differences be a result of different brain structures?

A group of UK primary school children have achieved a world first by having their school science project accepted for publication in an internationally recognised peer-reviewed Royal Society journal. The paper, which reports novel findings in how bumblebees perceive colour, is published in Biology Letters today.

A team of UCL researchers, part-funded by the Alzheimer's Research Trust, has discovered that combining spinal fluid testing with MRI scans could provide an early indication of a person's risk of developing Alzheimer?s. The approach could allow scientists to test treatments or preventions far earlier in the disease, when experts believe they could be more effective.

Links: Wellcome Trust Professor Greg Towers Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute A virus previously thought to be associated with chronic fatigue syndrome is not the cause of the disease, a detailed study led by UCL scientists has shown. The research shows that cell samples used in previous research were contaminated with the virus identified as XMRV and that XMRV is present in the mouse genome.

Links: Journal of Neuroscience MRC Wellcome Trust Professor Masud Husain Cognitive tests and MRI scans have shown significant differences in the brains of fighter pilots when compared to a control group, according to a new study led by scientists from UCL. The study, published today in the Journal of Neuroscience , compares the cognitive performance of 11 front-line RAF (Royal Air Force) Tornado fighter pilots to a control group of a similar IQ with no previous experience of piloting aircraft.

In a paper published today in Lancet Oncology , scientists in the Gynaecological Cancer Research Centre at UCL have demonstrated that an ultrasound scan being used in screening trials for ovarian cancer can also pick up  signs of endometrial cancer before any symptoms occur. This is the first large scale study of screening for endometrial (womb) cancer, which is increasing in incidence and is responsible for over 1,700 deaths per year in the UK.

Scientists have shown for the first time that exactly how we see our environment depends on the size of the visual part of our brain. We are all familiar with the idea that our thoughts and emotions differ from one person to another, but most people assume that how we perceive the visual world is usually very similar from person to person.

A new theory on the source of terrestrial water has been validated by an international team led by Professor Nora de Leeuw (UCL Chemistry) using computational research. Below Professor de Leeuw describes the implications of the breakthrough. ?The origin of water on our planet is not only of interest for our understanding of the evolution of our own planet and life thereon, but even more so for the increasing exploration of other planets within our solar system and the discovery of potential planetary systems in other galaxies.

A range of new clinical, functional, and neuroimaging tests developed by researchers at UCL make it possible to track the progression of Huntington's disease long before noticeable symptoms appear. The new tests provide useful biomarkers that could be used in future trials to detect the effectiveness of potential disease-modifying treatments within a short time period.

A hormone responsible for the onset of puberty can end up stuck in the wrong part of the body if the nerve pathways responsible for its transport to the brain fail to develop properly, according to new research led by UCL scientists.

A fragile atmosphere infused with oxygen and carbon-dioxide has been discovered at Saturn's moon Rhea by the Cassini-Huygens mission - the first time a spacecraft has captured direct evidence of an oxygen atmosphere at a world other than Earth. The NASA-led international mission made the discovery using combined data from Cassini's instruments, which includes a sensor designed and built at UCL's (University College London) Mullard Space Science Laboratory.

UCL scientists Dr Lewis Dartnell and Dr Petra Boynton explain their motivation for posing for Geek Calendar, a project in aid of libel reform that launches this week. "The Geek Calendar is a fantastic venture started by three expert science communicators: Dr Alice Bell (Imperial College London), Mun-Keat Looi and Louise Crane (Wellcome Trust).

The amount that people over 50 in England spend on life's basics ' food, fuel and clothing - has increased significantly in the last 4-5 years, with the poorest being the most affected, according to the latest results from the English Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSA). A quarter of households experienced a 10 percentage point or more increase in the share of their income devoted to basics between 2004/5 and 2008/9, and spending on domestic fuel alone rose by over a third in real terms over this period.

Dramatic flares and bursts of energy - activity previously thought reserved for only the strongest magnetized pulsars - have been observed emanating from a weakly magnetised, slowly rotating pulsar. The international team of astrophysicists who made the discovery believe that the source of the pulsar's power may be hidden deep within its surface.

Light drinking during pregnancy does not harm a young child's behavioural or intellectual development, according to new research led by Dr Yvonne Kelly (UCL Epidemiology & Public Health) and published online today in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. A previous study in 2008 by Dr Kelly and colleagues of 3 year olds drew similar conclusions, but the authors wanted to rule out possible delayed 'sleeper' effects in older children.