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WSU psychologist to appear in Netflix series ‘Babies’ this Friday

Masha Maria Gartstein.
Gartstein

Maria Gartstein, a Washington State University professor of psychology, explores how social-emotional development unfolds rapidly during infancy in a new episode of the Netflix documentary series Babies, airing this Friday, June 19.

The series follows 15 families from around the world through the first full year of their babies’ lives. Each episode focuses on a different aspect of a baby’s development and includes extensive interviews with early childhood development experts such as Gartstein.

Gartstein’s episode is one of six being released this Friday. The first part of the series initially aired in November 2019 and rose to number seven on Netflix’s list of most watched shows.

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Ask Dr. Universe: What creature has lived on Earth the longest and is still alive until today?

There are many kinds of creatures that lived on Earth long ago and their relatives still exist today. We know about them from fossil records, imprints or remains that we find in rock.

While these living things have been around a long time, there is one organism that has outlasted pretty much all others. It is so small you would likely need a microscope to see it: cyanobacteria.

Michael Berger.
Berger

I learned about these long-lived bacteria from my friend Michael Berger, clinical assistant professor of the School of Biological sciences at Washington State University Vancouver.

Berger studies barnacles, which have been on the planet for about 500 million years. He told me that cyanobacteria have been around even longer than barnacles.

One of the oldest fossil records of cyanobacteria was found in Australia. It was nearly 2.7 billion years old. For a bit of perspective, that was way before dinosaurs roamed the earth between 230 and 65 million years ago.

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Ask Dr. Universe

New collaborative to study impact of COVID‑19 on moms, babies

Having a baby is a life-changing event that brings joy, but for many women also comes with stress and anxiety. The restrictions and uncertainties associated with the current COVID‑19 pandemic are undoubtedly adding to those fears and worries, so more than a dozen WSU researchers recently joined forces to form the WSU COVID‑19 Infant, Maternal, and Family Health Research Collaborative.

Courtney Meehan.
Meehan

“We are exploring how maternal COVID‑19 infection is related to overall breastmilk composition and infant health and wellbeing. Specifically, we are interested in potential protective effects of breastfeeding during this time,” said WSU lead investigator Courtney Meehan, an associate professor of anthropology and associate dean of research and graduate studies in the WSU College of Arts and Sciences. “It is essential that we get this information quickly and accurately so we can better inform the public, as well as those who create policy,” she said, pointing to the varying recommendations that are currently being put forward by agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, World Health Organization, and UNICEF.

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Study shows cannabis temporarily relieves PTSD symptoms

Carrie Cuttler.
Cuttler

People suffering from post‑traumatic distress disorder report that cannabis reduces the severity of their symptoms by more than half, at least in the short term, according to a recent study led by Carrie Cuttler, a Washington State University assistant professor of psychology.

Cuttler and her colleagues analyzed data of more than 400 people who tracked changes in their PTSD symptoms before and after cannabis use with Strainprint, an app developed to help users learn what types of medical cannabis work best for their symptoms. The group collectively used the app more than 11,000 times over a 31‑month period.

“A lot of people with PTSD do seem to turn to cannabis, but the literature on its efficacy for managing symptoms is a little sparse,” Cuttler said.

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