Today in Research: The Cost of Sperm; Tomatoes as Cancer Cure

Discovered: The deal with drinking and health, the cost of sperm, mom's love makes you smarter, tomatoes cure cancer, a sloshing galaxy.

• The cost of sperm. Dudes think they have this endless well of baby-makers down there, but it turns out that making sperm has physical costs for men. That is if humans operate anything like the Australian cricket, which researchers found "invested" in sperm production (meaning their bodies take extensive energy to create it). "Males that invested heavily in their sperm [were] more likely to succumb to a bacterial infection," explained researcher Dr. Damian Dowling. "And we are not talking about STDs here -- we are talking about how increased investment into the quality of the ejaculate corresponds with general reductions in immune function." Nevermind that sonicating sperm jazz, having sex could cause illness! We bet that will get some hypochondriacs into abstinence. [Monash University]

• Tomatoes cure cancer. Pizza for dinner! (Or Caprese salad for our bourgy readers.) Lycopene, the nutrient that gives tomatoes their red color, intercepts cancer cells in their warpath against healthy blood cells. Unfortunately, like lots of our favorite discoveries, this one hasn't made it past the test-tube phase. "I stress that our tests were done in test tubes in a laboratory and more testing needs to be carried out to confirm our findings," said Dr. Mridula Chopra. "But the laboratory evidence we have found is clear -- it is possible to intercept the simple mechanism some cancer cells use to grow at concentrations that can be achieved by eating sufficient cooked tomatoes.'' [The Telegraph]

Read the full story at The Atlantic Wire.