As scientists continue to embrace the Internet as both producers and consumers of information, the lines between journalism, blogging and public relations become increasingly blurred. Will this trend usurp traditional media's role in science reporting, or provide new contexts and interactions that enhance it?

A considerable body of evidence derived from terror management theory indicates that the awareness of mortality represents a potent psychological threat engendering various forms of psychological defense. However, extant research has yet to examine the neurological correlates of cognitions about one's inevitable death. The present study thus investigated in 17 male participants patterns of neural activation elicited by mortality threat. To induce mortality threat, participants answered questions arranged in trial blocks that referred to fear of death and dying. In the control condition participants answered questions about fear of dental pain. Neural responses to mortality threat were greater than to pain threat in right amygdala, left rostral anterior cingulate cortex, and right caudate nucleus. We discuss implications of these findings for stimulating further research into the neurological correlates of managing existential fear.

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