Animal friendships are surprisingly like our own
When you think of friendship, what comes to mind? Is it a phone conversation that lasts late into the night? Watching a movie and sharing a pizza? Enjoying some laughs over a beer? Friendship is a central part of the human experience. Our stories, ou.....»»
The Golgi organelle"s ribbon structure is not exclusive to vertebrates, contrary to previous consensus
Researchers report February 29 in the journal Cell Reports that the Golgi ribbon, an organelle structure previously thought to be exclusive to vertebrates, is also present in animal taxa, including mollusks, earthworms, and sea urchins......»»
Slimming down a colossal fossil whale
A 30 million year-old fossil whale may not be the heaviest animal of all time after all, according to a new analysis by paleontologists at UC Davis and the Smithsonian Institution. The new analysis puts Perucetus colossus back in the same weight rang.....»»
A liking for licking—sex and social status influence social grooming among free-ranging feral cattle in Hong Kong
Unique insights into the social lives of cattle revealed in a new study by scientists at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) can enhance our understanding of animal behavior and welfare. The study suggests that sex and social status influence soci.....»»
Cosmic dust could have helped get life going on Earth
Life on our planet appeared early in Earth's history. Surprisingly early, since in its early youth our planet didn't have much of the chemical ingredients necessary for life to evolve. Since prebiotic chemicals such as sugars and amino acids are know.....»»
Researchers describe new technological platform to accelerate drug development
Drug development is currently an extremely long, expensive and inefficient process. Findings generated in a lab are often very hard to replicate once translated into animal models or in humans......»»
Relationship anarchy is about creating bonds that suit people, not social conventions
By its very nature, friendship is anarchic: it has few rules and is not regulated by the government. Our friendships are usually egalitarian, flexible and non-exclusive. We treat our friends as individuals and care about their interests. We support t.....»»
Paleontologists discover a 240-million-year-old "Chinese dragon"
An international team of scientists from China, the U.S. and Europe has studied new fossils of the marine reptile Dinocephalosaurus orientalis. This research has made it possible to fully describe the bizarre, very impressive animal for the first tim.....»»
Male glass frogs that care for offspring found to have smaller testes
A small international team of animal behavior researchers has found that species of glass frogs whose males help care for offspring tend to have smaller testes than species whose males do not help care for offspring. In their study, published in the.....»»
Live imaging reveals key cell dynamics in 3D organ formation in Drosophila
Animal development requires successive changes in cell and tissue structures. To form complex 3D organs, cell shapes must adapt to support tissue morphogenesis. However, our understanding of how cellular structure changes are coupled with dynamic tis.....»»
New method for marking neurotransmitter receptors in living animal brains
Researchers have developed a new method of labeling naïve neurotransmitter receptor proteins in living animal brains......»»
Death and grief in Swedish children"s books
Death is blue, or a flying animal. This is how death is most commonly illustrated in Swedish children's literature, according to a new study from Uppsala University based on analyses of 62 books. Just 6 out of 10 books use the word "dead," which may.....»»
Using metabolomics for assessing safety of chemicals may reduce the use of lab rats
Scientists have discovered a more robust way of grouping chemicals and using read-across for toxicological data to meet regulatory requirements, which could greatly reduce animal testing......»»
Unlocking the energetic secrets of collective animal movement: How group behavior reduces energy costs in fish
Many animals, including apex predators, move in groups. We know this collective behavior is fundamental to the animal's ability to move in complex environments, but less is known about what drives the behavior because many factors underlie its evolut.....»»
Newborn gas planets may be surprisingly flat, says new research
A new planet starts its life in a rotating circle of gas and dust, a cradle known as a protostellar disk. My colleagues and I have used computer simulations to show that newborn gas planets in these disks are likely to have surprisingly flattened sha.....»»
Men become less fertile with age, but the same isn"t true for all animals: Study
We take it for granted that humans find it more difficult to conceive as they grow older. But our recent study, which analyzed data from 157 animal species, found that male reproductive aging seems to be a lot less common in other male animals......»»
CERN researchers measure speed of sound in the quark–gluon plasma more precisely than ever before
Neutron stars in the universe, ultracold atomic gases in the laboratory, and the quark–gluon plasma created in collisions of atomic nuclei at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC): they may seem totally unrelated but, surprisingly enough, they have somet.....»»
Researchers identify human activities as drivers of biodiversity decline in central Mexico"s reserves
New research shows the diversity of plant and animal life in 14 tropical reserves in Mesoamerica has plummeted since 1990 as roads and cattle ranches have expanded into protected areas. Large mammals, birds, and reptiles are disappearing, while disea.....»»
Google: Piracy Shield Has Legal Limits, Anti-Piracy Chief: Think Ethics, Do More
Italy's Piracy Shield system has been fully-operational for almost two weeks yet usage remains surprisingly low. Meanwhile, responding to reports that pirate streaming apps are available on the Play Store, Google noted that, under law, it is not subj.....»»
New study finds little-known toxic crop chemical in four out of five people tested
A new Environmental Working Group study has found chlormequat, a little-known pesticide, in four out of five people tested. Because the chemical is linked to reproductive and developmental problems in animal studies, the findings suggest the potentia.....»»
Some pre-Roman humans were buried with dogs, horses and other animals
Some people from an ancient community in what is now northern Italy were interred with animals and animal parts from species such as dogs, horses and pigs. The reasons remain mysterious, but might indicate an enduring companion relationship between t.....»»