Could humans communicate with whales?
The Geochemical and Environmental Research Group (GERG), a center within the College of Geosciences at Texas A&M University, will conduct a research program with Project CETI, the Cetacean Translation Initiative, to understand vocalizations of sperm.....»»
Five people infected as bird flu appears to go from cows to chickens to humans
High temperatures made it hard for workers to use protective gear during culling. Enlarge (credit: Getty | Edwin Remsberg) The highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus that spilled from wild birds into US dairy cows.....»»
Intensive farming could raise risk of new pandemics, researchers warn
Industrialized farming is often thought to reduce the risk of zoonotic diseases (those transmitted from animals to humans) because of better control, biosecurity and separation of livestock......»»
E. coli variant may cause antimicrobial resistance in dogs, humans
Researchers studying antimicrobial-resistant E. coli—the leading cause of human death due to antimicrobial resistance worldwide—have identified a mechanism in dogs that may render multiple antibiotic classes ineffective......»»
World"s rarest whale may have washed up on New Zealand beach, possibly shedding clues on species
Spade-toothed whales are the world's rarest, with no live sightings ever recorded. No one knows how many there are, what they eat, or even where they live in the vast expanse of the southern Pacific Ocean. However, scientists in New Zealand may have.....»»
Q&A: "We lost instruments chewed or crunched by bears and sea otters"—how a researcher listens for elusive belugas
Dr. Manuel Castellote studies the behavior and conservation of whales and dolphins. After beginning his academic career in Spain, he now works in the United States, applying acoustic techniques to learn more about cetaceans—especially beluga whales.....»»
Study shows naming farm animals reduces preschoolers" desire to eat them
Giving a chicken, turkey or pig a name and pointing out its individual qualities may change children's attitudes towards animals. It makes children perceive animals as more similar to humans. They will prefer to befriend the animals rather than eat t.....»»
Big boost for new epigenetics paradigm: CoRSIVs, first discovered in humans, now found in cattle
A study published in Genome Biology opens new possibilities to improve production efficiency in the cattle industry and potentially animal agriculture more broadly. A team of researchers at Baylor College of Medicine, Cornell University and the USDA.....»»
Much of Neanderthal genetic diversity came from modern humans
Neanderthals' low diversity means their population was even smaller than we thought. Enlarge (credit: Halamka) The basic outline of the interactions between modern humans and Neanderthals is now well established. The two.....»»
Social contagion research explores how ant colonies regulate group behaviors
In the world of social creatures, from humans to ants, the spread of behaviors through a group—known as social contagion—is a well-documented phenomenon. This process, driven by social imitation and pressure, causes individuals to adopt behaviors.....»»
History shows that humans are good for biodiversity… sometimes
Humans have been an important driver of vegetation change over thousands of years, and, in some places, had positive impacts on biodiversity, according to a new study......»»
Introducing co-cultures: When co-habiting animal species share culture
Cooperative hunting, resource sharing, and using the same signals to communicate the same information—these are all examples of cultural sharing that have been observed between distinct animal species. In an opinion piece published June 19 in the j.....»»
"A history of contact": Geneticists are rewriting the narrative of Neanderthals and other ancient humans
Ever since the first Neanderthal bones were discovered in 1856, people have wondered about these ancient hominins. How are they different from us? How much are they like us? Did our ancestors get along with them? Fight them? Love them? The recent dis.....»»
Can you do better than top-level AI models on these basic vision tests?
Abstract analysis that is trivial for humans often stymies GPT-4o, Gemini, and Sonnet. Enlarge / Whatever you do, don't ask the AI how many horizontal lines are in this image. (credit: Getty Images) In the last couple of.....»»
We Cannot Cede Control of Weapons to Artificial Intelligence
I watched United Nations delegates debate AI-based weapons that can fire without human initiation. Humans cannot be taken out of that decision-making.....»»
Wolves" return has had only small impact on deer populations in Washington state, study shows
Humans drove wolves to extinction in Washington state around the 1930s. Thanks to conservation efforts, by about 80 years later, wolves had returned—crossing first from the Canadian border into Washington around 2008 and later entering the state fr.....»»
Rice gone wild: How humans have inadvertently selected for "weedy" rice
University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers have discovered that the anatomical adaptation helping weedy rice varieties to proliferate is not, as previously believed, confined only to these pest varieties. The research, published recently in the.....»»
Egg cell maintenance: Long-lived proteins may be essential for fertility
Female mammals—including humans—are born with all of their egg cells. Of a woman's one to two million egg cells, about 400 mature before menopause and can be fertilized. Some egg cells therefore survive for several decades—and need to remain fu.....»»
Ars Live: Join us TODAY for a lively discussion on time travel in the movies
Bill and Ted co-creator Ed Solomon joins physicists Sean Carroll and Jim Kakalios Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson/Getty Images) Since antiquity, humans have envisioned various means of time travel into the future or the p.....»»
Brain size riddle solved as humans exceed evolutionary trend
The largest animals do not have proportionally bigger brains—with humans bucking this trend—a study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution has revealed......»»
Research finds humpbacks were happier during pandemic pause
University of Queensland-led research has found migrating humpback whales off Australia's east coast became less stressed over the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The research paper is published in Marine Environmental Research......»»