Crabs have evolved five separate times—why do the same forms keep appearing in nature?
Charles Darwin believed evolution created "endless forms most beautiful." It's a nice sentiment but it doesn't explain why evolution keeps making crabs......»»
NYT Connections: hints and answers for Sunday, May 19
Connections is the new puzzle game from the New York Times, and it can be quite difficult. If you need a hand with solving today's puzzle, we're here to help......»»
The nature of consciousness, and how to enjoy it while you can
In his new book, Christof Koch views consciousness as a theorist and an aficionado. Enlarge (credit: SEAN GLADWELL) Unraveling how consciousness arises out of particular configurations of organic matter is a quest that h.....»»
How hunting may have turned humans into long-distance runners
Researchers have discovered hundreds of historical accounts of humans hunting prey by chasing them down over long distances, which some believe is why we evolved our unique talent for endurance running......»»
NYT Connections: hints and answers for Saturday, May 18
Connections is the new puzzle game from the New York Times, and it can be quite difficult. If you need a hand with solving today's puzzle, we're here to help......»»
NYT Connections: hints and answers for Friday, May 17
Connections is the new puzzle game from the New York Times, and it can be quite difficult. If you need a hand with solving today's puzzle, we're here to help......»»
Researchers develop a detector for continuously monitoring toxic gases
Most systems used to detect toxic gases in industrial or domestic settings can be used only once, or at best a few times. Now, researchers at MIT have developed a detector that could provide continuous monitoring for the presence of these gases, at l.....»»
Mystery CRISPR unlocked: A new ally against antibiotic resistance?
CRISPR-Cas systems have revolutionized biotechnology by offering ways to edit genes like a pair of programmable scissors. In nature, bacteria use these systems to fight off deadly viruses. A recent international collaboration led by the University of.....»»
Activision forms studio to develop new narrative-driven franchise
Activision is breaking away from Call of Duty with the launch of Elsewhere Entertainment, a new studio that'll develop a narrative-driven franchise......»»
Fossil captures starfish splitting itself in two—showing this has been happening for 155 million years
One of the wildest wonders of nature is the ability of some animals to reproduce by splitting in half. There is still so much we don't know about this process. So the discovery of a 155-million-year-old starfish fossil frozen partway through this pro.....»»
NYT Connections: hints and answers for Thursday, May 16
Connections is the new puzzle game from the New York Times, and it can be quite difficult. If you need a hand with solving today's puzzle, we're here to help......»»
A thousand times smaller than a grain of sand—glass sensors 3D-printed on optical fiber
In a first for communications, researchers in Sweden 3D printed silica glass micro-optics on the tips of optic fibers—surfaces as small as the cross section of a human hair. The advance could enable faster internet and improved connectivity, as wel.....»»
A penguin with an unconventional call inspires researchers to change how they study penguins
An emperor penguin's sex determines the nature of their courtship call—male vocalizations are composed of long, slow bursts with lower frequency tones than the female version. But calls of SeaWorld San Diego male penguin E-79 caught the attention o.....»»
Sweltering heat across Asia was 45 times more likely because of climate change, study finds
Sizzling heat across Asia and the Middle East in late April that echoed last year's destructive swelter was made 45 times more likely in some parts of the continent because of human-caused climate change, a study Tuesday found......»»
NYT Connections: hints and answers for Wednesday, May 15
Connections is the new puzzle game from the New York Times, and it can be quite difficult. If you need a hand with solving today's puzzle, we're here to help......»»
Discovery of the first ancestors of scorpions, spiders and horseshoe crabs
Who were the earliest ancestors of scorpions, spiders and horseshoe crabs? A Ph.D. student from the University of Lausanne (Switzerland), with the support of a CNRS researcher, has identified a fossil that fills the gap between modern species and tho.....»»
The hunt for rare bitcoin is nearing an end
Rare bitcoin fragments are worth many times their face value. Enlarge (credit: Getty Images | Andriy Onufriyenko) Billy Restey is a digital artist who runs a studio in Seattle. But after hours, he hunts for rare chunks o.....»»
NYT Connections: hints and answers for Tuesday, May 14
Connections is the new puzzle game from the New York Times, and it can be quite difficult. If you need a hand with solving today's puzzle, we're here to help......»»
A switch for the internal clock: Exploring quantum biology for novel medical therapies
A research collaboration has explored the effects of nuclear magnetic resonance on the internal clock of cells at different times of day and under oxygen deprivation......»»
The secret to mimicking natural faults? Plexiglass and Teflon
When a fault ruptures in nature, some sections of the fault slip suddenly and seismically, weakening as velocity increases. Other regions creep slowly and strengthen with increasing velocity. The relative locations of these sections affect the size a.....»»
Researchers breed tomato plants that contain the complete genetic material of both parent plants
In a new study published in Nature Genetics, led by Charles Underwood from the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research in Cologne, Germany, scientists established a system to generate clonal sex cells in tomato plants and used them to design.....»»