Marsupials might be the more evolved mammals
Mammal evolution has been flipped on its head, according to new research that suggests marsupials are the more evolved mammals......»»
Ancient diamonds shine light on the evolution of Earth
The analysis of ancient, superdeep diamonds dug up from mines in Brazil and Western Africa, has exposed new processes of how continents evolved and moved during the early evolution of complex life on Earth......»»
Scientists explain unique formation of ancient algae that evolved photosynthesis and oxygenated the planet
Scientists have for the first time revealed how blue-green algae—visible as the slippery green slime in stagnant water, riverbeds, and seashores—weaves itself into large weblike structures......»»
Race to find world"s oldest mammal fossils led to academic warfare in the 1970s
The hunt for the world's most ancient mammals descended into academic warfare in the 1970s, researchers from the University of Bristol have discovered......»»
Fear of human "super predator" pervades the South African savanna
Research published October 5 in the journal Current Biology finds that mammals living in South Africa's Greater Kruger National Park, home to one of the world's largest remaining lion populations, are far more afraid of hearing human voices than lion.....»»
Survival of the newest: The mammals that survive mass extinctions aren"t as "boring" as scientists thought
When an asteroid hit the Earth 66 million years ago, it set off a devastating mass extinction. The dinosaurs (except for a few birds) all died out, along with lots of the mammals. But some small mammals survived, laying the groundwork for all the mam.....»»
New research into pangolin genomics may aid in conservation efforts
A new paper in Molecular Biology and Evolution provides, for the first time, a comprehensive set of genomic resources for pangolins (sometimes known as scaly anteaters) that researchers believe will be integral for protecting these threatened mammals.....»»
Research team creates wearable sensor to monitor "last line of defense" antibiotic
Since the discovery of penicillin in 1928, bacteria have evolved numerous ways to evade or outright ignore the effects of antibiotics. Thankfully, health care providers have an arsenal of infrequently used antibiotics that are still effective against.....»»
How the age of mammals could end
Throughout the past 500 million years, our planet has experienced a total of five mass extinctions. One of these—the Permo-Triassic mass extinction event—led to the demise of roughly 90% of Earth's species......»»
Timing plant evolution with a fast-ticking epigenetic clock
Recent discoveries in the field of epigenetics, the study of inheritance of traits that occur without changing the DNA sequence, have shown that chronological age in mammals correlates with epigenetic changes that accumulate during the lifetime of an.....»»
Climate change and carnivores: Shifts in the distribution and effectiveness of protected areas in the Amazon
A new article published in PeerJ, authored by Camila Ferreira Leão at Universidade Federal do Pará sheds light on the effects of climate change on carnivorous mammals in the Amazon and their representation within Protected Areas (PAs). "Climate cha.....»»
Q&A: Searching for life where it shouldn"t exist
A team of Penn State scientists is working to solve one of the world's greatest unsolved mysteries: how life originated on Earth—and how it might have evolved on other planets......»»
Researchers advance understanding of why cell parts look the way they do
Scientists have long understood that parts of cells, called organelles, evolved to have certain shapes and sizes because their forms are closely related to how they function. Now, Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a bacteria-based tool to test.....»»
Study shows protecting lands slows biodiversity loss among vertebrates by five times
Protecting large swaths of Earth's land can help stem the tide of biodiversity loss—including for vertebrates like amphibians, reptiles, mammals and birds, according to a study published in Nature Sept. 27......»»
A fossil jumping spider"s 15-million-year journey
Jumping spiders (Salticidae) are a recently evolved family of spiders. They are known for their distinctive large eyes and ability to jump long distances relative to their small size. Australia has about 1,200 to 1,500 species of this spider family......»»
New origin story for key regulatory gene: PRC2 repressed jumping genes in ancestors of eukaryotes
The key protein complex PRC2 was discovered decades ago to silence genes, but new findings by Frederic Berger and his group at the Gregor Mendel Institute show that PRC2 represses transposons in a range of eukaryotes and only gradually evolved to sil.....»»
Xbox exec says leaked “old emails and documents” have “outdated” info
Spencer: Real plans have "evolved" from what's in docs Microsoft accidentally shared. Enlarge / Microsoft's Phil Spencer speaks at the DICE conference in Las Vegas. (credit: Kyle Orland) Yesterday's massive leaks from th.....»»
How bats evolved to avoid cancer
A new paper titled "Long-read sequencing reveals rapid evolution of immunity and cancer-related genes in bats" in Genome Biology and Evolution shows that rapid evolution in bats may account for the animals' extraordinary ability to both host and surv.....»»
You say tomato, these scientists say evolutionary mystery
Biologists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have found evidence for evolutionary "syndromes"—sets of traits that occur together—that help to explain how tomatoes first evolved their distinctive blend of color, sweetness, acidity and aro.....»»
Why bats carry viruses that have higher fatality rates in humans than those from other mammals
A small team of biologists and evolutionists from the University of Chicago, York University, the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Exeter reports why bats carry viruses that cause higher fatality rates when jumping to humans.....»»
Creating the tools to conserve our wildlife
The sixth mass extinction is currently happening on Earth. Rapid biodiversity loss is affecting every corner of the globe, as species of plants, mammals, fish, and reptiles disappear due to the changing climate. While much of the climate crisis and b.....»»