Pachyderm perfume: How African elephants use odor to communicate
University of Queensland researchers have found African elephants use their acute sense of smell as a form of communication......»»
How killifish embryos use suspended animation to survive over 8 months of drought
The African turquoise killifish lives in ephemeral ponds in Zimbabwe and Mozambique. To survive the annual dry season, the fish's embryos enter a state of extreme suspended animation or "diapause" for approximately 8 months......»»
Will generative AI change the way universities communicate?
Is artificial intelligence an unprecedented opportunity, or will it rob everyone of jobs and creativity? As we debate on social media (and perhaps use ChatGPT almost daily), generative AIs have also entered the arena of university communication. Thes.....»»
Secrets of sargassum: Scientists advance knowledge of seaweed causing chaos in the Caribbean and West Africa
Researchers have been working to track and study floating sargassum, a prolific seaweed swamping Caribbean and West African shorelines, and causing environmental and economic harm. The study, "Changes in holopelagic Sargassum spp. biomass composition.....»»
A new ransomware is hijacking Windows BitLocker to encrypt and steal files
New ransomware strain is creating new boot volumes and using labels to communicate with victims......»»
Dyson spheres: Astronomers report potential candidates for alien structures, and evidence against their existence
There are three ways to look for evidence of alien technological civilizations. One is to look out for deliberate attempts by them to communicate their existence, for example, through radio broadcasts. Another is to look for evidence of them visiting.....»»
Bilingual Brain-Reading Implant Decodes Spanish and English
A first-of-a-kind AI system enables a person with paralysis to communicate in two languages.....»»
Study reveals key role of plant-bacteria communication for assembly of a healthy plant microbiome
In an interdisciplinary study, researchers have discovered that symbiotic bacteria communicate with legume plants through specific molecules and that this communication influences which bacteria grow near the plant roots. The findings provide insight.....»»
Strange fruit: How Billie Holiday"s performance of the anti-lynching song politicized Black consciousness
Billie Holiday's recording of the anti-lynching song "Strange Fruit" has stirred and haunted generations of listeners. A new article in the Journal of African American History, titled "Professional Mourning: Billie Holiday's 'Strange Fruit' and the R.....»»
Ancient people hunted now extinct elephants at Tagua Tagua Lake in Chile 12,000 years ago, study finds
Thousands of years ago, early hunter-gatherers returned regularly to Tagua Tagua Lake in Chile to hunt ancient elephants and take advantage of other local resources, according to a study published May 22 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Rafael.....»»
How do birds communicate? Network science models are opening up new possibilities for experts
Nature lovers will know the scene well. A flurry of birdsong, a shake of a tree and out pops a flock of birds flying away in unison together......»»
Language change harms our ability to communicate and understand, researcher argues
Changes to the definitions of conceptual words like "woke" and gaslighting are harming our ability to communicate and understand our experiences, a Leeds academic argues......»»
Study finds cloudy waters may drive African fish to develop bigger eyes
Variations in water quality can impact the development of the visual system of one species of African fish, suggests a new study......»»
South African communities vs Shell: High court victories show cultural beliefs and practices count in climate cases
When the Shell petroleum company announced in 2021 that it wanted to explore for fossil fuels off South Africa's pristine Wild Coast, Indigenous communities in the area immediately fought back through the country's courts......»»
Research explores ways to mitigate the environmental toxicity of ubiquitous silver nanoparticles
Silver has long been used to thwart the spread of illness and in recent years silver nanoparticles have been incorporated into products ranging from sanitizers, odor-resistant clothes and washing machines to makeup, food packaging and sports equipmen.....»»
Team compares robot-assisted language learning systems and human tutors in English conversation lessons
Advancements in large language models, robotics, and software such as text-to-speech, have made it possible to develop robots that can understand language, interact physically, and communicate verbally. These breakthroughs have opened up possibilitie.....»»
Walking in African cities can be a miserable experience: Study shows planners ignore needs of pedestrians
African cities aren't welcoming places for pedestrians. Yet walking is free and, given the shortage of decent public transport, it's often the only way for people to move around. More than 70% of Africa's urban population of about 609 million walk da.....»»
Study identifies early warning signals for the end of the African humid period
The transition from the African humid period (AHP) to dry conditions in North Africa is the clearest example of climate tipping points in recent geological history. They occur when small perturbations trigger a large, non-linear response in the syste.....»»
NASA is helping protect tigers, jaguars, and elephants—here"s how
As human populations grow, habitat loss threatens many creatures. Mapping wildlife habitat using satellites is a rapidly expanding area of ecology, and NASA satellites play a crucial role in these efforts. Tigers, jaguars, and elephants are a few of.....»»
Wildfires in wet African forests have doubled in recent decades, large-scale analysis finds
A new study presents the first large-scale analysis of fire patterns in West and Central Africa's wet, tropical forests. The number of active fires there typically doubled over 18 years, particularly in the Congo Basin. The increases are primarily du.....»»
A rare and little-known group of monkeys could help save Africa"s tropical forests
Conservationists and scientists from almost 20 institutions in the United States, Europe, and Africa, have concluded that immediate conservation efforts to protect red colobus monkey species could have cascading net positive impacts on African tropic.....»»