Pang Pha, the Asian elephant, taught herself how to peel a banana
The elephant only peels yellow-brown bananas when alone, and can do so faster than humans. An elephant named Pang Pha learned how to peel a banana with her trunk—but only yellow-brown bananas. Credit: Kaufmann et al., 2023/Current.....»»
From "yellow peril" to COVID-19: New book takes unflinching look at anti-Asian racism
More than 150 years ago, some 15,000 Chinese workers arrived in the U.S. to help construct the country's first transcontinental railroad, which connected the West Coast with the East Coast's rail network......»»
Rigid approach to teaching phonics is "joyless" and is failing children in England, experts warn
Experts have released robust research to show that phonics should be taught hand-in-hand with reading and writing to encourage true literacy and a love of reading, not through narrow synthetic phonics......»»
GPT-4o, Bumble Fumbles, and Subtle Asian news
From OpenAI's GPT-4o to Bumble's anti-celibacy ads, host Josh Burstein takes us on a comedic journey through the week's top stories......»»
Study finds saying "please" may not be so polite in everyday requests
By kindergarten age, most children have been taught that "please" is a magic word. "Please" is an expression of politeness that shows courtesy and respect, turning a potential demand into a request that will—poof!—magically be granted......»»
Chemists succeed in synthesizing a molecule first predicted 20 years ago
The first and the best-known metallocene is "ferrocene," which contains a single iron atom. Today, sandwich complexes can be found in many inorganic chemistry textbooks, and the bonding and electronic structure of metallocenes is taught in undergradu.....»»
Unveiling crucial virulent milRNAs implicated in the initial infection of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense
Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc) is a typical soil-borne fungus that causes Fusarium wilt by infecting the roots and blocking the vascular tissues of host banana plants, and threatens global banana production. In total, four races have been re.....»»
Milking venom from Australia"s deadly marine animals
Imagine feeling like an elephant is sitting on your chest, you can't breathe, there's a sense of impending doom and the pain is so intense you want to die......»»
Researchers find Northern Hemisphere glaciation enhances orbital- and millennial-scale Asian winter monsoon variability
In a study published in Nature Communications, researchers have documented that persistent millennial-scale Asian winter monsoon (AWM) intensity fluctuations were superimposed on 41-kyr and ~100-kyr orbital variability during both the warmer (higher.....»»
Supplementing diet for farmed abalones to manipulate greenlip abalone lip and shell color
A mixed diet including native algae gives Australia's prized cultured abalone the colors and appearance preferred by lucrative Asian markets, new research shows......»»
Analysis of minority-serving institutions demonstrates layered processes to build students" capacities
The model minority myth paints a picture of Asian Americans as a monolithic group with unparalleled success in academics. A new NYU study unpacks this myth, exploring the needs of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander students and how.....»»
April temperatures in Bangladesh hottest on record
Bangladesh's weather bureau said Wednesday that last month was the hottest April on record, with the South Asian nation and much of the region still enduring a suffocating heat wave......»»
Scientists replace fishmeal in aquaculture with microbial protein derived from soybean processing wastewater
Scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and Temasek Polytechnic have successfully replaced half of the fishmeal protein in the diets of farmed Asian seabass with a "single cell protein" cultivated from microbes in.....»»
First chromosome-level reference genomes of the ornamental banana and pink banana
The genus Musa, encompassing approximately 70 herbaceous species, is predominantly found in the tropical and subtropical regions of Asia and Oceania. This genus is renowned for being one of the most important food crops globally and popular ornamenta.....»»
Laser technology offers breakthrough in detecting illegal ivory
A new way of quickly distinguishing between illegal elephant ivory and legal mammoth tusk ivory could prove critical to fighting the illegal ivory trade. A laser-based approach developed by scientists at the Universities of Bristol and Lancaster, cou.....»»
Airborne observations of Asian monsoon sees ozone-depleting substances lofting into the stratosphere
Powerful monsoon winds, strengthened by a warming climate, are lofting unexpectedly large quantities of ozone-depleting substances high into the atmosphere over East Asia, new research shows......»»
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Rumble is as fun to watch as it is to play
We had a ball rolling around in Super Monkey Ball: Banana Rumble, but it's even more fun to watch someone else play......»»
Pomegranate power: Unlocking sustainable antimicrobial solutions from peels
Pomegranates, known for their rich phenolic content, have been explored for their potential as natural antimicrobials. The research focuses on the peel, which contains a high concentration of these beneficial compounds and represents a significant po.....»»
No, getting your boyfriend to peel an orange won"t prove his loyalty—why TikTok relationship "tests" are useless
Have you ever wondered if your partner really loves you? Well apparently so have thousands of TikTok users, who are testing their theories for the world to see......»»
Social media for sex education: South African teens explain how it would help them
Most teenagers dread talking about sex with their parents. Their parents feel the same way. In some societies it's considered taboo to even broach the subject. And, even where sexuality education is taught at schools, research has shown that effectiv.....»»
iPhone 16 Will Be Apple’s First AI-Centric Phone
It’s the elephant in the room at this point, but yet another report suggests Apple is working to bring AI-centric upgrades to this year’s iPhone. Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman has released a report outlining Apple’s plans for the M.....»»