Uncategorized
- Animals
Male spiders amputate organs, run faster
Tiny male spiders of a species common to the southeastern United States routinely remove one of their two oversize external sex organs, enabling them to run faster and longer.
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19406
Like physicists, mathematicians have always been divided into theorists and experimentalists. And, as with the physicists, the two groups of mathematicians have not gotten along very well. Still, in physics, there has always been an understanding that both groups are necessary, whereas during the past century or so, it has been possible to pretend that […]
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19405
This article reminded me of the old quote: “A fishing lure is any combination of metal, plastic, wood, feathers, hair, or other manmade or natural material attached to a hook (or hooks) and designed to attract fishermen.” To wit: Decades ago, to impress an office associate who was a trout-fishing traditionalist as to how random […]
- Animals
Hooking the Gullible
Research into fish behavior often reveals ways that bait designers can trick a fish into biting odd-looking lures, but angler appeal can also be an important marketing consideration.
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19404
What an amazing time resolution for 34 million years ago! Could the temperature changes recorded reflect seasonal eel migration, rather than changes in the Gulf of Mexico? Are the results consistent between otoliths found in close association? Does this offer a method of more precise dating similar to the use of tree rings? Gordon C. […]
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- Math
Functions on Display
To mathematicians, the term “function” has a specific meaning. It’s a rule that assigns a fixed output for a given input; in effect, a formula. Among the most familiar functions are the sine and cosine functions of trigonometry. The Wolfram Functions Site offers a huge functions database, providing information about and visualizations of more then […]
- Humans
From the April 14, 1934, issue
Yawning spells, disagreeable alcohols from anaerobic respiration, and how antibodies protect adults from disease.
- Chemistry
Materials Factory: RNA manufactures palladium particles
Chemists have evolved RNA fragments in the lab that spontaneously synthesize highly uniform, hexagonal-shaped nanoparticles of palladium.
- Health & Medicine
Categorizing Cancers: Gene activity predicts leukemia outcome
By dividing acute myeloid leukemia into subtypes on the basis of which genes are abnormally active in a given patient, doctors may be able to predict outcomes and make better treatment decisions.
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Fat Chance: Hormone boosts metabolic rate, induces weight loss in mice
Fat cells secrete a hormone that tells the brain to boost the body's metabolic rate.
