All Stories by Chris Samoray
- Plants
Single gene influences a petunia’s primary pollinator
Mutations on a single gene determine how much ultraviolet light a petunia flower absorbs, and in turn, which animal pollinates the flower.
- Animals
Some warblers make their long winter migration even longer
Blackpoll warblers in western North America head east to fatten up before their transoceanic migration.
- Paleontology
New dating of dino ancestor challenges Triassic timeline
New dates for geologic layers of well-known fossil formation show that dinosaurs and their ancient relatives were separated by less time than researchers thought.
- Earth
Humankind’s water use greater than thought
Humans’ global water footprint increases when accounting for water losses from water management practices.
- Microbes
Gut microbes signal when dinner is done
Helpful E. coli bacteria that live in the guts of animals produce proteins that can decrease an animal’s appetite only 20 minutes after receiving nutrients
- Life
Many Amazon trees endangered
Large numbers of Amazon tree species are threatened by deforestation.
- Health & Medicine
Engineered vocal cords show promise in animal tests
Lab-grown vocal cord tissue could lead the way to better treatments for people with vocal problems
- Plants
Ancient gardeners saved the gourd
Domestication might have helped early vine plants like pumpkin survive after seed-dispersing megafauna went extinct.
- Plants
Ancient gardeners saved the gourd
Domestication might have helped early vine plants like pumpkin survive after seed-dispersing megafauna went extinct.
- Health & Medicine
Chilly cages may skew disease studies in lab mice
Mice studies on diet and human disease might be marred by stress of cold temperatures in their cages.
- Astronomy
Early stars found swirling in the Milky Way center
Ancient stars with low iron abundance surround the Milky Way’s center.
- Climate
Kangaroo farts may not be so eco-friendly after all
Kangaroos fart methane, but not much thanks to the metabolism of gut microbes
