1,562 results
- Tech
Robot swarm takes many shapes
One Kilobot is not very smart. But 1,000 can follow simple instructions to assemble into multiple shapes without human intervention.
- Plants
In dry times, these trees invest in ants
The insects provide adequate defense by ganging up on leaf-eating caterpillars and biting their undersides until the herbivores fall off the tree.
- Chemistry
Microscopy providing ‘window into the cell’ wins chemistry Nobel
Three scientists use fluorescence and lasers to see single molecules and other tiny objects.
- Animals
Year in review: Insect, bird evolution revisited
Insects got an entirely new family tree after an extensive genetic analysis rearranged the creatures' relations.
- Animals
When sweet little bees go to war
Tiny Tetragonula bees don’t sting but have strong jaws. The bees fight by biting a combatant and not letting go.
- Environment
Atomic ant sand
Robb Hermes asked for sand ants to get samples of Trinitite, a material created in the test blasts of the first atomic bomb.
- Animals
‘Animal Weapons’ examines evolution of natural armor
Biological arms races have led to the evolution of horns, tusks and other extreme armament in the natural world.
- Animals
Common pesticides change odds in ant fights
Species’ combat success can rise or fall after repeated exposure to a common neonicotinoid insecticide.
- Life
Mouse sperm parties make for straight swimmers
Mouse sperm hunt for eggs in packs, but grouping doesn’t boost speed. Instead, gangs of the reproductive cells move in straighter lines.
- Animals
Ten real-life Halloween horrors in the natural world
Vampires and witches are nothing compared to mind-controlling parasites, nose ticks and antibiotic-resistant superbugs.
- Animals
African frog conceals itself with chemicals
Two small peptides keep the West African savanna frog from being stung by ants.
- Earth
Mineral hunting, mob math and more reader feedback
Readers ask about Earth's most abundant mineral and discuss the notoriously unpredictable behavior of pedestrians.
