Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Neuroscience
Immune system may remember and adapt to stress
Mice without immune systems who receive stressed immune cells are less anxious and more social, suggesting that the immune system can adapt to stress.
- Animals
Chameleon tongue power underestimated
A South African chameleon species can shoot its tongue with up to 41,000 watts of power per kilogram of muscle involved, a new study finds.
- Ecosystems
‘Earth: A New Wild’ puts people in the picture
PBS nature series ‘Earth: A New Wild’ shows humans living with, and not off, their environments
- Paleontology
Snakes crawled among Jurassic dinosaurs, new timeline says
Earliest snake fossils provide evidence snakes evolved their flexible skulls before their long, limbless bodies.
- Neuroscience
Two sets of neurons turn thirst on and off
A study in mice reveals that two neural groups in the hypothalamus drive the body’s need to quench or not to quench.
- Science & Society
Big data studies come with replication challenges
As science moves into big data research — analyzing billions of bits of DNA or other data from thousands of research subjects — concern grows that much of what is discovered is fool’s gold.
- Life
Flying animals can teach drones a thing or two
Scientists have turned to Mother Nature’s most adept aerial acrobats — birds, bees, bats and other animals — to inspire their designs for self-directed drones.
- Life
Fast and furious: The real lives of swallows
In the fields of Oregon, scientists learn flight tricks from swallows.
- Neuroscience
Decoding sommeliers’ brains, one squirt of wine at a time
Researchers use a ‘gustometer’ to control wine portions in experiments comparing the brains of sommeliers and novices.
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- Animals
Humboldt squid flash and flicker
Scientists capture the color-changing behavior of Humboldt squid in the wild.
- Life
When bacteria-killing viruses take over, it’s bad news for the gut
A rise in some bacteria-killing viruses in the intestines may deplete good bacteria and trigger inflammatory bowel diseases.
