Life

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We summarize the week's science breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Animals

    Dinosaur debate gets cooking

    A key piece of evidence for cold-blooded dinosaurs, growth lines in bones, has also been discovered in a set of warm-blooded animals.

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  2. Humans

    Lead poisoning stymies condor recovery

    California’s iconic comeback species may need human help as long as even a small percentage of the carcasses they eat contain lead shot.

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  3. Animals

    The real vampire squid

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  4. Life

    Second of two blocked flu papers released

    Held back for months by a U.S. government biosafety board, the research pinpoints five mutations that render the potent H5N1 virus transmissible through air.

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  5. Life

    New frontiers for coyotes may bring more Lyme disease

    Forget the deer. Maybe it's coyotes on the move that can explain the recent increase in Lyme disease.

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  6. Life

    Peacocks ruffle feathers, make a rumble

    New recordings reveal that male birds use infrasound, emitting low-pitch sounds detected by peers but inaudible to human ears.

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  7. Life

    Chicks do worse in noisy nests

    Baby bluebirds, and their parents, appear to have trouble communicating over the racket made by nearby humans.

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  8. Ecosystems

    Changing seasons inspire science

    Researchers are tapping into the wealth of observations being made by citizen scientists nationwide. One of the largest repositories of such data is maintained by the USA National Phenology Network.

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  9. Plants

    The Man Who Planted Trees

    Lost Groves, Champion Trees, and an Urgent Plan to Save the Planet by Jim Robbins

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  10. Animals

    Mr. Hornaday’s War

    How a Peculiar Victorian Zookeeper Waged a Lonely Crusade for Wildlife That Changed the World by Stefan Bechtel.

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  11. Neuroscience

    Hurt Blocker

    The next big pain drug may soothe sensory firestorms without side effects.

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  12. Animals

    Animals on the Move

    Worldwide — on land, in the sea and in rivers, streams and lakes — wildlife is responding to rising temperatures.

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