Life
We summarize the week's science breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Earth
An earlier appearance for the first land plants
Fossilized pollen could show that modern land plants evolved earlier than thought.
- Planetary Science
Antarctic ecosystem holds unusual microbes
Long isolated deep under a glacier, life thrives in dark, salty water by breathing iron and eating sulfates.
- Health & Medicine
Seemingly misplaced DNA acts as lenses
Nocturnal animals orient DNA in retinal cells to focus light.
- Life
Lizards sunbathe for another reason
Panther chameleons may regulate their vitamin D levels by lounging in the sun.
- Plants
Yo, aphid, I’m red and I’m bad
Apple trees support the idea that red fall colors are a warning signal to insects.
- Life
Early land arthropods sported shells
Ancient ocean-dwelling arthropods may have worn shells to enable their transition to land.
- Animals
Oh, he’s such a lab bird
Bold flycatchers may be more likely than shy birds to get trapped for lab studies.
- Life
Male chimps exchange meat for sex
A long-term study of chimps living in western Africa indicates that males hunt down monkeys not only to eat their meat, but also to exchange the meat for sex with female chimps.
- Animals
Sonar causes rock-concert effect in dolphins
Test of recorded sonar causes temporary hearing impairment in dolphins.
- Life
Primate vision puts pieces together
Study suggests nerve cells in retinas create an intricate system of interlocking receptive fields.
- Animals
Chimps ambidextrous when digging wells
A survey of water-collection holes dug on the banks of an African river by wild chimpanzees indicates that, unlike people, these apes don’t have a preference for using either the right or left hand on manual tasks.
- Life
Cells renew in the human heart
Carbon 14 from Cold War–era nuclear bomb tests allowed researchers to track cell birth.
