Life
- Neuroscience
A game based on Simon shows how people mentally rehearse new information
Signs of learning echo through people’s resting brains.
- Ecosystems
Warming water can create a tropical ecosystem, but a fragile one
Tropical fish in a power plant’s warm discharge disappeared with the plant’s shutdown, giving insight into ecosystems’ reaction to temperature shifts.
- Life
Why otters ‘juggle’ rocks is still a mystery
Shuffling pebbles really fast looks as if it should boost otters’ dexterity, but a new study didn’t find a link.
- Animals
Pug-nosed tree frogs use an auditory trick to evade predators and woo mates
A new study finds that some tree frogs exploit what’s known as the precedence effect to get females attention safely.
- Animals
Why mammals like elephants and armadillos might get drunk easily
Differences in a gene for breaking down alcohol could help explain which mammals get tipsy.
- Paleontology
Spinosaurus fossil tail suggests dinosaurs were swimmers after all
Unique among known dinosaurs, Spinosaurus had a finlike tail, which the predator may have used to propel itself through the water.
- Paleontology
A ‘crazy beast’ from the time of dinosaurs belongs to an obscure mammal group
Paleontologists have finally matched a bizarre fossil, Adalatherium hui, to an obscure group of ancient mammals called gondwanatherians.
- Animals
Here’s why a hero shrew has the sturdiest spine of any mammal
The hero shrew’s rigid backbone is among the weirdest mammal spines, its incredible strength aided by fortified vertebrae bones.
- Paleontology
Deep caves are a rich source of dinosaur prints for this paleontologist
Several deep caves in France are proving to be a surprising source of dinosaur tracks.
- Animals
Earthy funk lures tiny creatures to eat and spread bacterial spores
Genes that cue spore growth also kick up a scent that draws in springtails.
- Animals
The ‘insect apocalypse’ is more complicated than it sounds
Freshwater arthropods trended upward, while terrestrial ones declined. But the study’s decades of data are spotty.
- Paleontology
The first frog fossil from Antarctica has been found
An ancient amphibian from Antarctica gives new insight into when the continent got so cold.
