Biology

If humanity went extinct, what species would replace us?

Could another species someday replace us as Earth’s dominant intelligent life and, if so, which species? To answer that question, we need to understand just what intelligence really is. And why, from an evolutionary standpoint, an organism would even want it. Once we understand those things, we can start speculating about what the next intelligent,…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins

The beautiful birds you rarely see

National Geographic has just published an amazing series of photographs that chronicle the hidden lives of rare birds. This kakapo blends so perfectly with its environment that it’s easy to see why they are so hard to find. Kakapo photograph by Shane McInnes You can see NatGeo’s full series of images on their site. Thanks,…

io9 Annalee Newitz

The real reason why you are fat (or thin)

In the UK, the University of Cambridge is deep into its Science Festival, and one particular speaker’s topic caught our eye. Metabolic researcher Stephen O’Rahilly has determined that the genetic reasons that some people become fat or thin are not quite what we had thought. He’s giving a talk on his findings this week at…

io9 Annalee Newitz

Stem cells now being used to treat paralysis in humans – on a trial basis

You’ve heard of stem cell therapies being used to cure or at least partially restore mobility in animals with damaged spinal cords. But what about in humans? Now there are two studies underway. Here’s how close we are to seeing humans released from paralysis thanks to stem cells. Although not all spinal injuries cause complete…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

There’s a scientific reason why a pinch of salt makes things sweeter

Ever wonder why salted chocolate and caramel taste even better than unsalted? Or why adding a pinch of salt to cookies makes them sweeter? A group of researchers has found evidence that it’s because you have intestinal cells in your taste buds. That’s right – your intestines are full of sugar sensors, and some of…

io9 Annalee Newitz

We’re one step closer to cheap, abundant biofuel

Biofuels are made from carbohydrates and fats in corn and other feedstock. This is a wasteful process because it leaves behind all the protein, a far more abundant substance. As a result, one of the big questions for alternative energy researchers is how we can pull biofuel from protein. Especially because proteins are also present…

io9 Annalee Newitz

New microscope produces 3D movies of live cells in action

It’s been a big week for the world of the small. In a new microscope breakthrough, researchers have figured out how to use a minuscule sheet of light to produce movies of living cells, revealing mitosis in action and illuminating cells’ three-dimensional architecture with the greatest detail ever seen. The technique uses a highly focused,…

io9 Rebecca Boyle - Popular Science

How did humans really evolve?

Almost two million years ago, a band of brave explorers left their families behind in their warm, tropical home and sought refuge in northern lands. Armed with sharp stone tools and their wits, they followed the coast as far north as they could, then began to veer east, settling on the sunny, fertile shores of…

io9 Annalee Newitz

10 Most Bizarre Animal Mating Behaviors

As a group, animals are disgusting. It’s really a shame we’re one of them. But while we only display mating behavior on specially requested internet videos or unused sections of libraries, they have sex in front of biologists. The biologists, of course, can’t keep their mouths shut and tattle all the animals’ dirty dealings to…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

A drug that can make your old memories like new

There are drugs that help you remember what you learn, and ones that erase your memory. But until now, there have no substances with the power to enhance and strengthen old memories hovering on the brink of being forgotten. Now a group of neuroscientsts say they’ve isolated a single enzyme in the brain that can…

io9 Annalee Newitz

One of the fathers of nuclear weapons wrote science fiction about super-intelligent dolphins helping to overcome the Cold War

Leo Szilárd was one of the first scientists to come up with the idea of a nuclear chain reaction, and he wrote the 1939 letter (signed by his friend Albert Einstein) that convinced President Roosevelt to launch the Manhattan Project. After the war, though, he turned his attention to molecular biology — and to spur…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

The biological reason why Henry VIII was a serial killer

Henry VIII achieved enduring fame (and portrayal by a series of skinnier and skinnier actors) by lopping off heads left, right, and center. Well, technically only left and right, since he ordered the execution of just two of his wives. Another two he disposed of legally, but less violently, through divorce and annulment. Henry’s motivation…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

The hagfish eats in the most disgusting way possible

The hagfish is an evolutionary throwback that definitely lives up to its name. When the eel-like creature finds a carcass on the seafloor, it burrows inside the dead meat and starts eating…not just with its mouth, but with its skin. The trick of absorbing nutrients not only through the mouth but through the skin and…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins

Why we have to act right now to stop Earth’s next mass extinction

Earth has had five mass extinction events in the last 540 million years, in which more than three-quarters of animal species went extinct. We’re on the verge of the sixth mass extinction, but it’s not too late to stop it. Paleobiologists at UC Berkeley have examined today’s extinction trends in relation to those at the…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins

Explore the Human Body in Google’s Android Tablet App

The only Honeycomb tablet you can buy right now is the Motorola Xoom, but there are of course other ways to download it to your tablet. Especially if you can’t wait to start using Google Body, which explores all the muscles, organs and veins of the female body—apparently a male body will be added shortly.…

Health Kat Hannaford

A protein that could destroy all men on Earth

We may be headed for an all-female future civilization. For one simple reason: Women have two X chromosomes, while men have only one. For the most part, this isn't a problem. But now it seems that this genetic setup could lead to a scenario where the elimination of one key protein could wipe out all…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

Why the NCAA tournament is a metaphor for human evolution

The same handful of college basketball teams always seem to do well in March Madness, and the deeper reasons behind that might actually tell us something profound about human evolution. That’s the idea put forward by Duke University’s Adrian Bejan, who developed the constructal law 15 years ago to explain how flow systems work. A…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins

Why blue whales shouldn’t exist

There’s an absolutely amazing essay by Carl Zimmer that just went up on his Discover blog The Loom, about how blue whales are a seemingly impossible creature. Though they are tremendously huge and can live to be over 200 years old, they rarely develop cancer. Zimmer writes: Blue whales can weigh over a thousand times…

io9 Annalee Newitz

Why stupidity can be the smartest survival strategy

Mindlessly copying everything your parents did may seem like a silly thing to do. But from an evolutionary standpoint, not thinking might be the best possible strategy for survival. This is the counterintuitive idea put forward by researchers at the UK’s Universities of Exeter and Bristol. Animals have two choices when it comes to survival…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins

How fossil DNA could bring dying species back from the brink

Countless animal and plant species teeter on the brink of extinction, but the DNA of their ancestors may point the way to survival. Paleobiologists are scouring fossil DNA to determine why species once thrived…and how they can do so again. Yes, it’s the rare instance in which fossil DNA doesn’t lead to cloning. Instead, scientists…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins

If humanity went extinct, what species would replace us?

The beautiful birds you rarely see

The real reason why you are fat (or thin)

Stem cells now being used to treat paralysis in humans – on a trial basis

There’s a scientific reason why a pinch of salt makes things sweeter

We’re one step closer to cheap, abundant biofuel

New microscope produces 3D movies of live cells in action

How did humans really evolve?

10 Most Bizarre Animal Mating Behaviors

A drug that can make your old memories like new

One of the fathers of nuclear weapons wrote science fiction about super-intelligent dolphins helping to overcome the Cold War

The biological reason why Henry VIII was a serial killer

The hagfish eats in the most disgusting way possible

Why we have to act right now to stop Earth’s next mass extinction

Explore the Human Body in Google’s Android Tablet App

A protein that could destroy all men on Earth

Why the NCAA tournament is a metaphor for human evolution

Why blue whales shouldn’t exist

Why stupidity can be the smartest survival strategy

How fossil DNA could bring dying species back from the brink

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