Biology

African Scientific Academies Say Science Doesn’t Support Anti-Gay Laws

Last week, the Academy of Science of South Africa released a comprehensive review of the research on sexual orientation, hammering home that the grand diversity of human sexuality isn’t something people really choose – it’s all biology. The study, completed in conjunction with the Uganda National Academy of Sciences, examined over 150 recent research papers…

The Weirdest (And Most Violent) Ways That Plants Release Their Seeds

We all know the animal kingdom is incredibly violent — but what about plants? The world of plant life can be just as intense and violent, in its own way. Just check out these eye-popping videos, vines and other illustrations of plants spreading their seeds in an explosive, insane fashion. Violets Touch-me-nots Pilobolus, a genus…

It’s About To Get A Lot Harder To Experiment On Chimps

The Jane Goodall Institute, in collaboration with other animal welfare groups, has successfully petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to declare a new rule under which all chimpanzees—both wild and captive—must be protected as an endangered species. Wild chimpanzees have been listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) since 1990, so it seemed odd…

A Rare White Porpoise Has Been Spotted In The Baltic Sea!

White harbour porpoises are so rare that only 15 sighting have been recorded in the past 100 years. Last week, an amateur photographer caught sight of such a creature in the Baltic Sea and captured it on video. The footage and photographs were taken by Peter Hofmann. The Whale and Dolphin Conservatory, who received the…

The Most Important Plant You’ve Never Heard About

Few of know you the mouse-ear cress. It’s a relative of mustard and cabbage, but it’s not known for its flavor or nutrition. It’s not farmed commercially. It’s not noticeable. It’s a small white plant with boring white flowers —and yet even though it’s not famous, it’s still the most well-known plant in the world.…

Another Optical Illusion Showing How Awful We Are At Discerning Colors

The winner of this year’s Best Illusion of the Year Contest has been announced, and like that dreaded dress from a few months ago, this illusion will cast your ability to perceive colors into doubt. https://gizmodo.com/the-what-color-is-this-goddamn-dress-debate-explaine-1688378120 The top prize of the contest, sponsored by the Neural Correlate Society, was awarded to Belgium’s Mark Vergeer for…

Some Intriguing New Hints About What Ant Consciousness Is Really Like

They build cities. They farm. They make war. Ants do a lot of things that seem uncannily human — and yet they’re profoundly alien, part of a hive mind called a social organism. What does that feel like to each individual ant? Now a new scientific paper suggests that there is always doubt in the…

Scientists Discover A New Link Between The Brain And The Immune System

Last week, researchers announced they had discovered a physical connection between the immune system and the brain’s blood supply. The finding gives researchers a novel approach to understanding diseases ranging from autism to multiple sclerosis, and strengthens the bridge between neuroscience and immunology. Maps of the lymphatic system: old (left) and updated to reflect the…

Are Limited Lifespans An Evolutionary Adaptation?

Since the time of Darwin, evolutionary biologists have wondered why the lifespans of different species vary so significantly. A new model now suggests that the life expectancy of any given species is a function of evolutionary pressures — a conclusion that hints at the potential for powerful anti-aging interventions in humans. The new paper, which…

Jaw-Dropping Footage Shows A “Superpod” Of Swarming Dolphins

While fishing off the coast of Cape Town in South Africa, a pair of fisherman were treated to an unbelievable sight — a massive pod of dolphins containing as many as a thousand individuals. As fisherman Robbie Ragless told Eyewitness News, “We just saw the frenzy on the horizon and didn’t know it was coming…

Papuan Tribe That Ate Brains Developed Resistance to Some Brain Diseases

The story of kuru, as classically told in biology textbooks, is a tragic one. The Fore population in Papua New Guinea ate the brains of their tribe members as an act of mourning, a ritual that allowed a misshapen protein to spread through the population. This caused the disease kuru, which killed as much as…

Touching Photos Show A Baby Koala Clinging To Mom While She Has Surgery

A six-month-old koala named Phantom was allowed to hold on to his mother while she was being operated on to treat a collapsed lung. As the Courier Mail reports, the pair managed to survive after being hit by a car on a highway west of Brisbane. No bones were broken, but the mother, named Lizzy,…

Unprecedented Photos Show A Polar Bear Eating Dolphins

For the first time ever, scientists have observed a polar bear catching and eating white-beaked dolphins. It’s suspected that the dolphins ventured too far north and became stranded in the ice — a possible consequence of climate change. The observation was made by Jon Aars and his colleagues from the Norwegian Polar Institute on April…

The Synchronous Fireflies Of The Smokies Are A Sight Unlike Any Other

Earlier this month, I visited the Smoky Mountain National Park in hopes of capturing the annual firefly “light show” on camera — but it took some seriously creative thinking to make it happen. Above: At the lower left-hand corner of my image, a female firefly seems to be rhythmically flashing while walking around a single…

This Biotech Startup Wants to Brew Yeast That Smells Like Perfume

Yeast labs have a distinctive smell—a bready scent familiar to bakers and brewers. But the frozen test tube of yeast I held at Ginkgo Bioworks had a fragrance crisp and pear-like. It was definitely yeast, but it had been genetically engineered to smell like no yeast has ever smelled. Its headquarters—or foundry, as the company…

Woman Gives Birth Using Ovarian Tissue Frozen In Childhood

In a medical first, a woman has given birth to a healthy baby boy from a transplant of her own frozen ovarian tissue preserved when she was just 13-years-old. It’s a remarkable breakthrough that’s poised to benefit young people who lose their fertility because of cancer treatments. As reported in The Telegraph, the unnamed 28-year-old…

Even Wild Chimps Like To Get Drunk Now And Then

Turns out that African apes and humans have more in common than previously thought. Observations made in the jungles of Guinea show wild chimps sipping alcoholic tree sap from leaf sponges, followed by some characteristically drunken behaviors. A 17-year investigation led by Kimberley Hockings from Oxford Brookes University and the Centre for Research in Anthropology…

Construction begins today on Washington state’s highly anticipated wildlife overpass. Measuring 150-feet long (45 meters), the bridge will allow bears, cougars, elk, and lizards to cross over the busy I-90 highway. It’s a “critical connective link” that’s expected to dramatically reduce collisions between vehicles and animals.

“Meat Glue” And Other Icky Stuff In The Imitation Food Items You Eat

You already knew that the crab in your lunch roll wasn’t really crab — but you probably didn’t know about all the other kinds of imitation foods you eat all the time. From faux wasabi to milk and olive oil that’s partly made up of additives, these are the weird ingredients in the fake foods…

Head Transplants: Science or Science Fiction?

Valery Spiridonov of Russia wants a new body. His body’s muscles are wasting away from a rare disease called Werdnig-Hoffman disorder, which kills most people by age 20. Dr. Sergio Canavero of Italy is expected to announce at the annual conference of the American Academy of Neurological and Orthopaedic Surgeons (AANOS) in Annapolis, Md., in…