Plants & Animals news
Scientists investigate how chemicals evolved into communication signals
(PhysOrg.com) -- Living things possess many diverse ways of communicating, but perhaps the oldest and most widespread form of communication involves the use of chemicals. From animals and plants to bacteria ...
Jan 11, 2011 |
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Optimized by Evolution, Ants Don't Have Traffic Jams
(PhysOrg.com) -- As highway traffic increases, you'd probably expect a traffic jam, where vehicles slow down due to the high density. While traffic jams are a common occurrence on our highways, high density ...
Mar 30, 2009 |
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Newly discovered sensory organ in the chin of baleen whales allows them to be world's largest hunters
Lunge feeding in rorqual whales (a group that includes blue, humpback and fin whales) is unique among mammals, but details of how it works have remained elusive. Now, scientists from the Smithsonian Institution ...
13 hours ago |
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Hacking code of leaf vein architecture solves mysteries, allows predictions of past climate
(Phys.org) -- UCLA life scientists have discovered new laws that determine the construction of leaf vein systems as leaves grow and evolve. These easy-to-apply mathematical rules can now be used to better ...
21 hours ago |
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Today's environment influences behavior generations later: research
Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin and Washington State University have seen an increased reaction to stress in animals whose ancestors were exposed to an environmental compound generations earlier. The findings, ...
May 21, 2012 |
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Study finds modern dog breeds genetically disconnected from ancient ancestors
Cross-breeding of dogs over thousands of years has made it extremely difficult to trace the ancient genetic roots of today's pets, according to a new study led by Durham University.
May 21, 2012 |
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Crows found able to distinguish between human voices
(Phys.org) -- Researchers at the University of Vienna have discovered that carrion crows are able to distinguish between familiar and unknown human voices. They also found, as they write in their paper published ...
May 16, 2012 |
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Beamed-up lemon shark shows research promise (w/ Video)
(Phys.org) -- Not everyone is game enough to fit a laser beam on to a shark’s head and live to tell the tale intact, but not everyone is a marine biologist, either. Last month, marine biologist Luke Tipple, ...
May 06, 2012 |
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More light shed on how pigeons navigate
(Phys.org) -- Pigeons are renowned for their ability to find their way home from a release point hundreds of miles away, but scientists have never fully understood how they are able to achieve the feat. Now ...
Apr 27, 2012 |
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Escalating arms race: Predatory sea urchins drive evolution
(Phys.org) -- Nature teems with examples of evolutionary arms races between predators and prey, with the predator species gradually evolving a new mode of attack for each defensive adaptation that arises in ...
Apr 17, 2012 |
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Orangutan nests reveal engineering expertise
An innovative study looking at how orangutans build their nests has revealed that the apes use a high level of engineering know-how.
Apr 17, 2012 |
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Scientists work up a crab-powered computer
(Phys.org) -- A team of scientists from Japan and England have hit the high mark in exploring and testing unconventional forms of computation. They have built and tested a computer using crabs. This is a computer ...
Apr 14, 2012 |
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See Dan read: Baboons can learn to spot real words
Dan the baboon sits in front of a computer screen. The letters BRRU pop up. With a quick and almost dismissive tap, the monkey signals it's not a word. Correct. Next comes, ITCS. Again, not a word. Finally ...
Apr 12, 2012 |
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Pigeons' navigation skill not down to iron-rich beak cells: study
The theory that pigeons' famous skill at navigation is down to iron-rich nerve cells in their beaks has been disproved by a new study published in Nature.
Apr 11, 2012 |
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Research group suggests Madagascar's unique animals arrived on rafts
(PhysOrg.com) -- Ever since the island of Madagascar was first visited by people, some two thousand years ago, there has been speculation about the unique plants and animals that live on the world’s ...
Mar 20, 2012 |
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