What made humans 'the fat primate'?
Blame junk food or a lack of exercise. But long before the modern obesity epidemic, evolution made us fat too.
Evolution
Jun 26, 2019
9
2
Duke University
The surprising reason why some lemurs may be more sensitive to forest loss
Duke University scientists have given us another way to tell which endangered lemur species are most at risk from deforestation—based on the trillions of bacteria that inhabit their guts.
Plants & Animals
Jun 13, 2019
0
66
Is there a limit to human endurance? Science says yes
From the Ironman triathlon to the Tour de France, some competitions test the limits of even the toughest endurance athletes. Now, a new study of energy expenditure during some of the world's longest, most grueling sporting ...
Evolution
Jun 5, 2019
1
667
Evidence of multiple unmonitored coal ash spills found in N.C. lake
Coal ash solids found in sediments collected from Sutton Lake in 2015 and 2018 suggest the eastern North Carolina lake has been contaminated by multiple coal ash spills, most of them apparently unmonitored and unreported ...
Environment
Jun 3, 2019
0
103
Community impacts from extreme weather shape climate beliefs
Recent studies have suggested that people who experience the impacts of hurricanes, catastrophic flooding or other severe weather events are more likely to believe in, and be concerned about, climate change in the wake of ...
Environment
May 31, 2019
8
20
Birds perceive 'warm' colors differently from 'cool' ones
Birds may not have a word for maroon. Or burnt sienna. But show a zebra finch a sunset-colored object, and she'll quickly decide whether it looks more like "red" or "orange."
Plants & Animals
May 29, 2019
0
111
Dead roots, not just waves, account for marsh losses in gulf
A new Duke University-led study finds that the death of marsh plants due to disturbances like the heavy oiling from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill can double the rate of shoreline erosion in hard-hit marshes.
Ecology
May 24, 2019
0
185
Guiding vibration simulations for turbines
If you've ever felt frustrated while staring at a little spinning pinwheel while a computer finishes a task, try waiting for six weeks.
Engineering
May 21, 2019
0
8
Giving rural Indians what they want increases demand for cookstoves
Global health efforts to design and deliver improved cookstoves don't always catch on. Experience has shown poor households in rural settings will rarely pay for or use these new stoves, which are intended to lower firewood ...
Environment
May 20, 2019
2
93
Could better tests help reverse the rise of drug-resistant infections?
A growing number of infections—such as pneumonia, gonorrhea and tuberculosis—are becoming harder to treat, as bacteria evolve defenses against antibiotics faster than we can develop new drugs to replace them.
Cell & Microbiology
May 16, 2019
0
54
