https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. The origins of human language remain mysterious. Are we the only animals truly capable of complex speech? Are Homo sapiens the only hominids who could give detailed directions to a far-off freshwater source or describe the nuanced purples and reds of a dramatic sunset? https://phys.org/news/2025-02-protein-emergence-spoken-language.html Evolution Tue, 18 Feb 2025 05:00:01 EST news659005081 A simple statistical test shows that contrary to current practice, the "gaps" within DNA protein and sequence alignments commonly used in evolutionary biology can provide important information about nucleotide and amino acid substitutions over time. The finding could be particularly relevant to those studying distantly related species. The work appears in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://phys.org/news/2022-08-statistical-tool-gaps-dna-shouldnt.html Evolution Tue, 16 Aug 2022 01:59:10 EDT news579833946 A team led by biologists at The University of Texas at Arlington has published a study supporting the theory that species that reproduce asexually have more harmful genetic mutations than those utilizing sexual reproduction. https://phys.org/news/2022-08-asexual-reproduction-genetic-mutations.html Evolution Mon, 01 Aug 2022 16:22:03 EDT news578589716 A team of researchers including Northwestern Engineering faculty has expanded the understanding of how virus shells self-assemble, an important step toward developing techniques that use viruses as vehicles to deliver targeted drugs and therapeutics throughout the body. https://phys.org/news/2019-03-revealing-virus-scaffold.html Biochemistry Tue, 19 Mar 2019 17:35:38 EDT news472235723 (Phys.org) —A large team of researchers with members from Europe, the U.S. and China has found evidence that suggests modern humans are more genetically diverse than were Neanderthals. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the team describes genetic studies they did on Neanderthal specimens from three separate locations and compared them against one another to highlight differences. They report that Neanderthals were much less diverse than modern humans suggesting they lived more isolated lives. https://phys.org/news/2014-04-genetic-neanderthals-diverse-modern-humans.html Archaeology Tue, 22 Apr 2014 10:20:01 EDT news317379624 Mice carrying a "humanized version" of a gene believed to influence speech and language may not actually talk, but they nonetheless do have a lot to say about our evolutionary past, according to a report in the May 29th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication. https://phys.org/news/2009-05-humanized-mice-volumes.html Evolution Thu, 28 May 2009 13:37:03 EDT news162736598