News tagged with evolutionary history

Related topics: evolutionary biology , proceedings of the national academy of sciences , fossil , species , fossil record

Earth history and evolution

In classical mythology, the cypress tree is associated with death, the underworld and eternity. Indeed, the family to which cypresses belong, is an ancient lineage of conifers, and a new study of their evolution affords a ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 03, 2012 | popularity 3.9 / 5 (7) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Could a newly discovered viral genome change what we thought we knew about virus evolution?

A study published in BioMed Central's Biology Direct journal reports the existence of a previously undetected group of viruses and, more importantly, a new type of viral genome that could have huge implications for theori ...

Biology / Cell & Microbiology

created Apr 18, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (3) | comments 0

Slow snails, fast genes: Predatory snails refine venoms through continuous gene duplication

(Phys.org) -- When tropical marine cone snails sink their harpoon-like teeth into their prey, they inject paralyzing venoms made from a potent mix of more than 100 different neurotoxins.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Apr 10, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

Diversification of land plants

Researchers have reconstructed phylogenetic relationships among all 706 families of land plants.

Biology / Evolution

created Apr 05, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Two new NASA LRO videos: See moon's evolution, take a tour

In honor of 1,000 days in orbit, the NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) team at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt Md. has released two new videos.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created Mar 14, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (13) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Scientists name two new species of horned dinosaur

Two new horned dinosaurs have been named based on fossils collected from Alberta, Canada. The new species, Unescopceratops koppelhusae and Gryphoceratops morrisoni, are from the Leptoceratopsidae family of hor ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Mar 12, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Culture not genes drives humans forward

Evolutionary biologist at the University of Reading Professor Mark Pagel argues that our cultural influences are more important to our success as a species than our genes in his new book published this week.

Other Sciences / Social Sciences

created Feb 27, 2012 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (5) | comments 3

Study finds fish of Antarctica threatened by climate change

A Yale-led study of the evolutionary history of Antarctic fish and their "anti-freeze" proteins illustrates how tens of millions of years ago a lineage of fish adapted to newly formed polar conditions – ...

Biology / Ecology

created Feb 13, 2012 | popularity 3.5 / 5 (6) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

When did the feather take flight?

(PhysOrg.com) -- Some 125 million years ago--more recently than once thought possible -- the molecular structure of the modern feather began to take form, according to molecular dating research by scientists ...

Biology / Evolution

created Feb 07, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 3 | with audio podcast

'Rules' may govern genome evolution in young plant species

A new University of Florida study shows a hybrid plant species may experience rapid genome evolution in predictable patterns, meaning evolution repeats itself in populations of independent origin.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Jan 19, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Evolution is written all over your face

Why are the faces of primates so dramatically different from one another?

Biology / Evolution

created Jan 11, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (16) | comments 10 | with audio podcast

Genome tree of life is largest yet for seed plants

Scientists at the American Museum of Natural History, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, The New York Botanical Garden, and New York University have created the largest genome-based tree of life for seed plants ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Dec 15, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Did a good sense of smell give us an evolutionary advantage over Neanderthals?

(PhysOrg.com) -- Our sense of smell may have been as important as language in helping to give us, modern humans, an evolutionary advantage over other human relatives such as the Neanderthals, scientists report ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Dec 13, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Creating the Tree of Life

(PhysOrg.com) -- Imagine the wealth of information that would be at our fingertips if we could understand the genetic basis and evolutionary history that underlies the vast diversity in form and function seen within mammals.

Biology / Evolution

created Dec 13, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 4

Preferences shaped by evolution draw voters to candidates with lower-pitched voices

Voters prefer to choose candidates with lower-pitched voices, according to new findings by researchers at McMaster University.

Other Sciences / Social Sciences

created Nov 14, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 3