News tagged with evolutionary selection

Genetic similarity promotes cooperation

In a dog-eat-dog world of ruthless competition and 'survival of the fittest,' new research from the University of Leicester reveals that individuals are genetically programmed to work together and cooperate ...

Biology / Evolution

created Apr 18, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

A new take on the games people play in their relationships

Human nature has deep evolutionary roots and is manifested in relationships with family members, friends, romantic and business partners, competitors, and strangers more than in any other aspects of behavior or intellectual ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Mar 21, 2012 | popularity 3.5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Sympatric speciation contributes to island biodiversity

Scientists discover at least 11 examples of sympatric speciation on Lord Howe Island.

Biology / Evolution

created Mar 15, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Castaway lizards provide insight into elusive evolutionary process

A University of Rhode Island biologist who released lizards on tiny uninhabited islands in the Bahamas has shed light on the interaction between evolutionary processes that are seldom observed.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Feb 02, 2012 | popularity 4.1 / 5 (13) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study: Self-delusion may be a winning survival strategy

Harbouring a mistakenly inflated belief that we can easily meet challenges or win conflicts is actually good for us, a new study suggests.

Other Sciences / Social Sciences

created Sep 14, 2011 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (4) | comments 18 | with audio podcast

When plants go polyploid

(PhysOrg.com) -- Plant lineages with multiple copies of their genetic information face higher extinction rates than their relatives, researchers report in Science magazine.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Sep 13, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 8 | with audio podcast

Manipulative mothers subdue show-off sons

The gaudy plumage and acrobatic displays of birds of paradise are a striking example of sexual selection, Charles Darwin's second great theory of evolution. But new research shows that this powerful process may collapse when ...

Biology / Evolution

created Sep 12, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Genetic evidence clears Ben Franklin (w/ Video)

The DNA evidence is in, and Ben Franklin didn't do it. Genetic tests on more than 1,000 Chinese tallow trees from the United States and China show the famed U.S. statesman did not import the tallow trees ...

Biology / Ecology

created Jul 29, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Study: Generosity emerges from evolution of cooperation

(PhysOrg.com) -- Imagine you're dining at a restaurant in a city you're visiting for the first –– and, most likely the last –– time. Chances are slim to none that you'll ever see your server again, so ...

Other Sciences / Social Sciences

created Jul 25, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Evolution of the evolutionarily minded

In the century and a half since Charles Darwin's publication of The Origin of Species, evolutionary theory has become the bedrock of modern biology, yet its application to the understanding of the human mind remains controversial. ...

Biology / Evolution

created Jul 19, 2011 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (4) | comments 7

E. coli offers insight to evolution

(PhysOrg.com) -- Evolutionary biologist Richard Lenski occasionally thinks of his 12 original flasks of E. coli as the experiment that keeps on giving.

Biology / Evolution

created Jun 20, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Evolutionary reasons for believing in luck

How far will you go to avoid bad luck? Do you avoid walking under ladders, carry lucky charms, or perhaps instead perform special rituals before important meetings or sporting events?

Biology / Evolution

created Jun 07, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (4) | comments 9 | with audio podcast

Study: Rare deep-sea starfish stuck in juvenile body plan

A team of scientists has combined embryological observations, genetic sequencing, and supercomputing to determine that a group of small disk-shaped animals that were once thought to represent a new class of ...

Biology / Evolution

created May 02, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 1

Death anxiety prompts people to believe in intelligent design, reject evolution: research

Researchers at the University of British Columbia and Union College (Schenectady, N.Y.) have found that people's death anxiety can influence them to support theories of intelligent design and reject evolutionary theory.

Other Sciences / Social Sciences

created Mar 30, 2011 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (18) | comments 204

Traits, genes associated with establishment of new populations revealed in butterfly study

(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of scientists has discovered that descendants of "exploratory" butterflies that colonized new habitats differ genetically from their more cautious cousins. The team, led by James Marden, ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Mar 25, 2011 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (3) | comments 0 | with audio podcast