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Of microorganisms and man: First large-scale test confirms Darwin's theory of universal common ancestry

More than 150 years ago, Darwin proposed the theory of universal common ancestry (UCA), linking all forms of life by a shared genetic heritage from single-celled microorganisms to humans. Until now, the theory that makes ...

Biology / Evolution

created May 12, 2010 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (65) | comments 164 | with audio podcast

Geologist investigates canyon carved in just three days in Texas flood

In the summer of 2002, a week of heavy rains in Central Texas caused Canyon Lake -- the reservoir of the Canyon Dam -- to flood over its spillway and down the Guadalupe River Valley in a planned diversion ...

Space & Earth / Earth Sciences

created Jun 20, 2010 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (28) | comments 111 | with audio podcast

Radioactive boars on the rise in Germany

(AP) -- It was a big shot. A big hog. And a big disappointment.

Biology / Ecology

created Aug 20, 2010 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (6) | comments 0

Calif. utility stumbles on 1.4M years old fossils

(AP) -- A utility company preparing to build a new substation in an arid canyon southeast of Los Angeles has stumbled on a trove of animal fossils dating back 1.4 million years that researchers say will fill in blanks in ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Sep 21, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 0

Study finds that mild winters are detrimental to butterflies

The recent mild winter throughout much of the United States was a cause for celebration for many. However, butterfly aficionados shouldn't be joining in the celebration.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Apr 20, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 7 | with audio podcast

Old-growth tree stumps tell the story of fire in the upper Midwest

Researchers have constructed a 226-year history of fire in southern Illinois by looking at fire scars in tree stumps. Their study, the most in-depth fire history reported for the upper Midwest, reveals that ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Mar 14, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Internal clocks keep all living things ticking -- even you

Like kids taking apart a fine Swiss watch, scientists are laboring to understand what makes the biological clock that's inside every living creature tick.

Biology /

created Feb 08, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Danger lurks underground for oak seedlings

Scientists trying to understand why oaks are starting to disappear from North American forests may need to look just below the surface to find some answers.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Mar 03, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 1

Out of Africa and Into the American Midwest

Grasses bend in the wind, their golden tips tracing arcs across fields that stretch toward the horizon. Sunwashed by a fading evening light, these reedy ballet dancers are central figures in savanna, an ecosystem ...

Biology / Ecology

created Jan 09, 2012 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Invasive Species on the March: Variable Rates of Spread Set Current Limits to Predictability

(PhysOrg.com) -- Whether for introduced muskrats in Europe or oak trees in the United Kingdom, zebra mussels in United States lakes or agricultural pests around the world, scientists have tried to find new ...

Biology / Ecology

created Sep 17, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Oak has secret weapon against caterpillar

A plague of caterpillars is munching its way through the leaves on our trees. Oak forests are suffering the most, reports the Nature Calendar. Cause for concern? Not according to entomologist and expert on insect pests, Leen ...

Biology / Ecology

created May 31, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 1

SEINet offers desert plant guide online

Imagine that you're going to take a hike in the Superstition Mountains. You love plants, and are always curious about the various bushes, trees and flowers that you encounter in the desert.

Biology / Ecology

created Sep 10, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Comprehensive report on sudden oak death

Synthesizing more than 10 years of cooperative research on the exotic invasive, quarantine sudden oak death pathogen, the USDA Forest Service's Pacific Southwest Research Station (PSW) recently published "Sudden Oak Death ...

Biology / Ecology

created Dec 27, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Pollen also appears outside flowering season

"There is of course a very close relationship between the moment at which pollen is released by plants and the data gathered by the traps used to measure these grains, but this is not always the case", Rafael Tormo, a botanist ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Mar 18, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Firewood movement leading cause of oak infestation in San Diego County

A catastrophic infestation of the goldspotted oak borer, which has killed more than 80,000 oak trees in San Diego County in the last decade, might be contained by controlling the movement of oak firewood from that region, ...

Biology / Ecology

created Sep 02, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Oak

An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus ( /ˈkwɜrkəs/; Latin "oak tree"), of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus. The genus is native to the northern hemisphere, and includes deciduous and evergreen species extending from cold latitudes to tropical Asia and the Americas.

Oaks have spirally arranged leaves, with a lobed margin in many species; some have serrated leaves or entire leaves with a smooth margin. The flowers are catkins, produced in spring. The fruit is a nut called an acorn, borne in a cup-like structure known as a cupule; each acorn contains one seed (rarely two or three) and takes 6–18 months to mature, depending on species. The live oaks are distinguished for being evergreen, but are not actually a distinct group and instead are dispersed across the genus.

For more information about Oak, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.