Orangutans, mice, and horses are covered with it, but humans aren't. Why we have significantly less body hair than most other mammals has long remained a mystery. But a first-of-its-kind comparison of genetic codes from 62 ...
Evolution
Jan 4, 2023
0
306
Until now, there has been a broad consensus that the human adolescent growth spurt in body length is evolutionarily unique and absent in other primates. However, such adolescent growth spurt occurs in many primate species ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 24, 2023
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84
A new study has cast doubt on claims that Homo naledi, a small-brained hominin dating to between 335,000 and 241,000 years ago, deliberately buried their dead and produced rock art in Rising Star Cave, South Africa.
Evolution
Nov 13, 2023
0
77
Like a merchant of old, balancing the weights of two different commodities on a scale, nature can keep different genetic traits in balance as a species evolves over millions of years.
Evolution
Feb 21, 2023
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206
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers have discovered that tardigrades—microscopic animals famed for surviving harsh extremes—have an unusual response to radiation.
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 15, 2024
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76
Hundreds of animals eat fruit, from toucans to fruit bats to maned wolves to humans. But most fruit-bearing plants evolved relatively recently in Earth's history, showing up for the first time in the Cretaceous, the final ...
Ecology
Aug 16, 2022
0
263
Oomycetes, also known as water molds, are pathogenic microorganisms that resemble fungi and are responsible for a group of diseases affecting several plant species. To reach and infect plants, the zoospores—i.e., self-propelled ...
Cell & Microbiology
May 9, 2022
0
4
The human genome is littered with "selfish genetic elements," which do not seem to benefit their hosts, but instead seek only to propagate themselves.
Evolution
Jul 6, 2022
0
94
Mitochondria in human and mammalian cells are maintained at around 52 ºC, significantly warmer than the cell's external environment. A new study shows that even under external metabolic stresses, mitochondrial metabolism ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 19, 2023
1
65
Our understanding of the biodiversity on Earth is unbalanced and biased towards certain species within the Tree of Life, according to a new study.
Plants & Animals
Aug 16, 2023
0
125
