Lefties and righties: Asymmetry in fish genitalia

Evolutionary biologists from the University of Konstanz have resolved a century-old question regarding the asymmetric genitals of internally fertilizing fishes of the family Anablepidae. Surprisingly, the direction of genital ...

Measure squeezing in a novel way

'Squeezing' is used in physics, among other things, to improve the resolution of measuring instruments. It allows disturbing noise to be suppressed in a way that smaller signals can be detected more sensitively. The team ...

Physics principle explains order and disorder of swarms

Current experiments support the controversial hypothesis that a well-known concept in physics—a critical point—is behind the striking behavior of collective animal systems. Physicists from the Cluster of Excellence Centre ...

Scientists dissect the complex choices of animals

What is important when you choose a home? Space, security, light—or a combination of these? Like humans, animals make choices about where to live that have important implications for their livelihoods. But unlike humans, ...

Real-time observation of enzymatic processes on DNA

DNA damage in general and DNA strand breaks in particular occur every day in all cells of the human body. This is due to internal influences such as free radicals, which are produced during inflammatory processes and cellular ...

Electronics at the speed of light

A European team of researchers including physicists from the University of Konstanz has found a way of transporting electrons at times below the femtosecond range by manipulating them with light. This could have major implications ...

Understanding the genomic signature of coevolution

An international team of researchers including limnologists from the University of Konstanz shows that rapid genomic changes during antagonistic species interactions are shaped by the reciprocal effects of ecology and evolution.

New protein-sensing mechanism discovered

In a stunning discovery, molecular biologists from the University of Konstanz and ETH Zurich have been able to demonstrate that the nascent polypeptide-associated complex (NAC) senses newly synthesized proteins upon birth ...

Bacteria enhance coral resilience to climate change effects

Coral reefs are delicate ecosystems that are particularly sensitive to human influences such as climate change and environmental pollution. Even if the warming of the earth does not exceed 1.5 to 2 degrees Celsius—a limit ...

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