How did the elephant get its trunk? Or the turtle its shell? How, in general, did the seemingly infinite diversity of complex animal forms on our planet arise? The scientific pursuit of how such "evolutionary novelties" come ...
Evolution
Sep 8, 2015
8
42
Among the many things that science is, it is a system of categorization. The human fossil record—file under genus, Homo; species, sapiens—is rather poorly categorized, contends the University of Pittsburgh's Jeffrey Schwartz, ...
Archaeology
Aug 28, 2015
21
436
Teachers with strong social-emotional skills tend to implement new social-emotional intervention programs more faithfully, according to a study conducted by a University of Pittsburgh education professor published in the ...
Social Sciences
Jul 28, 2015
1
53
Moving closer to the possibility of "materials that compute" and wearing your computer on your sleeve, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering have designed a responsive hybrid material that ...
Materials Science
Jun 24, 2015
0
301
A research team led by the University of Pittsburgh's Jeremy Levy has discovered electrons that can "swing dance." This unique electronic behavior can potentially lead to new families of quantum devices.
Superconductivity
May 13, 2015
1
74
Scientists have been manipulating genes for a while. The University of Pittsburgh's Alexander Deiters just found a way to control the process with higher precision.
Biotechnology
May 8, 2015
2
616
For decades, robots have advanced the efficiency of human activity. Typically, however, robots are formed from bulky, stiff materials and require connections to external power sources; these features limit their dexterity ...
Materials Science
May 5, 2015
2
843
The ancient Mongols have a reputation for having been fierce warriors. A new study out of the University of Pittsburgh shows them to have been unmatched polluters.
Environment
Mar 6, 2015
0
16
"Why doesn't she just leave?" is a timeworn question about women trapped in relationships that are physically and/or emotionally abusive to them. Economic dependence is clearly part of the story—many women lack the financial ...
Social Sciences
Mar 6, 2015
1
29
When, in 1833, Constantin Wilhelm Lambert Gloger published his key observation that warm-blooded animals tend to be more heavily pigmented or darker the closer they live to the equator, he probably didn't realize the degree ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 8, 2015
0
9
