https://phys.org/biology-news/biology-other/ en-us The latest news on biology, natural sciences, environment As water supplies shrink and food demand grows, new interdisciplinary research from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln offers a practical way for farmers to manage irrigation more efficiently while protecting their bottom line. Their paper, "Dynamic Irrigation Management Under Weather Uncertainty and Soil Heterogeneity" is published in the journal Manufacturing and Service Operations Management. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-smart-irrigation-farm-profits.html Other Fri, 17 Apr 2026 12:40:05 EDT news695647801 Listening to one-minute-long audio recordings of forests had positive effects on people's short-term well-being, especially when the recordings were from local temperate forests. Study participants residing in Germany perceived soundscapes as more awe-inspiring and restorative when recorded in nearby forests than soundscapes that came from the tropics; higher or lower levels of animal diversity only had small effects on short-term well-being. The study is published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-soundscapes-nearby-forests-uplifting-faraway.html Ecology Thu, 09 Apr 2026 04:00:01 EDT news694885081 Infants' helplessness demonstrates unique social implications for human development. In a new paper developmental psychology researchers from the University of Ottawa explored human infants' helplessness as a key to human nature, delving into questions of why humans evolved unlike other mammals with strong sensory systems and weak motor systems for an extended period. And they looked at what this means for human development and the survival of our species. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-qa-obstetrical-dilemma-humans-helpless.html Other Tue, 24 Mar 2026 21:00:01 EDT news693574457 Across the sciences, researchers are asking why so many scientists leave their fields. A new study from Virginia Tech suggests at least part of the answer may be surprisingly simple. Scientists who feel a stronger sense of belonging in their discipline are more likely to intend to stay. Those who feel they do not belong are more likely to consider leaving. Published recently in Biological Conservation, the study examined ornithologists, people who study birds, and found a clear link between belonging and intentions. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-scientists-ornithology.html Other Fri, 20 Mar 2026 21:10:02 EDT news693212910 Fear-eliciting images of modern and ancestral threats are equally likely to evoke physiological reactions, despite their distinct evolutionary origins, according to a study published in the open-access journal PLOS One by Eva Landová from Charles University, the Czech Republic, and colleagues. However, ancestral threats such as heights and venomous snakes trigger greater skin resistance responses, a measure of sweating, compared to modern threats and harmless stimuli. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-heights-snakes-harder-tracks-people.html Evolution Wed, 18 Mar 2026 14:00:03 EDT news693051207 Humans are fundamentally "musical animals"—and our capacity for music is rooted in biology, not just culture. This is the conclusion of new work by University of Amsterdam professor of Music Cognition Henkjan Honing. In "The Biology of Musicality," published in the journal Current Biology, Honing describes how two decades of work across psychology, neuroscience, biology, genetics and animal cognition have reshaped scientists' understanding of music's origins. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-musicality-rooted-human-biology-culture.html Evolution Thu, 12 Mar 2026 12:00:03 EDT news692527662 It is not uncommon for a body to be moved after a murder, usually to hide or eliminate evidence. And while the Arizona desert may seem like the perfect place to commit such a crime, a new study shows that a cadaver can still leave critical clues behind in that harsh environment. The study is published in the Journal of Forensic Sciences. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-corpses-clues-soil-theyre.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 11 Mar 2026 18:40:02 EDT news692454182 A new study suggests that babies are able to distinguish between the different objects they see around them at 2 months old, which is earlier than scientists previously thought. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-month-olds-world-complex-scientists.html Other Sat, 21 Feb 2026 12:50:02 EST news689258624 It was the image that launched a cultural icon. In 1967, in the northern Californian woods, a seven foot tall, ape-like creature covered in black fur and walking upright was captured on camera, at one point turning around to look straight down the lens. The image is endlessly copied in popular culture—it's even become an emoji. But what was it? A hoax? A bear? Or a real-life example of a mysterious species called the Bigfoot? https://phys.org/news/2026-02-aint-unicorn-whove-bigfoot-hunters.html Other Thu, 12 Feb 2026 19:10:02 EST news690117438 If Europeans eat less meat and dairy, this will have major consequences for farmers. New research shows that many barns and machines could lose their value. With the right policies, these losses can be limited. This is shown by research from Leiden, Oxford and Vienna. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-meat-billions-european-farm-investments.html Other Thu, 22 Jan 2026 15:14:24 EST news688317241 Men assess potential rivals that have a larger penis as more of a threat, both physically and sexually, according to a study by Upama Aich at the University of Western Australia and colleagues, published in PLOS Biology. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-human-penis-size-female-male.html Evolution Thu, 22 Jan 2026 14:00:03 EST news688294129 Have you ever considered a walk in a tree-shaded park to relieve stress? If you have, you're hardly alone, according to new University of Florida research published in the journal Trees, Forests and People. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-stressed-trees.html Ecology Mon, 12 Jan 2026 13:59:34 EST news687448742 You've just cleaned your teeth, you're feeling minty fresh and ready to climb into bed. You take a sip of water, but the water is icy cold, and your next breath feels cool and crisp. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-mint-cold-scientist.html Other Wed, 07 Jan 2026 20:20:01 EST news687008016 Millions of Britons could be ready to swap imported fish for home-caught favorites like sardines, sprats and anchovies, according to a new study from the University of East Anglia (UEA), titled "The Socio-economic evidence for sustainable fisheries." https://phys.org/news/2026-01-uk-consumers-ready-swap-salmon.html Other Wed, 07 Jan 2026 19:10:01 EST news686939042 If you think something is off with added smoke flavoring in salmon, you're not alone. Many consumers are skeptical of salmon that hasn't been smoked in the traditional way. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-salmon-traditional-techniques-simply-flavor.html Other Tue, 23 Dec 2025 23:10:01 EST news685710448 Right now, the debate about consciousness often feels frozen between two entrenched positions. On one side sits computational functionalism, which treats cognition as something you can fully explain in terms of abstract information processing: get the right functional organization (regardless of the material it runs on) and you get consciousness. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-path-consciousness-biological.html Other Mon, 22 Dec 2025 13:20:04 EST news685631750 The Grinch is one of the holiday season's most familiar icons. The grumpy, green, fur-covered misanthrope who plotted to sabotage Christmas in Dr. Seuss's classic 1957 work has now become a quintessential part of the yearly festive ritual he so despised. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-grinch-anatomy-reveals-christmas-famous.html Other Mon, 15 Dec 2025 12:15:15 EST news685023302 Under glaring laboratory lights, a research assistant extends his forearm and carefully inverts a mesh-topped container onto his skin to allow a wriggling mass of bed bugs to feed on his blood, all in the name of science. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-malaysian-scientists-bed-bugs-crime.html Other Tue, 25 Nov 2025 04:33:47 EST news683267621 A new paper by evolutionary anthropologists Colin Shaw (University of Zurich) and Daniel Longman (Loughborough University) argues that modern life has outpaced human evolution. The study suggests that chronic stress and many modern health issues are the result of an evolutionary mismatch between our primarily nature-adapted biology and the industrialized environments we now inhabit. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-humans-evolved-nature-cities-anthropologists.html Evolution Tue, 18 Nov 2025 12:05:03 EST news682689901 Speaking more than one language can slow down the brain's aging and lower risks linked to accelerated aging. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-language-brain-stay-younger.html Other Sat, 15 Nov 2025 08:40:01 EST news682248819 Adolf Hitler most likely suffered from the genetic condition Kallmann Syndrome that can manifest itself in undescended testicles and a micropenis, researchers and documentary makers said Thursday, following DNA testing of the Nazi dictator's blood. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-hitler-dna-reveals-genetic-disorder.html Other Thu, 13 Nov 2025 10:20:16 EST news682251602 James D. Watson, whose co-discovery of the twisted-ladder structure of DNA in 1953 helped light the long fuse on a revolution in medicine, crimefighting, genealogy and ethics, has died. He was 97. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-james-watson-discoverer-helix-dna.html Other Sat, 08 Nov 2025 05:52:09 EST news681803497 For centuries, farmers have looked attentively at the sky and the earth to interpret the signs nature provides when they are working their fields. This ancestral knowledge has been passed down from generation to generation and adapted to the introduction of new machinery, new crops and new demands. However, some current digitization initiatives radically transform farmers' work, creating tension and resistance. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-bureaucracy-agriculture-farmers-traditional-knowledge.html Other Thu, 06 Nov 2025 17:06:04 EST news681671161 The Biodiversity Collections Network (BCoN), in collaboration with the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS), has developed a comprehensive roadmap toward an integrated biological and environmental data network. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-roadmap-biological-environmental-network.html Other Wed, 15 Oct 2025 10:00:06 EDT news679677960 Research led by Vladimír Sládek sheds new light on how bones age, questioning long-standing assumptions that sedentary lifestyles are the primary cause of weakening bone strength in modern humans. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-holocene-skeletal-samples-link-sedentary.html Other Fri, 10 Oct 2025 13:43:22 EDT news679322596 In a new report, scholars from the Hoover Institution propose measures to secure biology now and in perpetuity. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-urges-critical-action-biosecurity.html Biotechnology Fri, 10 Oct 2025 12:40:07 EDT news679316708 Beyond spirited dinner party debate, establishing which creatures have consciousness matters in terms of animal welfare and conservation policy. A Michigan State University philosophy scholar has added clarity to a messy philosophical debate. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-consciousness-debate-trees-hermit-crabs.html Plants & Animals Thu, 09 Oct 2025 10:16:04 EDT news679223762 Forming sustainable research partnerships with Indigenous peoples requires trust and mutual benefit, say microbiome researchers in an opinion paper published in Trends in Microbiology. The paper presents a framework for building this type of relationship based on insights from the team's 15-year-long collaboration with the Matsés, a group of people who live in the Amazon rainforest on the border of Peru and Brazil. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-insights-years-collaborative-microbiome-indigenous.html Cell & Microbiology Wed, 08 Oct 2025 11:00:05 EDT news678988562 A US-Japanese trio on Monday won the Nobel Prize in Medicine for research into how the immune system is kept in check by identifying its "security guards," the Nobel jury said. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-medicine-nobel-trio-immune.html Other Mon, 06 Oct 2025 07:33:23 EDT news678954666 Famed primatologist Jane Goodall was renowned for her groundbreaking work with chimpanzees but dedicated her life to helping all wild animals—a passion that lasted until her death this week while on a U.S. speaking tour. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-life-legacy-chimpanzee-wildlife-advocate.html Other Thu, 02 Oct 2025 13:20:05 EDT news678629598