https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Capuchin monkeys hunt prey when fruits and vegetables become scarce, potentially mirroring the habits of human ancestors, according to a study published in PLOS One by Susana Carvalho (Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique), Noemi Spagnoletti (Sapienza University of Rome, Italy) and colleagues. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-fruits-veggies-scarce-monkeys-meat.html Plants & Animals Wed, 26 Aug 2026 14:00:26 EDT news706953420 When you look at someone, you usually look at their face. It serves as one of the most important sources of social information in primates, so the evolution of face perception has attracted considerable scientific attention. While an abundance of this research has centered on humans and other great apes, very little has focused on gibbons. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-eyes-gibbons-noninvasive-eye-tracking.html Plants & Animals Wed, 26 Aug 2026 12:40:12 EDT news706958101 The adult human brain has limited capacity to repair or regenerate neurons lost to Alzheimer's disease, the most common type of dementia. Existing treatments can slow disease progression but do not reverse cognitive decline. In a study published in the journal Cell Biomaterials on Aug. 26, researchers show that engineered nanoparticles can not only regenerate neurons in human brain organoids but also restore neural circuits and improve cognition in mice. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-nanoparticles-neuroregeneration-alzheimer-disease.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 26 Aug 2026 11:00:16 EDT news706802041 Bats are anomalies in the mammalian world—they fly, have long lifespans and rarely get cancer. Scientists now suspect the bat immune system enables them to live longer without disease, according to a new study published today in Nature. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-dna-virus-defense-longevity-cancer.html Evolution Wed, 26 Aug 2026 11:00:08 EDT news706874342 Researchers monitoring online activity for six weeks in mid-2025 found primates, birds, snakes, frogs, orchids and many other wildlife groups advertised for sale across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Wildlife is increasingly being trafficked through online platforms. Online illegal wildlife trade poses significant risks to species, ecosystems, and animal and public health. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-wildlife-trafficking-social-media-thousands.html Plants & Animals Mon, 24 Aug 2026 18:00:04 EDT news706802461 Biologists, zoologists and psychologists have been trying to trace the origins of human language for centuries. One well-known theory, known as the social brain hypothesis, suggests that increasingly complex social lives prompted primates to evolve increasingly larger brains, which in turn led to increasingly advanced communication skills. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-body-size-habitat-vocal-repertoires.html Plants & Animals Tue, 18 Aug 2026 06:20:01 EDT news706188803 In humans and many other animals, a mother's age can affect the physical and behavioral characteristics of the next generation. Scientists call these changes maternal age effects, and while they are widespread across the animal kingdom, researchers still don't fully understand how or why they occur. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-molecular-memory-mother-age-echoes.html Plants & Animals Mon, 17 Aug 2026 22:20:02 EDT news706188931 New research suggests that no matter what we eventually determine the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees to be, we'll learn it was a primate that climbed trees. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-common-ancestor-humans-chimpanzees-vertical.html Evolution Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:10:01 EDT news706200721 Adjusting to a new time zone or work schedule can leave the body's internal clock out of sync for days, contributing to sleep disruption, metabolic changes and other health consequences. Researchers at Rice University and Northwestern University have developed an implantable cell therapy that may help the body adapt more quickly to these disruptions. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-jet-lag-cells-circadian-adjustment.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 14 Aug 2026 15:00:02 EDT news705932281 A vaccine's molecular structure plays a key role in determining how the immune system responds and prepares to protect the body from future exposure to a specific pathogen. To develop a vaccine that offers long-term protection from HIV, it's essential to promote a long-lasting immune response in which immune cells and antibodies prepared to combat the virus persist within the body. This has inspired scientists to find ways to alter vaccine structure to increase the duration and persistence of the immune response. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-fine-tune-molecular-vaccines-immune.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 13 Aug 2026 17:10:02 EDT news705858421 Scientists—and dog lovers—have long known that dogs are remarkably good at interpreting our laughs, frowns and tears. But the biology behind this ability has remained largely unexplored until now. In a study published in the journal iScience on Aug. 7, researchers peered inside the brains of dogs as they viewed images of various human expressions. The brain scans revealed that dogs process smiles in a unique brain region and, for the first time, provided evidence that dogs can distinguish between negative facial expressions, including anger, sadness and fear. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-mri-dogs-distinguish-human-sadness.html Plants & Animals Mon, 10 Aug 2026 11:00:07 EDT news705246541 A new study led by a Duke University scientist overturns a long-held idea about how primates, including humans, came to have such large and sophisticated brains. The research finds that the dramatic expansion of the primate neocortex was driven largely by vision, not by the disproportionate growth of the frontal lobe often associated with higher reasoning. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-fossil-vision-frontal-lobe-drove.html Evolution Thu, 06 Aug 2026 14:00:10 EDT news705166741 Fruit, honey and other naturally sweet foods may have helped fuel the evolution of the human brain, according to new research from the University of Sydney and the University of Glasgow. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-sugars-fuel-evolution-human-brain.html Evolution Thu, 06 Aug 2026 14:00:03 EDT news705228625 A protein known as interleukin 10 (IL-10) is the lynchpin of a new method to protect transplanted cells from host immune system attacks. Rice University researchers engineered a living factory to produce a localized biochemical halo of IL-10 to suppress immune rejection of pancreatic beta cells. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-bioengineers-biochemical-halo-cloak-insulin.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 06 Aug 2026 10:31:17 EDT news705231049 Songbirds, birds belonging to the Passeriformes order, are best known for their ability to produce complex musical sounds. Yet some songbird species also have another remarkable skill: They can easily remove the tough layer covering seeds (i.e., the husk) before swallowing their nutritious interiors. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-songbirds-sharper-de-husk-seeds.html Plants & Animals Thu, 06 Aug 2026 08:00:04 EDT news705148144 A new study provides experimental evidence that wild capuchin monkeys use more than just physical cues when selecting stone tools; they also rely on visible signs that a stone has previously been used for this purpose. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-worn-wild-capuchin-monkeys-stones.html Plants & Animals Wed, 05 Aug 2026 16:20:09 EDT news705154622 A new study from the University of Kansas complicates the picture of primates living in North America some 55 million years ago during the Eocene, a warm period that allowed mammals to diversify quickly. https://phys.org/news/2026-08-fossils-wyoming-smiley-deepen-early.html Evolution Tue, 04 Aug 2026 16:40:04 EDT news705071821 Scientists created an AI system that uses facial recognition and real-time touchscreen testing to automate cognitive studies of capuchin monkeys in the wild. The American Journal of Primatology published a proof-of-concept for the novel method—dubbed CapuchinAI—developed by researchers at Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-ai-era-cognitive-wild-primates.html Plants & Animals Sat, 01 Aug 2026 16:00:02 EDT news704556415 Why do humans keep pets? A new international study suggests that some of the behavioral foundations of human-animal companionship may have much deeper evolutionary roots than previously thought. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-monkey-friendships-dogs-deer-pigs.html Evolution Wed, 29 Jul 2026 14:10:01 EDT news704551502 The octopus is a biological oddity. It can use tools, open jars, and its complex nervous system supports as many neurons as a small primate. Now Harvard biologists have discovered a mysterious distinction in octopuses' core biology: Some octopuses have an unusual adaptation in the protein-making machinery of their cells that helps ensure accuracy, perhaps an evolutionary byproduct of their acute sensory system. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-biology-cells-octopus-sleeve.html Plants & Animals Wed, 29 Jul 2026 11:00:10 EDT news704447041 Archaic human parents had to look after helpless infants like modern-day parents do, according to new research. Human babies are born less developed than those of other great apes and are therefore unable to move as freely. A common result is deformational plagiocephaly, also called flat head syndrome. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-deformed-fossilized-humans-infants-helpless.html Evolution Tue, 28 Jul 2026 19:10:01 EDT news704367001 Human color vision depends on three types of cone cells in the retina. Although all three contain the same light-absorbing molecule, 11-cis-retinal, differences in the surrounding protein determine sensitivity to red, green or blue light. Understanding how these subtle protein differences produce such precise color discrimination has been difficult because cone pigments are highly unstable and structurally challenging to study. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-3d-views-primate-cone-pigments.html Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 27 Jul 2026 16:10:01 EDT news704386141 With their ability to use tools, remember faces and even learn how to communicate with humans through sign language, nonhuman primates are considered to be among the smartest creatures on Earth. However, some concepts—geometry, for instance—have traditionally been thought of as beyond the abilities of humanity's closest cousins. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-children-monkeys-common-geometry.html Plants & Animals Mon, 20 Jul 2026 15:00:11 EDT news703766521 Social animals use a suite of preemptive behaviors in anticipation of conflict, including staying quiet, monitoring their surroundings, conducting raids and bonding through play. In a review published in Trends in Ecology & Evolution , researchers describe how environmental cues and memories of past events can trigger these behaviors. Over generations, these prewar preparations could affect sociocognitive evolution, population dynamics and community structures. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-animals-war.html Plants & Animals Thu, 16 Jul 2026 11:00:03 EDT news703318203 In the rainforests of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), scientists have identified a previously unknown species of African monkey—one of the rarest discoveries in modern primatology. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-species-african-monkey-deep-congo.html Plants & Animals Wed, 15 Jul 2026 14:00:28 EDT news703317869 Scientists have described a new species of colobus monkey in the forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), report John Hart at Lukuru Wildlife Research Foundation and colleagues in PLOS One. The first hint that a new primate species might be hiding in the dense forests of Lomami National Park came in 2008, when conservationists photographed an unidentified monkey during an expedition. After a second sighting in 2018, researchers embarked on a dedicated mission to find and describe the mysterious monkey. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-species-monkey-unusual-orange-lips.html Plants & Animals Wed, 15 Jul 2026 14:00:14 EDT news703314757 A new tool that allows researchers to create realistic full-body animations of monkeys has provided the first evidence that nonhuman primates experience the "uncanny valley" phenomenon for body avatars, according to a study by Lucas Maximilian Martini at the University Clinic Tübingen in Germany and colleagues at KU Leuven in Belgium, published in PLOS Biology. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-uncanny-valley-effect-macaques-3d.html Plants & Animals Tue, 14 Jul 2026 14:00:07 EDT news703229447 A University of Auckland scientist has uncovered the fates of chimpanzees who starred in seminal psychological studies of the early 20th century. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-famous-puzzle-chimps-lost-years.html Paleontology & Fossils Mon, 13 Jul 2026 14:10:02 EDT news703169610 Scientists observed spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) playing in the wild and found that their precise, sophisticated communication is on par with that of many primate species. Hyenas play and romp with one another at all stages of life. Although juveniles play more frequently than adults, the joy of play can also be observed in adults. Interestingly, adult hyenas appear to particularly enjoy playing in water. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-language-play-hyenas-facial-vocalizations.html Plants & Animals Wed, 08 Jul 2026 16:20:03 EDT news702729459 In cancer research, one person's junk is increasingly becoming another person's treasure. Scientists have uncovered new evidence showing how recently evolved "junk DNA" genetic elements can become integrated into ancient cellular pathways that regulate cancer. These findings may provide fresh insights into how evolutionary forces shape disease and reveal potential new targets for cancer research. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-evolutionary-junk-dna-clues-cancer.html Evolution Wed, 01 Jul 2026 14:00:16 EDT news702050581