ScienceDaily: Quirky - May 01, 2024
Top quirky research news
Webb captures top of iconic horsehead nebula in unprecedented detail
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has captured the sharpest infrared images to date of a zoomed-in portion of one of the most distinctive objects in our skies, the Horsehead Nebula. These observations show the top of the 'horse's mane' or edge of this iconic nebula in a whole new light, capturing the region's complexity with unprecedented spatial resolution.
Researchers parse oddity of distantly related bats in Solomon Islands that appear identical
A study of body size in leaf-nosed bats of the Solomon Islands has revealed surprising genetic diversity among nearly indistinguishable species on different islands.
NASA's Webb maps weather on planet 280 light-years away
Researchers have successfully used NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to map the weather on the hot gas-giant exoplanet WASP-43 b.
Trotting robots reveal emergence of animal gait transitions
A four-legged robot trained with machine learning has learned to avoid falls by spontaneously switching between walking, trotting, and pronking -- a milestone for roboticists as well as biologists interested in animal locomotion.
The double-fanged adolescence of saber-toothed cats
How did North America's saber-toothed cats hunt without breaking their unwieldy saber-like canines, which are vulnerable to sideways bending stresses? A paleontologist provides mechanical evidence that during adolescence, when young cats were learning to hunt, their baby teeth remained in place for up to 30 months to laterally buttress the emerging permanent sabers. By the time the baby teeth fell out, presumably the adult cat knew how to protect its sabers during attacks.
Image: artificial model of saber-toothed tiger, Sfocato/Shutterstock.com
Fading lights: Multiple threats to North America's firefly populations
Scientists have applied a data-driven approach to understanding firefly population dynamics on a continental scale. Key findings from this new study indicate that fireflies, part of the beetle order, are sensitive to various environmental factors, from short-term weather conditions to longer climatic trends, including the number of growing-degree days related to temperature accumulations.
Long snouts protect foxes when diving headfirst in snow
When hunting for mice in winter, red and arctic fox are known to plunge headfirst at speeds of 2-4 meters per second, but their sharp noses reduce the impact force in snow and protect them from injury, according to a new study.
One in eight grown-ups love extreme tartness
For most people, biting into a lemon would leave them puckered up and desperate to lose that sour flavor, but a new study revealed that roughly one in eight adults like intensely sour sensations. The cross-cultural study demonstrated there is a subset of 'sour likers' who enjoy exceptionally sour foods.
Gemini south reveals origin of unexpected differences in giant binary stars
Astronomers have confirmed that differences in binary stars' composition can originate from chemical variations in the cloud of stellar material from which they formed. The results help explain why stars born from the same molecular cloud can possess different chemical composition and host different planetary systems, as well as pose challenges to current stellar and planet formation models.
Scientists develop strong yet reusable adhesive from smart materials
Scientists have developed a smart, reusable adhesive more than ten times stronger than a gecko's feet adhesion, pointing the way for development of reusable superglue and grippers capable of holding heavy weights across rough and smooth surfaces. The research team found a way to maximize the adhesion of the smart adhesives by using shape-memory polymers, which can stick and detach easily when needed simply by heating them. This smart adhesive can support extremely heavy weights, opening new possibilities for robotic grippers that allow humans to scale walls effortlessly, or climbing robots that can cling onto ceilings for survey or repair applications.
Fixin' to be flexitarian: Scrap fish and invasive species can liven up vegetables
Greening the way we eat needn't mean going vegetarian. A healthy, more realistic solution is to adopt a flexitarian diet where seafoods add umami to 'boring' vegetables. A gastrophysicist puts mathematical equations to work in calculating the umami potential of everything from seaweed and shrimp paste to mussels and mackerel.
T. Rex not as smart as previously claimed
Dinosaurs were likely as smart as reptiles but not as intelligent as monkeys.
Probing the effects of interplanetary space on asteroid Ryugu
Samples reveal evidence of changes experienced by the surface of asteroid Ryugu, some probably due to micrometeoroid bombardment.
Quantum mechanical effects such as radioactive decay, or more generally: 'tunneling', display intriguing mathematical patterns. Researchers now show that a 40-year-old mathematical discovery can be used to fully encode and understand this structure.
Test reveals mice think like babies
Are mice clever enough to be strategic? A neuroscientist who studies learning in humans and animals, and who has long worked with mice, wondered why rodents often performed poorly in tests when they knew how to perform well. With a simple experiment, and by acting as 'a little bit of a mouse psychologist,' he and his team figured it out.
Ancient Maya blessed their ballcourts
Using environmental DNA analysis, an international team of researchers identified a collection of plants used in ceremonial rituals in the ancient Maya city of Yaxnohcah in Mexico. The plants, known for their religious associations and medicinal properties, were discovered beneath a plaza floor where a ballcourt was built.
Barley plants fine-tune their root microbial communities through sugary secretions
Different types of barley recruit distinct communities of soil microbes to grow around their roots by releasing a custom mix of sugars and other compounds, according to a new study.
With hybrid brains, these mice smell like a rat
Mice lacking an olfactory system have had their sense of smell restored with neurons from rats, the first time scientists have successfully integrated the sensory apparatus of one species into another.
How do birds flock? Researchers do the math to reveal previously unknown aerodynamic phenomenon
How do birds fly in a coordinated and seemingly effortless fashion? Part of the answer lies in precise, and previously unknown, aerodynamic interactions, reports a team of mathematicians. Its breakthrough broadens our understanding of wildlife, including fish, who move in schools, and could have applications in transportation and energy.
Cells may possess hidden communication system
Cells constantly navigate a dynamic environment, facing ever-changing conditions and challenges. But how do cells swiftly adapt to these environmental fluctuations? A new study is answering that question by challenging our understanding of how cells function. A team of researchers suggests that cells possess a previously unknown information processing system that allows them to make rapid decisions independent of their genes.
These giant, prehistoric salmon had tusk-like teeth
Oncorhynchus rastrosus, a giant species of salmon that lived in the North American Pacific Northwest a few million years ago, sported a pair of front teeth that projected out from the sides of its mouth like tusks, according to a new study.
Color variants in cuckoos: The advantages of rareness
Every cuckoo is an adopted child -- raised by foster parents, into whose nest the cuckoo mother smuggled her egg. The cuckoo mother is aided in this subterfuge by her resemblance to a bird of prey. There are two variants of female cuckoos: a gray morph that looks like a sparrowhawk, and a rufous morph. Male cuckoos are always gray.
Why can't robots outrun animals?
Robotics engineers have worked for decades and invested many millions of research dollars in attempts to create a robot that can walk or run as well as an animal. And yet, it remains the case that many animals are capable of feats that would be impossible for robots that exist today.
A university lecture, with a dash of jumping jacks
A university professor has found a way to help students -- and himself -- power through long lecture classes: exercise breaks. A new study showed that five-minute exercise sessions during lectures were feasible and that students reported positive impacts on their attention and motivation, engagement with their peers and course enjoyment.
Zebra finch chicks don't babble for no reason
Their first vocalizations help young zebra finch males to memorize the songs of adults.
Holographic displays offer a glimpse into an immersive future
Researchers have invented a new optical element that brings us one step closer to mixing the real and virtual worlds in an ordinary pair of eyeglasses using high-definition 3D holographic images.
Researchers show it's possible to teach old magnetic cilia new tricks
Magnetic cilia -- artificial hairs whose movement is powered by embedded magnetic particles -- have been around for a while, and are of interest for applications in soft robotics, transporting objects and mixing liquids. However, existing magnetic cilia move in a fixed way. Researchers have now demonstrated a technique for creating magnetic cilia that can be 'reprogrammed,' changing their magnetic properties at room temperature to change the motion of the cilia as needed.
Eruption of mega-magnetic star lights up nearby galaxy
While ESA's satellite INTEGRAL was observing the sky, it spotted a burst of gamma-rays -- high-energy photons -- coming from the nearby galaxy M82. Only a few hours later, ESA's XMM-Newton X-ray space telescope searched for an afterglow from the explosion but found none. An international team realized that the burst must have been an extra-galactic flare from a magnetar, a young neutron star with an exceptionally strong magnetic field.
Scientists unveil genetics behind development of gliding
Researchers explain the genomic and developmental basis of the patagium, the thin skin membrane that allows some mammalian species to soar through the air.
Bioluminescence first evolved in animals at least 540 million years ago
Bioluminescence first evolved in animals at least 540 million years ago in a group of marine invertebrates called octocorals, according to the results of a new study. The study focuses on an ancient group of marine invertebrates that includes soft corals, pushes back the previous oldest dated example of trait by nearly 300 million years.
Squids' birthday influences mating
The day a male spear squid hatches determines which mating tactic he will use throughout his life, according to new research. Spear squid (Heterololigo bleekeri) that hatch earlier in the season become 'consorts' which fight for mating opportunities. Those which hatch later become 'sneakers,' which use more clandestine mating tactics. Researchers found that the mating tactic determined by the birth date was fixed for the squid's whole life. Understanding how mating tactics are influenced by birth date, and the environmental conditions at that time, can help researchers consider how squid might be affected by climate change and the implications for marine resource management.
Frog species evolved rapidly in response to road salts
When we think of evolution, we think of a process that happens over hundreds or thousands of years. In research recently published, a species of frog that has evolved over the course of merely 25 years. The adaptation was spurred on by something many assume is innocuous: salt.
Wake up and die: Human brain neurons re-entering the cell cycle age quickly shift to senescence
Post-mitotic neurons in the brain that re-enter the cell cycle quickly succumb to senescence, and this re-entry is more common in Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study. The phenomenon may provide an opportunity to learn more about the neurodegeneration process, and the technique used to make this discovery is readily applicable to other inquiries about unique populations of cells in the brain.