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Primate venom sheds light on why so many people suffer cat allergies

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Research into the toxin of the world’s only venomous primate, the slow loris, is shedding light on the potential origins of the allergic qualities of cats. An international team, led by University of Queensland’s Associate Professor Bryan Fry, has been studying slow lorises at the Cikananga Wildlife Rescue Centre in Indonesia. The bite of the … Read more

Cuttlefish eat less for lunch when they know there’ll be shrimp for dinner

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When cuttlefish know that shrimp – their favourite food – will be available in the evening, they eat fewer crabs during the day. This capacity to make decisions based on future expectations reveals complex cognitive abilities. “It was surprising to see how quickly the cuttlefish adapted their eating behaviour – in only a few days … Read more

Light therapy holds promise for people with bipolar disorder

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Light therapy, consisting of daily exposure to bright, artificial light, is already a recognized line of treatment for people affected by seasonal and nonseasonal depressive disorder. But much less is known about the potential benefits of light therapy for people with bipolar disorder, one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. In a meta-analysis recently … Read more

Soil biodiversity is fundamental to maintain the health and functioning of terrestrial ecosystems worldwide

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A study published in the prestigious journal Nature Ecology and Evolution and led by researchers from the Laboratoy of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning at the Pablo de Olavide University (UPO) provides novel evidence that multiple elements of soil biodiversity are fundamental for maintaining the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems across global biomes. A gram of soil … Read more

Sand dunes can ‘communicate’ with each other

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Even though they are inanimate objects, sand dunes can ‘communicate’ with each other. A team from the University of Cambridge has found that as they move, sand dunes interact with and repel their downstream neighbours. Using an experimental dune ‘racetrack’, the researchers observed that two identical dunes start out close together, but over time they … Read more

Making light work

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A collaboration between McMaster and Harvard researchers has generated a new platform in which light beams communicate with one another through solid matter, establishing the foundation to explore a new form of computing. Their work is described in a paper published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Kalaichelvi Saravanamuttu, an associate professor … Read more

New quantum switch turns metals into insulators

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Most modern electronic devices rely on tiny, finely-tuned electrical currents to process and store information. These currents dictate how fast our computers run, how regularly our pacemakers tick and how securely our money is stored in the bank. In a study published in Nature Physics, researchers at the University of British Columbia have demonstrated an … Read more

Bubbles transport massive amounts of oxygen to the deep ocean through a marine ‘trap door’

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Much more oxygen than previously thought is being transported into deep layers of the ocean through a ‘trap door’ off Canada’s Atlantic coast that some researchers say could be closing as a result of climate change. Scientists from Dalhousie University in Halifax, N.S., and Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California San Diego … Read more

The consequences of craniofacial integration for the adaptive radiations of Darwin’s finches and Hawaiian honeycreepers

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Darwin’s finches are among the most celebrated examples of adaptive radiation in the evolution of modern vertebrates and their study has been relevant since the journeys of the HMS Beagle in the eighteenth century which catalysed some of the first ideas about natural selection in the mind of a young Charles Darwin. Despite many years … Read more