SciGlow | All Science News In One Place
SciGlow is a newsletter of science stories from the major research labs. Headlines link to in-depth articles and editorials. SciGlow keeps scientists and others up-to-date on current research.
Using DNA from museum specimens collected in the early 20th century, researchers from ZSL (Zoological Society of London) and London’s Natural History Museum identified two new species of giant salamander – one of which they suspect is the world’s biggest amphibian. Chinese giant salamanders, now classified as Critically Endangered, were once widespread throughout central, southern … Read more
Mimicry usually happens in natural environments rather than in agricultural environments, because it takes a long time to arise a mimicry phenotype. Crop mimicry or Vavilovian mimicry may be the only example with human as the predator or dupe during the mimicry process. It is thus a unique mimicry model, different from others, such as … Read more
The fate of the world’s coral reefs could depend on how well the sea creatures equip their offspring to cope with global warming. About half the world’s coral has been lost due to warming seas that make their world hostile. Instead of vivid and floral, coral bleach pale as temperatures rise. This happens because the … Read more
What determines global patterns of biodiversity has been a puzzle for scientists since the days of von Humboldt, Darwin, and Wallace. Yet, despite two centuries of research, this question remains unanswered. The global pattern of mountain biodiversity, and the extraordinarily high richness in tropical mountains in particular, is documented in two companion Science review papers this week. … Read more
The Australian National University (ANU) has been awarded two Australian Laureate Fellowships from the Australian Research Council (ARC), including a project using synthetic biology to generate ‘smart plants’. Professor Barry Pogson, from the ANU College of Science, was awarded $2.9 million to create higher-yielding and more resilient ‘smart plants’ for good and bad seasons. He … Read more
In western lowland gorillas, groups consist of several females and only one adult male, the silverback. With his impressive body size, he protects his group against predators and other adult males. Females rely on this protection and never travel alone, however they may change groups multiple times during their lives. “Female gorillas seem to have … Read more
New work from Finland has been able to link mammalian behavior to its underlying neural code. The work examined how mammals’ brains interpret signals from the eyes at low light levels. The new study shines light on a route to solve the two broad goals of neuroscience. The first goal is to read nerve signals … Read more
Stringing together meaningless sounds to create meaningful signals is a core feature of human language. Investigating whether animals share this basic combinatorial ability has been complicated by difficulties in identifying whether animal vocalizations are made from smaller, meaningless sounds, or building blocks. New research by scientists at the Universities of Zurich, Exeter, Warwick, Macquarie and … Read more
Species diversity is higher at the equator than at the poles. In biological terms, this is referred to as the latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG), in which the number of species increases from the poles to the Equator. This ranks among the broadest and most notable biodiversity patterns on Earth. The pattern of species-rich tropics (e.g. … Read more
A fundamental question in nerve biology brings to mind a race car at the starting line: The engine is revving, but the brake is on. The system is ready to go, but under tight control. And when the light flashes green, the car blasts away from the line. A similar process occurs at junctions between … Read more