Notebook

  1. Chemistry

    A fungus makes a chemical that neutralizes the stench of skunk spray

    A compound produced by fungi reacts with skunk spray to form residues that aren’t offensive to the nose and can be more easily washed away.

    By Carolyn Wilke
  2. Animals

    There’s more to pufferfish than that goofy spiked balloon

    Three odd things about pufferfishes: how they mate, how they bite and what’s up with no fish scales?

    By Susan Milius
  3. Paleontology

    This newfound predator may have terrorized the Cambrian seafloor

    A newly discovered spaceship-shaped predator raked through the Cambrian seafloor in search of food.

    By Carolyn Gramling
  4. Life

    Giving cats food with an antibody may help people with cat allergies

    Research by pet-food maker Purina aims to disable the major allergen carried in cat saliva, a protein called Fel d1.