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Astronomy

Source of blazars’ super brightness comes into focus

Astronomers take a close look at a blazar, a galaxy whose central black hole emits gamma rays and other high-energy material toward Earth.

Animals

Moon jellies muscle their way to recovery

Symmetrization, using rapid muscle movements to repair body symmetry, is the go-to healing mechanism for the limbed stage of moon jellyfish.

Astronomy

Lit-up gas clouds hint at galaxies’ violent pasts

Voorwerpjes, tendrils of gas that orbit galaxies, continue to glow tens of thousands of years after being blasted with ultraviolet radiation.

Animals

Whether froglets switch sexes distinguishes ‘sex races’

Rana temporaria froglets start all female in one region of Europe; in another region, new froglets of the same species have gonads of either sex.

Life

‘Geographic tongue’ creates unique topography

A condition called ‘geographic tongue’ makes mouth organ appear maplike.

Astronomy

‘Supernova sweeping’ cleans up a galaxy’s gas

Supernovas might sweep the remaining gas out of a galaxy after a supermassive black hole triggers the end of star formation.

Neuroscience

Decoding sommeliers’ brains, one squirt of wine at a time

Researchers use a ‘gustometer’ to control wine portions in experiments comparing the brains of sommeliers and novices.

Psychology

Emotions go unnamed for some with eating disorders

A portion of women with eating disorders have a separate problem recognizing their own emotions, a condition called alexithymia.

Animals

‘Bag of chips effect’ helps bats find a meal

Bats get a clue to where dinner is by listening to peers attacking prey.

Health & Medicine

Sleep drunkenness might be common

A new survey shows that about 15 percent of people sometimes wake up disoriented and confused, a condition called sleep drunkenness.

Planetary Science

To explain asteroid composition, scientists invoke nuts

Brazil nut effect may explain why only large boulders dot surfaces of asteroids.

Psychology

Vocal fry

At the lowest registers of the human voice, a creaky, popping sound known as vocal fry emerges.