Say What?
- 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.
By Andrew Grant - 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.
By Susan Milius - 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.
By Bruce Bower - 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.