Uncategorized
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Long live the Y?
Researchers have identified a means by which the Y chromosome may forestall, or at least delay, the gradual degradation that some biologists argue will ultimately delete it from the human genome.
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Bacterial diet quiets worm genes
Genetically engineered bacteria help biologists turn off worm genes.
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19135
You report that “the sea squirt has the beginnings of a spinal cord, making it a so-called chordate.” That’s the same mistake I fight against each time I teach my zoology class. What makes a sea squirt a chordate is the notochord in the animal’s larval stage. A notochord is a skeletal component, not a […]
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Sea squirt’s DNA makes a splash
The DNA sequence of a sea squirt may reveal the origins of vertebrates.
- Plants
Drought-tolerant plant mined for survival genes
A drought-resistant South African plant is revealing its genetic secrets.
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Tests revise image of kangaroo rats
An ecological study of kangaroo rats has revised thinking about how these desert dwellers cope with their stressful home.
- Anthropology
Fossil skull spurs identity dispute
A dispute has broken out over whether a recently discovered, 7-million-year-old fossil skull represents the earliest known member of the human evolutionary family or an ancient ape.
- Earth
Haze clears on sooty climate conditions
The results of a new study suggest that soot plays a bigger role in regional climate changes than scientists had previously realized.
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19024
The most profound consequence of the research in this article is that there is no such thing as “now.” Since consciousness is spread out across the brain, and since those centers of brain activity cannot communicate faster than the speed of light, “now” is not the hard point in time we usually imagine. Rick NorwoodJohnson […]
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Spreading Consciousness
A reanalysis of brain-imaging data links conscious visual experience to activity patterns throughout the brain, challenging the popular view that specific brain areas coordinate this mental state.
- Math
Completing Latin Squares
Using only the numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4, arrange four sets of these numbers into a four-by-four array so that no column or row contains the same two numbers. The result is known as a Latin square. Here are two examples of Latin squares of order 4: 1 2 3 4 2 1 4 […]
- Earth
Shifting Sands
Sand dunes can provide scientists with clues about ancient patterns of wind and precipitation.
