208 results
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19898
You refer to Lonesome George, the Galápagos tortoise, as “misanthropic”—meaning a hater of people. He certainly has good reason to dislike humans, but I wonder how the investigators could tell. Or did you mean that George doesn’t like other tortoises, and is therefore antisocial? Roman KozakOmaha, Neb. Lonesome George’s lack of gregariousness extends across species: […]
- Humans
Letters from the December 15, 2007, issue of Science News
Fuzzy logic Astronomer Masanori Iye of the National Observatory of Japan blames the blurry appearance of meteor trails at about 100 kilometers altitude on the fact that they were photographed with telescopes focused at infinity (“Out-of-focus find,” SN: 9/29/07, p. 205). But optics teaches that any object much farther away than the focal length of […]
- Archaeology
An ancient healer reborn
A research team in Israel has uncovered one of the oldest known graves of a shaman. The 12,000-year-old grave hosts a woman’s skeleton surrounded by the remains of unusual animals.
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Mood Bugs: Beetle changes color in fluid fashion
A Central American beetle changes color in a novel way, using its body fluid to control the reflectivity of its shell.
- Ecosystems
Brave Old World
If one group of conservation biologists has its way, lions, cheetahs, elephants, and other animals that went extinct in the western United States up to 13,000 years ago might be coming home.
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Darwin and Evolution
This online exhibit from the American Museum of Natural History is a fascinating account of how Charles Darwin developed his theory of evolution and how that theory is regarded today. The site includes a number of audio and video files and a link to a webcam that features a Galápagos tortoise. Go to: http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/darwin/?src=e_f
- Math
Can’t Knock It Down
Mathematicians have found three-dimensional shapes that flip themselves upright from any position.
- Humans
From the August 31, 1935, issue
A turtle's trusty armor, a new growth stimulator, and the science of making cranberry jelly.
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19512
Your article reminded me that taking a bird’s song and transposing it down four octaves makes it sound like a whale’s song. The opposite is also true. To hear this, go to http://www.mind.net/music/birdwhaleDemo.mp3. Todd BartonAshland, Ore. The article would imply that the only anomaly to the theory that mass equates to longevity is that large-dog […]
- Humans
Letters from the April 9, 2005, issue of Science News
Big ideas Your article “Life on the Scales” (SN: 2/12/05, p. 106) reminded me that taking a bird’s song and transposing it down four octaves makes it sound like a whale’s song. The opposite is also true. To hear this, go to http://www.mind.net/music/birdwhaleDemo.mp3. Todd BartonAshland, Ore. The article would imply that the only anomaly to […]
- Earth
Volcanic Legacy: Tortoises chronicle eruption in their genes
An ancient volcanic eruption in the Galápagos Islands left its legacy in the diminished genetic diversity of one subspecies of the archipelago's famed giant tortoises.
- Paleontology
Fossil Fingerprints: Rare earths tie bones to burial ground
The soil in which fossilization occurs leaves a chemical imprint on the bones, suggesting that scientists can use this soil signature to identify more precisely a fossil's original home.
