Life

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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Animals

    Here’s how fruit flies’ giant sperm squeeze into tight spaces

    Researchers found that fruit fly sperm push against one another and align in orderly bundles, preventing knots that could block reproduction.

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  2. Microbes

    Antarctic lake microbes have flexible survival strategies 

    Life teems under the Antarctic ice sheet. In subglacial Lake Mercer, it is surprisingly versatile and isolated from the rest of the world.

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  3. Animals

    This lizard can tolerate extreme levels of lead

    Cuban brown anoles have the highest blood lead levels of any vertebrate known — three times that of the previous record holder, the Nile crocodile.

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  4. Life

    Horses may have become rideable with the help of a genetic mutation

    To make horses rideable during domestication, people may have inadvertently targeted a mutation in horses to strengthen their backs and their balance.

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  5. Microbes

    What makes chocolate taste so good? It’s the microbes

    Beans matter, but microbes may be the real secret to fine chocolate flavor. Scientists are building starter cultures that may improve quality.

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  6. Animals

    The mysterious, extinct ‘Fuegian dog’ was actually a semi-tame fox

    Historic European accounts long described the canids as domesticated dogs. A new study suggests that’s probably not true.

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  7. Animals

    The phoenix isn’t the only critter to survive the flames

    There are no real phoenixes hiding anywhere. But science has revealed that some living things can take quite a bit of heat.

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  8. Animals

    Frilly bug feet inspire a water-striding robot

    Ripple bugs’ nimble movements on the surface of water inspired a robot with automatically unfurling fans on its feet.

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  9. Animals

    Around the world, birds sing longer in light-polluted areas

    In light-polluted landscapes, birds' singing time is an average of 50 minutes longer per day. It's still unclear if this hurts bird health or helps.

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  10. Animals

    These giant carnivorous bats hug, cuddle — and even share dinner

    Infrared cameras in Costa Rica revealed that the world’s largest carnivorous bat maintains close social bonds through wing wraps and prey sharing.

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  11. Health & Medicine

    Could babies get bird flu through breast milk? Maybe, a study hints

    H5N1 bird flu might infect human mammary glands, potentially allowing the virus to show up in breast milk.

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  12. Animals

    Streaked shearwaters poop only while flying over the ocean

    In-flight defecation may help the birds stay away from feces that can contain pathogens such as bird flu while also fertilizing the ocean.

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