Life

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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Ecosystems

    Encased algae create kaleidoscope of color

    The skeletons of diatoms, algae that produce oxygen but also form toxic blooms, can create beautiful microscopic designs.

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  2. Animals

    On the importance of elephant poop

    Asian elephants are key dispersers for tree seeds. A new study finds that buffalo and cattle can also disperse the seeds, but not nearly as well.

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  3. Animals

    Toddler seahorses are bumbling and adorable

    Rice-grain-sized youngsters can’t yet get a grasp with their tails.

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  4. Neuroscience

    Age affects brain’s response to anesthesia

    Anesthesia has different effects on young and old brains.

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  5. Animals

    Help ornithologists develop bird photo ID tool

    Cornell ornithology lab’s computer identification of common North American avian species needs your photos.

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  6. Life

    Antibody that fights MERS found

    Scientists have isolated a human immune protein that fights the MERS virus in mice.

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  7. Life

    Microbes’ role in truffle scents not trifling

    Truffles make their prized aroma with a little help from their microbes, chemists suggest.

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  8. Life

    Laser light made inside cells

    Microscopic beads and oil droplets become lasers when implanted into cells.

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  9. Paleontology

    Fossils illustrate evolution of life

    Paleontologist Donald Prothero takes readers through the evolution of life on Earth from the earliest oozes of goo to our recent relative Lucy.

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  10. Animals

    Stinkbugs are color conscious when it comes to their eggs

    P. maculiventris moms control the color of their eggs, seemingly pairing darker eggs with darker surfaces.

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  11. Animals

    Stink bug moms are color conscious when it comes to their eggs

    P. maculiventris moms control the color of their eggs, seemingly pairing darker eggs with darker surfaces.

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  12. Animals

    Social pecking order gives roosters something to crow about

    Small groups of laboratory roosters keep to the rankings for orderly morning crows.

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