Blog

(Phys.org)—Two large international teams of researchers have conducted two separate analysis of the nature of plants and each has found something new. Both teams have had their work published in the latest issue of the journal Nature—the first looks at trait commonalities among plant forms that allow for surviving natural selection

The small but charismatic Hawaiian bobtail squid is known for its predator-fooling light organ. To survive, the nocturnal cephalopod depends on a mutually beneficial relationship with the luminescent bacterium, Vibrio fischeri, which gives it the ability to mimic moonlight on the surface of the ocean, and deceive monk seals and other predators that would happily make a meal of the small creature.

Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs), essentially rubbers with liquid crystal properties, can do a number of fascinating things, especially in the fields of optics, photonics, telecommunications and medicine. They can curl up, bend, twist, wrinkle and stretch when exposed to light, heat, gases and other stimuli

(Phys.org)—Andromeda IV, discovered in 1972 by Canadian astronomer Sidney Van den Berghan, is believed to be an irregular satellite of our neighboring Andromeda galaxy, also known as Messier 31. Now, a new study conducted by an international team of scientists led by Igor Karachentsev of the Special Astrophysical Observatory in Nizhnij Arkhyz, Russia, tells a different story regarding Andromeda IV’s true nature

The diversity of mammals on Earth exploded straight after the dinosaur extinction event, according to UCL researchers. New analysis of the fossil record shows that placental mammals, the group that today includes nearly 5000 species including humans, became more varied in anatomy during the Paleocene epoch – the 10 million years immediately following the event.

Most horses today are treasured for their ability to run, work, or be ridden, but have lost their wild-type camouflage: pale hair with zebra-like dark stripes known as the Dun pattern. Now an international team of scientists has discovered what causes the Dun pattern and why it is lost in most horses