Muscles lost in our primate ancestors still appear in humans
A review of previous anatomy studies found that some “ancient” muscles that are normally present in other primate species may be more…
Category: By Scientists
Sometimes, we are lucky enough to have scientists summarize their own papers for us! Here are some of those articles.
What can microbes teach us about life in extreme environments?
Microbes on Earth have adapted to survive in some pretty extreme locations. The extreme dryness of deserts, high salinity in salt deposits,…
Fungi influence the recovery of pollutants in the environment
Researchers found a hidden selenium cycle tied to manganese oxide minerals made by common soil fungi.
Believe it or not, we can (kind of) measure the air pressure of early Earth!
Blue-green algae's response to different nitrogen pressures may tell us what fossils to look for and what those fossils tell us about…
Lasers and Fool’s Gold Give a Glimpse Into Our Ocean’s Past
The amount of trace elements in ocean pyrite correspond to ocean oxygen concentrations at different points in geologic time.
Chasing Alien Worlds with a Flying Telescope
The airborne Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is a flying observatory aboard a modified Boeing 747 that takes…
Why is the Sun Yellow?
Jacob Haqq-Misra, Ravi Kopparapu, and Eric Wolf attempt to address this question in a recent paper titled "Why do we find ourselves around a…
Betting on finding aliens
If intelligent aliens exist somewhere in the depths of space, then should we see signs of their technology? This question has motivated…
New Method for Detecting Signs of Life In the Universe
Detecting life on a planet beyond Earth would be one of the coolest things ever! In our paper, we talk about detecting signs of life on…
An Expedition to Collect Fish in Africa for a Gene Archive
It was no ordinary fishing trip. In May 2011, Denis Tweddle, a research associate of the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity…