If you think the Amazon jungle is completely wild, think again
Welcome to the somewhat civilized jungle. Plant cultivation by native groups has shaped the landscape of at least part of South America’s Amazon forests for more than 8,000 years, researchers…
Most Americans like science — and are willing to pay for it
Americans don’t hate science. Quite the contrary. In fact, 79 percent of Americans think science has made their lives easier, a 2014 Pew Research Center survey found. More than 60…
Flight demands may have steered the evolution of bird egg shape
The mystery of why birds’ eggs come in so many shapes has long been up in the air. Now new research suggests adaptations for flight may have helped shape the…
Baby-led weaning won’t necessarily ward off extra weight
When my younger daughter was around 6 months old, we gave her mashed up prune. She grimaced and shivered a little, appearing to be absolutely disgusted. But then she grunted…
This newfound hermit crab finds shelter in corals, not shells
A new species of hermit crab discovered in the shallow waters of southern Japan has been enjoying the perks of living like a peanut worm. Like the worms, the 7-…
These spiders may have the world’s fastest body clocks
WASHINGTON, D.C. — If it takes you a while to recover from a few lost hours of sleep, be grateful you aren’t an orb weaver. Three orb-weaving spiders — Allocyclosa…
Coconut crabs are a bird’s worst nightmare
Imagine you’re a red-footed booby napping on a not-quite-high-enough branch of a tree. It’s nighttime on an island in the middle of the Indian Ocean, and you can’t see much…
These disease-fighting bacteria produce echoes detectable by ultrasound
Ultrasound can now track bacteria in the body like sonar detects submarines. For the first time, researchers have genetically modified microbes to form gas-filled pouches that scatter sound waves to…
Blowflies use drool to keep their cool
SAN FRANCISCO — Blowflies don’t sweat, but they have raised cooling by drooling to a high art. In hot times, sturdy, big-eyed Chrysomya megacephala flies repeatedly release — and then…
Somewhere in the brain is a storage device for memories
People tend to think of memories as deeply personal, ephemeral possessions — snippets of emotions, words, colors and smells stitched into our unique neural tapestries as life goes on. But…