Mostly, I just wanted to share this image because I think it’s beautiful, especially once you know what it represents. This is the branched network of nerves that communicate with a small muscle in the head of a mouse, connecting the base of the ear to the top of the skull. Researchers want to [...]
At first, last week’s announcement that black coats in wolves come from interbreeding with dogs didn’t interest me that much. I have a long-time fondness for wolves, and I don’t particularly care what color they are. But from a gee-whiz biology perspective, the finding actually is pretty interesting. Also, the news was a chance to take a [...]
The news about oceans was pretty grim last week, but there is hope. Most of the world’s fishing countries are reneging on their agreements to fish responsibly and sustainably. Despite harvest restrictions in the Delaware Bay, plummeting horseshoe crab populations are leaving their migratory bird predators high and dry. In a climate change scenario, the poorest fishing [...]
Two teams with United States participation are angling to build the next-generation telescope, which will peer at the very edges of the universe, into galaxies that were created immediately after the Big Bang. And as a citizen of a country that’s learning how to tighten its belt, I’m going to suggest they get together [...]
Buying locally is romantic. It feels good to support local economies, and reducing the carbon footprint of our food shopping habits is a noble goal. But now, new research is adding a wrinkle. David Coley from the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom is lead author on a new study showing that, on average, lower carbon [...]
