When we think of amphibians like frogs and toads, we often imagine spawn. Gloopy little eggs spilling out into ponds. It’s a great glimpse into the metamorphosis of anurans, allowing us to see them grow from egg to tadpole, to froglet, or toadlet. There is, however, one species that keeps things a little more intimate. […]
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Tasmanian Tigers’ Genetics May Have Doomed Them Long Before Humans Came Along
What killed off the Tasmanian tiger? For a long time, it was believed this enigmatic marsupial went extinct due to being exterminated as a “pest” and competition with newly introduced dingoes. However, new research suggests there may have been another factor at play: the animal’s genetic diversity. Tasmanian tigers, or Thylacines (Thylacinus cynocephalus), sometimes known […]
Scientists “Wake Up” Ancient Life That’s Been Under The Seabed For 100 Million Years
Deep below the seafloor, locked in a layer of 100-million-year-old sediment, a lifeform quietly lives. It’s not quite Godzilla, nor a long-lost Megalodon, but it does go to show how life on Earth can dwell under the most extreme and bizarre circumstances. Scientists discovered that communities of microbes living beneath the seafloor are able to […]
Measurable Brain Changes Following Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Identified For The First Time
You’ll sometimes hear psychotherapy referred to as “talking therapy,” and it’s not entirely wrong. Some routes of treatment, including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), can involve a lot of talking as therapists work with clients to try and question negative patterns of thinking and pave the way for a fresh outlook. Thing is, people aren’t always […]
“It Was Really Unexpected”: Scientists Stunned By Glowing Plants, And All It Takes Is An Injection
Scientists toying with the afterglow of phosphor particles were stunned to see how uniformly they could diffuse across succulent plants when injected into their leaves. The result is a succulent that glows like something out of Avatar, lasting for hours. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to […]
Scientists Created Gene-Edited Albino Cane Frogs To Unravel The Mysteries Of Natural Selection
It’s often assumed that albino animals are rare in the wild because their lack of pigment makes them stick out in the natural environment, turning them into easy pickings for hungry predators. However, in a new study, a team of scientists from Macquarie University in Australia found evidence that the story isn’t so simple. There […]
In Vivo Vs In Vitro: What Do They Actually Mean?
If you’ve spent time reading medical research articles, you’re bound to have seen two Latin phrases that sound a bit like a magical spell: in vivo and in vitro. But what do they actually mean? These phrases aren’t just there to make experiments sound fancier; they reveal where and how the science is being done. The […]
IFLScience The Big Questions: What Will The Fossils Of The Future Look Like?
Today’s rubbish may well be the fossils of tomorrow. Plastic bags, old pens, cheap clothing, or even chicken bones are all examples of possible “technofossils”, rapidly accumulating debris and detritus that may come to represent the story of humanity in the geological record long after we’re gone. The rest of this article is behind a […]
Finally, A Successful Starship Launch – What This Means For The Moon Landings
Starship’s 10th test flight has deployed simulated satellites for the first time, and splashed down on target in the Indian Ocean, achieving SpaceX’s primary objectives after months of failed attempts, many ending in fiery explosions. Plans for Starship’s involvement in the future Moon landings remain badly behind schedule, and not everything went according to plan. […]
26 Years After Launch, The ISS Will Try A New Way To Stay In Orbit Next Month
The International Space Station (ISS) is about to be boosted using a new method, 26 years after the orbiting laboratory first launched. Though you might imagine that the ISS could orbit the Earth long-term like the Moon, it actually needs to be regularly boosted in order to keep it from falling back down to the […]
The World Map As You Know It Is Misleading – Now Africa Wants To Change That
The map of the world as you know it – the Mercator projection – isn’t totally accurate. And Africa is leading the charge to get rid of it for good. Last week, the African Union, a continental union of 55 member states, reportedly endorsed a campaign to have organizations around the world replace the Mercator map […]
“It’s Totally Wacky”: Oldest Known Ankylosaur Had A Kind Of Armor Never Seen In Any Vertebrate – Living Or Extinct
The ankylosaurs were a very impressive group of dinosaurs covered in armored plates with clubs for tails (that may have sounded like birds), but we’ve just discovered that the oldest known member of the group may have also been the most badass. New fossils have revealed that an ankylosaur known as Spicomellus afer was covered […]
“Lost City Of The Amazon” Wasn’t Destroyed By A Volcano After All
An ancient civilization that disappeared from the dense cloud forests of eastern Ecuador 1,500 years ago likely wasn’t obliterated by a massive volcanic eruption, as had previously been suggested. Instead, the mysterious culture appears to have gradually declined for reasons unknown, raising a number of questions as to what went on during the so-called “Lost […]
Why Do Hammerhead Sharks Have A Hammerhead?
Hammerhead sharks look like a fish that’s had its face flattened by a cartoon mallet and decided to just roll with it. They’re freaks of nature, haters might say, but these marine marvels are actually masters of adaptation, equipped with bizarre yet brilliant features that make them some of the ocean’s most efficient predators. The […]
Neanderthals In Iberia Had Funerary Practices – They’re Just Not What We Expected
Did Neanderthals in Europe have funerary and death practices? The answer to this question in the context of the Iberian Peninsula has been elusive for some time, as there’s an absence of clear burial practices in the archaeological record. However, archaeologists have now discovered evidence of a remarkable diversity and complexity of Neanderthal funerary behaviors […]
Monochrome Rainbows: In The Right Circumstances, Rainbows Can Look Very Strange Indeed
You probably all know how rainbows form, if not from being told as a child, then from having to explain it to a child as an adult. But here’s the basic version anyway in case you, uh, forgot. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the […]
Shark Teeth Are Losing Their Bite As Ocean Acidification Takes Hold
As the oceans become more acidic, shark teeth are likely to become weaker and more brittle, according to the findings of a new study. The idea of some of the world’s most formidable predators becoming less lethal might comfort surfers, but this will also undermine ocean ecosystems. Moreover, sharks’ teeth are just one of many […]
Wasp “Riding A Broomstick” Among Fantastic Finalists Of Wildlife Photographer Of The Year
Wildlife Photographer of the Year (WPOTY) is back with a bang for its 61st year, having received a record-breaking 60,636 entries that include stunning images taken across the globe, including a bizarre slime-based family portrait, a stark look at the impact of landfill sites, and a wasp that appears to have developed magical abilities. Winners […]
Long-Lost Sailback Houndshark Not Seen Since 1973 Rediscovered In Papua New Guinea
Over 50 years after the last time it was reported, researchers have rediscovered the sailback houndshark, stumbling upon the long-lost species during a survey of fisheries in Papua New Guinea. If you haven’t heard of this shark before, don’t be surprised; not only has it been missing for a significant amount of time, but the […]
How Do You Age A Gas Giant? Jupiter’s Age Revealed By “Molten Rock Raindrops”
A team from Nagoya University in Japan and the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) have used a new method to gauge the age of gas giant Jupiter, suggesting it could be used to pin down the timings of when the planets of the Solar System formed. Figuring out the age of the planets is, […]