Secret feather flaps help a falcon control its dive
Falcons use the positioning of their wings to achieve higher and higher speeds, first creating a diamond shape, then assuming a tight vertical tuck and finally completely folding the wings tightly against its body. Because the bird in this experiment was diving from a relatively low height, it only reached the […]
We know the brain does beautiful things while we are sleeping. Sleep is important for consolidating learning, storing memories, finding creative solutions to problems and processing emotional issues. Recently, scientists have added to its list of heroics and the findings and what they have discovered is fascinating.
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A study conducted by Bio Researchers Halvor T. Tramsen, Stanislav N. Gorb, Hao Zhang, Poramate Manoonpong, Zhendong Dai and Lars Heepe in 2018 takes inspiration from bio inspired sawtooth structured surfaces and provides a potential method of modifying the surface friction of present materials. This surface friction modification can be achieved […]
Paper, How Hoverflies Compute Interception Courses
With an internalized conception of its own speed, the hoverfly is able to calibrate itself to intercept targets in motion. This mechanism is typically used for mating, in which the male tracks and intercepts the female. It is able to calculate the flight path of the object in motion based on […]
An enzyme variant created by engineers and scientists can break down environment-throttling plastics that typically take centuries to degrade in just a matter of hours to days.
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Honey bees live in colonies of thousands of individuals, that not only need to collaborate with each other but also to interact intensively with their ecosystem. A small group of robots operating in a honey bee colony and interacting with the queen bee, a central colony element, has the potential to […]
In nature, barnacles and bacterial biofilms utilize self-assembly amyloid to achieve strong and robust interface adhesion. However, there is still a lack of sufficient research on the construction of macroscopic adhesives based on amyloid-like nanostructures through reasonable molecular design. Here, we report a genetically programmed self-assembly living-cell bioadhesive inspired by barnacle and curli system. Firstly, […]
A study conducted in 23 March 2022 by bio researchers Ryan A. Palmer, Isaac V. Chenchiah and Daniel Robert reveal the complex mechanism of electrically sensitive mechanoreceptive hair arrays on arthropods. It was found that many arthropods use the electrostatic interaction between their electrically charged sensory hairs and electrical fields in […]
Paper, Whale Bone Density & Composition Analysis
Ancient human-whale relationships are difficult to study because, counterintuitively, whales have been virtually invisible in the archaeological record despite the immense quantities of valuable products they provide. In this review, we explain the reasons for this invisibility, and we also show how an interdisciplinary approach combining archaeological and ethnographic studies with […]
Features of owl wings that promote silent flight
The large wings of these birds, resulting in low wing loading and a low aspect ratio, contribute to noise reduction by allowing slow flight. The serrations on the leading edge of the wing and the velvet-like surface have an effect on noise reduction and also lead to an improvement of aerodynamic […]
High-voltage catfish immune to their own shocks
Malapterurus beniensis may look like a harmless catfish lounging on the bottom of a tank, but these creatures are far from benign. Packing a powerful 300 V electric shock, the fish usually reserve their pyrotechnics for stunning prey. ‘We always wear thick rubber gloves when handling the fish’, chuckles Stefan Schuster from the University of Bayreuth, […]
The venom of C. rolani is a prime example of evolution at work. One sting from the snail is enough to incapacitate a small fish. And, because the fish is already unresponsive when consumed, C. rolani does not have to risk an injurious struggle with its prey. Over millions of years, […]
Genetic basis of color diversity in coral reefs discovered
Scientists have discovered the genetic basis which allows corals to produce their stunning range of colors. They have found that instead of using a single gene to control pigment production, corals use multiple copies of the same gene. Depending on how many genes are active, the corals will become more or […]
Mechanical Engineering Assistant Professor Ling Li is studying the knobby sea star to discover the key to creating strong, lightweight materials. The sea star has a internal lattice structure which is highly organized, which is different from previous model organisms. This porous lattice structure helps make the sea star lightweight but […]
Currently there are many designs that are modeled after marine animals. For example, wind turbines are modeled after the fins of whales when they swim. Little is known about the jellyfish’s movement, however. This paper explores the science behind the swimming mechanism of a jellyfish. The researchers […]
Researchers have recently discovered frog skin peptides which have been shown to stimulate the release of Insulin for “in vitro” and “in vivo.” The recent discovery shows the potential to possibly treat for people suffering from Type 2 Diabetes. The frog skin produces 5 different types of peptides which have shown […]
Researchers in NUI Galway have shown, for the first time, that smaller species of scorpions, with smaller pincers, have more potent venoms compared to larger species with robust claws.
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Shells are essential for hermit crabs since if not eaten first, they would roast in the Sun without them. However, these little animals always outgrow their shells, which forces them to constantly search for new ones. When a hermit crab sees a new shell, it will size it up to make […]
Albert’s Lyrebirds are part of the lineage of songbirds but are one of the shyest species. Albert’s Lyrebirds can mimic sounds. However, what’s special about the Albert’s Lyrebird males’ sound mimicry is that they repeat the sounds in a certain sequence that shows the contrasting calls, and all males around the […]
News, Bacterial soundtracks revealed by graphene membrane
Have you ever wondered if bacteria make distinctive sounds? If we could listen to bacteria, we would be able to know whether they are alive or not. When bacteria are killed using an antibiotic, those sounds would stop – unless of course the bacteria are resistant to the antibiotic. This is […]
The squamates (lizards and snakes) comprise a diverse group of reptiles, with more than 10,000 described species that display extensive variation in a number of important biological traits, including coloration. In this manuscript, we used quantitative genetics and genomics to map the mutation underlying white coloration in […]
New rules for access and benefit sharing (ABS) of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge have been established by the Nagoya Protocol but have not kept up with rapid scientific and technological advances in biodiscovery. This suggests the need for innovative, transdisciplinary approaches to regulate ABS and emerging technologies.
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Energy Conservation Through Shark Research
Sharks have many biological features that can be used and implemented to create real-world solutions. One of them is their skin, which has friction forces that can help with mobile vehicles’ drag reduction forces, and reduce friction in certain fabrics. As the passage says, “The project findings […]
Old skins cells reprogrammed to regain youthful function
Scientists have developed a new technique for rejuvenating skin cells. This technique has allowed researchers to rewind the cellular biological clock by around 30 years according to molecular measures, significantly longer than previous reprogramming methods. The partially rejuvenated cells showed signs of behaving more like youthful cells in experiments simulating a […]
Ocean water samples yield treasure trove of RNA virus data
Ocean water samples collected around the world have yielded a treasure trove of new data about RNA viruses, expanding ecological research possibilities and reshaping our understanding of how these small but significant submicroscopic particles evolved.
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Peptide-mediated interactions play very important roles in cellular processes. Recent years have seen much activity in the discovery of new bioactive peptides, and interactions mediated by protein–peptide binding events. At the same time, computational approaches continue to be developed that allow protein–peptide interactions to be discovered with great accuracy. There are […]
Proprietary microbial establishes company at leading edge of emerging $7B market for nature-based crop stress solutions
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In a new study, Japanese structural biologists from the National Institutes of Natural Sciences in Okazaki, Japan, and their collaborators from SOKENDAI, Nagoya, and Osaka Universities, tackled the complex workings of the simplest of all biological clock mechanisms in the cyanobacterium (Synechococcus elongatus) and provided insights on its regulation.
The study was published in an […]
Paper, High-ranking naked mole-rats are more resilient
Naked mole-rats not only look strange, they have a strange lifestyle, too: they spend their entire lives underground. They also feel very little pain, rarely develop cancer and are exceptionally long-lived for a rodent — living up to 37 years. All this makes the hairless burrow-dwellers prime candidates for scientific study.
For nearly 20 years, […]
REGRowth
As amphibians go, axolotls are pretty cute. These salamanders sport a Mona Lisa half-smile and red, frilly gills that make them look dressed up for a party. You might not want them at your soiree, though: They’re also cannibals. While rare now in the wild, axolotls used to hatch en masse, […]
Paper, Shark spiral intestines may operate as Tesla valves
Abstract: Looking to nature for inspiration has led to many diverse technological
advances. The spiral valve intestine of sharks has provided the opportunity
to observe the efficiency of different valve systems. It is supposed that the
spiral intestine present in […]
Researchers Joseph K. Hall, Craig P. McGowan† and David C. Lin conducted a study in February this year on the locomotive patterns and energy efficiencies of Desert Kangaroo Rats on different surfaces. The different surfaces should impose different mechanical demands on the rats’ muscle and skeletal structures, but tests have shown […]
When cities transform into a colorful world of lights as darkness falls, it’s often only possible to estimate their contours, which depending on the perspective can draw the attention to key details or trivia. In fluorescence microscopy, biological cells are marked with fluorescent dyes and excited to luminesce in specific areas […]
The biodiscovery studies the texture sensation in “different types of vertebrate limb by investigating touch and potential texture encoding mechanisms in the pectoral fins of fishes”. Through the article, the analysis provides evidence that the receptive field sizes of ifn ray afferents are small and afferents exhibit response properties to tactile […]
Head bobbing gives pigeons a sense of perspective
Having your eyes stuck on the side of your head is great to avoid turning up on someone else’s menu. Providing almost 360 deg vision, wide-set eyes give pigeons the best chance of escape. But they also have lousy stereo vision. With little overlap between the views of both eyes, no one knew whether the […]
Ants defend aphids against lethal disease
Aphis asclepiadis, protect aphid colonies from lethal fungal infections caused by an obligate aphid pathogen, Pandora neoaphidis. In field experiments, bodies of fungal-killed aphids were quickly removed from ant-tended aphid colonies. Ant workers were also able to detect infective conidia on the cuticle of living aphids and responded by either removing […]
Scientists have developed a promising new method to combat the age-related losses in muscle mass that often accompany immobility after injury or illness. Their technique, demonstrated in mice, arrests the process by which muscles begin to deteriorate at the onset of exercise after a period of inactivity.
Paper, Cichlids and stingrays can calculate
In a recent study by the University of Bonn, cichlids and stingrays were proven capable of performing simple addition and subtraction in the number range of one to five.
Using colored geometric shapes and food rewards, researchers trained cichlids and stingrays to associate certain selections with […]
Egyptian Fruit Bats Echolocate During the Day
Egyptian fruit bats are one of the 10 diurnal species among 1,400 bat species. Experts were surprised when they discovered that they use echolocation in broad daylight as other diurnal species rely rather on vision to avoid obstacles and forage during the day. The other species use echolocation when it’s dark […]
A Nacre-Inspired Structural Material for Plastic Replacement
Researchers at the Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences, developed a sustainable replacement for plastic. With petroleum-based products posing an alarming threat to the environment, the design is inspired by nacre’s multiscale architecture and is fabricated with all-natural materials: cellulose nanofiber and mica microplatelets. The researchers use a “directional deforming assembly” method to manufacture a […]
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I imagine that the neurological circuits underlying these processes are governed by both 2d spacing maps with their brains as…
to reduce the impact of car accidents, it may be possible to study the force diverting physics of cockroaches to…
you see this type of head-bobbing stability in many avian creatures related to pigeons like chickens. the head ability to…
not like they taught horses how to run! this is an example of convergent evolution where both sea creatures and…
The brain functions in a similar way with neuronal connections. our brains are able to utilize the multiplicity of connections…