Lizards, like us, are chordates. One of the defining characteristics that all chordates share at some point in their development is the presence of a notochord: a stiff rod of tissue that runs along the dorsal side of the animal, just beneath the hollow dorsal nerve cord. (Yes, hollow. This is the result of its […]
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why paper cuts hurt
I suppose one of the benefits of e-readers & ‘paperless’ offices (haha) is a reduction in the risks of paper cuts. Because those cuts jolly well hurt! Part of that may just be because they usually involve fingers & those are in use so much that our attention is constantly drawn to the afflicted part. […]
Continue readingjust a big ball of water falling from the sky
Here in Hamilton it's hot, And DRY – I'm guessing we'll be up to 'water alert level 3' (ie no sprinklers) any day now. So I watched this video (link) from ScienceAlert with a mix of fascination & wistfulness – it really does show 'a big ball of water' dropping from a thunderstorm in Australia. […]
Continue readingshould food containing dna be labelled?
Apparently 80% of people in the USA think so, according to a Washington Post article that's been all over Facebook in the last few days. That is, 80% of those polled in the regular Food Demand Survey (by Oklahoma State University's Department of Agricultural Economics) agreed with the proposition that all food containing DNA should be […]
Continue reading‘this app promises to read your DNA’ – colour me skeptical
I find much of the information that comes to me via various science feeds interesting, informative, & useful. But sometimes I see a headline & an article that give me a serious facepalm moment. And this headline on ScienceAlert was one of them: This app promises to read your DNA and give you personalised health […]
Continue readingrapid evolution in cane toads
In her book Paleofantasy, Marlene Zuk discusses cane toads (Bufo marinus) as an example of just how rapidly evolutionary processes can work. These amphibian pests were introduced into Australia in 1935 to control borer beetles in sugar cane. Unfortunately the toads never got the memo about this expectation, and have spread rapidly across the continent, […]
Continue readingfluffy the dinosaur
Over the last 20 years quite a bit of evidence has accumulated indicating that at least some dinosaurs were feathered, much of it in the form of beautiful fossils from China. Up until now all the feathery dinos have been members of the carnivorous theropods, but this new paper by Godefroit et al (2014) extends that […]
Continue readingone of the largest living insects?
If you don't like spiders then you probably wouldn't like this either: from China come reports of what's claimed to be the largest known aquatic insect. (I can't find any actual published scientific descriptions of the creature; it will be nice to see the claim confirmed – or denied! – as it's a pretty impressive […]
Continue readingif fish had nightmares, these spiders would feature in them
If asked, "what do spiders eat?", my answer would probably include insects, spiders, other arthropods, and maybe birds. I'd never have thought of fish! And yet it seems that fish-eating by spiders is, if not common, then not exactly rare, although other food items still account for most of the spiders' diets. In a paper […]
Continue readinghuman facial features the result of being used as a punching bag? somehow I don’t think so
I saw this story in the newspaper yesterday, & again today on one of the science feeds: Researchers in the US have studied the skulls of ancient human ancestors and concluded that fist-fighting may have played a role in shaping the male face. You can read the paper itself here (Carrier & Morgan, 2014). I’m sorry, […]
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