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Not Exactly Rocket Science
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- February 10, 2012
- 10:00 AM
- 607 views
The two-genome waltz: how the threat of mismatched partners shapes complex life [Repost]
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
This post was originally published last year. I’m travelling for a few weeks, so I’m reloading some of my favourite stories from 2011. Normal service will resume when I get back. Two people are dancing a waltz, and it is not going well. One is tall and the other short; one is graceful, the other [...]... Read more »
Lane, N. (2011) Mitonuclear match: Optimizing fitness and fertility over generations drives ageing within generations. BioEssays. DOI: 10.1002/bies.201100051
Lane, N. (2011) The Costs of Breathing. Science, 334(6053), 184-185. DOI: 10.1126/science.1214012
- January 17, 2012
- 09:00 AM
- 356 views
Starfish go five ways, but two ways when stressed
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
A typical starfish has five-sided symmetry. With no clear head, the starfish can move in any direction, led by any one of its five arms. If you were feeling particularly cruel, you could fold one up in five different ways, so each half fitted exactly on top of the other. We humans, like many other [...]... Read more »
Ji, C., Wu, L., Zhao, W., Wang, S., & Lv, J. (2012) Echinoderms Have Bilateral Tendencies. PLoS ONE, 7(1). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0028978
- October 26, 2011
- 07:13 AM
- 1,028 views
Sex increases risk of being paralysed, buried, eaten alive (for locusts)
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
You know how it is: one minute you’re having sex and the next, your partner has been stung and paralysed, and you’re being dragged off to a burrow by your genitals only to be buried and eaten alive. Such is the life of the Australian plague locust, a common pest that is targeted by the [...]... Read more »
Kemp, D. (2011) Costly copulation in the wild: mating increases the risk of parasitoid-mediated death in swarming locusts. Behavioral Ecology. DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arr173
- October 24, 2011
- 09:00 AM
- 1,009 views
Reef alliances: goatfish hunt in packs, while groupers team up with moray eels
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
In the Red Sea, a tiny fish has been cornered by a group of hunters working as a team. One of them chased it into a coral crevice, while the others circled around to block off any exists. With no escape, the predators – a group of yellow saddle goatfish – close in on their [...]... Read more »
Strübin, C., Steinegger, M., & Bshary, R. (2011) On Group Living and Collaborative Hunting in the Yellow Saddle Goatfish (Parupeneus cyclostomus)1. Ethology, 117(11), 961-969. DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0310.2011.01966.x
Bshary, R., Hohner, A., Ait-el-Djoudi, K., & Fricke, H. (2006) Interspecific Communicative and Coordinated Hunting between Groupers and Giant Moray Eels in the Red Sea. PLoS Biology, 4(12). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.0040431
- October 18, 2011
- 09:00 AM
- 528 views
Butch tail made Carnotaurus a champion dinosaur sprinter
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
If you look at the skeleton of the flesh-eating dinosaur called Carnotaurus, two features instantly stand out: the skull and the arms. The fearsome skull is short, deep and topped by two devilish horns. Hence, its name: “meat-eating bull”. The arms are much less fearsome – they’re so short that they make Tyrannosaurus’s stunted fore-limbs [...]... Read more »
Persons, W., & Currie, P. (2011) Dinosaur Speed Demon: The Caudal Musculature of Carnotaurus sastrei and Implications for the Evolution of South American Abelisaurids. PLoS ONE, 6(10). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0025763
- October 17, 2011
- 09:00 AM
- 1,088 views
The two-genome waltz: how the threat of mismatched partners shapes complex life
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
Two people are dancing a waltz, and it is not going well. One is tall and the other short; one is graceful, the other flat-footed; and both are stepping to completely different rhythms. The result is chaos, and the dance falls apart. Their situation mirrors a problem faced by all complex life on Earth. Whether [...]... Read more »
Lane, N. (2011) Mitonuclear match: Optimizing fitness and fertility over generations drives ageing within generations. BioEssays. DOI: 10.1002/bies.201100051
- October 2, 2011
- 12:00 PM
- 994 views
Incredible skin helps springtails to keep dry underwater and always stay clean
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
These small studs, arranged in grids and honeycombs, look completely unnatural. If the image was life-sized, you might think that they’re part of a bizarre children’s toy. If they had been photographed from far away, they might be buildings in an alien city. But they are neither. They have been intensely magnified; a thousand of [...]... Read more »
Helbig, R., Nickerl, J., Neinhuis, C., & Werner, C. (2011) Smart Skin Patterns Protect Springtails. PLoS ONE, 6(9). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0025105
- August 25, 2011
- 08:42 AM
- 984 views
Ostriches sleep like platypuses (and look wide awake when they do)
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
How does an ostrich sleep? Almost imperceptibly, it seems. Even though an ostrich might be sound asleep, it can look wide awake or, at most, a little drowsy. John Lesku from the Max Planck Institute of Ornithology discovered this by fitting six ostrichers with “Neurologgers”, electrode-laden helmets that measures their temperature, brain activity, eye movements and neck muscle contractions.
The video above shows three of the birds cycling through two different types of sleep. The first is c........ Read more »
Lesku, J., Meyer, L., Fuller, A., Maloney, S., Dell'Omo, G., Vyssotski, A., & Rattenborg, N. (2011) Ostriches Sleep like Platypuses. PLoS ONE, 6(8). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0023203
- August 23, 2011
- 09:00 AM
- 878 views
Disease from human sewage is killing Caribbean corals
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
Forty years ago, the elkhorn coral was one of the most common species in the Caribbean. Five years ago, it was listed as critically endangered. The coral’s woes are many but, aside from the warming temperatures, predators and storms that affect all corals, the elkhorn is also plagued by a highly contagious malady called white pox disease. White lesions erupt all over the coral’s branches, representing areas where its animal tissue has wasted away to leave the white skeleton.
Now, Kathryn Pat........ Read more »
Sutherland, K., Shaban, S., Joyner, J., Porter, J., & Lipp, E. (2011) Human Pathogen Shown to Cause Disease in the Threatened Eklhorn Coral Acropora palmata. PLoS ONE, 6(8). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0023468
- August 10, 2011
- 06:22 AM
- 961 views
The spread of disorder – a repost in wake of London’s riot cleanup
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
Yesterday, I watched as hundreds of Londoners took to the streets in a heroic attempt to clean up the mess caused by rioters and looters the night before. Looking at pictures of large crowds getting off trains with cleaning equipment in hand and marching down streets with brooms held aloft, I’ve rarely felt so proud of my city.
The clean-up operation was a great move – a positive note in an otherwise depressing week and a chance for a beleagured capital to come together and reclaim i........ Read more »
Keizer, K., Lindenberg, S., & Steg, L. (2008) The Spreading of Disorder. Science, 322(5908), 1681-1685. DOI: 10.1126/science.1161405
- August 5, 2011
- 09:00 AM
- 866 views
Five myths about memory (and why they matter in court)
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
Click here to view gallery... Read more »
Simons, D., & Chabris, C. (2011) What People Believe about How Memory Works: A Representative Survey of the U.S. Population. PLoS ONE, 6(8). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0022757
- August 1, 2011
- 10:16 AM
- 1,466 views
Harmless snakes avoid danger by mimicking the triangular heads of vipers
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
A bird of prey flies through the skies of Europe and spots a snake on the ground below. Travelling at high speed and soaring at great height, it has mere seconds to decide if it should attack. If the snake is harmless, it could end up with a nice meal. If the snake is venomous, it could get a fatal bite. How can the bird tell the difference? The shape of the head provides a clue.
All of the dangerously venomous snakes in Europe are vipers, like the adder or the horned viper. And all of them have........ Read more »
Valkonen, J., Nokelainen, O., & Mappes, J. (2011) Antipredatory Function of Head Shape for Vipers and Their Mimics. PLoS ONE, 6(7). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0022272
- July 22, 2011
- 08:13 AM
- 1,683 views
Moon wanes, Leo rises – lion attacks more common in week after a full moon
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
It’s been a week since the last full moon on 15th July. During this time, the odds of being attacked by a lion are highest than at any other point in the month, which is why I’ve been walking around the neighbourhood with two guard bears and a platoon of ninjas. The fact that I live in a leafy suburb of London is inconsequential. You can never be too careful. Constant vigilance.
Of course, lion attacks are more of a problem in other parts of the world. In Tanzania, lions have attacked more t........ Read more »
Packer, C., Swanson, A., Ikanda, D., & Kushnir, H. (2011) Fear of Darkness, the Full Moon and the Nocturnal Ecology of African Lions. PLoS ONE, 6(7). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0022285
- July 7, 2011
- 06:00 PM
- 1,034 views
English monkey gives itself a pedicure with self-made tools
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
Animals use tools to get food, communicate with one another, defend themselves or even have a scratch. But in Chester Zoo, England, one monkey uses tools to give itself a pedicure.
Riccardo Pansini and Jan de Ruiter from Durham University watched a 18-year-old mandrill called JC clean his toenails out using small splinters. He made them himself, fashioning them from wood chips and twigs on the floor his enclosure, and honing them till they were small and sharp.
JC is the alpha male of the zoo’........ Read more »
Pansini, R., & de Ruiter, J. (2011) Observation of tool use and modification for apparent hygiene purposes in a mandrill. Behavioural Processes. DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2011.06.003
- May 26, 2011
- 09:00 AM
- 983 views
The Alice Illusion – scientists convince people that they’re dolls or giants
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
In Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the titular heroine quaffs a potion that shrinks her down to the size of a doll, and eats a cake that makes her grow to gigantic proportions. Such magic doesn’t exist outside of Lewis Carroll’s imagination, but there are certainly ways of making people think that they have changed in size.
There’s nowhere in the world that’s better at creating such illusions than the lab of Henrik Ehrsson in Sweden’s Karolinska Institute. In a typical experiment, ........ Read more »
van der Hoort, B., Guterstam, A., & Ehrsson, H. (2011) Being Barbie: The Size of One’s Own Body Determines the Perceived Size of the World. PLoS ONE, 6(5). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0020195
- May 25, 2011
- 09:00 AM
- 1,030 views
Shastasaurus sucked
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
When the dinosaurs were ruling the land, other giant reptiles dominated the oceans. They included the ichthyosaurs, a group of reptiles that bore a strong resemblance to dolphins. They cut through the prehistoric oceans with streamlined bodies, flat flippers and powerful fluked tails. They gave birth to live young in the water. They snapped at fish and squid with pointed snouts, full of conical teeth.
But one of them was different. Shastasurus is a very different type of ichthyosaur. It has a ve........ Read more »
Sander, P., Chen, X., Cheng, L., & Wang, X. (2011) Short-Snouted Toothless Ichthyosaur from China Suggests Late Triassic Diversification of Suction Feeding Ichthyosaurs. PLoS ONE, 6(5). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0019480
- May 9, 2011
- 10:00 AM
- 1,021 views
Not my concern – how choice can make us more selfish
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
I’m at a supermarket, and I want bacon. There’s Danish or British, streaky or back, smoked or unsmoked. My quest for bread leads to a choice between white, brown, seeded, malt, thick-sliced or thin-sliced. Lettuce: romaine, gem, iceberg. Tomatoes: cherry vine, classic, baby plum, organic.
It should not be this complicated to assemble a BLT.
People in Western countries drown in choice. Want a T-shirt? Thousands of alternatives await you. Want some toothpaste? Sit down, we could be here a whil........ Read more »
Savani, K., Stephens, N., & Markus, H. (2011) The Unanticipated Interpersonal and Societal Consequences of Choice: Victim Blaming and Reduced Support for the Public Good. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1177/0956797611407928
- April 21, 2011
- 10:00 AM
- 1,169 views
The many yous in you – what Lydia Fairchild has in common with a sponge and an anemone
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
Lydia Fairchild was confused. She had applied for state benefits to look after her three children, but according to DNA tests, she was not their mother. It was ridiculous – she knew full well that the children were hers, but she was being taken to court nonetheless.
This happened in 2002, but Fairchild’s case has striking parallels with one that cropped up just this year, involving a Mediterranean sponge called Scopalina lophyropoda. French scientists Andrea Blanquer and Maria-J Uriz found t........ Read more »
Blanquer, A., & Uriz, M. (2011) "Living together apart": the hidden genetic diversity of sponge populations. Molecular Biology and Evolution. DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msr096
Mercier, A., Sun, Z., & Hamel, J. (2011) Internal brooding favours pre-metamorphic chimerism in a non-colonial cnidarian, the sea anemone Urticina felina. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.0605
- April 5, 2011
- 08:47 AM
- 1,076 views
World’s 2nd deadliest poison, in an aquarium store near you
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
In 2007, a man from Woodbridge, Virginia was rushed into hospital after inhaling an aerosolised version of one of the deadliest poisons on the planet. He was not the victim of a terrorist attack. He wasn’t working in a biohazard laboratory. He was trying to clean out his fish tank.
The man, who posts on the Reef Central Forums as Steveoutlaw, was trying to get rid of a colony of zoanthids – a relative of corals and sea anemones – that was infesting his aquarium rocks. He had heard that boi........ Read more »
Deeds, J., Handy, S., White, K., & Reimer, J. (2011) Palytoxin Found in Palythoa sp. Zoanthids (Anthozoa, Hexacorallia) Sold in the Home Aquarium Trade. PLoS ONE, 6(4). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0018235
- March 29, 2011
- 11:00 AM
- 1,072 views
Why is aspirin toxic to cats?
by Ed Yong in Not Exactly Rocket Science
One animal’s cure can be another animal’s poison. Take aspirin – it’s one of the most popular drugs on the market and we readily use it as a painkiller. But cats are extremely sensitive to aspirin, and even a single extra-strength pill can trigger a fatal overdose. Vets will sometimes prescribe aspirin to cats but only under very controlled doses.
The problem is that cats can’t break down the drug effectively. They take a long time to clear it from their bodies, so it’s easy for them........ Read more »
Shrestha, B., Reed, J., Starks, P., Kaufman, G., Goldstone, J., Roelke, M., O'Brien, S., Koepfli, K., Frank, L., & Court, M. (2011) Evolution of a Major Drug Metabolizing Enzyme Defect in the Domestic Cat and Other Felidae: Phylogenetic Timing and the Role of Hypercarnivory. PLoS ONE, 6(3). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0018046
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