HS-LS1-2
Develop and use a model to illustrate the hierarchical organization of interacting systems that provide specific functions within multicellular organisms.
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Animals
Abdominal fuzz makes bee bodies super slippery
Scientists find that tiny hairs on a honeybee’s abdomen reduce wear and tear as a bee’s outer skeletal parts rub against each other all day long.
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Animals
Uncovering secrets of the glasswing butterfly’s see-through wings
The tricks of its transparency include sparse, spindly scales and a waxy coated membrane.
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Animals
A bubble of air lets some lizards breathe underwater
Anolis lizards leap into streams to escape danger. Now researchers have figured out how they can stay underwater for up to a quarter of an hour.
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Animals
Most species of beetles pee differently than other insects
Scientists uncover their unique system for balancing ions and water. The findings may hint at why beetles are the most diverse animals on Earth.
By Jack J. Lee -
Health & Medicine
Cool Jobs: Saliva offers a spitting image of our health
Scientists are using this secretion to study our body’s functions, to test for disease and even to diagnose injury.
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Brain
Explainer: What is a neuron?
From the moment you are born, cells called neurons sense information, process it and then pass it on. Neurons allow you to do everything that you do.
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Brain
Search for ‘rewards’ is big driver in remodeling a teen’s brain
Communication ‘highways’ in the brain undergo a major overhaul as children morph into adults. Dopamine plays a big role in this remodeling project.
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Brain
Scientists Say: Neuron
Neurons are the foundational cells in the nervous system. They pass along and process information using electrical signals.
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Health & Medicine
Teen depression linked to how the brain processes rewards
Depression in teens alters their brains’ pathways in ways that may put those kids at risk of lifelong mental-health problems — unless they get help.
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Space
Space travel may harm health by damaging cells’ powerhouses
Biochemical changes after going to space suggest that harm to cells’ energy-producing structures, called mitochondria, could explain astronauts’ health issues.
By Jack J. Lee -
Scientists Say: Respiration
Breathe in and out, that’s respiration. Have a cell break down sugars for energy, and that’s respiration too.
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Brain
A taste map in the brain is a scattering of tiny flavor islands
Some senses are highly organized in the brain. Taste is not. And that points to just how important it is.