Life
- Ecosystems
Scientists Say: Niche
An organism’s niche is the role it fills in the community it lives in.
- Genetics
Explainer: What are genes?
Genes are DNA regions that tell cells how to build proteins. But we have many more proteins than genes. And much of our DNA controls when genes turn on and off.
- Plants
Rare-plant hunters race against time to save at-risk species
One in five plants is at risk of extinction. Meet the rare plant hunters who rappel down cliffs and trek through forests to save them.
- Tech
This bionic mushroom makes electricity
What do you get when you combine fungi, graphene, 3-D printing and photosynthetic bacteria? A mushroom that makes electricity.
- Fossils
These fuzz-covered flying reptiles had catlike whiskers
New fossils are changing the look of ancient flying reptiles called pterosaurs.
- Life
Scientists Say: Metabolism
Metabolism is all the chemical activities that support life in a cell, an organ and a whole organism’s body.
- Animals
To monitor penguin diet from satellites, look to poop
Scientists have figured out what foods dominate an Adélie penguin colony’s diet by looking at Landsat imagery. But to do so, they had to start with penguin poop.
- Animals
How some insects fling their pee
Insects called sharpshooters use a tiny barb on their rear ends to hurl their pee at 20 times the acceleration of Earth’s gravity.
- Animals
Scientists Say: Jellies
Jellies have roamed the seas for 500 million years. Some have stinging tentacles and bell-shaped bodies and are called jellyfish. Others are very different.
- Microbes
Amoebas are crafty, shape-shifting engineers
It’s easy to overlook amoebas — but we shouldn’t. These one-celled wonders can build their own shells, punch holes in prey and even farm bacteria.
- Fossils
A skeleton named ‘Little Foot’ causes big debate
New studies suggest a fossil hominid called Little Foot belongs to the species Australopithecus prometheus. Other scientists question whether such a species exists.
- Brain
Expecting pain? That could really make it hurt worse
How much someone expects something to hurt affects how their brain processes the pain, and how well they learn from it.
