Why Do We Celebrate Flag Day?

 Posted on October 4, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  493 words  |  Patria Henriques

After declaring independence from Great Britain, one of the first orders of business for the freshly-seceded Thirteen Colonies was to fly a new flag. So on June 14, 1777, the Second Continental Congress passed the first Flag Act, which read: "Resolved, That the flag of the United States be made of thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation. [Read More]

Beetles Pose as an Ant's Butt to Grab a Ride

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  661 words  |  Patria Henriques

How do you hitch a ride on an army ant? Try masquerading as an ant butt. At least, that's the strategy that seems to work for the newly described beetle species Nymphister kronaueri. Seen from above, a colony of Eciton mexicanum army ants marching across the forest floor looked perfectly normal to researchers surveying the insects in Costa Rica. But viewed from the side, many of the ants appeared to have a little extra junk in the trunk, sporting what seemed to be two abdomens stacked on top of each other, the scientists reported in a new study. [Read More]

Earliest Evidence of Our Human Ancestors Outside of Africa Found

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  552 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Our ancient human relatives got around more than scientists previously thought. Researchers in China excavated stone tools that were likely made by our human ancestors some 2.12 million years ago — the earliest evidence ever discovered of the human lineage outside of Africa. "It suggests a way earlier migration out of Africa than we ever would have imagined," said Michael Petraglia, a paleoanthropologist at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, who was not involved with the study. [Read More]

Fat Rat Rescued from Manhole Cover by Germany's Loveliest Firefighters

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  379 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

A particularly plump rat had an adventure this weekend after it got stuck in a manhole cover and had to be freed by local firefighters and animal rescuers. Typically, rats can squeeze through the smallest of spaces because their bodies are long, flexible and cylindrical, giving them the ability to wriggle through holes as little as 0.25 inches (0.6 centimeters), according to Wildlife Animal Control, a wildlife removal company. Moreover, rats can use their whiskers to gauge whether they will fit through holes, Wildlife Animal Control says. [Read More]

For Males Dying to Mate, Only Certain Females Will Do

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  5 minutes  |  892 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

For some spiders and the praying mantis, mating is a deadly game, with the pipsqueak males often sacrificing themselves in the name of sex. How a male decides which leggy lady is worth his life, and how the female decides whether to scarf him down, is complicated, two new studies show. This Russian roulette mating strategy is called "sexual cannibalism." The females in species that practice sexual cannibalism sometimes eat their male partners after, or even during, sex. [Read More]

Genes Help Explain Who Gets Fit

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  5 minutes  |  916 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

When you put in hours at the gym, you expect to get fitter. It turns out, that assumption doesn't hold true for everyone. A new study suggests specific genes may determine, at least in part, how much we really benefit from exercise. While "benefit from exercise" can mean plenty of things, from slimming down to boosting one's ability to complete a marathon, the researchers specifically looked at what is called VO2 max, or aerobic capacity. [Read More]

Goodbye, Weasels! New Zealand to Wipe Out Its Invasive Predators

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  508 words  |  Fernande Dalal

The clock is ticking for the rats, possums and weasels that have invaded New Zealand over the past few hundred years. That's because the country plans to eradicate these invasive predators that threaten its native species, and has set the year 2050 as its goal to be free of these invasive pests, Prime Minister John Key said Monday (July 25). Before humans landed in New Zealand less than 800 years ago, precious few mammals lived on the islands — a vibrant archipelago that provided a home for flightless birds, such as the kiwi, takahe­ and kakapo parrot, as well as geckos and lizard-like tuataras. [Read More]

How a Bubblegum Coral Conquered the Globe

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  776 words  |  Fernande Dalal

For a resident of the deep sea, a species of bubblegum coral is unusually cosmopolitan. These corals build often-colorful, knobby-armed structures deep in the oceans, where they appear comfortable nearly everywhere outside of the tropics. A new genetic study not only indicates these widespread populations belong to a single species, but it also offers a glimpse at how this single species of bubblegum coral, Paragorgia arborea, spread around world. The researchers' reconstruction suggests the coral's ancient migration started in the North Pacific more than 10 million years ago, from which the colony-building animals may have hitched a ride on ancient ocean currents to travel to new seafloor habitat. [Read More]

Is the Space Station Dusty?

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  500 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

A visible film of dust collects on earthbound surfaces in just days. Well, the International Space Station has been in orbit for more than a decade, and not once has it experienced the tickle of a feather duster. Is it covered in space dust? Nope. In fact, it's just a tiny bit dustier than the day it reached orbit. First, a housekeeping lesson: According to Louis Bloomfield, a physicist at the University of Virginia, dust particles near Earth's surface descend because of gravity. [Read More]

Marriage, Cohabitation Provide Similar Health Benefit

 Posted on October 3, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  699 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

We've heard married people are happier, but that might not be a reason to rush to the altar, according to a new study. In terms of health, self-esteem, and psychological well-being, marriage offers little benefit over simply living together without wedding rings, the study found. It's the relationship itself, rather than its official status, that's key to its benefits, said study researcher Kelly Musick, an associate professor of policy analysis and management at Cornell University's College of Human Ecology. [Read More]