Evolution News - SciTechDaily

Ancient Predators, Modern Mysteries: Mapping the Crocodile’s Evolutionary Path

University of York — Mon, 04 Dec 2023 16:05:18 +0000

Researchers have mapped the family tree of crocodiles and their extinct relatives to shed new light on why there are so few species of the...

Tectonic Tales of Life: How Geology Has Influenced Evolution for the Past 500 Million Years

University of Sydney — Sun, 03 Dec 2023 11:53:48 +0000

Recent research reveals a striking correlation to how life evolved over 500 million years. The movement of rivers, mountains, oceans, and sediment nutrients at the...

Green Ancestors: Decoding the Secrets of 600 Million Years of Plant Life

University of Göttingen — Sat, 02 Dec 2023 00:24:31 +0000

A research team from Göttingen University leads an investigation into 10 billion RNA snippets to identify “hub genes.” The majority of the Earth’s land surface...

Microscopic Arms Race: Solving the Mystery Behind Bacteria’s Extensive Weaponry

University of Oxford — Thu, 30 Nov 2023 16:00:25 +0000

A new study led by the University of Oxford has shed light on why certain species of bacteria carry astonishing arsenals of weapons. The findings,...

Unmasking Nature’s Dark Secret: Are Hosts Addicted to Their Microbiome?

Cell Press — Thu, 30 Nov 2023 15:05:01 +0000

We’ve long understood that hosts experience malfunctions in the absence of their microbiome, which can occur due to a lack of certain microbial species or...

Ancient Time Capsule: Scientists Discover DNA in 6-Million-Year-Old Turtle Shell

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 14:54:39 +0000

There are seven existing species of sea turtles, with the genus Lepidochelys comprising two of them: the olive ridley and the Kemp’s ridley. Despite being...

The Primordial Brew: How Ancient Seas Molded Life on Earth

University of Oxford — Wed, 22 Nov 2023 11:05:09 +0000

Scientists know very little about conditions in the ocean when life first evolved, but new research published in the journal Nature Geoscience has revealed how...

How Lockdowns Shaped the Virus: AI Uncovers COVID-19’s Evolutionary Secrets

Nagoya University — Tue, 21 Nov 2023 13:38:14 +0000

A new research study shows that human behavior, like lockdowns, influences the evolution of COVID-19, leading to strains that are more transmissible earlier in their...

“A Profound Change in Paradigm” – Scientists Uncover New Origin Story for Key Regulatory Gene

Gregor Mendel Institute of Molecular Plant Biology — Mon, 20 Nov 2023 14:54:12 +0000

The Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2), initially identified in Drosophila several decades ago, was found to be a key controller of developmental genes. Subsequent research...

Scientists Uncover 14 Evolutionary Traps Threatening Humanity’s Future

Stockholm Resilience Centre — Sat, 18 Nov 2023 22:37:35 +0000

Misaligned AI is not the one you should worry most about (yet). For the first time, scientists have used the concept of evolutionary traps on...

Scientists Shocked by First-Ever Observation of a Virus Latching Onto Another – “I Can’t Believe This”

University of Maryland Baltimore County — Mon, 13 Nov 2023 13:38:41 +0000

Results suggest many more similar systems exist to discover. No one had ever seen one virus latching onto another virus, until anomalous sequencing results sent...

Reviving History: 450-Million-Year-Old Organism Finds New Life in Softbotics

Carnegie Mellon College of Engineering — Sat, 11 Nov 2023 23:42:53 +0000

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering, along with paleontologists from Spain and Poland, have utilized fossil records to create a soft robotic...

Lone Survivor of a Forgotten Era: The Enigmatic Tale of Ekgmowechashala

University of Kansas — Sat, 11 Nov 2023 17:49:03 +0000

The story of Ekgmowechashala, the last primate in North America before Homo sapiens or Clovis people, reads like a spaghetti western: A grizzled and mysterious...

Breathtaking Discovery: Unearthing Microfossils That Redefine Life’s Evolution

Penn State University — Sat, 11 Nov 2023 03:10:14 +0000

Microfossils found in Western Australia suggest a significant leap in life’s complexity during the Great Oxidation Event, hinting at the early evolution of complex organisms...

Bloodlines and Bloodsuckers: Tracing Human Migration and Colonization in the Americas Through Lice

PLOS — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 03:16:12 +0000

Global genetic study of lice suggests they arrived twice in the New World on human hosts. A new analysis of lice genetic diversity suggests that...

Warm-Blooded Surprise: How Stranded Sharks and Megalodon Mysteries Reveal Climate Perils

Trinity College Dublin — Wed, 08 Nov 2023 18:32:43 +0000

Marine biologists have discovered that more shark species, including the ancient smalltooth sand tiger shark, possess the trait of warm-bloodedness, or regional endothermy, than was...

Feasting on Titans: Giant Dinosaur Carcasses Might Have Been Important Food Sources for Jurassic Predators

PLOS — Fri, 03 Nov 2023 20:53:16 +0000

Simulation suggests that traits for exploiting carrion might have been crucial for survival. Carnivorous dinosaurs might have evolved to capitalize on the abundance of giant...

Fundamentally Altering Previous Thinking – Two Bee Species Have Become One

Curtin University — Wed, 01 Nov 2023 11:38:51 +0000

A recent study conducted by researchers from Curtin and Flinders Universities reveals that what were previously believed to be two distinct species of native Australian...

Real Life Sea Monster – Scientists Discover Colossal New Species of Mosasaur

American Museum of Natural History — Wed, 01 Nov 2023 01:32:23 +0000

Jormungandr, a colossal 24-foot-long marine lizard that lived 80 million years ago, is found to be a transitional species between two well-known mosasaurs. Scientists have...

Bats vs. Cancer: Unraveling the Genetic Secrets of Nature’s Supermammals

Oxford University Press USA — Tue, 31 Oct 2023 03:59:33 +0000

Recent research reveals bats’ rapid evolution could be the reason for their unique resistance to infections and cancer. By sequencing bat genomes and comparing them...

Stealth Echolocation: How Evolutionary Twists Made This Bat a Silent Assassin

University of Southern Denmark — Fri, 27 Oct 2023 15:00:44 +0000

The barbastelle bat’s quiet calls may be a result of ancestry, not an insect-evading adaptation. Ask a biologist why predators don’t exterminate all their prey,...

From Electric Knifefish to Humans: The Universal Shimmy of Sensory Perception

Johns Hopkins University — Thu, 26 Oct 2023 16:13:05 +0000

Scientists at Johns Hopkins found consistent sensory-dependent movements across diverse organisms, from microbes to humans, with potential applications in robotics. An electric knifefish shimmies in...

Beyond Biology: Scientists Uncover a Universal “Missing Law of Evolution”

Carnegie Science Earth and Planets Laboratory — Sun, 22 Oct 2023 20:50:03 +0000

Evolution of plants, animals: “A very special case within a far larger natural phenomenon.” Similar marvels occur with stars, planets, minerals, other complex systems; When...

Unraveling Tomato’s Genetic Mysteries: How Background Mutations Alter Outcomes

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory — Sat, 21 Oct 2023 12:27:13 +0000

For tens of thousands of years, evolution has shaped tomatoes through natural mutations. Once humans entered the picture, they spent centuries breeding tomatoes, selecting for...