Animals & Plants

Bees see super color at super speed

Bees see the world almost five times faster than humans, according to new research from scientists at Queen Mary, University of London.

'World's Most Useful Tree' Provides New Low-Cost Water Purification Method for Developing World

ScienceDaily — A low-cost water purification technique published in Current Protocols in Microbiology could help drastically reduce the incidence of waterborne disease in the developing world. The procedure, which uses seeds from the Moringa oleifera tree, can produce a 90.00% to 99.99% bacterial reduction in previously untreated water, and has been made free to download as part of access programs under John Wiley & Sons' Corporate Citizenship Initiative.

Scientists find new way to help crops fight pests

A team led by Cyril Zipfel at Britain's Sainsbury Laboratory found that transferring a single gene from a wild plant to disease-susceptible crop plants made them more robust against infections like bacterial wilt and other diseases.

Dinosaurs wiped out by asteroid impact that turned earth into a 'hellish' place

The dinosaurs were wiped out by an asteroid that struck the earth with the force of a billion Hiroshimas, according to leading scientists.

Common weedkiller turns male frogs into females

Atrazine, one of the most commonly used and controversial weedkillers, can turn male frogs into females, researchers reported on Monday.

Naptime Helps Babies Remember New Things

Naps play an important role in infant learning by helping children's developing brains retain information, a new study has found.

Is an Animal's Agility Affected by the Position of Its Eyes?

New research from scientists in Liverpool has revealed the relationship between agility and vision in mammals. The study, published in the Journal of Anatomy, sampled 51 species to compare the relationship between agility and vision between frontal eyed species, such as cats, to lateral-eyed mammals, such as rabbits, to establish if the positioning of the eyes resulted in limitations to speed and agility.

DNA Sequencing Unlocks Evolutionary Origins, Relationships Among Flowering Plants

The origins of flowering plants from peas to oak trees are now in clearer focus thanks to the efforts of University of Florida researchers.

Protein Study Shows Evolutionary Link Between Plants, Humans

Inserting a human protein important in cancer development was able to revive dying plants, showing an evolutionary link between plants and humans and possibly making it easier to study the protein's function in cancer development, a Purdue University study has shown.

How the Butterflies Got Their Spots

How two butterfly species have evolved exactly the same striking wing color and pattern has intrigued biologists since Darwin's day. Now, scientists at Cambridge have found "hotspots" in the butterflies' genes that they believe will explain one of the most extraordinary examples of mimicry in the natural world.

Scientists create GM tomatoes 'which stay fresh for a month longer than usual'

Scientists have created genetically modified tomatoes which stay fresh for a month longer than usual.

The tell tail clue to a happy dog... they wag it to the left

Everyone knows that if a dog's ears are up and its tail is wagging vigorously, it is definitely pleased to see you.

Too many superfoods could be harmful

Superfoods such as broccoli, lentils and blueberries could be harmful if consumed in large quantities, according research into the impact of the antioxidants they contain.

Plant flavanoid may help prevent leukemia

Eating foods like celery and parsley which contain the naturally occurring flavanoid apigenin may help prevent leukemia, Dutch scientists said Thursday.

New Understanding of How Plants Use Water

Scientists have discovered more details about how plants use water. Their findings could help to engineer plants that grow better and more effectively in conditions with higher levels of carbon dioxide.