Brittle stars can learn just fine — even without a brain. Duke Today, Nov. 29, 2023. In a series of experiments, brainless brittle stars learned that “lights out” was a dinner bell call to come for dinner. Picked up by Newsweek, The Transmitter, ZME Science and IFLScience.
Tag Archives: biology
Fueling cell invasion
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Fueling cell invasion. Duke Today, March 22, 2022. From a tiny worm, new clues to how metastatic cancer cells power their deadly spread.
Tracking the pulse of our nation’s rivers
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Tracking the pulse of our nation’s rivers, like a Fitbit for streams. Duke Today, Feb. 21, 2022. Scientists are monitoring hundreds of streams across the U.S., to better predict how freshwater vital signs might shift with land development and climate change.
Dolphins get 40s flab, too
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Dolphins get 40s flab, too. Duke Today, Aug. 13, 2021. If you feel like your metabolism just isn’t what it used to be, no matter how many hours you spend in the gym, dolphins can relate. A new study finds that bottlenose dolphins burn calories at a lower rate as they get older, just like we do. It’s the first time scientists have measured an age-related metabolic slowdown in another large-bodied species besides humans. Picked up by Earth.com and The Weather Channel.
No one-size-fits-all for plant defenses
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No one-size-fits-all for plant defenses. 1100 Words, Duke Research, June 21, 2021. This butterfly may be happily slurping nectar from a harmless-looking wildflower, but if its caterpillars nibble on the leaves they’re in for a nasty surprise.
Ultra-black skin allows some fish to lurk unseen
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Ultra-black skin allows some fish to lurk unseen. Duke Today, July 16, 2020. Scientists report that at least 16 species of deep-sea fish have evolved ultra-black skin that absorbs more than 99.5% of the light that hits them, making them nearly impossible to pick out from the shadows. Picked by The New York Times, WIRED, Newsweek, Science News, Fox News, NBC News, CBS News, Ars Technica, Popular Science, Gizmodo, CNN and Reuters.
Imaging a living scaffold
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Imaging a living scaffold. Duke Today, July 7, 2020. Light-up proteins in the sheet-like matrix that encases tissues offer new toolkit for studying everything from kidney disease to aging.
Lights in the eyes for better disguise
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Lights in the eyes for better disguise. Duke Today, June 11, 2020. This hatchetfish hides from predators swimming in the shadowy depths below using a clever disguise. Glowing spots on its belly make it nearly invisible against the sunlit waters above. But the fish’s eyes point upward — How does it adjust its underside lights to blend in with the faint light filtering down from above if it can’t see its belly?
To make ultra-black materials that won’t weigh things down, consider the butterfly
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To make ultra-black materials that won’t weigh things down, consider the butterfly. Duke Today, March 10, 2020. Some butterflies have ultra-black wings that rival the blackest materials made by humans, using wing scales that are only a fraction as thick. Now, researchers have figured out how they make ultra-thin substances that soak up all the light. Picked up by CNET and MSN.com.
How two become one
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How two become one. 1,100 Words on Duke Research, August 19, 2019. Its mysterious gray-green goblets poking up through tufts of moss, this Gray’s cup lichen isn’t one living thing but two — a fungus and an alga — working together.