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Robin Ann Smith

PhD biologist writing about science, nature, medicine and tech

Robin Ann Smith

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Tag Archives: primates

If endangered primates disappear, so will their parasites. That’s actually a problem.

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If endangered primates disappear, so will their parasites. That’s actually a problem. Duke Today, Sept. 23, 2021. The extinction crisis looming for monkeys, apes and their kin could have even greater ripple effects on the tiny underappreciated species that set up camp in their bodies. Picked up by Science Friday, Syfy Wire and Earth.com.

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Male baboons with female friends live longer

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Male baboons with female friends live longer. Duke Today, Sept. 21, 2020. Opposite-sex friendships can have non-romantic benefits. And not just for people, but for our primate cousins, too. Picked up by The New York Times, The Independent, Washington Post, IFLScience, Treehugger, CBC Radio’s Quirks and Quarks, Futurity, the Weather Channel and Cosmos.

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Your cells look young for their age, compared to a chimp’s

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Your cells look young for their age, compared to a chimp’s. Duke Today, Sept. 21, 2020. Why do humans live so much longer on average than our closest primate relatives, despite being 99% identical genetically? Research suggests the epigenetic aging clock ticks slower for humans than for chimpanzees. Picked up by ZME Science.

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A baboon mom’s history of hardship has lasting effects on her kids

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A baboon mom’s history of hardship has lasting effects on her kids. Duke Today, September 24, 2019. Baboons reveal how childhood wounds faced by one generation can take a toll on the next, and how close relationships with parents or other sources of support might help break the cycle. Picked up by UPI.

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What made humans ‘the fat primate’?

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What made humans ‘the fat primate’? Duke Today, June 26, 2019. How did humans get to be so much fatter than chimps, despite sharing 99% of the same DNA? The answer may have to do with an ancient molecular shift in how DNA is packaged inside fat cells, which curbed our ability to turn “bad” fat into “good” fat. Picked up by the New York Post.

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Africa’s rarest monkey had an intriguing sexual past

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Africa’s rarest monkey had an intriguing sexual past, DNA study confirms. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, November 9, 2009. Results may help to set conservation priorities for this critically endangered species. Picked up by National Geographic and MSNBC.

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Photos by Alexandrea Lassiter. Copyright © 2011 by Robin Smith. All rights reserved.

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