WEIRD NATURE
Water bear, moss piglet, scientific marvel: the tiny tardigrade. Depositphotos – By Bronwyn Thompson 2023 Mar 20 – They’ve been fired from a gas gun to test their candidacy for panspermia, are believed to have survived the Beresheet lunar probe’s crash-landing on the Moon, …
Intense storms highlight fragility of the state’s infrastructure, with 35 of 58 counties now under an emergency declaration. People look at a swimming pool sitting on the edge of a landslide below an apartment building. Photograph: Patrick T Fallon/AFP/Getty Images – Staff and …
Scientists have identified a peptide that could potentially have helped kickstart life on Earth. Depositphotos – By Michael Irving 2023 Mar 14 – One of the most profound mysteries facing science is how exactly life arose from non-living matter. Now, scientists have pinpointed a …
Years of research pays off for PhD student Ashleigh Kropp (left) and Rhys Grinter. Jordan Robson/Monash University – By Bronwyn Thompson 2023 Mar 09 – While most of us will never bear witness to them, many of the world’s smallest organisms have some incredible …
Your brain can imagine things that haven’t happened or that don’t even exist. agsandrew/iStock via Getty Images Plus – By Andrey Vyshedskiy, Professor of Neuroscience, Boston University Published: 2023 Feb 23 – You can easily picture yourself riding a bicycle across the sky …
The explosion, called a kilonova, created a rapidly expanding fireball of luminous matter before collapsing to form a black hole. The kilonova occurred when the remnants of two massive stars collided. Photograph: Albert Sneppen/Reuters – Reuters 2023 Feb 15 – Astronomers have observed …
Invasive species proliferating in Valais is encroaching on natural reserves and posing a biodiversity threat. As global heating intensifies, the residents of Valais are finding an invasive species of cacti taking over their slopes. Photograph: pob/Peter Oliver Baumgartner – By Alessio Perrone Last …
Lake Elsinore was flooded with visitors in 2019 when wildflowers erupted over its landscape; this year, it doesn’t want them. Heavy rainfall at the start of the year may spark a super bloom. Photograph: Gregory Bull/AP – By Gabrielle Canon and agencies 2023 …
Rain and warm air make it harder for sea ice to grow. Bonnie Jo Mount/The Washington Post via Getty Images – By Pengfei Zhang, Assistant Research Professor of Atmospheric Science, Penn State Published: 2023 Feb 06 – Atmospheric rivers, those long, powerful streams …
A new study unexpectedly found prairie voles genetically modified to carry no oxytocin receptors still formed strong social bonds and retained the ability to nurse offspring. Depositphotos – By Rich Haridy 2023 Feb 02 – Using cutting-edge gene editing technology researchers have engineered prairie …
