In Star Trek, the Borg are a ruthless, hive-minded collective that assimilate other beings with the intent of taking over the galaxy. Here on nonfictional planet Earth, 'Borgs' are DNA packages that could help humans fight climate change.
New research rewrites the evolutionary story of gills
Well before evolving to help vertebrates breathe underwater, gills played an early and equally important role regulating the salt and pH balance of blood, according to surprising new research.
Amber fossils from Myanmar
Myanmar, a country in Southeast Asia, is plagued by political and economic crises. The fall of a president, a military putsch and the crackdown on religious minorities have had an impact not only on life but also on research in the country. One area of research that has been particularly...
Drones show potential to improve salmon nest counts
A study showed that drone photography of the Wenatchee River during spawning season can be effective in estimating the number of rocky hollows salmon create to lay their eggs, also called 'redds.'
Warmer climate causing acidification of the Arctic Ocean
Climate change is causing the Arctic Ocean's sea ice to melt away. When the polar ocean loses its cover of sea ice, carbon dioxide uptake increases disrupting the food web in the water according to a new study.
Meet the first Neanderthal family
Researchers have managed to sequence multiple individuals from a remote Neanderthal community in Siberia. Among these thirteen individuals, the researchers identified multiple related individuals -- among these a father and his teenage daughter. The researchers were also able to use the thirteen genomes to provide a glimpse into the social...
Warming oceans likely to shrink the viable habitat of many marine animals — but not all
A new article adds a new chapter to the story of how some animals may respond to the warming oceans.
Model calculates energetics of piercing fangs, claws and other biological weapons
Researchers have created a model that can calculate the energetics involved when one organism stabs another with its fangs, thorns, spines or other puncturing parts. Because the model can be applied to a variety of organisms, it will help scientists study and compare many types of biological puncturing tools, researchers...
Large emissions from ship scrubbers
The Baltic Sea is considered one of the world's most polluted seas. Now, new research reveals a relatively unknown environmental culprit. The study shows that the discharge water from ships' exhaust gas treatment systems, so-called scrubbers, is responsible for up to nine percent of certain emissions of carcinogenic and environmentally...
Reliably estimating proportion of vaccinated populations in wildlife
Researchers develop a ground-breaking model to estimate bait vaccination effectiveness in wild animals based on the proportion of immunized animals in a population and the number of vaccine applications.