Sex & Mood Disorders
Researchers are studying how female and male rats respond differently to stress in order to shed light on why women are disproportionately affected by mood disorders.
Cooking Up Evolution
Scientists have new evidence that cooking influenced human evolution.
Fanged Furball
Paleontologists have discovered a tiny mammal from the age of the dinosaurs that sported tusks.
Podcast for 18 November 2011
EVOLUTION - Did a giant beaver that once roamed North America communicate by whistling? A newly discovered mammalian fossil that sported fangs. And, did the advent of cooking drive human evolution? Also: new research suggests that Neanderthals' shorter legs were actually an advantage for navigating mountainous terrain.
Critters & Climate Roundup
Could the swimming of sea creatures be influencing climate change?
Stress & Death
The presence of a predator can lead to an insect’s early death from causes other than predation.
Podcast for 11 November 2011
ANIMALS & HEALTH - Why one insect's mating habits could lead to its downfall, why predators are literally scaring dragonflies to death, and pythons reveal the benefits of having a big heart. Also: why animals swimming in the ocean may be affecting the global climate.
Anti-Aphrodisiac
A chemical that repels the opposite sex could be used to help control a common crop pest without the use of pesticides.
Slick Pitcher Plants
The specialized leaves of carnivorous pitcher plants are inspiring the next generation of super-slick materials.
Rise of the Jellyfish
Giant jellyfish have what it takes to become king of the seas in the future.
Podcast for 30 September 2011
HORMONES & BEHAVIOR - Testosterone and fatherhood, the genetics of oxytocin and depression, gender and spatial reasoning revisited, where taste is found in the brain, and more.
Gypsy Moth Virus
A single gene in a lethal virus makes gypsy moth caterpillars stop molting and eat constantly.
Endangered Stem Cells
Stem cell research could help bring drill monkeys and northern white rhinos back from the brink of extinction.
Podcast for 23 September 2011
PLANETS & PATHOGENS - Gardening for Mars, the darkest planet, a parasite that turns rats against themselves, telling the viruses from the bacteria, and the link between caffeine and skin cancer prevention.
Marine Roundup
A fish out of water makes a name for itself, and how corals avoid sunburn.
Six Butterflies in One
One species of butterfly mimics six different species to avoid predators.
A Deadly Attraction
Rats are supposed to be afraid of cats, but a tiny pathogen has turned the relationship around for its own benefit.
Contagious Stress
Early stress in a zebra finch’s life not only cuts its life short, but takes a serious toll on its mate’s life as well.
Podcast for 9 September 2011
MARVELS OF EVOLUTION - A prehistoric pregnancy clears up a Mesozoic mystery. The economics of plant-fungi cooperation. How to get six butterflies in one. Counting up the species on earth. And how your stress could be bad news for your mate if you're a finch.
Species Roundup
A new study documents the rate at which species are moving toward the poles or up the sides of mountains to escape climate change.
Shrinking Brains
Our brains shrink by up to 15% over our lifetimes, but those of chimpanzees do not.
Pregnant Pleisiosaur
A pregnant reptilian fossil clears up a long-standing paleontology mystery.