Loud Mammal Roundup
North American right whales are on the brink of extinction. Could a new whale detection system save them?
Podcast
EVOLUTION & EPIGENETICS: Lizards evolve new structures in record time, geographic gene expression in Moroccan Berbers, Tyrannosaurus rex protein confirms genetic link between dinosaurs and birds. Also: Assessing the health of the oceans.
Tyrannosaurus Rex & Birds
Protein sequencing confirms the evolutionary relationships between dinosaurs and birds.
Lizard Evolution
Lizards introduced to a new island undergo extremely rapid evolution.
Beetle Roundup
An innocuous-looking beetle may have been partially responsible for the formation of the vast Chihuahuan desert in Mexico.
Podcast
Conservation Update: A species map for Madagascar, captive tigers could revitalize wild populations, beetles that make deserts and cooling it with trees.
Stock Market Hormones
Testosterone may make stock traders take bigger risks, leading to price bubbles.
Expanding Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, is one of the leading serious problems in the western world. New research suggests that its reach might extend beyond the heart.
Tree Roundup
Planting fast-growing trees in southern latitudes could help stall global warming, but they're no panacea.
Podcast
RADIATION: The world's most powerful laser, radiation dangers for astronauts, a new drug fights radiation poisoning, and the lifespan of the sun.
Radiation Protection
Scientists are taking lessons from tumor cells to fight the damaging effects of radiation and chemotherapy.
Pain Roundup
A new anesthetic could one day replace narcotics in treating pain after surgery.
Anxiety & Blood Clotting
Severe anxiety can lead to elevated blood clotting, and an increased risk of heart disease.
Bacteria Climate Roundup
The Kalahari desert is not as lifeless as you might think.
Podcast
ALL ABOUT BLOOD: The antimicrobial powers of alligator blood, getting blood from a fruit fly, mental health and blood clotting, and new insights into hardening of the arteries.
Alligator Blood
Alligator blood may be a source of powerful antimicrobials.
Sensing Calories
Our brains may get pleasure from high-calorie foods that has nothing to do with taste.
Fruit Fly Phlebotomy
A new technique can draw pure blood from a single fruit fly.
Podcast
GENETICS & EVOLUTION: Exclusively human genes, transitional fossils, and the history of lefthandedness.
Transitional Fossils
A listener asks: Have many transitional fossils showing evolutionary links between major groups of animals been found in the fossil record?
Conspicuous Camouflage
Scientists test whether predators really mistake the eyespots on the wings of some butterflies for real eyes.
Unique Genes
We inherited most of our genes from our evolutionary ancestors. But a small percentage of genes only occur in humans. Scientists are just starting to find out how they make us who we are.
Podcast
INSECTS & SPIDERS: Spiders play dead for sex, how to make a queen bee, foiling the mosquito's sense of smell, and a new treatment for Lyme disease.