Dingoes and dogs look similar — until you compare their genomes. A study in PNAS examines this seemingly counter-intuitive outcome and explains the genetic divergence between the two species.“The genetic difference might seem counter-intuitive because dingoes and domestic dogs share a common ancestor,” says Sally Wasef, a geneticist from Queensland University of Technology and a co-author of the paper. “However, the key factor is the period of isolation. Dingoes have been isolated from o ...read more
DNA extracted from a woolly mammoth excavated in 2018 was so well preserved that scientists have, for the first time, constructed a three-dimensional genome from ancient genetic material. That information, from an animal that died in Siberia about 52,000 years ago, allows better comparisons between extinct mammoths and contemporary elephants, according to a report in Cell.Freeze-Dried Woolly MammothA team of 56 scientists from four organizations collaborated to find the fossil, excavate it, then ...read more
Montezuma was one of the most influential figures in Aztec history, yet there’s a lot we don’t know about him. We know that he reigned from 1502 until 1520 and that he famously expanded the Aztec Empire, but the personality and details of this larger-than-life figure come mostly from the invading Spaniards — their accounts shrouded in prejudice, says Matthew Restall, a historian, and author, of When Montezuma Met Cortés.Montezuma, the Man“The Spaniards in Mexico constructed an extremely ...read more
Take a moment to imagine the moon, conjuring its speckled surface inside your mind. Think of its imperfections, its spots and splotches, carved out and cratered from the impacts of asteroids, meteorites, and comets. Chances are that your imagination conjured something surprisingly similar to mine, and to the imaginations of countless others.The reason for this similarity is simple: We almost always see the same surface when we stare at the moon, the same patterns of craters and cavities, thanks ...read more
Why did the lion swim across crocodile-infested waters? It was his only remaining option to find a mate, according to a study in Ecology and Evolution. That report was based on observations of lion behaviors driven by skewed sex ratios in a Uganda national park. The swim — across a channel over half a mile wide — may be the longest recorded by a lion.The swim’s length, as well as its obstacles (the waters contained plenty of hippos as well as crocs) shows the lengths that lions will go to ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine