Biology

Unlike the tails of almost all other animals, seahorse tails are more like square prisms than cylinders.

Why Seahorses Have Square Tails

Engineers show that the animals' prism-like tails are mechanically superior to cylindrical ones

The founders of NecropSynth use SketchUp Pro to design the external shell of a 3D printed model of a rat.

How a Cheap Plastic Rat Could Change Biology Class

With a couple of 3D printers, a husband and wife team is building accurate replicas of rats that could one day eliminate the need for dissection specimens

Behold the Weird Beauty of Mold

Scientists aren’t quite sure why mold comes in so many colors

New research suggests hawkmoths, like the one pictured above, slow down their brain's ability to process light in order to see at night.

Hovering Hawkmoths Slow Down Their Brains to See in the Dark

The insects’ night vision appears to be finely tuned to the movement of their flower food sources

This small adhesive pad tracks skin temperature and changes color if there's a problem.

Soon Our Phones Will Be Telling Us to Drink More Water

A new crop of health wearables aims to keep users hydrated

Forget Credit Cards, Now You Can Pay With Your Eyes

A new Japanese phone with an iris scanner may mark a new era of password-free mobile payments

Make New Memories But Keep the Old, With a Little Help From Electrodes

Matthew Walker thinks there may be a way to simulate deep sleep—vital for memory—by sending a low current to a person's brain

Why Do Humans Have Chins?

The most distinctive human feature might be that bony protrusion that made Jay Leno famous

Has a Finnish Company Found a Cure for Jet Lag?

Valkee is releasing the Human Charger, a new gadget that beams light through a user's ears

10 New Things Science Says About Being a Mom

Such as, how much time she spends with her child doesn’t matter as much as we think

Researchers Come Closer to Making Everyone a Universal Blood Donor

The approach uses an enzyme to snip off the parts of blood cells that can prove problematic

An X-ray of the knee bone.

We're Not That Far From Being Able to Grow Human Bones in a Lab

The company EpiBone could be on the verge of a major breakthrough

Could we bring back the woolly mammoth?

These Are the Extinct Animals We Can, and Should, Resurrect

Biologist Beth Shapiro offers a guide to the science and ethics of using DNA for de-extinction

This is a close mimic of the coral snake, but the real version has a singular venom.

Decoding the Deadly Secret of Snake Venom

The world's animals have developed an incredible variety of venoms. But how?

Building a Bionic Pancreas

A device that tracks blood sugar and automatically administers insulin and glucagon could take some pressure off Type 1 diabetes patients and their parents

Major Science Publisher Admits “Fabricated” Peer Reviews

But are BioMed Central’s retractions just the tip of the iceberg?

This shot of a statue from the Louvre is one of the least-shocking anus-related image we came up with.

Science Is Still Unclear About the Evolutionary Origin of the Anus

A newly published scientific review attempts to “get to the bottom” of how animals acquired what some might call the most indecent part of the body

A panther chameleon.

We Finally Know How Chameleons Change Their Color

Chameleons' secret involves tiny crystals under their skin

Scanning electron micrograph of a greenfly eye. Greenflies (aphid) have a pair of compound eyes. The small protrusion coming from the side of the eye is called an ocular tubercle, and it is made up of three lenses.

A Goat's Stomach Never Looked So Good

Eleven venues worldwide will exhibit these 20 striking micrographs, MRI scans and illustrations—all winners of this year's Wellcome Image Awards

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How Praying Mantises Can Jump Faster Than the Blink of an Eye

Stunning slow-mo videos capture juvenile mantises as they corkscrew through the air and precisely land their target

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