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Biology

Flies, Chipmunks And Other Tiny Creatures See the World in Slow Motion

Flies, for example, can perceive visual stimuli four times faster than we can

A human genome, printed

One Woman Can Have Multiple Genetic Identities—Hers, Her Secret One, And All Her Kids’

The idea of there being one genetic “you” is up in the air

There’s Evidence Midlife Crises Are Real, But No Good Explanation for Why They Happen

We all know the symptoms: the red sports car, the leather jacket, the journey to “find oneself,” the tattoos

How Many Diseases Can a New York City Rat Give You?

In New York City you are never more than six feet away from a rat and its diseases

Liechtenstein Has the Most Skewed Ratio of Baby Boys and Girls in the World Right Now

China has been the focus of much of the attention surrounding sex selection at birth, but recent numbers have shown that it’s not a problem unique to Asia

Will Women Ever Overtake Men in Endurance Events?

When it comes to super long distances, women are catching up to men

233,000 Gallons of Molasses Spilled in Hawaii, Killing Everything

This might sound like the beginning of a cartoon, but it’s not. Molasses is bad for wildlife, and the officials are dealing with an environmental disaster

A Man’s Testicle Size May Influence His Enthusiasm for Parenting

Some men may be naturally inclined to go down the long-term investment parenting route, whereas others may lean towards the Johnny Appleseed approach

Watch As Taxonomists Painstakingly Clean And Assemble a Bat Skeleton

This is basically an Apple commercial for bat preservation

Blackboard Jungle

Crossing the Line Between Art and Science

New York artist Steve Miller melds the computer models and scientific notes of a Nobel-winning biochemist into a series of paintings now on display in D.C.

Worst Vacation Ever? Man Trapped on Island for Two Weeks by Crocodile

Every time he tried to paddle off, the crocodile came really close to his boat and he had to turn back

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In the 16th Century, Nose Jobs Were Horrible, Horrible Things

The process involves shoving cloth under the skin of your arm, walking around for two weeks with your bicep attached to your face, and probably dying

Most sound (99.9 percent) bounces off the frog, but the mouth captures and amplifies key vibrations needed for the frogs to pick up on one another’s croaks.=

This Frog Hears With Its Mouth

The tiny Gardiner’s frog does not possess an eardrum, but it has come up with a convenient evolutionary hack to get around that

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A Reminder From Yosemite’s Massive 1988 Fire: Wildfire Is Largely a Human Problem

This isn’t the first time fire has threatened a national park

Thousands of Dolphins And Whales Will Get in the Way of the Navy’s Bombs, Says the Navy

Underwater explosions and sonar testing is expected to kill hundreds, and injure thousands to millions of animals

Valley of the Reclining Woman

Carl Warner’s Mountains Are Made of Elbows and Knees

The British photographer creates convincing landscapes—deserts and rocky scenes—by piecing together photos of nude models

Severed Octopus Arms Have a Mind of Their Own

Octopus tentacles still react up to an hour after being severed from their dead owner, and even try to pick up food and feed a phantom mouth

Kumquat-Eating Crocodilians: Crocs And Gators Love Their Fruits and Veggies

Grapes and berries, fruit and veggies—crocodiles and alligators eat more than meat

The grizzly bear, known as No. 122, eating the corpse of a black bear.

It’s a Bear-Eat-Bear World Out There, Literally

Hikers were startled when they came across a grizzly eating a black bear

Optical art

These Patterns Move, But It’s All an Illusion

What happens when your eyes and brain don’t agree?

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