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New Research

People Who Subconsciously Dwell on Death Write Funnier New Yorker Cartoon Captions

People who are deliberately thinking about death, on the other hand, produce the least funny cartoon captions

Kids Will Eat Their Veggies If You Explain Why They Need To

Explaining to kids why veggies are good for them and making a show of just how tasty they can be are effective strategies for getting kids to eat greens

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These Contact Lenses Can Zoom In and Out, Give You Telescopic Vision

These contact lenses can switch your vision back and forth from regular sight to a 2.8x zoom

Killer Whales May Be Two Distinct Species

Researchers estimate that up to six or seven different species or sub-species of killer whales may live around the world

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These Beautiful Maps Show Where All Known Birds, Mammals And Amphibians Live

The maps include data on birds, mammals and amphibians, but not reptiles or fish since not enough is known about those organisms’ distribution

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The World Is Heading for 11 Billion People This Century

How are we going to feed them all?

Part of the 700,000-year-old bone fragment used to sequence the DNA.

Cracking the Code of the Human Genome

700,000-Year-Old Horse Genome Is Oldest Ever Sequenced by a Factor of 10

The study authors say that the horse genome hints that it may be possible to sequence the genomes of organisms that lived up to 1 million years ago

Not the cloned mouse

Mouse Cloned From Its Parent’s Blood

White blood cells flowing in its parents blood provided the genetic material needed to clone

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Your Choice of Spoon Changes the Taste of Your Food

White yogurt eaten from a white spoon was deemed sweeter, more expensive and denser than a similar yogurt that was dyed pink.

A Slight Zap to the Brain Makes Everyone Appear More Attractive

After getting zapped, participants experienced a boost of dopamine - a chemical associated with how we judge people’s attractiveness

Live Closer to a Gas Well, And There’s Likely More Gas in Your Water

The team found low levels of methane in 115 of 141 Marcellus Formation shale gas wells they sampled

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Plants Do Math Every Single Day

Math, the researchers say, is a vital component of a plant’s ability to grow and thrive

Blue tits being winter piggies.

Birds That Gorge Themselves in Winter Have Fewer Chicks in Spring

The well-fed birds’ babies were smaller and weighed less than the chicks belonging to birds that had to scrape by during the cold months on their own wits

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One of Our Nearest Neighbor Stars Has At Least Six Planets, And Three May Be Habitable

Three potentially habitable planets orbit a star just 22 light years away

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We Still Have No Idea Why Women Have Orgasms

Most researchers hypothesize that the orgasms must have something to do with facilitating the meeting of sperm and egg, but studies prove inconclusive

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Plan a Psychedelic Wedding with Glowing Dresses Made from Material from Engineered Silkworm

Researchers say they see potential for the glowing silk to be used for some medical technologies, too

For Immediate In-the-Moment Happiness, Head Outdoors

Study participants were significantly and substantially happier when they were outside surrounded by green or in a natural habitat

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One in Eight Bird Species Is Facing Extinction

The good news is that saving the birds - and other wildlife, for that matter - is within our reach, if we only chose to do so

Even After Exonerations, Wrongfully Convicted People Seen in Dark Light

Being exonerated is just the first step - new research shows that even those who were wrongfully convicted face judgement from the outside world

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Sex Itself is Deadly for These Poor Little Male Spiders

For these male spiders, having sex starts an irreversible process that ends with their death

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