Evolution and nature
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
Small migratory birds, weighing no more than a few grams, travel thousands of kilometers each year between their nesting sites in Europe and their breeding grounds in Africa. Dr. Yoav Perlman of the Israel Ornithology Center warns that food shortages, hunting
- Avi Blizovsky
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New research using advanced fossil imaging shows that early pterosaurs – the first flying reptiles – may have mastered flight almost immediately upon their appearance, without needing a large brain like birds.
- Haifa University
- One response
Efrat Kadosh, Director of Climate-Tech at the Maurice Kahn Marine Research Station at the University of Haifa, is leading the development of artificial intelligence models based on data from BarAlgae Farms – to stabilize, improve and transform the growth of
- Avi Blizovsky
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A new study in Frontiers in Microbiology suggests a biomineralization system of two bacterial species, Sporosarcina pasteurii and Chroococcidiopsis, that could produce "biological concrete" from Martian soil, provide oxygen, and contribute to closed agricultural systems and human colonization efforts.
- Avi Blizovsky
- 6 תגובות
Reanalyzed Arctic fossils show marine ecosystems recovered with astonishing speed after the 'Great Dying'
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
Dozens of sandbar sharks gather every winter in the warm waters of the Hadera and Ashkelon power plants – Dr. Adi Barash reveals a species that is not considered Mediterranean at all, explains their role as apex predators, the threats from fishing
- Avi Blizovsky
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A new breakthrough shows that some of the most fragile molecules in biology can be preserved for longer than scientists thought. Researchers have opened a window into the real-time biology of extinct animals
- Avi Blizovsky
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Paleontologists from the University of Chicago have unearthed fossils of a "duckbill" dinosaur in Wyoming that have been meticulously reconstructed in the university's fossil lab. These fossils preserve soft tissues and external features at impressive resolution, allowing scientists to reconstruct what it looked like
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
What happens when economic interests and conservation interests conflict, and how can they be balanced? An Israeli organization is trying to help solve this problem, and aid in the conservation of a rare species of whale
- Tel Aviv University
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A pair of studies from Tel Aviv University map 110 mass mortality events of sea urchins since 1888 and show that pathogens are the main cause, while also presenting a "corona swab" method for non-invasive genetic sampling under the skin.
- Weizmann Institute
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Weizmann Institute study in collaboration with Beilinson and Rambam identifies a diverse microbiome in glioblastoma and brain metastases; overlap with bacteria in primary tumors, variation by location in the brain, and association with temozolomide resistance and survival; published in Nature Cancer
- Avi Blizovsky
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A team of researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, and partner institutions studied chimpanzees in the E-Ngamba Reserve in Uganda and found that they change their choices when given stronger evidence – a finding that places rationality at the center of
- Avi Blizovsky
- 3 תגובות
Fossilized footprints dating back some 80 years discovered on the Algarve coast reveal how Neanderthals moved, hunted and exploited coastal environments – and show a diverse diet based on deer, horses, rabbits and marine resources.
- Tel Aviv University
Researchers have developed an innovative algorithm that turns vultures themselves into a smart warning system and prevents mass poisoning events.
- Tel Aviv University
In the spring, bats are more "bold" and are not afraid to engage in conflicts with rats in the fight for food.
- Avi Blizovsky
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Researchers extracted and sequenced DNA from the teeth of thirteen soldiers from a mass grave in Vilnius, Lithuania, on the route of retreat from France to Russia. After removing environmental contaminants, DNA fragments from pathogenic bacteria were identified: not typhus, but
- Avi Blizovsky
- One response
Researchers have applied U-Pb carbonate dating directly to eggshells from the Qinglongshan site in Yunyang for the first time, determining an Upper Cretaceous age and offering a new window into ancient climate and dinosaur diversity dynamics
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
He can sing, he's sociable, he lives in Israel and despite his size he's actually a relative of the elephant. Who are you, a rock rabbit? The hottest questions about the most interesting animals
- Avi Blizovsky
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Vipers, colubrids and alpids have different ways of behaving, and these have been revealed in great detail for the first time.
- Avi Blizovsky
- 3 תגובות
This led to our research question: Do other animals also “fall for” the same tricks? If a small fish or a chicken is exposed to the illusion, what does this tell us about the way they see and interpret their environment?
- Weizmann Institute
Neuroscientists from the Weizmann Institute traveled to a remote island near Zanzibar to record the brain activity of mammals in the wild for the first time and study how the internal compass they use to navigate works.
- Davidson Institute
- 3 תגובות
Nobel Prize winner who identified reverse transcriptase, formulated the “Baltimore Classification” and laid the foundations for modern virology, PCR and antiviral drugs
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
New research reveals for the first time the courtship, threat and warning sounds of one of Israel's symbolic animals – and shows how deciphering the language could help save it from extinction
- Avi Blizovsky
- 3 תגובות
New research reveals that fungi created ancient soils and prepared the continents for the arrival of plants, through early collaboration with algae
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
It has phenomenal hearing, a heart-shaped face, and the ability to "dive" through the air toward prey in complete silence. How did the snort become an unexpected ally of modern agriculture? The Hottest Questions About Animals
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
Evolutionary studies reveal: Sometimes flower colors result from precise ecological adaptations to pollinators and the environment, and sometimes it is a random variation that is preserved simply because it has no clear advantage.
- Avi Blizovsky
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A nearly complete 108-million-year-old fossil pushes back the appearance of pachycephalosaurs by about 15 million years, illuminating the role of the dome as part of social behavior
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
New research led by Ben-Gurion University and sponsored by Forsea Foods shows that producing cultured seaweed could reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help combat the climate crisis.
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
Prof. Yossi Yuval explains how the fruit bat common in Israel combines night vision, sonar, and spatial memory – and also contributes to seed dispersal and tree pollination.
- Avi Blizovsky
- 3 תגובות
The researcher who changed the way we understand animals died in her sleep; in her final quotes she called for seeing every day as an opportunity to save the planet.
- Avi Blizovsky
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An international study has found that two types of mushrooms have independently evolved different biochemical pathways for producing psilocybin – the psychoactive substance currently being studied as a treatment for drug-resistant depression.
- Avi Blizovsky
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New research reveals that World War II munitions dumped in the Baltic Sea are home to a rich variety of marine organisms – despite high levels of toxic substances. Another finding points to a phenomenon
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
The rare amphibian, which is neither a frog nor a toad, lives underground most of the year and only emerges on a few rainy nights. The common groundhog, which is at the edge of its global distribution in Israel, is facing a serious threat of extinction due to
- Davidson Institute
- One response
Researchers from Cambridge have developed Syn57 – an artificial E. coli bacterium that uses only 57 codons out of 64. The development could lead to the production of artificial proteins, new drugs and better control of industrial bacteria.
- The Hebrew University
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Hebrew University-led research offers a new framework for monitoring zoonotic diseases through biologging – and highlights the importance of global collaboration
- Avi Blizovsky
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International study led by researchers from the Hebrew University reveals that Eilat corals survived four years of heat waves, including 30 DHW in the summer of 2024 – the highest in the world; spot bleaching observed for the first time in shallow waters
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
Artificial intelligence helps make fish farms more effective, environmentally friendly, and profitable – and also reduces dependence on destructive fishing
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
- Avi Blizovsky
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For the first time, the arm movements of octopuses in diverse natural environments have been analyzed, revealing surprising patterns of role division and extraordinary motor flexibility.
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
Israel is a major migratory route for birds, but many of them are injured here by collisions with high-voltage power lines. A new study examines what can be done to reduce the number of these injuries.
- Avi Blizovsky
- 3 תגובות
New research reveals that two genetic mutations were key to the domestication of the horse in the Bronze Age – making it calmer and more resistant to carrying riders, and changing the face of transportation and warfare in the ancient world
- Avi Blizovsky
- 3 תגובות
New research from the University of Nottingham suggests transforming the fermentation process of cocoa beans from a spontaneous process to a controlled scientific standard – ensuring consistent, high-quality, and flavorful chocolate around the world.
- Tel Aviv University
For the first time in science, early biological connections between the two human groups that were considered two separate human species have been documented.
- The Technion
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How do living bacteria survive inside dust particles carried by desert storms from the Sahara Desert and Egypt to Israel?
- The knowledge site system
- 2 תגובות
New study finds that microorganisms associated with gastropods reflect ocean currents and environmental conditions better than "free" microorganisms
- Avi Blizovsky
- 13 תגובות
- Avi Blizovsky
- One response
Unlike DNA, proteins like collagen can sometimes survive for millions of years in fossils. Scientists use this ability to learn a lot about the biology of ancient creatures.
- Angle - a news agency for science and the environment
- One response
Israeli NGO Deep Voice develops acoustic models to identify marine mammal sounds; WILDLABS grant will enable online platform for conservation and restoration of at-risk populations
- Avi Blizovsky
- 5 תגובות
Researchers have finally discovered the ancient secret behind the origins of the potato – and it involves a surprising genetic hybridization.
- Davidson Institute
- One response
Unusual structures found in marble and limestone rocks in Namibia were probably created millions of years ago by tiny animals that fed on the minerals in the rocks.