Science 🧬

In 1991, NASA launched 2,478 baby jellyfish aboard Space Shuttle Columbia to answer a terrifying question about humanity's future in space—and what returned were 60,000 jellyfish that had developed severe space-induced vertigo, permanently unable to navigate Earth's gravity.⁠ ⁠ Lead researcher Dr. Dorothy Spangenberg designed the experiment aboard NASA's first Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) Mission with a profoundly human motivation: if humanity ever colonizes space and children are born beyond Earth, will those humans be able to return home? Jellyfish provided the perfect biological proxy—their calcium sulfate crystal gravity-sensing organs (statoliths) operate on identical principles to the calcium carbonate structures in human inner ears that tell our brains which way is up.⁠ ⁠ 2,478 moon jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) were launched in bags of artificial seawater aboard Columbia alongside seven human astronauts. Astronauts injected iodine into the bags to trigger strobilation—asexual reproduction—and monitored development closely. After just nine days in orbit, NASA had 60,000 jellyfish in space, reproducing exponentially in microgravity.⁠ ⁠ Upon returning to Earth, six times more space-born jellyfish exhibited pulsing abnormalities compared to Earth-raised controls. While the jellyfish successfully formed calcium sulfate crystals in space, those crystals developed incorrectly—leaving the animals with a severe, permanent case of vertigo that made normal swimming impossible.⁠ ⁠ This revealed that gravity is not merely a comfort—it is a fundamental biological necessity during critical developmental windows that cannot be compensated for afterward.⁠ ​⁠ If children were born and raised in microgravity, their inner ear gravity-sensing structures might develop incorrectly—just like the jellyfish statoliths—leaving space-born humans potentially unable to function normally on Earth, trapped forever in the environment where they were born.

Meet nature's most weather-sensitive primate—a critically endangered monkey so anatomically unlucky that rainstorms turn into sneeze-filled nightmares.⁠ ⁠ The Myanmar snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus strykeri), discovered just 15 years ago in the remote mountains of northern Myanmar, possesses one of evolution's most peculiar design flaws: upturned nostrils that act like tiny rain funnels. When precipitation falls directly into their exposed nasal cavities, the monkeys sneeze so loudly and frequently that local hunters can easily track them during the wet season by following the distinctive sound echoing through the forest.⁠ ⁠ Local Lisu and Law Waw communities have long known these primates by names meaning "monkey with an upturned face"—mey nwoah and myuk na tok te—and report that the animals have developed a remarkable behavioral adaptation to cope with their unfortunate anatomy. During rainstorms, the monkeys sit with their heads tucked face-down between their knees, maintaining this uncomfortable position until the weather clears to prevent water from entering their problematic nostrils.⁠ ⁠ Scientists formally described Rhinopithecus strykeri in 2011 based on specimens obtained from local hunters, making it the first snub-nosed monkey species discovered in Myanmar. However, the species entered the scientific record already critically endangered, with only 260-330 individuals surviving in a tiny range spanning the Myanmar-China border at altitudes between 8,500-10,000 feet.⁠ ⁠ Habitat destruction from Chinese logging operations and hunting pressure threaten to eliminate this unique species before researchers can fully study their remarkable rain-avoidance behavior. The monkeys spend summer months in higher altitude mixed forests, descending to lower elevations in winter—a seasonal migration that makes them particularly vulnerable to human encroachment and habitat fragmentation.

Scientists have finally solved the mystery of why cute animal content dominates the internet—and it's not just about getting likes. A study from Concordia University and ESSEC Business School reveals that sharing videos of cute animals actually strengthens human relationships in ways we never understood before.⁠ ⁠ Researchers Zeynep Arsel and Ghalia Shamayleh discovered that sending animal content creates "digital affective encounters"—moments that trigger genuine positive emotions between people. ⁠ ⁠ The study, published in the Journal of Consumer Research, interviewed animal content creators and consumers to understand this phenomenon. What they found was shocking: people put serious thought into which animal posts they share, using them to recall shared memories and show deep personal knowledge of their friends.⁠ ⁠ The research reveals that animal content acts as a "social lubricant" online, creating what scientists call "digital affective networks"—entire relationship systems built around mood-boosting content. Someone might send a video of baby pandas falling over with the caption "You and me at our first yoga class," instantly connecting past experiences with present laughter.⁠ ⁠ This isn't mindless scrolling—it's sophisticated emotional communication. In a world where social media gets criticized for toxic content, cute animals have become our secret weapon for maintaining genuine human connections across digital spaces.⁠ ⁠ The findings suggest that your daily dose of cat GIFs isn't digital junk food—it's relationship maintenance disguised as entertainment.⁠ ⁠ Source: 10.1093/jcr/ucaf023

While the idea of drinking human urine conjures up images of adventurer Bear Grylls relieving himself in some exotic part of the world, one British designer has taken things to the next level by brewing his own whisky blends fermented with urine.⁠ ⁠ Drawing on his own experiences living with type 1 diabetes, James Gilpin has distilled a range of whiskies using the sugar-rich urine of type 2 diabetics. Part of his MA designer project for the Royal College of Art, Family Whisky explores the commodification of our bodies through the production of a high-end single malt whisky made from human waste material.⁠ ⁠ As diabetes affects the body’s ability to control its blood glucose levels, higher concentrations of sugar can be found in the urine of those who have diabetes.⁠ ⁠ _____⁠ ⁠ The Gilpin Family Whisky website explains: “Large amounts of sugar are excreted daily by type-two diabetes patients, especially amongst the upper end of our ageing population. As a result of this, diabetes patients’ toilets often have unusual scale build-up in the basin due to rapid mold growth as the sugar put into the system acts as nutrients for mold and bacteria growth. Is it plausible to suggest that we start utilizing our water purification systems to harvest the biological resources that our elderly already process in abundance?”⁠ ⁠ Gilpin’s first donor was his grandmother, which allowed him to get the ball rolling and iron out any kinks in his process ahead of wider production. However, not all of Gilpin’s collaborators were diagnosed with diabetes, with some having endocrine systems that were not as efficient simply due to old age.⁠ ⁠ To create his unique product, Gilpin first filters the urine using techniques similar to how our mains water is purified. The remaining large crystal-shaped sugar molecules are then removed and purified again, before being combined with a mash stock to speed up the fermentation process.⁠ Once added to a clear alcohol spirit, whisky blends are mixed into the liquid to give the drink its color, taste, and viscosity. The final product is bottled and, for a more personal touch, labelled with the name and age of its original ‘donor’.

This study investigates the performance differences among top League of Legends (LoL) players, average players, and non-players in conventional visual attention control tasks and game-specific visual attention control tasks. ⁠ ⁠ The results indicate that in conventional visual search tasks, top players outperformed non-players in reaction time and discriminability index. Still, no significant differences were observed between top and average players. In conventional multiple object tracking tasks, no significant differences were found among the groups. In game-specific visual search tasks, top players performed better than average players in behavioral metrics, but eye-tracking data did not reveal any advantages in visual information collection. ⁠ ⁠ The researchers propose that the advantages of top players in game-specific tasks may be due to better search strategies rather than superior visual attentional control. The findings highlight the domain-specific advantages of MOBA top players in visual attention control, offering new insights into the relationship between gaming skills and cognitive abilities.⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #gaming #lol #league #leagueoflegends #science #psychology

Moving one's bowels is part of the normal digestive process for most animals; after nutrients are extracted from food and liquid, waste is eliminated as urine and feces. Human stool, when healthy, is usually made up of about 70-percent solids and 30-percent fluids, Kim Barrett, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego, told Live Science.⁠ ⁠ Personal bowel habits notwithstanding, on average, both men and women move their bowels about once per day and produce a daily average of 14 to 17 ounces (400 to 500 grams) of feces, Barrett said.⁠ Researchers have even identified the speed at which humans generally produce their poo: about 0.8 inches (2 centimeters) per second, Live Science previously reported. Constipation — being unable to move one's bowels — can lead to longer, or more uncomfortable bathroom sessions. However, the amount of time a person typically dedicates to unobstructed defecation is about 12 seconds per stool, and is uniform across many animal species regardless of their size, according to David Hu, an associate professor of mechanical engineering and biology at the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Patricia Yang, a Georgia Tech doctoral candidate in mechanical engineering.⁠ ⁠ The amount of poo produced by a single person starts to add up when you calculate poop production over years and decades.⁠ Starting with an average daily amount of about 14 ounces (400 grams), the total poop production in a week would be about 6 lbs. (2.8 kilograms). In a year, a single person would yield about 320 lbs. (145 kg) of poop — just a little more than an adult panda weighs.⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #science #biology #research #study #health #statistics #stats⁠

People have spent years blaming young women for “vocal fry,” the deep, creaky sound some voices make at the end of sentences. But new research suggests the stereotype may be completely backwards.⁠ ⁠ Vocal fry happens when the vocal cords loosen and vibrate slowly, creating a rough, crackling sound. It became heavily associated with celebrities like Britney Spears and the rise of podcast culture, and many people began treating it as an annoying habit mostly used by women.⁠ ⁠ Researchers at McGill University decided to test whether that belief was actually true. They analyzed recordings from 49 Canadian speakers, measuring acoustic features linked to vocal fry, including irregular pitch and low-frequency vocal noise.⁠ ⁠ What they found surprised them. Men used vocal fry more often than women, and older speakers showed more vocal creak than younger ones. The results directly challenged the idea that vocal fry is mainly a “young woman” phenomenon.⁠ ⁠ The team then explored why so many people still believe the stereotype. In a second experiment, volunteers listened to altered voice recordings designed to sound gender-ambiguous. Participants could recognize vocal fry, but they mainly associated it with lower-pitched voices, not with women specifically.⁠ ⁠ Another long-term Australian study reached a similar conclusion, finding that men and women use vocal fry at roughly the same rate. Researchers now think the backlash against vocal fry says more about social bias.⁠ ⁠ The findings are reshaping a debate that has lasted for more than a decade, suggesting that certain voices may be judged differently simply because of who listeners think is speaking.⁠ ⁠ Source: 10.1121/10.0039080⁠ Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Fruit flies survived gravity so intense it would overwhelm most humans in minutes. In a new experiment from UC Riverside, scientists exposed the insects to up to 13G, where the flies experienced 13 times stronger gravity than normal Earth conditions. Despite the crushing force, many survived, adapted, and even kept reproducing for 10 straight generations.⁠ ⁠ To create the extreme conditions, researchers placed the flies inside a spinning machine called a centrifuge. The faster it spun, the stronger the artificial gravity became. Astronauts usually experience around 3G to 4G during rocket launches, but these flies endured far more for much longer periods of time.⁠ ⁠ The insects reacted in a surprisingly complex way. After spending 24 hours at 4G, the flies became hyperactive and moved around more than usual. But once gravity climbed to 7G, 10G, and 13G, they slowed down dramatically, conserving energy as movement became physically harder.⁠ ⁠ Scientists also discovered changes inside the flies’ bodies. Their fat storage shifted as gravity increased, suggesting the insects were rapidly changing how they used energy to survive. “Gravity feeds directly into the brain’s decision-making around energy use and movement,” said study author Sushmita Arumugam Amogh.⁠ ⁠ Even stranger, many flies eventually returned to normal behavior after being brought back to regular Earth gravity. The study suggests living organisms may be far more adaptable to extreme environments than researchers once believed, an important discovery as future space missions push humans farther into deep space and harsher gravitational conditions.⁠ ⁠ Source: 10.1242/jeb.251327

A massive supply of lithium, one of the world’s most important battery metals, may be hiding beneath the Appalachian Mountains. Scientists with the US Geological Survey say the region could contain about 2.3M metric tons of recoverable lithium oxide buried inside ancient rock formations that formed hundreds of millions of years ago.⁠ ⁠ Most of the lithium appears to be concentrated in the Carolinas, Maine, and New Hampshire. Researchers estimate the deposits could replace more than 328 years of current US lithium imports. That is enough material to help build around 130M electric vehicle batteries or 1.6M giant grid batteries used to store energy for power systems.⁠ ⁠ Lithium powers much of modern life. Its inside smartphones, laptops, electric cars, medical devices, and large battery systems that help stabilize electrical grids. As demand for electric vehicles and AI data centers keeps rising, global demand for lithium is expected to explode over the next two decades.⁠ ⁠ The lithium is trapped inside pegmatites, extremely coarse rocks similar to granite. These rocks formed during the ancient geologic collisions that created the Appalachian Mountains and the supercontinent Pangea. Scientists used geologic maps, chemical sampling, tectonic history, and thousands of computer simulations to estimate how much lithium may still be hidden underground.⁠ ⁠ The discovery could become a major turning point for the United States, which currently depends heavily on foreign lithium supplies while China dominates much of the global battery processing industry.⁠ ⁠ But, extracting it could still take years of mining projects, environmental reviews, and massive investment before the metal ever reaches the batteries powering future technology.⁠ ⁠ Source: 10.1007/s11053-026-10652-9

Scientists are discovering that art may affect the body in ways far deeper than simply engaging the mind. A new study from University College London found that people who regularly visit museums, listen to music, dance, paint, read, or attend cultural events may actually age more slowly on a biological level.⁠ ⁠ Researchers studied more than 3,500 adults in the UK and examined chemical changes in their DNA using tools called “epigenetic clocks.” These clocks help estimate how quickly the body is aging internally, which does not always match a person’s actual age.⁠ ⁠ People who took part in arts or cultural activities every week appeared to age about 4% more slowly than people who rarely engaged in them. Even monthly participation was linked to slower aging. In one test, frequent arts engagement was associated with people being about a year younger biologically on average.⁠ ⁠ The effects were strongest in adults over 40. Researchers also found that participating in many different types of creative activities seemed to matter even more than doing just one repeatedly.⁠ ⁠ Scientists believe art may help the body through several connected pathways at once. Creative activities can lower stress, reduce inflammation, stimulate the brain, encourage movement, and strengthen social connection, all of which are closely tied to long-term health.⁠ ⁠ Museums or music obviously do not directly slow aging. But the results add to evidence that creative experiences are not just enjoyable distractions.⁠ ⁠ Source: 10.1093/geroni/igag038

As 2-year-old Hannah began to turn blue, the bird began squawking and flapping its wings to attract the attention of its owner.⁠ ⁠ "While I was in the bathroom, Willie (the parrot) started screaming as I'd never heard him scream before, and he started flapping his wings," Miss Howard told CBS News. "Then he started saying 'Mama baby' over and over and over again until I came out and looked at Hannah, and Hannah's face was turning blue because she was choking on her Pop-Tarts."⁠ ⁠ The carer then rushed to Hannah and performed the Heimlich manoeuvre, saving her life.⁠ ⁠ "If Willie hadn't warned me, I probably wouldn't have come out of the bathroom in time because she was already turning blue, her lips were blue, and everything," she said.⁠ ⁠ The parrot has been honoured by the local Red Cross chapter's Animal Lifesaver Award.⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #parrot #history #animals #birds #science #biology

Chito, a fisherman, tour guide, and naturalist from Siquirres, Limón Province, Costa Rica, discovered an emaciated and dehydrated male crocodile weighing 70 kg (150 lb) on the banks of the Reventazón River in 1989. Upon closer examination, Shedden discovered that the crocodile had been shot in the head through the left eye by a local cattle farmer because the crocodile had been preying on a herd of cows. Shedden took the crocodile home in his boat along with the reluctant help of some friends.⁠ ⁠ For six months, Shedden fed the crocodile 30 kg (66 lb) of chicken and fish a week, sleeping with it at night in his home. Shedden also simulated the chewing of food with his mouth to encourage the crocodile to eat, and gave it kisses and hugs while talking to it and petting it. Shedden later stated his belief that providing food alone would not have helped it recover, and that "the crocodile needed my love to regain the will to live".⁠ ⁠ _____⁠ ⁠ Shedden hid the crocodile in an obscured pond with a thick overhead canopy of trees deep in a nearby forest until he obtained the necessary wildlife permits from Costa Rican authorities to own and raise the crocodile legally.⁠ ⁠ After the crocodile's health improved, Shedden released the crocodile - now named Pocho, meaning "strong" in the local dialect - in a nearby river to return it to the wild, but the crocodile refused to go back to its natural habitat, and so Shedden decided to allow the crocodile to live in the water outside his home. Pocho was considered a member of his family, alongside Shedden's wife and daughter.⁠ ⁠ Shedden trained the crocodile to respond to its own name being called. For more than twenty years, Shedden swam with the crocodile in the river outside his home, mostly at night, talking and playing with Pocho while hugging, kissing and caressing him.⁠ ⁠ _____⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #crocodile #fisherman #animals #science #biology #story