Size Matters: If Minke Whales Were Smaller, They Could Not Survive
Minke whales are as small as a lunge-feeding baleen whale can be. Research on the feeding behavior of Antarctic minke whales found that a smaller…
UC Santa Cruz News
Scientists Have Solved a Long-Standing Genomic Mystery
UCSC researchers suggest that introns, a source of molecular complexity unique to eukaryotes, primarily originate from introners. The origins of introns, segments of non-coding DNA…
Astronomers Find the Most Distant Stars in Milky Way’s Halo – Over 1,000,000 Light Years Away
A search for variable stars called RR Lyrae has found some of the most distant stars in the Milky Way’s halo a million light years…
Mucus Molecules Could Prevent Cholera
Utilizing these protective molecules could potentially provide a new approach to managing the illness, which is transmitted through contaminated water. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute…
Undetected Black Hole Reveals Itself by Violently Shredding a Star That Strayed Too Close
Scientists hope to improve their understanding of the growth of supermassive black holes in massive galaxies by studying intermediate-mass black holes. After lurking undetected in…
Global Map Reveals Where Fishing Vessels Turn Off Their Identification Devices – Sometimes for Illegal Activity
A new dataset of intentional disabling of Automatic Identification System devices by fishing vessels provides insights into illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing activity. To avoid…
Scientists Show Transmission of Epigenetic Memory Across Multiple Generations
Changing the epigenetic marks on chromosomes results in altered gene expression in offspring and in grandoffspring, demonstrating ‘transgenerational epigenetic inheritance.’ Without changing the genetic code…
First Theorized 70 Years Ago – “Rippled Beta Sheet” Created for the First Time
University of California, Santa Cruz, scientists report the creation of three crystal structures of periodic rippled beta sheets, a novel protein structure. A peculiar protein…
Chaos Is More Common in Populations Than Previously Thought
It’s possible that methodological and data restrictions, rather than ecosystems’ fundamental stability, are to blame for the notion that chaos is uncommon in natural populations….
Hidden Regions Revealed in First Complete Sequence of a Human Genome
Parts of the human genome now available to study for the first time are important for understanding genetic diseases, human diversity, and evolution. The first…
Compelling Sign of Alien Life: Methane Could Be the First Detectable Indication of Life Beyond Earth
A new study assesses the planetary context in which the detection of methane in an exoplanet’s atmosphere could be considered a compelling sign of life….
Tilting of Earth’s Crust Governed the Flow of Cataclysmic Megafloods at the End of the Last Ice Age
Study provides new perspective on Washington state’s Channeled Scablands, carved by the Missoula megafloods at the end of the last ice age. As ice sheets…
Astrophysicists Explain Puzzling Results From Gravitational Wave Observatories
Astrophysicists Explain the Origin of Unusually Heavy Neutron Star Binaries Simulations of supernova explosions of massive stars paired with neutron stars can explain puzzling results…
In Vitro Circadian Clock: Scientists Assemble a Biological Clock in a Test Tube To Study How It Works
The reconstituted biological clock maintains daily cycles for days on end, allowing researchers to study the interactions of its component parts. Daily cycles in virtually…
Touching the Stars: Astronomers Can Now Hold Stellar Nurseries in Their Hands
Researchers can now hold stellar nurseries in their hands thanks to 3D printing, revealing features often obscured in traditional renderings and animations. Astronomers can’t touch…
Radioactive New Clues to the Formation of Our Solar System From Nearby Stellar Nursery
The Ophiuchus star-forming complex offers an analog for the formation of the solar system, including the sources of elements found in primitive meteorites. A region…
Salt Marsh Resilience Compromised by Superabundant Crabs Along Tidal Creek Edges
A long-term study in California’s Elkhorn Slough revealed the impact of superabundant crabs on salt marsh vegetation and the vulnerability of tidal creek banks to…
Millions of Red Crab Would Sometimes Wash Ashore Leaving People Bewildered – Now Scientists Have Solved the Mystery
New findings suggest that abnormal ocean currents cause the occasional appearance of pelagic red crabs outside their native range. For decades, people have wondered why…
