In this new post, Yankun Zhu—Associate Professor at Sanming University, China—discusses his paper: Increased precipitation attenuates shrub encroachment by facilitating herbaceous growth in a Mongolian grassland—recently shortlisted for the 2022…
Category: Life
Monkey See, Monkey Think: Groundbreaking Study Reveals Primate’s Ability for Complex Decision-Making
Summary: Move over humans, monkeys can think deeply too! A novel study has shown that monkeys are capable of careful decision-making by considering costs, consequences, and constraints. Findings reveal our…
Inside the feeding behavior of a pollinivore – Functional Ecologists
In this new post, Laura Bellec—a new ecological researcher working at the Univ Rennes 1, Rennes, France—discusses her paper: Factors driving the within-plant patterns of resource exploitation in a herbivore—recently…
Early Indicators of Autism May Be Identified in Fetal Brain Scans
Summary: A study by King’s College researchers has identified a link between autism traits and isolated fetal ventriculomegaly – a common antenatal brain abnormality. Using MRI brain scans, the study…
Biofilms, an underrated yet important way of life – Functional Ecologists
In this new post, Hugo Sentenac, a PhD student at Labaoratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement (LEFE), Institut National Polytechnique de Toulouse, France, discusses his review paper: The significance of biofilms…
Stress Rapidly Increases Biological Age, but Recovery Turns Back the Clock
Summary: Stress can cause rapid and transient increases in biological age, which can be reversed upon recovery, according to a new study. Using DNA methylation clocks, researchers found that stress…
Sniffing Out the Mechanism Behind Parkinson’s Smell Loss
Summary: Up to 90% of patients report experiencing a diminished sense of smell, even prior to the onset of other symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. A new study reveals the mechanism…
Reality or Illusion? The Human Battle with Distinguishing Imagination from Reality
Summary: The more vividly we imagine something, the more likely we are to believe it’s real, a new study reports. Researchers found the brain encodes the vividness of perceived and…
Foraging for efficiency—morphological traits provide support for variations in performance of the feeding apparatus in coexisting Neotropical bats – Functional Ecologists
In this new post, David Villalobos Chaves, a PhD student at Department of Biology and Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA, discusses his…
