In social species, the dominant individual is often called the alpha. Depending on the species, the alpha may be a male, a female, both or a pair. The alpha individual usually presents a certain behavior: dominant, assertive, brash and usually has privileged access to food, mates, or best space, while the other members of the […]
Genetic study offers new clues about tardigrades Tardigrades make very specific proteins that help their cells keep their shape even when there is no water present, helping explain why the tiny creatures can survive desiccation. The study also suggests that tardigrades, despite looking more like an arthropod, are closer relatives of nematodes. New Scientist Increased […]
Interfacial electron transfer constitutes the key step in the conversion of solar energy into electricity and fuels. Required for fast and efficient charge separation, strong donor−acceptor interaction is typically achieved through covalent chemical bonding…or not. Experiences with donor−acceptor molecular diads and triads, conjugated polymers, and DNA, leads to the expectation that a covalent bonding is […]
Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone and, in men, it plays a key role in the development of male reproductive tissues such as the testis and prostate, as well as promoting secondary sexual characteristics such as increased muscle and bone mass, and the growth of body hair. Testosterone increases in heterosexual men after having […]
Cows may help researchers develop vaccine for HIV Cows’ immune systems show an extraordinary ability to neutralize HIV and may help researchers develop a vaccine for humans. Scientists say cows’ unique digestive system may play a role in their ability to produce broadly neutralizing antibodies in response to HIV in just a few weeks. BBC […]
Extended and refined by Bloch and others during the 1930s, Bloch’s theory, known as the band theory of solids, accounts very well for the conducting behaviour of materials. When atoms are joined together into a crystal, each of the individual quantum states of the atoms joins with the corresponding states in other (identical) atoms in […]
We’ve known for decades there was a time when mammoths, saber-tooth cats, and other big mammals walked the Earth like it was no big deal. We also know that at some point of the Ice Age, a mass extinction made them disappear, leaving their fossils and their descendants as the only proof of their existence […]
Ravens can pre-plan, barter for rewards Ravens have the cognitive ability to plan ahead and barter for rewards. Researchers tested ravens in a series of experiments and found they performed better at those tasks than great apes or human children. National Geographic An ordinary star Our sun is just an ordinary star when compared with […]
Topological insulators are electronic materials that have a bulk band gap like an ordinary insulator but have conducting states on their edge or surface. The conducting surface is not what makes topological insulators unique, but the fact that it is protected due to the combination of spin-orbit interactions and time-reversal symmetry. Researchers are chasing efficient […]
Reference contains the following statement: “Ashtekar’s formulation of general relativity taught us to think of gravitational theories as theories of connections, on a bare manifold with no metric structure. […] The idea that general relativity has its deepest formulation as a connection theory suggested immediately a new approach to the unification of general relativity with […]