Researchers have discovered which bacteria species are most commonly found in our bellybuttons, but have still not discovered what governs which species will be found on which people. These are the first published findings of the Belly Button Biodiversity project led by NC State’s Dr. Rob Dunn. The researchers swabbed the belly buttons of 66
Seedless watermelons aren’t seedless. They have those little white seeds that don’t have hard black shells, like the seeds in seeded watermelons. How do they do that? Glad you asked! In seeded watermelons, the seed develops its hard seed coat (or testa) once it is fertilized. But, because seeds in seedless watermelons cannot be fertilized,
At first glance, the vibrantly colored and patterned butterflies living in Central and South America wouldn’t seem to have much in common with that notorious beast of burden – the mule. In a paper published last week in Nature, though, researchers found that different species of Heliconius butterflies use interbreeding to acquire colorful wing patterns
Scientists trying to save eastern hemlock trees from widespread insect attacks may have uncovered a case of déjà vu, dating back millennia. “Our hypothesis is that 7,000 to 8,000 years ago, insects hammered the eastern hemlock in a similar way to how it’s being hammered now,” says Kevin Potter, lead researcher on a paper published
Bed bugs have garnered a lot of attention over the past few years, including coverage from mainstream media outlets (e.g., a search of the New York Times website for “bed bugs” calls up 4,270 mentions over the past 12 months). But their high profile has not led to a commensurate increase in related research. Bed
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