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Categories: Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Offbeat: Plants and Animals

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In a groundbreaking study an international team of scientists has investigated the evolutionary patterns behind the development of sabre teeth, with some unexpected results along the way.

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Researchers have investigated how spiders listen to their environments through webs and found that the webs match the acoustic particle velocity for a wide range of sound frequencies. Playing sound ranging from 1 Hz to 50 kHz for the spiders and measuring the spider silk motion with a laser vibrometer, they found the sound-induced velocity of the silk was the same as the particles in the air surrounding it. This confirmed the mechanism that these spiders use to detect their prey.

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Sarcasm is notoriously tricky to convey through text, and the subtle changes in tone that convey sarcasm often confuse computer algorithms as well, limiting virtual assistants and content analysis tools. So researchers have now developed a multimodal algorithm for improved sarcasm detection that examines multiple aspects of audio recordings for increased accuracy. They used two complementary approaches -- sentiment analysis using text and emotion recognition using audio -- for a more complete picture.

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What features does a robotic guide dog need? Ask the blind, say researchers. A new study identifies how to develop robot guide dogs with insights from guide dog users and trainers.

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Scientists have discovered that colonies of gelatinous sea animals swim through the ocean in giant corkscrew shapes using coordinated jet propulsion, an unusual kind of locomotion that could inspire new designs for efficient underwater vehicles.

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Eurasian jays can remember incidental details of past events, which is characteristic of episodic memory in humans, according to a new study.

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A team of researchers has developed a drone that flies autonomously using neuromorphic image processing and control based on the workings of animal brains. Animal brains use less data and energy compared to current deep neural networks running on GPUs (graphic chips). Neuromorphic processors are therefore very suitable for small drones because they don't need heavy and large hardware and batteries. The results are extraordinary: during flight the drone's deep neural network processes data up to 64 times faster and consumes three times less energy than when running on a GPU. Further developments of this technology may enable the leap for drones to become as small, agile, and smart as flying insects or birds.

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In the emperor penguin courtship call, male vocalizations are composed of long, slow bursts with lower frequency tones than the female version. But calls of SeaWorld San Diego male penguin E-79 defied this binary. Also unusual was this penguin's male companion, E-81. The pair 'kept company' and sometimes exhibited ritual courtship displays. Researchers studied the courtship calls of E-79 and E-81, recording the birds in their below-freezing enclosure and refining the usual technique for analyzing the bursts.

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When tiger beetles hear a bat nearby, they respond by creating a high-pitched, ultrasonic noise, and for the past 30 years, no one has known why. In a new study, scientists lay the mystery to rest by showing that tiger beetles use ultrasonic warning signals that mimic those of toxic moths.

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Research could pave the way for a prosthetic hand and robot to be able to feel touch like a human hand. The technology could also be used to help restore lost functionality to patients after a stroke.

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The research cracks the code on the iconic baobab tree's origin story, revealing their surprising origins in Madagascar and incredible long-distance dispersals to Africa and Australia. The study unveils how baobabs developed unique pollination mechanisms -- some attracting hawkmoths, others lemurs, and even bats -- showcasing remarkable evolutionary adaptations. The research sheds light on how climate change has shaped the baobab's distribution and diversification over millions of years, offering valuable insights for understanding plant responses to future environmental shifts.

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What makes the oldfield mouse steadfastly monogamous throughout its life while its closest rodent relatives are promiscuous? The answer may be a previously unknown hormone-generating cell. Scientists discover the cells and hormones that inspire mice to nurture their young; the same hormones are also present in humans.

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The ability to regulate body temperature, a trait all mammals and birds have today, may have evolved among some dinosaurs early in the Jurassic period about 180 million years ago. The new study looked at the spread of dinosaurs across different climates on Earth throughout the Mesozoic Era (the dinosaur era lasting from 230 to 66 million years ago), drawing on 1,000 fossils, climate models and the geography of the period, and dinosaurs' evolutionary trees.

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Japanese washi paper is renowned for its aesthetic beauty and its wide-array of usages. Now, a group of researchers have made a green composite material from washi which boasts a 60% increase in strength as well as being more biodegradable. They hope that their research will revive interest in this traditional craft.

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Would you trust a robot to look after your cat? New research suggests it takes more than a carefully designed robot to care for your cat, the environment in which they operate is also vital, as well as human interaction.

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The Giant Hummingbird of western South America is not one species but two, according to an international group of researchers. The northern population stays in the high Andes year-round while the southern population migrates from sea level up to 14,000 feet for the nonbreeding months.

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A way to curb nagging insects has been flying under our radar -- an enzyme from fruit fly testes. The compound could control bugs that carry disease and harm crops by stunting their ability to procreate, researchers have found.

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Scientists have established a system to generate clonal sex cells in tomato plants and used them to design the genomes of offspring. The fertilization of a clonal egg from one parent by a clonal sperm from another parent led to plants containing the complete genetic information of both parents.

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Actually, sometimes consumers don't want to talk to a real person when they're shopping online, a new study suggests. In fact, what they really want is a chatbot that makes it clear that it is not human at all. In a new study, researchers found that people preferred interacting with chatbots when they felt embarrassed about what they were buying online -- items like antidiarrheal medicine or, for some people, skin care products.

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Molecular biologists provide exciting insights into the bristles of the marine annelid worm Platynereis dumerilii. Specialized cells, so-called chaetoblasts, control the formation of the bristles. Their mode of operation is astonishingly similar to that of a technical 3D printer.