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Categories: Biology: Evolutionary, Physics: General

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Dinosaurs get all the glory. But aetosaurs, a heavily armored cousin of modern crocodiles, ruled the world before dinosaurs did. These tanks of the Triassic came in a variety of shapes and sizes before going extinct around 200 million years ago. Today, their fossils are found on every continent except Antarctica and Australia.

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Some soil bacteria can acquire sets of genes that enable them to pump the heavy metal nickel out of their systems, a study has found. This enables the bacteria to not only thrive in otherwise toxic soils but help plants grow there as well. A research team pinpointed a set of genes in wild soil bacteria that allows them to do this in serpentine soils which have naturally high concentrations of toxic nickel. The genetic discovery could help inform future bioremediation efforts that seek to return plants to polluted soils.

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Leafhoppers, a common backyard insect, secrete and coat themselves in tiny mysterious particles that could provide both the inspiration and the instructions for next-generation technology, according to a new study. In a first, the team precisely replicated the complex geometry of these particles, called brochosomes, and elucidated a better understanding of how they absorb both visible and ultraviolet light.

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Our eating habits in industrialized societies are far removed from those of ancient humans. This is impacting our intestinal flora, it seems, as newly discovered cellulose degrading bacteria are being lost from the human gut microbiome, especially in industrial societies.

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The development of hair was of central importance for the evolution of mammals and thus also of humans. However, the evolutionary origin of the genetic program of hair was previously unknown. Researchers have now been able to show that important hair components and their genetic control have already evolved in amphibians. Human hair therefore shows unexpected similarities to the claws of clawed frogs.

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Scientists have discovered how female Diadem butterflies have evolved to look like African Queen butterflies to repel predators.

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Scientists propose a groundbreaking theory for predicting melting points. The theory offers a universal description of melting lines across various material types. This discovery has significant implications for materials science and related fields.

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Scientists tested several hypotheses on the drivers of social aging in free-living Assamese macaques in Thailand. The researchers collected data on the social behavior of females for eight years and found that the size of their social networks decreases with increasing age. The females continued to interact with their close social partners, but gradually withdrew from social interactions altogether. The results contribute to the understanding of the evolutionary origins of social aging.

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Physicists achieve major leap in precision and accuracy at extremely low light levels.

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Researchers have discovered a new class of plasma oscillations -- the back-and-forth, wave-like movement of electrons and ions. The research paves the way for improved particle accelerators and commercial fusion energy.

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Electrical engineers have determined the theoretical fundamental limit for how much electromagnetic energy a transparent material with a given thickness can absorb. The finding will help engineers optimize devices designed to block certain frequencies of radiation while allowing others to pass through, for applications such as stealth or wireless communications.

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In examining the mating rituals of roundworms, researchers uncovered a unique approach to reproduction that maximizes genetic fitness.

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A team of engineers has proven that their analog computing device, called a memristor, can complete complex, scientific computing tasks while bypassing the limitations of digital computing.

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Materials that are incredibly thin, only a few atoms thick, exhibit unique properties that make them appealing for energy storage, catalysis and water purification. Researchers have now developed a method that enables the synthesis of hundreds of new 2D materials.

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The origin of heavy elements in our universe is theorized to be the result of neutron star collisions, which produce conditions hot and dense enough for free neutrons to merge with atomic nuclei and form new elements in a split-second window of time. Testing this theory and answering other astrophysical questions requires predictions for a vast range of masses of atomic nuclei. Scientists are using machine learning algorithms to successfully model the atomic masses of the entire nuclide chart -- the combination of all possible protons and neutrons that defines elements and their isotopes.

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Researchers have created a new material that uses 'redox gating' to control the movement of electrons in and out of a semiconducting material.

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Females of some whale species have evolved to live drastically longer lives so they can care for their families, new research shows.

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To advance neuromorphic computing, some researchers are looking at analog improvements -- advancing not just software, but hardware too. Research shows a promising new way to store and transmit information using disordered superconducting loops.

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Through steady advances in the development of quantum computers and their ever-improving performance, it will be possible in the future to crack our current encryption processes. To address this challenge, researchers are developing encryption methods that will apply physical laws to prevent the interception of messages. To safeguard communications over long distances, the QUICK space mission will deploy satellites.

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Scientists have identified the first unconventional superconductor with a chemical composition also found in nature.