University of California

2025-08-15 @ 16.51.41 ∈ In English

Arctic reindeer populations could decline by 80% by 2100

[Future] climatic change is likely to cause declines in reindeer abundances and their distribution at rates rarely seen over the last 21,000 years. […] The research team identified populations in North America as being particularly vulnerable.

2025-05-07 @ 11.03.52 ∈ In English

A recently-discovered termite terminator is better, more targeted and won’t harm humans

UC Riverside researchers have found [a chemical preventing drywood termites from growing new exoskeletons. The chemical, bistrifluron is able to kill about 95% of a termite colony without off-target effects on mammals.]

2024-12-18 @ 16.40.26 ∈ In English

Carnivorous squirrels documented in California

Through videos, photos and direct observations at the regional park, the authors documented California ground squirrels of all ages and genders hunting, eating and competing over vole prey between June 10 and July 30.

2024-12-10 @ 10.40.33 ∈ In English

Dogs use two-word button combos to communicate, study shows

A new study from UC San Diego’s Comparative Cognition Lab shows that dogs trained to use soundboards to “talk” are capable of making two-word button combinations that go beyond random behavior or simple imitation of their owners.

2024-11-11 @ 13.30.19 ∈ In English

How gophers brought Mount St. Helens back to life in one day

When Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, lava incinerated anything living for miles around. As an experiment, scientists later dropped gophers onto parts of the scorched mountain for only 24 hours. The benefits from that single day were undeniable—and still visible 40 years later.

2024-10-10 @ 12.27.30 ∈ In English

Carefully exposing children to more misinformation can make them better fact-checkers, study suggests

Researchers found that the children who were the most diligent about fact-checking […] claims were also the ones who saw more false claims […] earlier in the study. Meanwhile, those who had more reliable environments with fewer false claims earlier in the study did almost no fact-checking.

2024-10-10 @ 12.17.51 ∈ In English

The ‘Beautiful Confusion’ of the First Billion Years Comes Into View | Quanta Magazine

Astronomers are reveling in the James Webb Space Telescope’s discoveries about the formative epoch of cosmic history.

2024-08-23 @ 11.15.44 ∈ In English

Mosquitoes sense infrared from body heat to help track humans down, study shows

Infrared radiation from a source roughly the temperature of human skin doubled the insects' overall host-seeking behavior when combined with CO2 and human odor. […] It's only in the context of other cues, such as elevated CO2 and human odor that IR makes a [difference;] infrared alone has no impact.

2024-04-03 @ 16.14.06 ∈ In English

After 10 years of work, landmark study reveals new ‘tree of life’ for all birds living today

The largest-ever study of bird genomes has produced a remarkably clear picture of the bird family tree. Published in the journal Nature today, our study shows that most of the modern groups of birds first appeared within 5 million years after the extinction of the dinosaurs.

2024-02-12 @ 19.12.24 ∈ In English

New study on decomposing microbes could help transform forensic science

For the first time, researchers have identified what appears to be a network of approximately 20 microbes that universally drive the decomposition of animal flesh. The findings have significant implications for the future of forensic science, including the potential to provide crime scene investigators with a more precise way to determine a body’s time of death.