ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 715

Endangered Ferrets Born From Insemination With 20-Year-Old Semen

Plants and Animals





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The two-month-old black-footed ferret (on the right) is the result of artificial insemination with semen collected from a male that died in 1997. Jessie Cohen/Smithsonian’s National Zoo

They used to roam right across the Great Plains of America, hunting the prairie dogs that made up the vast majority of their diet. But in the early 1980s, the black-footed ferret was reduced to just a few dozen individuals and so the decision was made to take them all into captivity and start a breeding program. It got to the point where there were only 18 in existence, so alongside breeding the ferrets conventionally and using insemination of fresh semen, the choice was also taken to freeze some of the remaining males' sperm.

Low-Fat Diets Could Be Better For Weight Loss Than Cutting Carbs

Health and Medicine





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Fat vs carbs, which is better? Kevin Hall

Well, this is certain to ruffle a few feathers. A new study claims that, when it comes to losing body fat, it’s better to cut fat from your diet rather than carbs. Let the games commence.

Mad Cow Disease Protein May Play A Role In Depression

The Brain





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Mikael Damkier/Shutterstock

Stigma may continue to prevail, but depression remains the most common mental illness worldwide, affecting some 350 million people. While treatable, there is still considerable confusion over its origins. In all likelihood, there is no single cause, but one of the leading ideas is that it results from an imbalance of chemicals in the brain, namely the “happy” hormone serotonin and the “pleasure” hormone dopamine.

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Mussel-Inspired Glue Adheres To Slippery Surfaces Submerged In Saltwater

Plants and Animals





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Mussels. Jonathan Wilker.

Despite waves and strong currents, creatures like mussels and barnacles stay cemented on rocks in the splash zone as well as on the pillars of piers and bottoms of boats thanks to their naturally endowed super stickiness. Now, researchers trying to better understand wet adhesion have turned to a molecule produced by bacteria. They discovered an effective combo of substances that can help “prime” underwater surfaces for an adherence that rivals that of mussels: The amino acid lysine acts as a primer for an adhesive chemical compound called catechol.

Electric Motorways Could Charge Electric Cars On The Go

Technology





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Electric car charging station. Matej Kastelic/Shutterstock

England will begin testing an electric highway that will allow owners of electric and hybrid cars to charge while they’re on the go. These trials are the first of their kind in the country and could help boost the uptake of electric cars.

Ant Body Odors Are Chemical Barcodes Used To Confirm The Identity Of Colony Members

Plants and Animals





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This is a colony of Camponotus floridanus ants with major and minor workers taking care of the brood. Juergen Leibig

Ant colonies can be very crowded spaces that require elaborate forms of cooperation. While some are nursing, others are collecting food and protecting the nest. And then there are strangers and intruders. Researchers trying to understand how individuals identify fellow members of their colony have discovered that there’s a distinct ant body odor that separates family and friends from foes. The findings are published in Cell Reports this week. 

Dr. Peter Boghossian: Changing Minds

Dr. Peter Boghossian is a philosopher and author of the book, “A Manual for Creating Atheists.” He spends a few minutes discussing the best ways to approach believers to “disabuse them of their faith.”

Can Genetics Find A ‘Cure’ For Autism?

Health and Medicine





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Writing out a cure? genes by gopixa/shutterstock.com

We live in an age of genetics. Major genetic success stories such as breakthroughs in treating cystic fibrosis and breast cancer inspire hope that it can one day provide a cure for all ills. So when we hear that mental disorders are at least partially genetically determined, we may wonder what progress is being made.

What Has Nuclear Physics Ever Given Us?

Physics





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A simulated event in the CMS detector of the Large Hadron Collider, featuring a possible appearance of the Higgs boson. Lucas Taylor/Wikipedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0

This year marks the 103rd anniversary of the birth of nuclear physics, when Ernest Rutherford, Hans Geiger and Ernest Marsden’s experiments at the University of Manchester led them to conclude that atoms consist of tiny, positively-charged nuclei orbited by negatively-charged electrons.