Technology to preserve biodiversity and more…
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
5d ago
Bits of Bennu have building blocks of life NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission took six years to travel to the asteroid Bennu and return samples to Earth. Now, the first results from the analysis of these rocks are being released. Researchers found evidence of salty water, as well as the elements necessary for life, such as amino acids and the building blocks for RNA and DNA. We spoke with Kim Tait, senior curator of mineralogy at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, and co-author of one of the recent studies, published in the journal Nature. Unlocking the secret of Polar bear de-icing Polar bears spen ..read more
Visit website
Solving mysteries in our solar system, and more
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
1w ago
Reintroducing Hawaii’s sacred crow to the wild The world’s most endangered crow, the Hawaiian crow or or ʻalalā, is making tentative steps towards a comeback. After going extinct in the wild, only 120 birds remain in captivity, in two facilities operated by the San Diego Zoo. Over the years, researchers have attempted reintroductions in the bird's native habitat on the Big Island of Hawaii, but those efforts have all been unsuccessful. Recently, the team tried something different - reintroducing the birds to a different island than their native home. The initial release happened in October and ..read more
Visit website
Climate scientists as physicians of the planet, and more
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
2w ago
Ancient human ancestors didn’t eat meat, and so couldn’t build big brains One of the main reasons scientists think we became so smart is because at some point in our evolutionary past, our ancestors started eating energy-dense meat to fuel the growth of large brains. However it hasn’t been clear when this started. Using a new technology, scientists were able to analyze the tooth enamel of seven 3.5 million year old Australopithecines to directly measure their meat consumption. Tina Lüdecke, from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, said it revealed they were primarily herbivores so meat eat ..read more
Visit website
How crocheted hats help scientists learn about cats, and more
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
3w ago
Was Rome’s fall due to heavy metal poisoning making Romans dumber? Ice cores that preserve traces of atmospheric pollutants through history have revealed that industrial activity by Romans – particularly the use and production of lead – meant the air the Romans breathed was heavily contaminated. The levels were high enough to cause neurological problems, including a drop in cognitive function across the population. Joe McConnell and his team at the Desert Research Institute published their findings in the journal PNAS. Bats are surfing storms to make migration easier Migrating bats in Europe ..read more
Visit website
Our Listener Question Show
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
1M ago
Genevieve Willis from London, Ontario asks: Is there any evidence to suggest that “getting cold” by, say, dressing inadequately in cold weather, or sitting in a cold draft, actually increases our susceptibility to illness? For the frigid answer, we spoke with Michael Kennedy who is an associate professor of exercise physiology at the University of Alberta.  Jim Raso from St. Albert Alberta wrote us: My question has to do with our sense of time passing. As I have gotten older – I am 73 now –  I noticed that time seemed to pass more quickly.  Why does this happen? For the answer ..read more
Visit website
Silly seals sabotage serious science and more…
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
1M ago
Some optimistic and positive science news to end the year. For rats, anticipation of a pleasurable event is a pleasure in itself  One day early in the pandemic, behavioural neuroscientist Kelly Lambert from the University of Richmond went to check on her rats. The rats responded with excitement when they saw her, anticipating the treats they were about to receive. That inspired her to pivot her research to study the effects that anticipating pleasurable experiences could have on the brain. She’s found in research that has yet to be published, that building in anticipation periods before ..read more
Visit website
Our holiday science book show
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
1M ago
How ancient artifacts emerge from melting ice As Earth’s glaciers and ice sheets melt due to global warming, they are revealing rare archaeological treasures released from a frozen time capsule. These objects are often made of organic material – human and animal remains and wooden tools that only survive in ice. In her book, The Age of Melt: What glaciers, ice mummies, and ancient artifacts teach us about climate, culture, and a future without ice, Lisa Baril tells the story of the archaeologists searching for these valuable artifacts, and what they’re finding. Baril is an ecologist and scienc ..read more
Visit website
The Human Cell Atlas: ‘Google Maps’ for our bodies, and more…
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
1M ago
A NASA probe is going to touch the Sun for Christmas The Parker Solar Probe is going to be making its closest approach to our Sun on Dec. 24, diving at 800,000 km/h into the corona of our star and getting within 6.5 million kilometers to the solar surface. It’s the culmination of a successful mission during which the probe has measured the solar wind and flown through solar storms. We speak with C. Alex Young, the Associate Director for Science Communication in the Heliophysics Division at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center about the highlights of the mission and what’s next for the intrepid s ..read more
Visit website
Hacking photosynthesis — how we'll improve on Mother Nature
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
2M ago
Early people in North America had mammoth appetites The people of the Clovis culture, who lived across Ice Age North America 13,000 years ago, left behind many tools and artifacts that suggest they were skilled hunters. And now chemical analysis of the incredibly rare find of bones of a Clovis child has given us the first direct evidence of what they were eating. The research, co-led by James Chatters of McMaster University, revealed they were “super-carnivores” whose diet mostly consisted of mammoth meat, with elk and bison/camel showing up as well. By specializing in hunting megafauna, this ..read more
Visit website
Exploring the limits of human longevity, and more
Quirks and Quarks
by CBC
2M ago
What the dinosaurs left behind tells the story of their rise to dominance Bones aren’t the only thing we can use to understand the dinosaurs. A new study of a rich trove of fossilized feces and vomit is telling the story of how dinosaurs diversified and came to dominate the planet starting 230 million years ago. Paleontologist Martin Qvarnström from Uppsala University in Sweden said it appears that the secret to dinosaurs’ success is in their ability to adapt to their changing environment. Their research is published in the journal Nature.  A new kind of ‘walking’ shorts could help with ..read more
Visit website

Follow Quirks and Quarks on FeedSpot

Continue with Google
Continue with Apple
OR