Cool Science
Odd DNA eating creatures, stressful relaxation and a leggy bug all made our picks this week. Check these out.
Creature Skips Sex, Eats DNA
The tiny, all-female bdelloid rotifers have endured the past 80 million years without sex. New research shows that gobbling up foreign DNA from other simple life-forms might be the asexual animal’s secret to survival. <br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24856-odd-little-creature-skips-sex-and-eats-dna.html>'Odd Little Creature' Skips Sex and Eats DNA</a>]
Tycho Brahe Died from Pee
Two years after Tycho Brahe was exhumed from his grave in Prague, chemical analyses of his corpse show that mercury poisoning did not kill the prolific 16th-century astronomer. The results should put to bed rumors that Brahe was murdered when he most likely died of a burst bladder.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24835-astronomer-tycho-brahe-death.html>Tycho Brahe Died from Pee, Not Poison</a>]
Relaxing Is … Stressful?
Deep breaths, yoga, a lazy day at the beach: While some may find those activities soothing, their mere mention can set other people’s nerves on edge.<br><br> Now, a new method may help therapists measure just how much relaxing stresses people out. The new tool, which will be presented Saturday (Nov. 16) at the annual convention of the Association of Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies, should help therapists know when to say “breathe in…” and when to steer clear of relaxation techniques.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24826-relaxation-stressful.html>Relaxing Is Stressful for Some</a>]
Why We See Jesus’ Face in Toast
Humans spend so much time looking at each other that it’s perhaps no surprise we see faces where they’re not — on trees, clouds, the surface of Mars and, of course, toast. But some people tend to see faces more than others and a strong belief in religion or the supernatural may be the culprit, a new small study suggests.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24814-why-we-see-jesus-face-in-toast.html>Why We See Jesus' Face in Toast</a>]
Animals Have Moral Compass
Does Mr. Whiskers really love you or is he just angling for treats?<br><br> Until recently, scientists would have said your cat was snuggling up to you only as a means to get tasty treats. But many animals have a moral compass, and feel emotions such as love, grief, outrage and empathy, a new book argues.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24802-animals-have-morals-book.html>Animals Are Moral Creatures, Scientist Argues</a>]
Skunk Scares Off Cougar
A skunk-versus-cougar face-off was caught on film by a camera trap in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, Canada.<br><br> “The cougar was looking at the skunk like it might be lunch, and the skunk was looking at cougar like ‘you’re going to regret this decision,’” said Dennis Madsen, resource conservation manager for the park, who helps manage the hidden cameras. “The cougar chose the path of wisdom and decided to go elsewhere,” Madsen told OurAmazingPlanet.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24794-skunk-cougar-camera-trap.html>Skunk Scares Off Cougar in Camera Trap Photo</a>]
Leggiest Milipede Crowned
The world’s leggiest creature on record is even more bizarre than its 750 wiggling limbs attest, according to new research.<br><br> The white millipede named lllacme plenipes (Latin for “the pinnacle plentiful feet”) and found only in a small area of Northern California wowed researchers with its unusually complex build in such a tiny package — it measures 0.4-1.2 inches (1-3 centimeters) long.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24765-750-leg-millipede-leggiest-animal.html>Millipede's 750 Wiggling Legs Snag World Record</a>]
Edible Deodorant?
There’s already an industry devoted to stifling bad breath with minty candy, but a new sweet claims to bring the fight to your underarms.<br><br> Deo Perfume Candy “will not only taste good, but after consuming, will transmit an attractive rose fragrance through the skin,” according to the website of Beneo, a Belgium-based company that helped develop the product.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24786-edible-deodorant.html>Does 'Edible Deodorant' Pass the Smell Test?</a>]
Unconscious Brain Can Do Math
People can process short sentences and solve equations before they’re aware of the words and numbers in front of their eyes, finds new research that suggests we might not actually need full consciousness to perform rule-based tasks like reading and arithmetic.<br><br> In a series of experiments at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, more than 300 student participants were unconsciously exposed to words and equations through a research technique known as Continuous Flash Suppression (CFS). With this method, a static image appears in front of one eye while rapidly changing pictures flash in front of the other eye. The changing pictures dominate awareness at first, letting the still image register subliminally before popping into consciousness.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24774-consciousness-reading-math.html>The Unconscious Brain Can Do Math, Read</a>]
Why Men Like Petraeus Cheat
An admitted affair has crumbled the career of CIA Director David Petraeus, prompting the evergreen question: Why do people with so much to lose risk it all for sex?<br><br> In the last few years alone, several public figures, from former Rep. Anthony Weiner to action star and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, have admitted to straying from their marital vows. In Petraeus’ case, a miscalculation of risk may have contributed to the decision to cheat, psychologists say.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24725-why-petraeus-risked-all-infidelity.html>Why Men Like Petraeus Risk It All to Cheat</a>]
Y Chromosome an Evolutionary Marvel
The Y chromosome may have gotten a bad rap. Despite the claim that this male sex chromosome is mostly junk, new research suggests it’s actually a lean, mean, highly evolved machine for producing the fittest males possible.<br><br> The findings, presented Friday (Nov. 9) here at the American Society of Human Genetics’ annual meeting, dispute the notion that historically most men in a generation have not passed on their genes while a few lucky guys fathered hordes of children.<br><br> [Full Story: <a href=http://www.livescience.com/24718-y-chromosome-not-junk.html>Guys, Your Y Chromosome Is an Evolutionary Marvel</a>]
Coolest Science Stories of the Week
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