One of the first phrases that Washoe, a chimpanzee who was taught sign language, and Alex, a gray parrot capable of constructing simple expressions, learned was "you tickle me." Primates and some birds are not the only animals with whom we share this feeling.
The stripes and spots on feline fur evolve rapidly, giving rise to a variety of patterns that help these animals to camouflage themselves in their habitat, suggests a British study from the University of Bristol published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B '.
Between 1998 and 2007 a team of Spanish scientists followed the brown bears of the Cantabrian Mountains to verify their hibernation. The results confirm that emancipated bears with cubs and cubs less than two years old do not hibernate.
It is a question of security. In the 1950s, the de Havilland company found that the in-flight accidents suffered by its Comet jets, equipped with large windows, were due to the fuselage breaking at the corners of the windows due to metal fatigue.
Researchers who used a remote-controlled helicopter to collect whale snot, and others who demonstrated that cursing makes you feel better when you hurt your foot, are among the winners of the IgNobel awards given each year by the "Journal of Improbable Research" .
Cape ground squirrels (Xerus inauris) frequently practice masturbation. Jane Waterman has studied these animals in Namibia and has concluded that they do it to reduce the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases.
Scientists have known for decades that time passes faster in a rocket than at ground level, a curious aspect of the theory of relativity. Now, a team of physicists has shown that this effect causes us to age faster when we climb a ladder.
Danni Büchner is invited to Sam Dylan's Halloween party. But the "Goodbye Germany" emigrant has no desire for many other party guests. And find clear words.
