Science Quickly

They’re not born pregnant like tribbles, but swamp wallabies routinely get pregnant while pregnant. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ocean plastic gets covered with algae and other marine organisms, making it smell delicious to sea turtles—with potentially deadly results. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The growth layers in a 70-million-year-old clam shell indicate that a year back then had more than 370 days, with each day being only about 23.5 hours. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As oceans heat up, the ubiquitous noise of snapping shrimp should increase, posing issues for other species and human seagoing ventures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In an example of how sea noise can harm species, exposed shore crabs changed camouflaging color sluggishly and were slower to flee from simulated predators. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Studies on very old vegetation in the Amazon basin show active management hundreds of years ago on species such as Brazil nut and cocoa trees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

By breaking 900 classical piano compositions into musical chunks, researchers could track Ludwig van Beethoven’s influence on the composers who followed him. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here are a few brief reports about science and technology from around the world, including one from off the California coast about the first heart rate measurement done on a blue whale. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Increasing or decreasing the altitude of aircraft by a few thousand feet to avoid thin layers of humidity could make a major reduction to contrails’ contribution to climate change. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inbreeding in Thoroughbreds has increased significantly in the past 45 years, with the greatest rise occurring in the past 15 or so of them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hippos that escaped from drug kingpin Pablo Escobar’s private zoo are reproducing in the wild. And with increasing numbers, they could threaten ecosystems. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Art created by Australian Aboriginal people used organic carbon-free pigments, but wasp nests above or below the art can be used for radiocarbon dating that supplies boundaries for the age of artworks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ice cores from a Tibetan glacier reveal the first deposits of industrial revolution pollution, starting in layers dated to about 1780. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new study in mice concludes stress can cause gray hair—and credits overactive nerves with the change in hue. Karen Hopkin reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A very fine grind can actually hamper espresso brewing, because particles may clump more than larger particles will. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most feral dogs that did not run away from humans were able to respond to hand cues about the location of food—even without training. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neandertals ate clams and then modified the hard shells into tools for cutting and scraping. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Whiskeys claimed to be from the 19th century are revealed to be made with much more recently grown barley, thanks to the unique isotopic fingerprint of the nuclear-testing era. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

By outfitting 169 albatrosses with GPS data loggers, scientists were able to track fishing boats apparently trying to hide their location. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here are a few brief reports about international science and technology from around the world, including one from the Democratic Republic of the Congo about a toad that has evolved coloring that makes it look like a deadly snake’s head. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Groundhogs are less accurate at weather forecasting than are coin flips, but they are nonetheless pretty interesting critters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One hypothesis says the ability to vocalize arose in nocturnal animals—and a new evolutionary analysis suggests there may be some truth to it. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Well more than 100 distinct sign languages exist worldwide, with each having features that made it possible for researchers to create an evolutionary tree of their lineages. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Researchers dialed down the default number of opioids in two hospitals’ prescription systems—and doctors ended up prescribing fewer pills. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some wolf pups will play fetch with a stranger, suggesting that an ability to playfully interact with people could have come before, and played a role in, dog domestication. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

By listening to the sounds of the forest, biologists were able to identify an invasion of barred owls in spotted owl habitat. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The cat parasite Toxoplasma gondii boosts curiosity in mice—which makes them more likely to be caught by cats, thus continuing the parasite’s life cycle. Karen Hopkin reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The remora clings to other fish—and appears to use an unusual sense of touch to do so. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mussels and crabs are two of the creatures most likely to invade Antarctica in the next 10 years, a panel of scientists say. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Soil bacteria may have taken residence in early algal species, gifting the algae with the ability to withstand drier conditions on land. Annie Sneed reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Murchison meteorite, which screamed to Earth 50 years ago, carried with it stardust that's seven billion years old. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hunted areas of Gabon have fewer large mammals and a thicker forest understory—but they also have fewer termites. Jason G. Goldman reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The starfish relatives can recognize patterns using photoreceptors on their arms—and their color-changing abilities could have something to do with it. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Scientists observed two Atlantic puffins using sticks to scratch themselves—the first known instance of seabirds using tools. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2019 New York Yankees’ record number of injuries led to a change in training staff that will almost certainly correlate with, but not necessarily cause, a lower injury rate this coming season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A few brief reports about international science and technology from Indonesia to Spain, including one from Brazil about the highest-voltage electric eel ever discovered. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In South Africa archaeologists found the charred remains of a roasted root vegetable. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Getting around the sun last year was some trip. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

By comparing how DNA gets altered over the lifetimes of people and dogs, researchers came up with a new way to compare canine years with human years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Research suggests people value gifts more when they have to unwrap them. But how do we avoid all the wasted paper? Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Human hair tested stronger than thicker fibers from elephants, boars and giraffes, providing clues to materials scientists hoping to make superstrong synthetic fibers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Certain species of bacteria and fungi seem to proliferate on dandruff-ridden scalps. The reason is a little more mysterious. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tiger moth species that contain bad-tasting and toxic compounds are nonchalant in the presence of bats, while edible moth species evade their predators. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In shallow waters off the coast of Israel, archaeologists have found entire villages—including one with a sunken seawall. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here’s an argument that citizen scientists deserve co-authorship on scientific journal papers to which they contributed research. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While some hydropower facilities release almost no greenhouse gases, others can actually be worse than burning fossil fuels. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in certain zip codes are more likely to purchase products that flop, buy homes that are poor investments and pick political candidates who lose. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Residents of an overwintering station in Antarctica provided linguists with evidence of the first small changes in speech that may signal the development of a new accent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Archaeologists unearthed wood from a Roman villa when digging Rome’s subway—and scientists determined the planks came all the way from France. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The white bellbird of the Amazon may be the loudest bird in the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices