Fasciculations (muscle twitches) are the result of some kind of irritability of the nerve fibers. Because fasciculations are benign, they have not been studied particularly deeply (but, not all involuntary muscle twitches are fasciculations--more on that later). So we do not really know even where in the nerve the irritation is picked up--it could be in the cell body, could be further out in the fibers, nobody really knows. It is also thought that the exact localization of the fasciculation is random, meaning that you will feel a twitch in your arm or leg or eyelid without having necessarily irritated a nerve anywhere near the place you experience the twitch.

Causes are also only loosely understood; there are certain behaviors that can trigg ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=327-bwMQI-Y&feature=youtu.be

This tongue eating fish parasite is one of the creepiest and most disturbing creatures around.

This frog (Breviceps namaquensis) sounds like a bike horn.

This is supernova remnant W49B. It is located about 26,000 light-years from Earth, and as we see it it is approximately 1,000 years old. Compared to other supernova remnants of similar type and age, it is distorted in an usual way. Astronomers believe that it is distorted because it is in the infant stages of of forming a black hole -- the very first time this has been observed.

Sunda pangolins have become the most frequently seized mammal in the illegal wildlife trade in Asia, as smugglers sell the creatures to meet culinary and medicinal demand. These gentle insectivores are now on the endangered species list.

This is the pygmy marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea), the smallest known monkey in the world.

They are found in western Brazil, southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, and northern Bolivia and they typically live in the understory of the rain forest near rivers. Males weigh around 140 grams (4.9 oz), and females only 120 grams (4.2 oz).

A Taiwan-based company has built a transparent smartphone with a multi-touch display from a light piece of glass. Although it's still a prototype, the executives have mentioned the transparent smartphone could arrive in late 2013.

Gallium is a silvery metal with atomic number 31. It is used in semiconductors and LEDs, but the cool thing about it is its melting point, which is only about 85 degrees Fahrenheit. If you hold a solid gallium crystal in your hand, your body heat will cause it to slowly melt into a silvery metallic puddle. Pour it into a dish, and it freezes back into a solid.

While you probably should not lick your fingers after playing with it, gallium is not toxic and it will not make you crazy like mercury does. And if you get tired of it, you can melt it onto glass and make yourself a mirror. ...

This is the fruit of the Halla tree (Pandanus tectorius). The tree grows to 4–14 m (13–46 ft) tall and is found from Port Macquarie in New South Wales to northern Queensland, Australia and Indonesia east through the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean to Hawaii. The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked and is a major source of food in Micronesia.


...

At first, it just looks like a worm. But when you peek closer, it slithers like a snake. It sticks its tongue out like a snake. It creeps you out like a snake.

Discovered under a rock in 2006 in Barbados, this thread snake is as thin as spaghetti and smaller than any of the 3,100 other known snake species. Researchers believe it is the smallest a snake can evolve to be.

This fantastic minifox is a desert dweller who weighs in around 3 lb. (1.4 kg) and stretches just beyond a foot (30 cm), not counting its uniquely gigantic ears, which can measure almost half its body length. The smallest of all the world\'s foxes, the fennec burrows away during the day and scavenges for insects and fruit at night. Its huge ears emit body heat and help it keep cool among the dunes of the Sahara and elsewhere in North Africa. Some locals hunt the fennec for its fur, while others capitalize on its cuteness in the pet trade. ...

Here are some adorable images of macaw parrot chicks getting weighed and measured. The one on the left is just one week old, and the one on the right is seven weeks old.

Researchers at the Tambopata Research Center have been studying the wild macaw populations for years and tracking the growth of the nestlings. By climbing up into the trees and gathering data on these macaws, the researchers are able to do a lot of interesting science and gather information critical to protecting these species. ...