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How does our vision compare to some animals?
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Do animals see the same way we do? Do some animals have better vision than humans? The senses of animals have evolved to give members of the species an optimum chance for survival. Here are a few examples: Some animals, such as cats, have a reflective surface ( tapetum) on the back of the eye behind the sensory receptors (left image above). When light first enters the eye, some light is detected by the sensory receptors. The light not detected by the sensory receptors continues onto the reflective surface at the back of the eye. This light is then reflected outward toward the sensory receptors, providing a second opportunity for detection. This feature produces two results. First, the outward reflection results in the shining of the cat's ey ...
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14741 |
Biology Forums |
7 months ago |
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Are human-chimpanzee hybrids possible?
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The idea that a chimpanzee and human can interbreed, forming a hypothetical hybrid species known as a humanzee, is not uncommon. Since chimpanzees and humans are closely related species (sharing 95% of their DNA sequence, and 98% of coding DNA sequences), it has lead to contested speculation that a hybrid is possible, though no specimen has ever been confirmed. While there is a commonality in gene sequence between us and chimpanzees, humans still have one fewer pair of chromosomes (46 chromosomes) than other apes (48 chromosomes). This makes conception between the two species naturally impossible. However, a different numbers of chromosomes is not an absolute barrier to hybridization. Similar mismatches are relatively common in existing spec ...
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1025 |
bio_man |
5 years ago |
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An essential bone lost
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Despite slang terms that imply otherwise, the human penis contains no bones. The same cannot be said for many of our closest evolutionary relatives: Chimpanzees and bonobos both have penis bones (a macaque one is pictured, left), also known as bacula. To find out why some primates have the feature whereas others don’t, researchers traced the bone’s evolutionary history through time. The baculum first evolved between 145 million and 95 million years ago, as reported in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B. That means it was present in the most recent common ancestor of all primates and carnivores. Why some descendants, like humans, lost their bacula appears to be due to differences in mating practices: In primates, the presence of a penis ...
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16521 |
duddy |
6 years ago |
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When apes sue humans
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In December 2013, four captive chimpanzees in the state of New York became the first nonhuman primates in history to sue their human captors in an attempt to gain their freedom. The chimps' lawyers, members of a recently formed organization known as the Nonhuman Rights Project, were asking a judge to grant their clients the basic right to not be imprisoned illegally. The judges of the New York lawsuits ultimately dismissed them all on the grounds that the plaintiffs aren't people. The appeals are ongoing. ...
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15521 |
duddy |
7 years ago |
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21426 |
duddy |
7 years ago |
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How ocean creatures size up to humans
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Here are the most accurate measurements of the ocean's biggest animals. These are confirmed measurements, unlike many found on the internet that state outrageous numbers.
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17606 |
duddy |
8 years ago |
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You may think you know yourself, but this video will change everything
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As a secondary school educator, I often see students sharing their drinks with one another. This bugs me more than anything because it causes germs to be easily spread from one person to another. The problem is, students have this misconception that if they are not sick, then the person they are sharing their drink with won't get sick either. Sounds rational, but is it true? Definitely not. Each person's immune system is unique, and so is our microbiome (as described in the video below). What may be harmless to one person may not be so much to another. I believe this video does an excellent job demonstrating that not only are humans unique in a sense that we each have our own personalities, have different occupations, and come from differe ...
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9911 |
duddy |
8 years ago |
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6459 |
duddy |
8 years ago |
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Mesolithic man
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The genome of the 7,000-year-old hunter-gatherer has given scientists unprecedented insight into modern humans before the rise of farming, and overturns the popular image of light-skinned European hunter-gatherers. The DNA was taken from the wisdom tooth of the Mesolithic man and revealed he was probably lactose intolerant, had more difficulty digesting starchy foods than today's humans, and carried mutations that boost the immune system against nasty illnesses previously thought to only be introduced to humans by farm animals. ...
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4697 |
duddy |
9 years ago |
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Smallest bone in the body
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Take a good look at that tiny piece of art. It is the smallest bone in the body is called the stirrup (or stapes) bone. It is one of the three bones that make up the middle ear; measuring about 2-3 millimetres. It has a U-shape and is the inmost bone that collects sound vibrations and then passes them along to the cochlea for interpretation by the brain. ...
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5451 |
savio |
9 years ago |
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