@pfcook.bsky.social
Reposted
Why do whales and elephants have much lower rates of cancer than expected?
"Species with a lower cancer prevalence and mortality
risk are those with a higher presence of cooperative and caring habits, while the opposite is found....:"
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
"Species with a lower cancer prevalence and mortality
risk are those with a higher presence of cooperative and caring habits, while the opposite is found....:"
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Coevolution of cooperative lifestyles and reduced cancer prevalence in mammals
While cooperative mammals evolve reducing cancer prevalence, oncogenes can be maintained by selection in competitive species.
www.science.org
November 15, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Why do whales and elephants have much lower rates of cancer than expected?
"Species with a lower cancer prevalence and mortality
risk are those with a higher presence of cooperative and caring habits, while the opposite is found....:"
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
"Species with a lower cancer prevalence and mortality
risk are those with a higher presence of cooperative and caring habits, while the opposite is found....:"
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted
"Upland forests are like natural rainmakers," Jiang said. "Protecting these ecosystems isn't just about biodiversity—it's about sustaining agriculture."
#ClimateEmergency and #NatureCrisis intimately interlinked
phys.org/news/2025-11...
#ClimateEmergency and #NatureCrisis intimately interlinked
phys.org/news/2025-11...
Rainfall's origin reveals a hidden driver behind drought risks for farmers
A new University of California San Diego study uncovers a hidden driver of global crop vulnerability: the origin of rainfall itself.
phys.org
November 15, 2025 at 8:09 AM
"Upland forests are like natural rainmakers," Jiang said. "Protecting these ecosystems isn't just about biodiversity—it's about sustaining agriculture."
#ClimateEmergency and #NatureCrisis intimately interlinked
phys.org/news/2025-11...
#ClimateEmergency and #NatureCrisis intimately interlinked
phys.org/news/2025-11...
Reposted
The intelligence of slime mold is that of its materials
All of Physarum's intelligent behaviors can be explained by physics, as in non-living materials (e.g., water following the path of least resistance), and do not require a representation of the problem.
(preprint) arxiv.org/pdf/2511.08531
All of Physarum's intelligent behaviors can be explained by physics, as in non-living materials (e.g., water following the path of least resistance), and do not require a representation of the problem.
(preprint) arxiv.org/pdf/2511.08531
November 15, 2025 at 10:41 AM
The intelligence of slime mold is that of its materials
All of Physarum's intelligent behaviors can be explained by physics, as in non-living materials (e.g., water following the path of least resistance), and do not require a representation of the problem.
(preprint) arxiv.org/pdf/2511.08531
All of Physarum's intelligent behaviors can be explained by physics, as in non-living materials (e.g., water following the path of least resistance), and do not require a representation of the problem.
(preprint) arxiv.org/pdf/2511.08531
Reposted
Honoring James A. Estes, a pioneering ecologist whose research on sea otters in Alaska revealed how predators shape entire ecosystems. His work helped define the concept of trophic cascades and inspired generations of ecologists. Read the PNAS Retrospective: https://ow.ly/leKs50XrKBH
November 14, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Honoring James A. Estes, a pioneering ecologist whose research on sea otters in Alaska revealed how predators shape entire ecosystems. His work helped define the concept of trophic cascades and inspired generations of ecologists. Read the PNAS Retrospective: https://ow.ly/leKs50XrKBH
Reposted
🐬 New study reveals rare insights into the anatomy of the hourglass dolphin (Cephalorhynchus cruciger) & spectacled porpoise (Phocoena dioptrica). Researchers detail organs, skeletons & unique traits.
Graïc et al: anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Graïc et al: anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
November 6, 2025 at 1:01 PM
🐬 New study reveals rare insights into the anatomy of the hourglass dolphin (Cephalorhynchus cruciger) & spectacled porpoise (Phocoena dioptrica). Researchers detail organs, skeletons & unique traits.
Graïc et al: anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Graïc et al: anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
Reposted
A new technique called ‘mind captioning’ generates descriptive sentences of what a person is seeing or picturing in their mind using a read-out of their brain activity, with impressive accuracy.
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
‘Mind-captioning’ AI decodes brain activity to turn thoughts into text
A non-invasive imaging technique can translate scenes in your head into sentences. It could help to reveal how the brain interprets the world.
go.nature.com
November 5, 2025 at 8:17 PM
A new technique called ‘mind captioning’ generates descriptive sentences of what a person is seeing or picturing in their mind using a read-out of their brain activity, with impressive accuracy.
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
go.nature.com/3XbnxB1
Reposted
On Alaska’s Prince of Wales Island, gray wolves have been observed hunting sea otters, a rare and surprising behavior.
Researchers are now working to learn more about how these wolves are adapting to marine prey, using methods such as wolf teeth analysis and trail cameras. Read more: bit.ly/4qofVsr
Researchers are now working to learn more about how these wolves are adapting to marine prey, using methods such as wolf teeth analysis and trail cameras. Read more: bit.ly/4qofVsr
Coastal gray wolves display unexpected hunting behavior with unknown ecosystem impact
On Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, gray wolves are doing something unexpected: hunting sea otters. This surprising dietary shift appears to have notable implications for both ecosystems and wolf healt...
phys.org
October 23, 2025 at 8:52 PM
On Alaska’s Prince of Wales Island, gray wolves have been observed hunting sea otters, a rare and surprising behavior.
Researchers are now working to learn more about how these wolves are adapting to marine prey, using methods such as wolf teeth analysis and trail cameras. Read more: bit.ly/4qofVsr
Researchers are now working to learn more about how these wolves are adapting to marine prey, using methods such as wolf teeth analysis and trail cameras. Read more: bit.ly/4qofVsr
Reposted
Absolutely amazing thread on fossil walruses 🦭 which are a surpisingly large group considering there is only one walrus species alive today!
October 22, 2025 at 9:37 PM
Absolutely amazing thread on fossil walruses 🦭 which are a surpisingly large group considering there is only one walrus species alive today!
Reposted
160 scientists, 23 countries, 1 report: The Global Tipping Points Report 2025, together with @exeter.ac.uk, highlights mounting risks across Earth’s systems, from melting glaciers & ice fields to slowing ocean currents, ice sheets & rainforests under pressure. Watch now👇
👉global-tipping-points.org
👉global-tipping-points.org
October 13, 2025 at 3:01 PM
160 scientists, 23 countries, 1 report: The Global Tipping Points Report 2025, together with @exeter.ac.uk, highlights mounting risks across Earth’s systems, from melting glaciers & ice fields to slowing ocean currents, ice sheets & rainforests under pressure. Watch now👇
👉global-tipping-points.org
👉global-tipping-points.org
Reposted
Goodall transcribes field notes by lamplight in Tanzania’s Gombe Stream National Park c.1960
October 2, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Goodall transcribes field notes by lamplight in Tanzania’s Gombe Stream National Park c.1960
Was happy to write a commentary for this very cool opportunistic study of long-term neural effects of partner loss in coyotes (which are the rare sexually monogamous species). Naturalistic studies of non-model species are a great complement to lab models.
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lkyT15hTu...
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lkyT15hTu...
authors.elsevier.com
September 12, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Was happy to write a commentary for this very cool opportunistic study of long-term neural effects of partner loss in coyotes (which are the rare sexually monogamous species). Naturalistic studies of non-model species are a great complement to lab models.
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lkyT15hTu...
authors.elsevier.com/a/1lkyT15hTu...
Reposted
⚠️ House Republicans’ new FY26 bill would slash EPA & Fish & Wildlife funding and gut the Endangered Species Act, stripping protections from gray wolves, grizzlies, wolverines & more.
This is a direct attack on wildlife, ecosystems, and public health. We must speak out.
🔗Read more: bit.ly/4mgexFx
This is a direct attack on wildlife, ecosystems, and public health. We must speak out.
🔗Read more: bit.ly/4mgexFx
House GOP Accused of 'Waging War on America's Wildlife' With Proposed Spending Cuts | Common Dreams
Conservationists and congressional Democrats warn that House Republicans' FY26 Interior bill jeopardizes wildlife, public health, and national parks.
www.commondreams.org
July 15, 2025 at 5:18 PM
⚠️ House Republicans’ new FY26 bill would slash EPA & Fish & Wildlife funding and gut the Endangered Species Act, stripping protections from gray wolves, grizzlies, wolverines & more.
This is a direct attack on wildlife, ecosystems, and public health. We must speak out.
🔗Read more: bit.ly/4mgexFx
This is a direct attack on wildlife, ecosystems, and public health. We must speak out.
🔗Read more: bit.ly/4mgexFx
Reposted
Donald Trump’s signature legislation would menace the American economy for at least a decade. It is a showcase of fiscal incontinence and ideological exhaustion https://econ.st/4kvmdT2
Illustration: Ricardo Tomás
Illustration: Ricardo Tomás
July 2, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Donald Trump’s signature legislation would menace the American economy for at least a decade. It is a showcase of fiscal incontinence and ideological exhaustion https://econ.st/4kvmdT2
Illustration: Ricardo Tomás
Illustration: Ricardo Tomás
Reposted
1/4 Use of tools (for allogrooming) in orcas
They have been recorded (Salish Sea) using kelp, cutting it (technically the first documentation of toolmaking in cetaceans) and using it to groom others.
(paper) www.cell.com/current-biol...
They have been recorded (Salish Sea) using kelp, cutting it (technically the first documentation of toolmaking in cetaceans) and using it to groom others.
(paper) www.cell.com/current-biol...
June 24, 2025 at 6:41 AM
1/4 Use of tools (for allogrooming) in orcas
They have been recorded (Salish Sea) using kelp, cutting it (technically the first documentation of toolmaking in cetaceans) and using it to groom others.
(paper) www.cell.com/current-biol...
They have been recorded (Salish Sea) using kelp, cutting it (technically the first documentation of toolmaking in cetaceans) and using it to groom others.
(paper) www.cell.com/current-biol...
Reposted
The "rubber hand illusion" in mice... @lucestebanez.bsky.social &co use automated videography to show that mice display quantifiable behavioral markers of the embodiment of an #ArtificialLimb, opening the door to future research into human #BodyOwnership disorders @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/4jHsESn
June 9, 2025 at 1:52 PM
The "rubber hand illusion" in mice... @lucestebanez.bsky.social &co use automated videography to show that mice display quantifiable behavioral markers of the embodiment of an #ArtificialLimb, opening the door to future research into human #BodyOwnership disorders @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/4jHsESn
Reposted
Precon_all is finally citeable! I’m relieved, pleased, thrilled and all other superlatives to present to you our preprint describing the inner workings of the precon_all pipeline for semi-automated non-human cortical surface reconstruction! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... 1/10
June 6, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Precon_all is finally citeable! I’m relieved, pleased, thrilled and all other superlatives to present to you our preprint describing the inner workings of the precon_all pipeline for semi-automated non-human cortical surface reconstruction! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... 1/10
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
New paper from my grad lab at New College's Marine Mammal Science Master's program - @marmamsci-ncf.bsky.social - Grad student Sophie Flem did heroic work examining ascending and descending auditory pathways in baleen and toothed whale brains.
New paper from my grad lab at New College's Marine Mammal Science Master's program - @marmamsci-ncf.bsky.social - Grad student Sophie Flem did heroic work examining ascending and descending auditory pathways in baleen and toothed whale brains.
Lateralized cerebellar connectivity differentiates auditory pathways in echolocating and non-echolocating whales
We report the first application of diffusion tractography to a mysticete, which was analyzed alongside three odontocete brains, allowing the first direct comparison of strength and laterality of audit...
journals.plos.org
June 7, 2025 at 8:38 AM
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
New paper from my grad lab at New College's Marine Mammal Science Master's program - @marmamsci-ncf.bsky.social - Grad student Sophie Flem did heroic work examining ascending and descending auditory pathways in baleen and toothed whale brains.
New paper from my grad lab at New College's Marine Mammal Science Master's program - @marmamsci-ncf.bsky.social - Grad student Sophie Flem did heroic work examining ascending and descending auditory pathways in baleen and toothed whale brains.
Reposted
Some neurons act like body-proximity sensors, and in fact reflect the value of contacting or avoiding objects, composing a flexible predictive model for interacting with the world near the body
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Egocentric value maps of the near-body environment - Nature Neuroscience
Some neurons act like body-proximity sensors. The authors show that these neurons reflect the value of contacting or avoiding objects. Together, these neurons compose a flexible predictive model for i...
www.nature.com
June 5, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Some neurons act like body-proximity sensors, and in fact reflect the value of contacting or avoiding objects, composing a flexible predictive model for interacting with the world near the body
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted
Today is World Sea Lion Day! 🦭
May 30, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Today is World Sea Lion Day! 🦭
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Love this - "soft assembly," that is, the ability for physical systems to organize/function in complex ways/based on physical structure and how it interacts with the environment, is understudied in neuroscience and biology and underused in robotics. Dynamic systems!
Love this - "soft assembly," that is, the ability for physical systems to organize/function in complex ways/based on physical structure and how it interacts with the environment, is understudied in neuroscience and biology and underused in robotics. Dynamic systems!
Physical control: A new avenue to achieve intelligence in soft robotics
Physical control embodies motion intelligence in soft robots via self-regulating oscillations, sequences, and reactions.
www.science.org
May 29, 2025 at 2:52 PM
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Love this - "soft assembly," that is, the ability for physical systems to organize/function in complex ways/based on physical structure and how it interacts with the environment, is understudied in neuroscience and biology and underused in robotics. Dynamic systems!
Love this - "soft assembly," that is, the ability for physical systems to organize/function in complex ways/based on physical structure and how it interacts with the environment, is understudied in neuroscience and biology and underused in robotics. Dynamic systems!
Reposted
Several mammal species live in cold-water environments thanks to adaptations like blubber and large size. A notable exception is the sea otter—so how does it stay warm?
A 2021 Science study found an answer: skeletal muscle thermogenesis.
Learn more on #WorldOtterDay: scim.ag/4jjvMDL
A 2021 Science study found an answer: skeletal muscle thermogenesis.
Learn more on #WorldOtterDay: scim.ag/4jjvMDL
![Fig. 2 Whole-body estimates of sea otter metabolism scaled to body mass.
Estimated scaled whole-body metabolic rates include predicted [BMR; predicted on the basis of scaled rate for eutherian mammals], sea otter resting metabolic rate, and whole-body skeletal muscle leak capacity.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:vqgovau5gkirnk3ss5qwjdmz/bafkreifqng4uadol3gghmq6ktpvj5vksaptsqxdfvtenfsgubbfr2l6ani@jpeg)
May 28, 2025 at 6:28 PM
Several mammal species live in cold-water environments thanks to adaptations like blubber and large size. A notable exception is the sea otter—so how does it stay warm?
A 2021 Science study found an answer: skeletal muscle thermogenesis.
Learn more on #WorldOtterDay: scim.ag/4jjvMDL
A 2021 Science study found an answer: skeletal muscle thermogenesis.
Learn more on #WorldOtterDay: scim.ag/4jjvMDL
Reposted
By playing rhythmic audio to comatose patients, then skipping a beat, researchers could elicit changes in heart rate—but only in patients who went on to have favorable outcomes. The phenomenon could be used to predict patient outcomes. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
May 26, 2025 at 4:51 PM
By playing rhythmic audio to comatose patients, then skipping a beat, researchers could elicit changes in heart rate—but only in patients who went on to have favorable outcomes. The phenomenon could be used to predict patient outcomes. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted
Animal migrations are extensive and crucial for ecosystem health but are in decline. A study in Nature Communications identifies 1,787 sites and links among them for 109 marine species, providing policymakers with essential knowledge for effective conservation. 🌊 🧪
Marine megavertebrate migrations connect the global ocean - Nature Communications
Animal migrations are extensive and crucial for ecosystem health but are in decline. This study identifies 1,787 sites and links among them for 109 marine species, highlighting the need for international cooperation and providing policymakers with essential knowledge for effective conservation.
go.nature.com
May 24, 2025 at 1:45 AM
Animal migrations are extensive and crucial for ecosystem health but are in decline. A study in Nature Communications identifies 1,787 sites and links among them for 109 marine species, providing policymakers with essential knowledge for effective conservation. 🌊 🧪
Reposted
Whale Calves Are Born On “Humpback Highway”, Changing What We Knew About Migration
Whale Calves Are Born On “Humpback Highway”, Changing What We Knew About Migration
There’s no maternity leave for whale mothers who give birth early – they just have to keep swimming with their calves until they reach the tropics.
www.iflscience.com
May 21, 2025 at 4:54 AM
Whale Calves Are Born On “Humpback Highway”, Changing What We Knew About Migration
Reposted
Babak Tafreshi
natgeo science photographer
"In May-June, the Great Smoky Mountains in TN. and NC, is the mating ground for multiple lightning bugs species, most notable the synchronous fireflies. The males glow together every 7-8 sec. This video is 2x faster than real-time.
natgeo science photographer
"In May-June, the Great Smoky Mountains in TN. and NC, is the mating ground for multiple lightning bugs species, most notable the synchronous fireflies. The males glow together every 7-8 sec. This video is 2x faster than real-time.
May 20, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Babak Tafreshi
natgeo science photographer
"In May-June, the Great Smoky Mountains in TN. and NC, is the mating ground for multiple lightning bugs species, most notable the synchronous fireflies. The males glow together every 7-8 sec. This video is 2x faster than real-time.
natgeo science photographer
"In May-June, the Great Smoky Mountains in TN. and NC, is the mating ground for multiple lightning bugs species, most notable the synchronous fireflies. The males glow together every 7-8 sec. This video is 2x faster than real-time.