Evolutionary Biology

Taiwanese researchers built a life-size model of an oviraptor nest to investigate how these dinosaurs incubated their eggs. Their experiments indicate a hybrid method involving parental warmth and sunlight, differing from modern birds. This approach explains uneven heating and asynchronous hatching in nests.

March 09, 2026 Reported by AI

Scientists at EPFL have developed a technique called optovolution, using light to evolve proteins that switch states, sense environments, and perform computations. By engineering yeast cells to survive only if proteins behave dynamically, the method selects optimal variants rapidly. The approach, published in Cell, advances synthetic biology and optogenetics.

Researchers at the University of St Andrews have discovered a key genetic change that likely allowed animals with backbones to develop greater complexity. By examining sea squirts, lampreys, and frogs, they found that certain genes began producing far more protein variations during the transition to vertebrates. This finding, published in BMC Biology, sheds light on the origins of diverse tissues and organs in species from fish to humans.

January 23, 2026 Reported by AI

A University of Cambridge study ranks humans among the most monogamous mammals, closer to beavers and meerkats than to chimpanzees. By analyzing sibling ratios across species and human societies, researchers found that long-term pair bonding is unusually prevalent in our species. Even in cultures allowing polygamy, human monogamy exceeds that of most other mammals.