Read more biology stories on Newserhttp://www.newser.com/taggrid/10045/biology.html2009 - Newseren-usNewser Feed GeneratorTue, 24 Nov 2009 12:44:46 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/65996/climate-change-already-causing-evolution.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagGlobal warming is changing the face of the planet, and a key panel estimates that a quarter of the world's species will die out—but a few organisms are already evolving to survive in a hotter world. In the past few years Scottish sheep have become smaller, while species of...http://www.newser.com/story/65996/climate-change-already-causing-evolution.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagTue, 04 Aug 2009 9:39:00 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/63401/giant-ant-colony-spreads-across-world.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagIn what may be a first for the animal kingdom, one giant family of ants has established itself in different parts of the world, the BBC reports. Researchers studying the species known as Argentine ants in Europe, the US, and Japan found that they had a strikingly similar chemical profile,...http://www.newser.com/story/63401/giant-ant-colony-spreads-across-world.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagThu, 02 Jul 2009 14:10:01 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/61918/new-england-starfish-boom-baffles-experts.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagNew England beaches are swarming with starfish this spring, and nobody’s sure why, the Boston Globe reports. The spike may be connected to shellfish population; it could be due to a drop in spider crabs, which prey on starfish; it could be tied to water temperature or wind patterns. Whatever...http://www.newser.com/story/61918/new-england-starfish-boom-baffles-experts.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagMon, 15 Jun 2009 15:40:34 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/58739/biohackers-create-new-diy-organisms.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagKatherine Aull is creating new forms of life in her closet. Armed only with jury-rigged equipment and some DNA she bought online, the 23-year-old is creating custom E. coli bacteria she thinks could help cancer research. Aull is part of a growing movement of “biohackers,” amateur biologists crafting organisms from...http://www.newser.com/story/58739/biohackers-create-new-diy-organisms.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagTue, 12 May 2009 13:14:25 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/49770/benjamin-button-jellyfish-are-immortal.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagFor some aging jellyfish, their best years may still be ahead: Faced with a threat, one species can essentially turn itself younger again, National Geographic reports. Turritopsis dohrnii reverts its cells to a “younger state,” says a researcher, and becomes a blob; from there, it develops into a colony reminiscent...http://www.newser.com/story/49770/benjamin-button-jellyfish-are-immortal.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagTue, 03 Feb 2009 11:41:00 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/48220/high-calorie-diet-makes-moms-have-boys-study.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagIn news that may affect diets in China, a recent study says women who down more calories—cereal especially—are more likely to give birth to boys, NPR reports. One statistician questions the survey of 740 moms, saying "the female has nothing to do with the gender of the child....http://www.newser.com/story/48220/high-calorie-diet-makes-moms-have-boys-study.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagSat, 17 Jan 2009 18:23:29 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/42520/princeton-team-adds-twist-to-darwins-theory.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagPrinceton scientists say they have found evidence that organisms can essentially control their own evolution, a finding that could provide a fundamental shift in our understanding of Darwin's theory, reports the university's news service. The research suggests that evolution isn't entirely random, as Darwin believed. Rather, proteins within organisms constantly...http://www.newser.com/story/42520/princeton-team-adds-twist-to-darwins-theory.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagWed, 12 Nov 2008 19:25:24 CSThttp://www.newser.com/story/40473/author-offers-creepy-look-at-critters-with-taste-for-blood.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagWith Halloween nearly upon us, the author of new book on bloodsucking creatures—vampire bats, bedbugs, leeches, and the like—leads the New York Times on a sanguivore safari. The world's bloodthirsty creatures vary enormously, as Bill Schutt details in Dark Banquet , and some are mere dabblers, but many specialists...http://www.newser.com/story/40473/author-offers-creepy-look-at-critters-with-taste-for-blood.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagTue, 21 Oct 2008 20:25:27 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/38515/docs-tout-safer-non-embryonic-stem-cells.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagScientists have discovered a safer way to turn adult cells into stem cells, the Boston Globe reports. The cells, similar to those harvested from embryos, are called induced pluripotent stem, or iPS, cells; Japanese researchers introduced the method 2 years ago. But the Japanese used retroviruses, which can cause cancer;...http://www.newser.com/story/38515/docs-tout-safer-non-embryonic-stem-cells.html?utm_source=syn&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tagFri, 26 Sep 2008 15:34:01 CDT