It seems that it’s not just physical traits that are inheritable. Now scientists are finding evidence that learned behaviors and even phobias can be passed down through the generations via chemical changes in the DNA.
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In May of 2013, in the Cumberland Mountains of North Eastern Tennessee, Dr. Henry Streby from UC Berkeley and his colleagues from the Universities of Tennessee and Minnesota captured and equipped 20 tiny golden warblers with geo-locators to see if their migration patterns could be tracked in this way. Eleven months later, in April 2014, the scientists were celebrating the unexpected success of their pilot study after 10 of the 20 birds returned to nest – with tracking devices in tact – following a 3100-mile return trip home from Columbia, South America.
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Plants are generally considered to be more basic forms of life than animals. They cannot speak, or walk; they do not have powers of reasoning or conscious thought.
Or do they?
Scientists are now coming around to the idea that plants are sentient living beings, with a sophisticated awareness of their surroundings. Not only that, but research shows that they can communicate with one another, can pay attention to stimuli, have the capacity to memorize information. Charles Darwin was ahead of his time when he wrote his book "The Power of Movement in Plants", though at that time he was alone amongst his peers with this viewpoint.
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Ancient legends of sea monsters attacking ships abound, but to date these tales remain fixed firmly in the realms of fantasy.
Yet do the depths of our oceans still hide these mythical creatures, or is our changing climate allowing new creatures to evolve?
Recent reports from New Zealand describe a massive sea creature that was seen in Oke Bay, in North Island. A Google Earth image captured a huge and unidentified wake in the clear blue waters of the beautiful bay qt 11.30am on January 30th. The image was discovered by engineer Pita Witehira who was researching the images for a holiday home.
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