A Moment of Science

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The Breathless Parasite Mar 11, 2021

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Pretty much everyone knows that oxygen is a fundamental requirement for life as we know it, but oddly enough that’s not entirely right. There are many simple life forms, such as some kinds of bacteria and archea, that don’t have a major metabolic pathway that needs oxygen.

How Do Birds Survive Hurricanes? Mar 10, 2021

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Ecologists go in search of birds displaced by hurricanes that make landfall along the coastal wetlands of the southern U.S. The abundant plant life there provides homes to birds that wade through brackish waters and nest in these environments.

Earth's First Parasite Mar 09, 2021

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In 2020 paleontologists found the oldest fossil evidence of a parasite ever, in 540 million-year-old rocks in Yunnan Province, China.

Brachiation Mar 08, 2021

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Today’s A Moment of Science examines brachiation, which is how apes and monkeys swing through the trees. Orangutans, spider monkeys, and chimpanzees can brachiate, but gibbons do it most often.

AI Antibiotics Mar 05, 2021

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Bacteria are evolving the ability to resist some of our most important antibiotics. Unless something is done, resistant strains of bacteria may kill 10 million people per year by 2050.

The Parasite That Eavesdrops On Its Host Mar 04, 2021

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In 2020, an international team of researchers made an important discovery about a parasite called a dodder. Dodders are a group of over a 100 parasitic plant species, found through much of the world.

Did Life On Earth Begin In Hot Springs? Mar 03, 2021

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The molecular working parts of living things are complex organic molecules with a backbone of carbon atoms. Some scientists think that hot springs might have provided the special chemical environments needed to link simple molecules up to form these longer and more complicated molecules.

Frogs Can Breathe Through Their Skin Mar 02, 2021

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Cutaneous respiration is the ability to breathe through the skin, and is a common trait in amphibians, although humans can't do it.

Failing Better Mar 01, 2021

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Some scientists have an exact figure for how much failure is optimal for learning: they say that learning is most effective when it involves failure 15 percent of the time.

Why Is U.S. Money Green? Feb 26, 2021

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We use money all the time, but have you ever wondered why U.S. banknotes are green? After A Moment of Science researchers did some investigating into the history of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, it turns out that there are several reasons for the green-back design.

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