Pre-Colonial Horses
American and French researchers have succeeded in reconciling traditional knowledge of American Great Plains natives and modern genetics. Although there were no horses in the Americas before Europeans arrived, the Lakota, Comanche and Pawnee believe that hunting on horseback has always been a part of their lives. In Science At the end of March, paleontologists from the Universities of Colorado and Toulouse revealed that the horses of these tribes descended from Spanish horses of the early 16th century.e century By the time Americans arrived in the region 200 to 300 years later, hunting on horseback was well established.
Quiz
What new animal species are susceptible to bird flu?
Photo from Maine Natural Resources Council website
Seals on a rocky beach in Maine
stamp Last June and July, more than 330 seals died in New England from the H5N1 bird flu that has plagued the world for years. It is the first marine mammal to be able to catch bird flu, which has infected ferret farms, bears and many seabirds, making seals a potential source of contamination. In 2022, more than 6.5 million farmed birds died or had to be destroyed due to bird flu in Canada. The study, from Tufts University in suburban Boston, was published in the journal in mid-March. Emerging infectious disease.
count
1 month
Photo from Shawnee National Forest site
Shawnee National Forest in southern Ohio
That’s the length of annual tree growth in Ohio after a century of global warming, according to a study published in mid-March in the journal Nature Communications. PLoS One. Climatologists at Ohio State University found detailed observations from a farmer in Wauseon, upstate, who noted the beginning and end of leaves between 1883 and 1912. Autumn leaves occur now, on average, about a month later.
Mysteries of Mercury
Photo from NASA website
Description of the study messenger Wednesday rolls around
Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system, 20 times smaller than Earth, but second in density. American and French researchers think they understand how the closest planet to the Sun formed, a phenomenon that intrigues astronomers. Based on survey data messenger, who studied Mercury from 2011 to 2015, explained that the giant planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) formed very close to our star, then moved away from it and attracted each other. In doing so, they have assimilated most of the protoplanets near the Sun. This ballet led to collisions between the protoplanets that shattered Mercury’s crust, which explains why its core represents 85% of its mass compared to Earth’s 50%. The study was published in the journal in late March Icarus.
Taste and asthma
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Israeli researchers plan to use taste receptors to treat asthma
Taste receptors may be put to work in the fight against asthma, according to a new Israeli study. In mid-March, the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, immunologists at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem presented a molecule that activates taste receptors located in the respiratory tract. These receptors increase the size of the airways.
