Pika Perseverance

Pikachu? More like pika-EWWW! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. In the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau of Southeast Asia lives the plateau pika – a little rodent the length of a butter knife. BUT plateau life is no small feat! Temperatures can reach negative twenty degrees fahrenheit,

Continue reading

Relephant Evolution

Elephants are sensitive creatures. But when bullied, these giants have THICK skin!  This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Tusks help elephants dig, gather food and defend themselves. But, since tusks are made of precious ivory, they’ve long been used as currency! Increased poaching in Mozambique

Continue reading

Tortoise Attack

Return to an age when GIANT TORTOISES walked the earth!? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Giant tortoises can grow to be four feet long and weigh as much as a tiger! They can be found in the Seychelles and the Galápagos Islands. These monster

Continue reading

Pika Perseverance

Pikachu? More like pika-EWWW! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. In the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau of Southeast Asia lives the plateau pika – a little rodent the length of a butter knife. BUT plateau life is no small feat! Temperatures can reach negative twenty degrees fahrenheit,

Continue reading

Smart Swimmers

Are smarter people more so-fish-ticated? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Fish may be colorful, but they aren’t very bright! Can they smarten up? Giulia Rossi and Patricia Wright from the University of Guelph in Canada think so! They study the mangrove killifish, a fish

Continue reading

Surfing Sharks

“Just keep swimming…just keep swimming….” This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Imagine having to constantly walk in order to breathe. Sounds exhausting — but that’s a shark’s reality! Sharks MUST keep swimming to get oxygen over their gills. Do they EVER get a break? Yannis

Continue reading

Orangutan Obstacles

Can I get extra fries with that Big Mac? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.  Rainforest animals like fruit-loving Bornean orangutans sometimes have trouble finding food due to deforestation and drought! They may eat 70% fewer calories than their bodies require. From a human perspective,

Continue reading

Equid-ed

horse in desert

Animals don’t HORSE AROUND when it comes to water! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Imagine you’re lost in the desert — you’re parched. But the desert’s teeming with animals! How are they surviving? Eric Lundgren from the University of Technology in Sydney dug up

Continue reading

Neighborly Squirrels

Photo of red squirrel in tree.

Won’t you be my neighbor… said the SQUIRREL?!  This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Harsh winters, hungry predators… Life is tough for red squirrels in the Yukon! They’re an extremely territorial bunch — each squirrel fends for itself and defends its turf. But could these

Continue reading

Let Them Eat Air

Cell converting some molecules into others

Can we make food out of thin air? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Soil is full of microbes. These tiny organisms eat and break down other organisms. They also recycle nutrients. But in desolate places on earth, or even in space, what is there

Continue reading