Designer Venom

Snakes are taking “you are what you eat” LITERALLY! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. The effects of snake venom can range from harmless to deadly. But why not a one size fits all approach? Or one BITE, as it were. Kevin Healy from the

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Bite Me

To live or to die…? Depends on your. . . teeth? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. One hundred and eighty million years ago, gigantic marine reptiles ruled the seas. Then, water levels began rising… dramatically! Not all seafaring reptiles could adapt. So, who survived

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Survival of the Loudest

Who’s tough enough to survive on ….The Voice?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Animals must compete for food, mates, and other resources to win the survival race. The successful ones tend to be larger or more physically formidable than their opponents. But size can

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Hungry Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds: Cute little nectar sippers, or battle-hardened killers? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Hummingbirds are darling! But it’s a bird-eat-bird world –sometimes they have to fight to survive! At University of California, Berkeley, Alejandro Rico-Guevara studies the evolution of hummingbirds. He wondered: What can

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Smells Like Lemur Spirit

Scary! A creature that can smell your weakness! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. When we think of creatures that smell weakness, we imagine…vampires! Sci-fi villains! That TERRIFYING clown in IT??!! Well, science has added a new creature to that list: LEMURS?! Rachel Harris from

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A Moth’s Tale

Na na na na na na na na… Mothman? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Evolution is a war. An arms race that’s lasted millions of years. Like the war between moths…and BATS! Bats use echolocation — high-pitched sounds — to see and hunt, like

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Thinking Plants

Can plants think? Would you believe… yes? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Consider barberry, a European shrub. It produces bean-sized fruits, each with one or two seeds. Its biggest threat is a tiny fruit fly. The fly injects its eggs into one of the

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Bee Plus

The hive’s in danger. Is the solution. . . magic mushrooms? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Bee populations worldwide are in danger. Deadly viruses spread by mites deform their wings, rendering them unable to fly. Can we save the bees? Meet Walter Sheppard of

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Very Special Specialists

You are special – yes you are! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Animals evolved to specialize for life in their environment. For example, polar bear fur is designed for life in the Arctic. Those warm coats would be sweltering in the desert! But we

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Mommy Deer-est

Who loves the sound of a baby crying? Apparently, everyone! This is Sandra Tsing Loh, with the Loh Down on Science, saying: It’s fundamental! Baby mammals emit distress calls for many reasons: hunger, separation, capture—and having the TV switched off during Sponge Bob. These calls share common acoustic traits among

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