Science Small Plate (March 15, 2013)
The Vatican blows smoke, you can’t burn DNA, bringing extinct animals back from the dead, Martian life and more.
Category Archives: Shorts
Spare a moment for the humble fly and his aerobatic feats
When you swat a fly, you’re swatting a biological machine that in many respects makes the electromechanical machines (read: robots) that we make look less than crude by comparison. Don’t take my word for it; watch “fly guy” Michael Dickinson tell the tale in his recent TEDxCalTech talk.
Why does my cat like being petted so much?
Because it feels good, thanks to specialized nerve cells in the skin that fire only when gently stroked. That’s what research in mice would suggest.
