When 80 microns is enough
Should you care that scientists can control a baffling current? Their research results could someday affect your daily living.
Openness no guarantee against abuse and corruption
Increased openness by the authorities is often a requirement for developing countries to receive foreign aid. But at its worst, openness can be harmful.
Why house sparrows lay both big and small eggs
Why does the egg size of house sparrows vary so much? Isn’t it always an advantage to be big?
How plants respond to attacks
Plants have to defend themselves against drought, enemies and disease. But different threats demand different responses. So how do plants know what’s attacking them?
Norwegian public asked to name a species
The moss world will never be the same. The moss Norwegian researchers thought they knew has played a trick on them. In return, researchers are calling on the Norwegian public to name a new species.
Raising better salmon
The aquaculture industry typically selects salmon with the right genes for breeding to provide the freshest and biggest fish. A new method has the potential to produce better results.
Name change in the United States brought economic payoff
Many immigrants changed their names when they came to the United States at the turn of the last century. People who changed their first names often landed better-paying jobs.
Museums can give us better beer, paint and omega-3
Natural history collections aren’t just dusty financial sinkholes. Actually, they can be gold mines for industry.
Using Tinder doesn’t result in more casual sex
Tinder users don’t have more sexual partners than other similarly minded people. Women tend to use the app to feel better about themselves, whereas men are more focused on sex.
Boys still lag behind in reading
When boys start school, they recognise fewer letters and their corresponding sounds than girls do. The difference is just as great at the end of the school year.
In the bullfinch world, she gets to decide
A lot of birdwatchers like the bullfinch. They’ve probably noticed that the female can chase off the more colourful male from the bird feeder. That makes this species different.
On the topology of helimagnets and difficult-to-understand things
There are in fact good reasons to care about vortex structures in helimagnets. Our fearless Gemini reporter explains.
Research track multiplies proportion of researchers
Only a small percentage of medical students become full-time researchers. But university research tracks have increased the proportion of doctoral degrees taken tenfold.
Are you at risk for lung cancer?
No, this question isn’t only for people who’ve smoked a lot. Seven factors, including two new ones, can predict whether you have a high risk of developing lung cancer.
How much does our use of social media reveal about our political views?
When companies like Cambridge Analytica use our data for political and commercial interests, it raises concerns about privacy and the integrity of democratic politics. But what exactly do our social media posts say about what we really think?
Vampire bats’ bloody teamwork
Vampire bats are the only mammals that feed exclusively on blood. The way they manage to do that offers us some remarkable insights into evolution.
Small birds discern threat level of enemies
Small birds like tits don’t just see that another bird is dangerous. They can also differentiate between species and determine just how much of a threat they are.
Women regret sex less when they take the initiative
Women regret casual sex more than men do – but less so if they take the initiative and the sex was good.
Eiderdown farming – a living cultural tradition
For centuries, perhaps millennia, people and birds have interacted with each other. The tradition of eiderdown harvesting from this northern duck is still practised.
What the Vikings put in their pillows
Not too many people are able to identify birds by examining a single feather. But a number of folks need to know that sort of thing, and it can actually save lives.
Acclaimed fossils might not depict human evolution
Humans may have evolved relatively recently from isolated chimpanzees, without formation of any fossils. This would mean that since the time of Darwin, the missing-link fossils that people have been looking for simply do not exist.
Citizen scientists get new slugs named after them
Scientists honour citizen science helpers when naming several species new to Norway.
Is the woolly mammoth really gone for good?
Should we reintroduce animal species that have died out? New technology may offer opportunities that no one could imagine a few decades ago. But the answer may not be as simple as you think.
Downsizing can be bad for your health
Organizational downsizing and job loss greatly increase a person’s risk of having to start different medications. Prescriptions for drugs to treat mental health issues are particularly widespread in this group.
Scandinavians shaped by several waves of immigration
So you think people in present-day Sweden and Norway are different from each other? It turns out that would have been closer to the truth some 9500 years ago.
Why the passenger pigeon died out
The passenger pigeon was once among the most numerous species on earth. The last passenger pigeon died in the Cinncinati Zoo just over 100 years ago. How did it all go so wrong?
Mystery in the bear cave
The oldest known bear bones from northern Scandinavia have been discovered in a limestone cave. But the cave also contained a mystery.
Heavy children more likely to underestimate their size
Children with a higher BMI are less accurate in estimating their own body size compared to their slimmer counterparts. And the bigger their body is, the more inaccurate their guesses.
Brawler at the bird feeder
The common redpoll gets into brawls when it seems like it should really be watching out for enemies. How can that end well?
Bullfinches stick together for years
Bullfinch fidelity to their mates can last for years.
Pope said ‘no thanks’ to Norwegian coins
Norway minted its own coins during much of the Middle Ages. But the coins didn’t always impress outsiders or even the Norwegians themselves.
Norwegian-Kenyan cooperation will create jobs for refugees
Companies in a refugee camp in Kenya don’t function the same way they do in Norway. But Norwegian advisors are still in a position to help.