Gecko's 'Active' Tail Key to Preventing Falls and Aerial Maneuvers

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This photo of a flat-tailed house gecko skydiving in a wind tunnel was selected for the cover of the March 18 2008 issue of PNAS. Geckos use their fat-filled tail to right themselves in midair and maneuver to a secure perch. Credit: Robert FullUC Ber ...
This photo of a flat-tailed house gecko skydiving in a wind tunnel was selected for the cover of the March 18, 2008, issue of PNAS. Geckos use their fat-filled tail to right themselves in midair and maneuver to a secure perch. Credit: Robert Full/UC Berkeley, (c) PNAS/NAS 2008

How useful is an animal's tail? For the gecko, unlike most animals, it could be a matter of life or death, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley.


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All News summaries for March 17, 2008

Study explores plausibility of bulbs and tubers in the diet of early human ancestors

6 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
(PhysOrg.com) -- It was a dirty job, but somebody had to do it. Anthropologist Nathaniel J. Dominy of the University of California, Santa Cruz, has advanced the investigation of the diet of early human ancestors ...

Wealth Does Not Dictate Concern for the Environment

6 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
It has been a long-held assumption that poor nations will not support efforts to protect the environment since their citizens are too preoccupied with meeting basic needs, such as food and housing. However, a new study in ...

Construction workers unearth mammoth bones in Minsk

7 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
Workers building a business centre in Minsk came across the bones of two mammoths thought to be between 25,000 and 45,000 years old, an official from Belarus' Academy of Sciences told AFP on Friday.

Women's access to credit affects efficiency in rural households

7 hours ago | User rating: not rated yet
Rural strategies designed to induce economic growth often emphasize the need to improve access to capital for poor households. However, this approach implicitly assumes that family members pool all their resources and allocate ...

Colonial heritage metaphors used in US military conflicts

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The historical reference to "Indian Country" presents a complex metaphor. For many Native Americans it signifies home, family, and territory; however, for others the term can refer to colonialism and Native American land ...
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