ZME Science

11 Incredible Periodical Cicadas Facts You Can’t Miss

For residents of the Eastern and Midwestern United States, 2024 is shaping up to be a symphony of buzzing wings and crunchy exoskeletons. This year is extra special as Brood XIII, a 17-year cicada brood, and Brood XIX, a 13-year brood, are emerging in a synchronized spectacle not witnessed since 1803. To celebrate the momentous occasion, here are some interesting facts about one of nature’s most amazing critters. In This Article They emerge only every 13 or 17 yearsFor 13 or 17 years, depending on the brood, cicada nymphs patiently feed on tree roots underground, existing in a state of develop...

It’s cicada season. Are cicadas dangerous (to you or your pets)?

Although cicadas can be unnerving and outright spooky in big numbers, they’re not harmful at all. Even if they wanted to bite or sting, they don’t have the body parts for it. They don’t destroy crops like locusts, and they aren’t poisonous or toxic (although your pets wouldn’t be able to digest them). All in all, cicadas aren’t really dangerous, although they can damage some plants. In This Article Cicadas are not locusts — and not dangerous to plantsEvery few years, parts of the United States become the stage for one of nature’s most spectacular and noisy events — the emergence of cicada broo...

When do cicadas emerge — and how do they know when to do it?

Periodical cicadas spend most of their time underground as nymphs. Then, every 13 or 17 years, an entire brood of billions and billions of cicadas emerges. The insects storm out all at once, fulfilling one of the most bizarre lifecycles in nature. But why do they do it, and how do they know when to do it? Why cicadas have this strange cycleNature often works with year-long cycles, where many organisms are tuned to the seasonal changes of the environment. Migration is a good example of this. Some predators also have natural cycles that recur every 2 or 3 years. So, cicadas, which are virtually ...

AI chatbots turn conspiracy theorists into skeptics through dialogue

If you’ve ever debated someone convinced 9/11 was an inside job or that astronauts never made it to the Moon and the whole thing was shot in some Hollywood studio, then you must know the struggle. The consensus among psychologists is that conspiracy theories, once entrenched in the psyche, are extremely difficult to dispel. This is largely because these views can become part of a person’s identity. Conspiracy theories meet important needs and motivations. For some, they provide a clear and straightforward explanation for a chaotic scenario. But is conspiracy theory really such a hard nut to cr...

Venezuela has become the first country to lose all its glaciers

Four years ago, in 2020, a team of researchers published a study concluding that Venezuela is set to become the first country to lose all its glaciers due to climate change. Even earlier, scientists had issued the same warning. Now, it seems to have become true, as the last of Venezuela’s large ice mass is probably too small to be called a glacier. “In Venezuela, there are no more glaciers,” Julio Cesar Centeno, a university professor and advisor to the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), told AFP. “What we have is a piece of ice that is 0.4 percent of its original size.” In ...

Florida’s cultured meat ban is dumb. But it can have big consequences

Florida became the first state to outlaw lab-grown meat last week. It was basically a handout to the agri business mixed with a bit of conspiracy theory peddling. State Rep. Dean Black, a Republican cattle rancher, said, “Cultured meat is made by man. Real meat is made by God himself.” Meanwhile, the state’s commissioner of agriculture said it was about protecting “our incredible farmers and the integrity of American agriculture.” And Florida Governor Ron DeSantis spoke of “elites” who are trying to force “the world to eat lab-grown meat and insects.” But while it’s easy to dismiss this as Flo...

Talking whales? AI reveals a complex language hidden in sperm whale clicks

Sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) are renowned for their complex social structures and behaviors, facilitated by their unique vocalizations. These whales produce codas — a sequence of rapid, Morse code-like clicks used during social interactions. These aren’t random jumbles of clicks but rather purposeful vocalizations that have meaning almost like you or I would utter words. For instance, sperm whales use codas to identify themselves or outside clans. And this knowledge is passed down culturally, as young calves are not born able to produce codas. They learn by mimicking their parents. Pr...

London just built a massive sewage tunnel to clean up its poop problem

During the Industrial Revolution’s heyday, the Thames was the most polluted river in the world. Now, it’s clean enough for the occasional shark or seahorse, but the waters in London could still be cleaner. In 2023, sewage was pumped into the London River for almost 10,000 hours, and during storm surges, sewage overflows into the river. Now, after eight years and a £5bn ($6.33B) investment, a new tunnel could solve much of that. Called the Thames Tideway Tunnel, the 16-mile (25 km) pipe will divert some of the most polluting sewage outflows. Its lid alone weighs 1200 tons. Finally cleaning up L...

Researchers spot five new hydrothermal vents that can help us study alien life

In some ways, we know more about other planets than the depths of our oceans. These uncharted seafloors often host unique ecosystems that can teach us not only about life on Earth — but possibly about life on other celestial bodies. After recent exploration, researchers report the appearance of five new hydrothermal vents — openings on the seafloor that release heated, mineral-rich water, supporting unique ecosystems in deep ocean environments. And these were found at 2,550 meters (8366 feet, or 1.6 miles) below the surface. Life as we don’t know itMost ecosystems on Earth require light and he...

Meet the 75,000-year-old Neanderthal woman whose friendly face is sparking a scientific debate

From a flaky skull, found “as flat as a pizza” on a cave floor in northern Iraq, the face of a 75,000-year-old Neanderthal woman named “Shanidar Z” has been reconstructed. With her calm and considered expression, Shanidar Z looks like a thoughtful, approachable, even kindly middle-aged woman. She is a far cry from the snarling, animalistic stereotype of the Neanderthal first created in 1908 after the discovery of the “old man of La Chapelle”. On the basis of the old man and the first relatively complete skeleton of its kind to be found, scientists made a series of presumptions about Neandertha...