Science Quickly

The prospect of death by giant hornet has pushed some Asian honeybees to resort to a poop-based defense system Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Unlike humans, wolves can subsist on protein alone for months—so scientists say we may have lobbed leaner leftovers their way. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Researchers help farmers in Namibia avoid costly cattle losses by tracking big cat hangouts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Linguist Ben Zimmer says the pandemic has turned us all into amateur epidemiologists utilizing terms such as “superspreader” and “asymptomatic.” Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from around the world, including one from Panama about the toll lightning takes on tropical trees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Juvenile ravens performed just as well as chimps and orangutans in a battery of intelligence tests—except for assays of spatial skills. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bee larvae and pupae appear to secrete a chemical that does the work of a late-night cup of coffee for their nurses. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New research tracked the canines in northern Minnesota for years to see just how they reshape their ecosystems. Audio of wolves inside Voyageurs National Park, courtesy of Jacob Job.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A study of adults learning a new language found that speaking primarily activated regions in the left side of the brain, but reading and listening comprehension were much more variable Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nurse Kristen Choi says health care providers need to better educate patients about possible side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nanoparticles that attach to photoreceptors allowed mice to see infrared and near-infrared light for up to two months. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The wrinkle-faced bat covers its face with a flap of skin, seemingly as part of its courtship rituals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Evidence of the ancient humans was limited to a cave in Siberia. But now scientists have found genetic remains of the Denisovans in China. Christopher Intagliata reports.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Travel time differences for sound waves produced by undersea earthquakes in the same place at different times can provide details about ocean warming. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A duckbill dinosaur jawbone found in Morocco means that dinosaurs crossed a large body of water to reach Africa.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chipmunklike animals that lived among the dinosaurs appear to have been social creatures, which suggests that sociality arose in mammals earlier than scientists thought. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from around the world, including one, from the dormant volcano Llullaillaco in Chile, about a mouse that is the highest-dwelling mammal ever documented. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

COVID might be fought efficiently with fewer shutdowns by restricting activities only in a particular area with a population up to 200,000 when its case rate rises above a chosen threshold.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Horseflies misjudge landings on zebra patterns, compared with solid gray or black surfaces, which provides evidence for why evolution came up with the black-and-white pattern. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Need a break from politics and the pandemic? You’re probably not in the Amazon rain forest right now, but we can take you there in audio. Today, in part three of our three-part audio sound escape, we ascend into the trees where howler monkeys and crimson-crested woodpeckers rule the airwaves. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Need a break from politics and the pandemic? You’re probably not in the Amazon rain forest right now, but we can take you there in audio. Today, in part two of our three-part audio sound escape, we descend into a nighttime flood of frog music. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Need a break from politics and the pandemic? You’re probably not in the Amazon rain forest right now, but we can take you there in audio. Today, in part one of our three-part audio sound escape, we listen to dolphins hunting among the trees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The concave-eared torrent frog's unusual ear anatomy lets it hear high-frequency calls, which gives a mating advantage to the littler males that sing soprano. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from all over, including one from the United Arab Emirates about the the first interplanetary mission by an Arab country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We wrap up our preelection series with Scientific American senior editor Jen Schwartz, who talks about the possible effects of the election results on technology development and use.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices