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Sharks are smart, sleek and totally misunderstood. Discover what they eat, how they spot prey, their sense of smell and other cool facts you didn’t know about sharks.

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Bull sharks are the most dangerous sharks in the world, according to many experts. This is because they're an aggressive species of shark, and they tend to hunt in waters where people often swim: along tropical shorelines.

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Bull sharks are the most dangerous sharks in the world, according to many experts. This is because they're an aggressive species of shark, and they tend to hunt in waters where people often swim: along tropical shorelines. Bull sharks live throughout the world, in shallow, warm ocean waters.

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For the first time, researchers have uncovered and analysed the 3D structuresof a woolly mammoth genome.

The 52,000-year-old specimen was so well preserved that hair follicles and the shape of the muscles were still intact, with one scientist likening the location of the find to dying "in the deep freezer".

While older mammoth DNA has been previously sequenced, these were the first 3D structures, called chromosomes, assembled for any ancient DNA sample.

Chromosomes - packages of tightly wound DNA - are where creatures like mammoths and humans store and duplicate genetic information within cells.

Analysis of the woolly mammoth ( Mammuthus primigenius) genome, published today in the journal Cell by an international team of scientists, revealed the species had 28 chromosomes - the same number as both the Asian and African elephants.

But there were key differences between the ancient and modern animals.

One of the researchers, biotechnologist Parwinder Kaur of University of Western Australia, said the mammoth DNA was an "incredible" discovery.

"It's like an insect in amber, but the insect is a mammoth," Dr Kaur said.

What did the team find?

The researchers didn't uncover perfectly preserved 52,000-year-old mammoth DNA by accident.

The team, led by Erez Lieberman Aiden of Baylor College of Medicine in the US, wanted to know if DNA structures could survive after tens of thousands of years.

They had been playing with a technique called Hi-C, which creates a 3D structure of a genome - including the chromosomes and the way DNA sits within them.

To put it to the test on an ancient specimen, they needed to find a mammoth carcass in tip-top shape.

It took the researchers five years to land on a suitable specimen - an immensely well-preserved portion of mammoth skin called YakInf, which was uncovered in 2018 near Belaya Gora in Siberia.

They knew straight away that it was something special because the hair was still intact, which suggested the mammoth hadn't gone through periods of thawing and refreezing.

"You could actually see individual hair follicles from this woolly mammoth, and that's quite remarkable," Professor Lieberman Aiden said at a press conference.

"The hair follicle of a woolly mammoth had never been visualised before."

The dehydrated skin sample has been described as glass-like or freeze-dried, which trapped the fragments of DNA in place.

"What we think happened is that this sample freeze dried, forming a kind of beef jerky," Professor Lieberman Aiden said.

What does this mean?

DNA is not in the business of sticking around long after death.

Normally, after an animal or other creature dies, its DNA quickly breaks into smaller and smaller pieces as it and the body decays.

"It becomes really hard to read those DNA bases," Dr Kaur said.

"And the more degraded the sample, the more missing data points are there."

By the time the DNA becomes ancient - hundreds or thousands of years after death - researchers only have access to small sections of the DNA to piece back together, like an incomplete jigsaw puzzle.

If researchers have access to lots of samples, this is easier, as it works like having multiple copies of the same jigsaw puzzle with different missing pieces.

Teams also can sometimes use "reference genomes" from genetically similar species to check they are on the right track.

Hi-C works in a similar way to this reference genome but in 3D, and detects which sections of fragmented DNA are likely to be neighbours and interact with each other.

The team used Hi-C to create the 28-chromosome mammoth genome in detail, then referenced it against the genomes of modern Asian and African elephants.

Past research has shown that Asian elephants are genetically closer to mammoths than they are to African elephants.

The new analysis revealed the skin samples were similar to that of Asian elephants.

In the past, other, even older, woolly mammoth genomes have been constructed by combining information from multiple samples, or using reference genomes to fill in the gaps.

But because of the freeze-dried nature of the samples, the team could analyse not only the genome itself, but also its shape and structure, which provides more information.

For example, the team could see whichgenes were switched on and off within the skin cells, the first time researchers have done so.

They discovered certain genes involved with cold adaptation and hair growth were turned on in a mammoth, but not in an elephant.

Sally Wasef, a palaeogeneticist at Queensland University of Technology who was not involved in the research, was impressed with the techniques.

"My first thoughts were, 'Oh that really is a breakthrough,'" she said.

"I'd love to see how they're going to apply it to different [ancient] samples."

What other ancient DNA could be investigated?

While experts agree this is an impressive discovery, finding specimens as old and well-preserved as the 52,000-year-old mammoth skin won't happen often.

That's because in most places around the world, the temperature isn't as cold and stable as Siberia.

"They're very lucky because the mammoth died in the 'deep freezer,'" University of Melbourne geneticist Andrew Pask said.

An equally old sample from any warmer climate would have "all just gone to mush", he said.

This means there's no chance that Australia could harbour an animal as well preserved and as ancient as the mammoth, Professor Pask added.

"There's a degree of rotting that happens before the corpse dries out.

"The DNA is smashed to pieces. We're just too warm."

While cold, freezer-like environments are the best place to find other samples, the team behind the latest study suggest that hot, dry environments may also produce the glass-like DNA state suitable for Hi-C analysis.

If true, this could mean Egyptian mummies may be tested using this technique too.

But Dr Wasef believes that ancient Egyptian DNA may be too degraded.

"Mummification helped," she said, "but not enough to preserve long fragments [of DNA required for Hi-C]."

Instead, she thinks the technique could be used on ancient hominids like Denisovans - whose fossils have also been found in cooler areas like Siberia - to see how they differed from our species, Homo sapiens.

"Some [Denisovan fossils] have been found in very good condition," she said.

"It will tell you more about the environment where they lived, their interactions with the environment around them, and what led to their extinction."

De-extinction?

While uncovering a 52,000-year-old chromosome was exciting in itself, the researchers were also interested in how the technique could help bring ancient species back to life, known as de-extinction.

Professor Lieberman Aiden is one of two senior authors on the paper who are advisors to biotechnology startup Colossal Biosciences, the company working on reviving the mammoth.

Professor Pask heads the Thylacine Integrated Genetic Restoration Research (TIGRR) lab, which is a partnership between the University of Melbourne and Colossal. For him, the mammoth chromosome finding is encouraging, but is not "a total game changer" for de-extinction.

Professor Pask has also used the Hi-C technology for his work on the thylacine de-extinction project.

"We're trying to do it with some of the better preserved thylacine tissues, just to see if we could get some architecture," he said.

"There are some specimens that were put into ethanol and then placed in a museum collection, and have been kept at good temperatures for their entire storage."

While de-extinction is not without its critics, those excited about the technology believe this new finding could be part of the solution.

"[Humans] being the ultimate keystone species ... is an extraordinary responsibility," Professor Lieberman Aiden said.

"I hope we act responsibly with all the powerful technologies at our disposal - de-extinction being one of them."

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First ancient chromosomes reconstructed from 52,000-year-old woolly mammoth

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An incredibly well-preserved woolly mammoth specimen that died 52,000 years ago in Siberia has now had its chromosome structure reassembled for the first time.

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Quantum Computing Advancements :

Quantum computing is rapidly advancing, with recent innovations bringing us closer to practical quantum computers. These computers use qubits, which can exist in multiple states at once, allowing them to solve complex problems far faster than classical computers. Companies like IBM and Google have achieved significant milestones, such as demonstrating “quantum supremacy,” where a quantum computer performs a calculation that would take classical computers thousands of years to complete. Quantum computing holds potential for breakthroughs in fields like cryptography, drug discovery, and materials science.

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CRISPR-Cas9 for Gene Editing : CRISPR-Cas9 is a groundbreaking gene-editing technology that allows scientists to precisely alter DNA sequences within living organisms. It has revolutionized genetic research and holds potential for curing genetic diseases, improving crop resilience, and even combating viruses like HIV. Recent innovations in CRISPR include the development of “base editing,” which can change individual DNA letters without cutting the DNA strand, making the process more accurate and reducing the risk of unintended mutations.

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Fun Fact: Pterodactyl is commonly used to refer to pterosaurs, a group of flying reptiles that lived during the Mesozoic Era. However, Pterodactylus is actually the name of specific genus within this group. Pterosaurs are not Dinosaurs but are closely related, and they were the first vertebrates to achieve powered flight. Some pterosaurs had wingspans as large as 33 feet, making them the larges flying animals of all time.

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A day on Venus is almost as long as a year on Earth! Venus takes 225-243 earth days to do 1 full rotation around its axis! (a.k.a 1 day on Venus)

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Did you know that humans and animals see thing differently? Well they do! And I’ll tell you all about it. Us humans are Trichromats, which means we can see the difference between up to a 1’000’000 different shades. The sharks are achromats, meaning they can’t see color. This makes the entire ocean different shades of grey which makes it hard to see but the sharks can see an ultra high contrast which lets them single out their prey amongst dark murky waters. Eagles not only get great views from the skies, but extremely sharp vision too. It’s about twice as good as humans’s vision. This heightened level of focus allows Eagles to see 4-5 times farther away than us. Pit vipers see in thermal vision which means they can sense the temperature and the environment around them, and more importantly, the temperature of their prey. Dogs are dichromats, meaning they only see two colors,blue violet, and yellow. However dogs have adapted to see better at night because they have a layer of tissue that us humans lack, it reflects light into the retina. But dogs for sure can’t see UV Light. For that we need to look at the world through the eyes of a bee. Now, bees only see the UV Light that comes from different objects. The UV Lights that comes out of flowers is what directs bees to where the nectar is. Now as humans we can’t see UV Light but we can represent how it works using these awesome glowing flowers. Now, to make them, you’ll need a UV torch, a yellow highlighter, a beaker or glass filled with Water, and of course, a flower. Take the ink cartridge out of the highlighter and pour it into the water until the water turns yellow. Cut a few centimeters off the flowers stem and place it into the water and leave it at least overnight. The longer you leave it, the better the results. Once your ready, shine the UV torch at it. It should glow! Link: https://www.bbcearth.com/news/how-to-see-the-world-through-animal-eyes

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The Spinosaurus, one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs, was likely semi-aquatic. Fossil evidence suggests that it had adaptations for life in the water, such as dense bones to help with buoyancy control, a long, crocodile-like snout, and conical teeth ideal for catching fish. This makes Spinosaurus unique amongst large theropods, as most were land-based predators.