Totally Mysterious
The hair on the Mexican free-tailed bat’s toes glows under ultraviolet light, but the reason is unknown. Jason Bittel Reported in “Mexican free-tailed bat’s toes glow in the dark” (SN: 8/28/24).
leader Eleanor Peterson I asked if the glowing toes attract prey.
Unlikely, but logical, biologists say. Fernando Gual Suarez from the National Autonomous University of Mexico in Mexico City. Many organisms, such as some anglerfish and cave insects, use photoluminescence to attract prey. But unlike these creatures, which are sit-and-wait predators, bats “actively hunt from the air.” Gual Suarez Say. Additionally, the photoluminescent toe hairs would be difficult to see for potential prey. If these tracks were useful for hunting, they would be near the mouth (think of monkfish bait, for example), and the bats “would use a different hunting strategy,” he says.
Further research is needed to understand the function of the mark, but Gual Suarez Say. Photoluminescence serves no function and may simply be a byproduct of the hardened structure of the hair used for grooming and sensing. Or it could be used to communicate with other bats during flight or roosting, he says.
Dive deep into destruction
Scientists have discovered a rare “golden channel” decay of a subatomic particle called a kaon. Further research could destroy or strengthen the standard model of particle physics. emily conover Reported in “Decay of rare particles confirmed” (SN: 9/24/24).
leader Derek Lenehan We asked how the damping deviates from the standard model.
If the collapse deviates from the predictions of standard models, it would exhibit new physics about which little is known. In this decay, the kaons produce pions, neutrinos, and antineutrinos. But particle physicists say other particles, called the W and Z bosons, mediate the decay. Christina Lazeroni He holds a PhD from the University of Birmingham, UK. In a new physics scenario, some physicists have proposed new particles that could act as intermediaries, such as the Z’ (pronounced “Z-prime”) boson. The other is the leptoquark. It is a particle with properties similar to electrons and their leptonic analogs, as well as quarks, the particles that make up protons, neutrons, and other composite particles.
correction
The “Global Temperature Maximum and Low Temperatures” graph has reversed the labels of the curves showing global temperature and atmospheric CO2.2 data (SN: 24/9/19). Both curves showed 5th percentile values rather than mean (50th percentile) values. The correct version will be displayed here.
