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Scientists are trying to settle the age of question of nature versus nurture. This audio story is about a science experiment on ducks to determine whether animals are born with no knowledge of the world and only learn things form experience, or whether they emerge with some knowledge already intact. Listen to hear more about this experiment.
Story Length: 1:50
Indiana Public Radio
AIR DATE: 06/27/2012
The study of genes is moving toward a new frontier. There is a new field studying the little known field of microorganisms. Microbes run every process on earth. And a human is made up of 90% bacteria, or microorganisms. And yet we know very little about microbes. This public radio story looks closely at the microscopic microbes.
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Copying the way a desert beetle gets water, scientists have designed a membrane that can extract water from the air. Since all air contains water, even in the desert, this could provide a very inexpensive way to supply drinking water. This audio story describes an application of the idea of “biomimicry,” or using ideas from nature to solve technological problems. This can help solve the problem of scarce drinking water.
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Toys play an important role in children's development. They are also important to animals, even elephants. This public radio story is about how artists designed and built toys of elephants that were based on animal behavior and their environment. You’ll be inside the zoo with the elephants, hearing their joy when playing with the new toys.
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From "Shiloh" to "Lassie" and "Old Yeller," young adult literature is full of stories about friendship between people and dogs. People love animals but what do animals feel? There is a debate in the scientific community and in popular culture about what emotions animals are capable of and how they display these emotions. Does recognizing that animals can feel take away from human emotion? Or does it help us recognize where these traits came from? This story discusses recent research on the emotions of animals. Listen to learn more about what researchers discovered, and the controversy surrounding the emotional lives of animals.
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