Astronomers have discovered a super-Earth capable of sustaining life in an eccentric orbit around its star. Meanwhile, researchers have made groundbreaking findings on the geographic origins of domestic sheep, shed light on human migration, and confirmed that you can’t escape the second law of thermodynamics.
In other news, biologists have discovered a brain-controlling fungus that infects spiders, altering their behavior to spread infection. The fungus, named after Sir David Attenborough, induces spiders to leave their dens and occupy ceiling spaces to disperse fungal spores.
Quantum physicists have addressed the loophole in the second law of thermodynamics by proving that entropy will increase even in quantum systems. The researchers found that if you define entropy in a way compatible with quantum physics, it will also increase in initially ordered quantum systems until reaching a final state of disorder.
Contrary to popular belief, research suggests that dog breeds’ physical characteristics are not specialized for specific tasks, but rather selected by humans for aesthetic reasons. A study on the skull morphology and behavior of cute dogs found substantial overlap in skull shapes across breeds and functional categories, with little evidence to support task-driven body morphology.
These discoveries highlight the complexities and mysteries of the natural world, from fungal zombies to quantum chaos and cuteness reigns supreme.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2025-01-saturday-citations-spider-zombies-morphology.html