Happy Wednesday, April 1st, everyone!

Today, my picks for EvoLiteracy News are summarized in the following questions: Do liberal politicians smile more sincerely (= genuine happiness) than conservative politicians (= apparent happiness)? Does growing up in a deprive-from-resources environment (poverty) affect human brain development? How do sexual and natural selection interact when driving the evolution of plumage-coloration in birds? Below are the answers. Plus, don’t forget to visit the Photography Page of Evolution Literacy, which includes images of wildlife, landscapes, museums, monuments and cities from many countries, go to EvoLiteracy Photos.

Liberal Politicians Smile Sincerely… Conservatives Not So Much. Conservatives report, but liberals display, greater happiness. Science Magazine.

Wojcik et al. (total of 5 coauthors) summarize their study as follows: “Research suggesting that political conservatives are happier than political liberals has relied exclusively on self-report measures of subjective well-being. Wojcik et al. show that this finding is fully mediated by conservatives’ self-enhancing style of self-report and then describe three studies drawing from “big data” sources to assess liberal-conservative differences in happiness-related behavior. Relative to conservatives, liberals more frequently used positive emotional language in their speech and smiled more intensely and genuinely in photographs. The results were consistent across large samples of online survey takers, U.S. politicians, Twitter users, and LinkedIn users. Wojcik et al. findings illustrate the nuanced relationship between political ideology, self-enhancement, and happiness and illuminate the contradictory ways that happiness differences can manifest across behavior and self-reports.” See study in Science Magazine.

Poverty Does Affect Brain Development. Family income, parental education and brain structure in children and adolescents. Nature Neuroscience.

Noble et al. (total of 25 coauthors) write: “Socioeconomic disparities are associated with differences in cognitive development. We investigated relationships between socioeconomic factors and brain morphometry, independently of genetic ancestry, among a cohort of 1,000+ typically developing individuals between 3 and 20 years of age. Income was associated with brain surface area. Among children from lower income families, small differences in income were associated with relatively large differences in surface area, whereas, among children from higher income families, similar income increments were associated with smaller differences in surface area. These relationships were most prominent in [brain] regions supporting language, reading, executive functions and spatial skills; surface area mediated socioeconomic differences in certain neurocognitive abilities. These data imply that income relates most strongly to brain structure among the most disadvantaged children.” For access to complete article go to Nature Neuroscience.

Natural and sexual selection act on different axes [“directions”] of variation in avian plumage color. Science Advances.

Authors Peter O. Dunn, Jessica K. Armenta and Linda A. Whittingham summarize their research as follows: “The bright colors of birds are often attributed to sexual selection on males, but in many species both sexes are colorful and it has been long debated whether sexual selection can also explain this variation. Dunn et al. show that most evolutionary transitions in color have been toward similar plumage in both sexes, and the color of both sexes (for example, bright or dull) was associated with indices of natural selection (for example, habitat type), whereas sexual differences in color were primarily associated with indices of sexual selection on males (for example, polygyny [one male mating with several females] and large testes size). Debate about the evolution of bird coloration can be resolved by recognizing that both natural and sexual selection have been influential, but they have generally acted on two different axes [= “directions”]: sexual selection on an axis of sexual differences and natural selection on both sexes for the type of color (for example, bright or dull).” See complete article in Science Advances.

Birds of Paradise — Photos by Tim Laman. Click on image to be redirected to ‘Birds of Paradise’ at NatGeo

Dunn et al. explain that “Darwin’s theory of sexual selection was based on his observations of the bright colors of males, which he thought were preferred by females and led to a mating advantage for more colorful males. Wallace, on the other hand, pointed out that in many species, females are as ‘gay and brilliant’ as the male, and he suggested that dichromatism [the “two colors,” one in males, the other in females] evolved as a consequence of nest predation favoring more cryptic females.” The authors “examined both male and female plumage color in relation to 10 indices of natural and sexual selection to test whether dichromatism was primarily due to sexual selection, as Darwin proposed, whereas the color of both sexes was primarily due to natural selection [Wallace’s proposal].”

The Answer Is Both: Dunn et al. concluded that “Both natural and sexual selection have influenced the evolution of bird coloration, but in many respects, they have acted on two different axes [ = “directions”]: sexual selection on an axis of sexual differences and natural selection on an axis of color (for example, dull or bright) in both sexes. Thus, debate about the causes of variation in bird coloration may be resolved by recognizing that natural and sexual selection have generally acted on two different axes.” Science Advances.

Note: Sexual dimorphism driven by sexual selection is a wide spread phenomenon, documented in the fossil record; below, Parasaurolophus (male and female), a hadrosaurid dinosaur from the end of the Cretaceous (Art by Pavel Riha). The topic ‘sexual selection’ was addressed extensively by Charles Darwin in ‘The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex‘ (1871), and by Alfred R. Wallace in ‘Tropical Nature, and Other Essays‘ (1878).

Reviews of Evolution Stands Faith Up: Reflections on Evolution’s Wars.

Available at NOVA, Barns & Noble, Amazon.com, Amazon UK

“…Shot-gun marriages between evolution and faith have never worked, despite the tradition of pointing the barrel at evolution’s head. The truth is that evolution likes it single. Free, with no stoppers of thought or restrains on logic. And when lured unknowingly into the altar by those who see facts and fiction compatible, evolution has consistently stood belief up and walked away, sometimes run, toward its secular turf… [The] dream of arranging evolution’s wedding with belief will remain dormant for as long as evolution is awake.” Provocative, intriguing, a contemporary and concise analysis of the clashes between science and faith: In this book, Guillermo Paz-y-Miño-C examines the societal sequels in public education, the future of America’s science and academia of believing in a deity. For this evolutionary biologist, educator and public speaker, “science is [the only] refined device for resolving ordinary curiosity and a powerful liberator of superstition. He thinks of science as “the subsistence kit to defeat re-emerging fundamentalism” in the world. With a journalistic style in short, yet documented essays, Paz-y-Miño-C encourages the reader to question “faith healing,” the “silly” forecast of Armageddon on two occasions in 2012 (after postponing the first engagement), or the “wrongly called” The God Particle, which scrambles fiction with facts. He considers “belief” to be a “disruptor,” which delays and stops the correct comprehension and acceptance of evidence. He alerts us about the threats of rejecting science, our African and ape evolutionary ancestry, and the epidemic growth of anti-intellectualism among decision makers, whose interest in replacing “curiosity-driven science” with profitable laboratory-bench work to secure sales of “science products” will drive the “culture of discovery in America” to vanish. But this author also contrasts his inner “frustration in attempting to reverse, at least around [his] immediate circle of influence, such trend…” with essays in which his contagious passion for science emerges. In his prose, Paz-y-Miño-C ignites our imagination to “take off from the roof of the Boston Museum of Science and its Charles Hayden Planetarium, while flying in a helicopter that, after metamorphosing into a spaceship, leaves Earth to immerse us into galactic infinitude.” Or to hike among sea lions, while they rest on the Galapagos shores, and feel as Darwin did the magnificence of nature. Or to contemplate the night sky from the top of the largest volcano in the World, Mauna Kea, in Hawaii, and accept the fact that, one day in the distant future, all its telescopes —or their remains— will drift away on their carrier, the late “Big Island,” and sink in the Pacific when the summit of Mauna Kea succumbs to erosion, hence following the drowning fate of the Hawaiian Islands. This open-ended book assures: “Once embraced by all, this truly universal language —scientific rationalism/empiricism and evolution— shall lead us to a more cohesive understanding of nature and of our amazingly diverse human condition. Humanity’s ultimate challenge will be to collectively embrace reality, with no stoppers of thought or restrains on logic.” (Imprint: Novinka).

African Savannah Elephants Have Acute Spatial Memory. Study just published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

African Savannah Elephant Photo Yathin Krishnappa

Authors Leo Polansky, Werner Kilian and George Wittemyer  state that “…detailed ‘spatial knowledge over large scales,’ enables elephants to minimize travel distance through highly directional movement when accessing water. Polansky et al.’s research illustrates emerging approaches for studying how cognition structures animal movement behaviour in different ecological and social contexts.” In fact, “little [was] known [before this study] about the role of spatial memory in large-scale movement behavior.” Animal Spatial Memory is crucial for survival since individuals and groups must find specific resources, like water or food, in patchy environments, which change seasonally. The study was conducted in the semi-arid Etosha National Park, Namibia. Read full open access article at Elephant Spatial Memory PRSB.

The main findings of the study can be summarized as follows: (1) Elephants have a remarkable spatial acuity when accessing point water sources, initiating highly directional movements to water at considerable distances from the waterhole. (2) The individuals studied [five-female- and five-male-radio-collared animals] overwhelmingly chose the nearest waterhole when moving to it in a directed manner across a range of scales, suggesting a cognitive-based mechanism for these movements. The factors leading to the cognitive decision making include: environmental spatio-temporal landscape features  (e.g. distribution of ephemeral waterholes and forage resources) and social organization (distribution of conspecifics that vary in social rank).

Polar Bears Are Increasingly Feeding on Bird Eggs. Climate change and the increasing impact of polar bears on bird populations. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.

Young polar bears raid a colony of barnacle geese, searching for eggs and newly hatched goslings in the Nordenskiöldkysten region of Spitsbergen, Norway. Image by Jouke Prop.

“Polar bears depend on sea ice for hunting seals. Longer ice-free seasons are hypothesized to force the bears to hunt for alternative terrestrial food, such as eggs from colonial breeding birds.” Prop et al. (a total of 16 authors) have “analyzed time-series of polar bear observations at four locations on Spitsbergen (Svalbard) and one in east Greenland.” Summer occurrence of polar bears has increased significantly since 1970/80s. “The shifts in polar bear occurrence coincides with trends for shorter sea ice seasons and less sea ice during the spring. Direct observations of nest predation show that polar bears may affect reproductive success of the barnacle goose, common eider and glaucous gull.” The authors suggest that “the increasing, earlier appearance of bears on land in summer reflects behavioral adaptations by a small segment of the population to cope with a reduced hunting range on sea ice. This exemplifies how behavioral adaptations may contribute to the cascading effects of climate change.” For complete story go to Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.

A Biotic Game Design Project for Integrated Life Science and Engineering Education. PLoS Biology.

A: Biotic games enable human players to interact with cells. B: Conceptual overview of a biotic game setup. C: Students built and played biotic games.

Authors Cira et al. (a total of 6 collaborators) summarize their work as follows” “we present the concept of a ‘biotic game design project’ to motivate student learning at the interface of life sciences and device engineering (as part of a cornerstone bioengineering devices course). We provide all course material and also present efforts in adapting the project’s complexity to serve other time frames, age groups, learning focuses, and budgets. Students self-reported that they found the biotic game project fun and motivating, resulting in increased effort. Hence this type of design project could generate excitement and educational impact similar to robotics and video games.” For article and materials go to PLoS Biology STEM.

The authors summarize their conclusions as follows: (1) Biotic games are promising in motivating integrated, hands-on learning at the interface of life science and engineering. (2) This concept could be adapted to various age groups and learning goals with the potential for wider future impacts on education.  (3) There is potential for integrating more creative and artistic aspects into STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics, STEAM) .

Game: Test Your Spatial Memory in this easy game (Click on Image).

This Pattern Memory game trains spatial recall including memory for visual patterns and location of objects. According to Memory-Improvement-Tips.com “These brain skills can help you remember where you left your keys or parked your car” (if that does not work, at least you will have fun playing the game). To begin, click the Small, Medium or Large links. This opens the game in a pop-up window. Wait for it to load, then click “START.” Good luck.

Unprecedented Letter: “The Natural History Museum” has posted on its website “An Open Letter to Museums from Members of the Scientific Community.” The letter states: “…We are deeply concerned by the links between museums of science and natural history with those who profit from fossil fuels or fund lobby groups that misrepresent climate science…”

The text continues: “…We are concerned that the integrity of these institutions is compromised by association with special interests who obfuscate climate science, fight environmental regulation, oppose clean energy legislation, and seek to ease limits on industrial pollution… When some of the biggest contributors to climate change and funders of misinformation on climate science sponsor exhibitions in museums of science and natural history, they undermine public confidence in the validity of the institutions responsible for transmitting scientific knowledge.” To read the complete letter go to Open Letter. The Natural History Museum is inviting scientists to sign the letter. The organization states its mission as follows: “[To] affirm the truth of science.  By looking at the presentation of natural history, we demonstrate principles fundamental to scientific inquiry, principles such as the commonality of knowledge and the unavoidability of the unknown.  We inquire into what we see, how we see, and what remains excluded from our seeing. Through this inquiry, we act as museum anthropologists attuned to the social and political forces inseparable from the natural world.”

New species of frog can rapidly change skin texture from smooth to spiny. The “mutable rainfrog” (Pristimantis mutabilis), discovered in Ecuador, is not only cute but scientifically intriguing.

The new amphibian species was discovered in the humid, mossy cloud forest habitat in Ecuador’s Reserva Las Gralarias, in the Andes. The study was just published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. The authors, Juan M. Guayasamin and four other collaborators, describe a “striking case of phenotypic plasticity” (= the frog overall appearance) in which the anuran has the ability to modify its skin texture within minutes, changing between two discrete character states: from presence to absence of tubercles. Interestingly, the “mutable frog” [note that the authors use this term to advertise the fast switch from one appearance to another] is not the only species with this trait; the biologists also describe a second sympatric frog (P. sobetes) with comparable characteristics. It is not clear, however, why these frogs can morpho-change their appearance, although environmental factors –including camouflage (the hypothesis favored by the authors since specimens resemble the mossy habitat in which they live), predators, sexual selection or an anatomical/physiological adaptation to the role of the skin in the animals’ biology– often shape the phenotype. The authors speculate that the so quick changes in the skin appearance “could involve allocation of more or less water to existing small structures (e.g. warts and tubercles),” but it is obvious that the process is not fully understood. Guayasamin and coauthors describe that “individuals of Pristimantis mutabilis presented a markedly tubercular skin texture when found on vegetation or hidden in moss during the night. Large tubercles were evident on the dorsum, upper and lower lips, upper eyelid, arms and legs.” And they add: “After frogs were captured, they all showed a sudden and drastic change in skin texture; all tubercles became reduced in size.” Amazing, indeed! For journalistic information on this story go to amphibians.org.

Amphibian was top predator. A species of crocodile-like amphibian was among Earth’s top predators more than 200 million years ago. The University of Edinburg.

Model of Metoposaurus algarvensis. Credit: Marc Boulay, Cossima Productions

The research was just published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. as  A new species of Metoposaurus from the Late Triassic of Portugal and comments on the systematics and biogeography of metoposaurid temnospondyls. Brusatte et al. write in the summary of their research “Metoposaurids are a group of temnospondyl amphibians that filled crocodile-like predatory niches in fluvial and lacustrine environments during the Late Triassic. Metoposaurids are common in the Upper Triassic sediments of North Africa, Europe, India, and North America… We here erect Metoposaurus algarvensis, sp. nov., the first Metoposaurus species from the Iberian Peninsula, based on several new specimens from a Late Triassic bonebed in Algarve, southern Portugal… The new Portuguese bonebed provides further evidence that metoposaurids congregated in fluvial and lacustrine settings across their geographic range and often succumbed to mass death events…” For complete article go to Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

EvoLiteracy Photos: click on image below to visit Evolution Literacy Photos – Wildlife – Fossils – Landscapes – Museums – Monuments – Cities.