Life Sciences News

• Milkweed's evolutionary approach to caterpillars: Counter appetite with fast repair | Cornell Chronicle feature | 07/21/2008 Chronicle feature

  Genetic analysis reveals an evolutionary trend for milkweed plants away from resisting predators to putting more effort into repairing themselves faster than caterpillars -- particularly the monarch butterfly caterpillar -- can eat them.

• Cornell researchers ponder feasibility of undertaking algae for biofuel research | Cornell Chronicle feature | 07/21/2008 Chronicle feature

  Hosted by the Cornell Center for a Sustainable Future, the discussion luncheon, "Improving the Stability and Productivity of Algal Bioreactors for Biofuel Production," focused on the economic and technological feasibility of algae as a source for biomass.

• Schroeder earns DuPont Young Professor grant | Cornell Chronicle feature | 07/17/2008 Chronicle feature

  Frank Schroeder, assistant professor at the Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research at Cornell, is a recipient of the 2008 DuPont Young Professor grant for his research on the response of cellular systems to bioactive small molecules.

• From humming fish to Puccini: Vocal communication evolved with ancient species, research shows | Cornell Chronicle feature | 07/17/2008 Chronicle feature

  By mapping developing brain cells in newly hatched midshipman fish larvae, Andrew H. Bass, Cornell professor of neurobiology and behavior, found that the neural network behind sound production in vertebrates can be traced back through evolutionary time.

• A new look at how genes unfold to enable their expression | Cornell Chronicle feature | 07/11/2008 Chronicle feature
  Cornell researchers have uncovered surprising new information about the process by which genes are unwrapped and exposed so that they can be expressed.
• Forest birds evolved in bursts, DNA shows | Cornell Chronicle feature | 07/09/2008 Chronicle feature

  Dan Rabosky, a graduate student at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and Professor Irby Lovette used DNA analyses to look at 5 million years of evolution in 25 species of colorful North American songbirds known as wood warblers.

• Library names Dean Krafft chief technology strategist | Cornell Chronicle feature | 07/07/2008 Chronicle feature

  Krafft will focus on developing a long-term vision for the library's technology future and assessing information technology trends and innovations that impact the library. He will also serve as an ambassador for collaborative technology initiatives.