Again, but faster! The spectacular courtship dance of a tiny bird

Julia Barske, a UCLA graduate student and doctoral candidate in ecology and evolutionary biology, has recently published data that shows that the females select the males that completed elements of the courtship dance in 50 milliseconds over the males that took 80 milliseconds. Barney Schlinger, professor and departmental chair of integrative biology and physiology and a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology is co-author of the study.

Wolves Are Wolf-Coyote Hybrids

The Boston Globe reported on genetic research by Robert Wayne, UCLA professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, and colleagues indicating that wolves in the eastern U.S. are hybrids of gray wolves and coyotes and that eastern coyotes are wolf-coyote-dog hybrids.

The healing power of hydrogen peroxide

Alvaro Sagasti, UCLA Professor of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, and UCLA postdoctoral scholar Sandra Rieger found that hydrogen peroxide, which is found in high concentrations in wounds, promotes the regeneration of sensory fibers in healing skin.

Electrode Experiment Shows Promise as a Paralyzed Man Stands

V. Reggie Edgerton, UCLA Professor of Integrative Biology and Physiology, and Susan Harkema of the University of Louisville in Kentucky, describe a new electrode experiment that helped a paralyzed man take steps on a treadmill, and regain other key functions. These studies may provide good hope for the quarter of a million Americans who are currently living with spinal cord injuries.

Are we outsourcing our brains to technology?

Robert Bjork distinguished professor of psychology and co-principal investigator at the Bjork Learning and Forgetting Lab at UCLA, was quoted Wednesday in a New York Times Magazine column about the effects of computers and Internet technology on human memory.

Species extinction rates may be overestimated

Stephen Hubbell, UCLA distinguished professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, is co-author on a new study published May 19 in the journal Nature. The study found that methods most widely used for calculating species extinction rates are “fundamentally flawed” and overestimate extinction rates by as much as 160 percent.

New Book: The Failure of Environmental Education– And How We Can Fix It

This week, conservationist Charles Saylan and UCLA Professor and Chair of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Daniel T. Blumstein published their latest book, “The Failure of Environmental Education (And How We Can Fix It).” Sayan and Blumstein argue that schools must revamp how they teach about the environment to prevent ecological collapse.

How to tell when someone’s lying

UCLA professor of psychology R. Edward Geiselman and three former UCLA undergraduates have analyzed some 60 studies on detecting deception and conducted original research on the subject. They present their findings and their guidance for how to conduct effective training programs for detecting deception to help law enforcement agencies tell truth from lies.