The brain cells that help animals navigate in 3D
Researchers uncover how grid cells fire in a 3D space to help bats navigate, and a fabric that switches between being stiff and flexible.
In this episode:
00:47 Mapping a bat\u2019s navigation neurons in 3D
Grid cells are neurons that regularly fire as an animal moves through space, creating a pattern of activity that aids navigation. But much of our understanding of how grid cells work has involved rats moving in a 2D plane. To figure out how the system works in a 3D space, researchers have mapped the brain activity of bats flying freely around a room.
Research Article: Ginosar et al.
07:44 Research Highlights
How a \u2018toxin sponge\u2019 may protect poison dart frogs from themselves, and the world\u2019s oldest known coin foundry has been found.
Research Highlight: An absorbing tale: poison dart frogs might have a \u2018toxin sponge\u2019
Research Highlight: Found: the world\u2019s oldest known mint and its jumbo product
09:59 A flexible fabric that transforms from soft to rigid (and back again)
Researchers have created a \u2018tunable\u2019 fabric, inspired by medieval chainmail, that when compressed changes from flexible to rigid. The stiffened structure can hold 30 times its own weight, and the team behind it suggest this material could be used to build temporary shelters or have medical applications.
Research article: Wang et al.
16:33 Stark warning from the IPCC\u2019s latest report
This week the UN\u2019s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its long awaited report detailing compiling the latest climate science data. Nature\u2019s Jeff Tollefson joins us to discuss the report and the warnings it contains for our warming world.
News: IPCC climate report: Earth is warmer than it\u2019s been in 125,000 years
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