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1500 questions
23
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Is monogamy a human innate behaviour?
As the question states, got curious and I was wondering if monogamy is an innate human behaviour or is it because of how we built society (religion, traditions, etc.)?
Let's say we go back in time, would we see humans settling down with a single…
4265726E6172646F
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Can vitamin B17 cure cancer?
I have heard that a 'vitamin B17' can cure cancer, but that the medical industry never talks about it, since making it legal would cause them loss of billions. But I have never found a reliable report on whether B17 really works or not. There is a…
superbug
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Why do humans suffer anxiety when they view "Trypophobia trigger images"?
When you type Trypophobia Trigger Images in google, you see a variety of images with irregular lumps and bumps among some more gory images.
Many people report that these images induce phobia like symptoms of anxiety.
Why do we get anxious when…
Juan J. Stábile
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What is the mechanism behind "acquired" alcohol tolerance?
I can understand natural variation in alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) in a population leading to variation in rate of inebriation (after controlling for other variables -- e.g., mass, food consumption, etc.).
But what physiological (adaptive?) process…
kmm
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23
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4 answers
Why do living fossils like crocodiles remain so constant and not evolve?
Crocodiles have supposedly remained unchanged for millions of years, and several other species are considered as "living fossils". How do such species remain so constant over time given that they will have had so much time to accumulate new…
Hammar
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23
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Why can't humans drink sea water?
Why can't humans drink sea water?
It would seem to be a huge evolutionary advantage for an animal to be able to drink sea water rather than have to rely on fresh water, and it's provably not impossible due to the existence of sea mammals that must…
Ben
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23
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3 answers
What is this fish?! Is it even real?
According to a guy in a Facebook group I belong to, this fish was caught in the Missouri River near Omaha, NE, US. I have never seen one like it in my life, not in person or photo or anywhere. What on earth is this fish?! Is it even real? I've not…
AndyWarren
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23
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4 answers
Are mitochondria dead?
In the video "What is Life? Is Death Real?", the subject of mitochondria is raised at 2:58. At 3:12, the narrator says "[mitochondria] are not alive any more: they are dead."
What currents of thought lead to this affirmation?
When I search for…
James Newton
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3 answers
120-year-old gene regulation problem independently solved by a computer. How?
My Background:
I'm a mathematics graduate student with a physics background. I have a very little biology knowledge and a little knowledge of machine learning and statistics.
Topic:
I recently found out about the following computational biology…
Christian Bueno
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23
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2 answers
Is it known how the first viruses formed?
The oldest known virus is known to have infected prehistoric insects 300 million years ago. A virus is basically a parasitic strand if DNA or RNA encapsulated in a protein coat. It enters cells by "wearing" a protein coat made out of proteins needed…
Jax
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23
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Do species other than humans have distinct daily feeding patterns?
I have a general interest in complex adaptive systems and I have found that nature and the organisms within it is a perfect natural case of a rich adaptive system with a lot of possibilities for gaining insight in general about the nature of complex…
Alex
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23
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Why do we like salt?
A few friends of mine told me that salt provides zero nutritional value to us, and in fact can harm our bodies. Now, these guys are medical students, and being an engineering student myself, I decided not to argue with them. The rest of this…
Hassan
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23
votes
4 answers
How are the boundaries of a gene determined?
What statistical processes and methods are used by geneticists/molecular biologists to know where one gene starts and one ends?
ghchinoy
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23
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What is the mechanism responsible for the periodicity of hiccups?
Hiccups (singultus) are caused by involuntary spasm of the intercostal muscles and diaphragm, producing a sudden inspiration with associated glottic closure. It seems the neurobiology of the reflex has been relatively well worked out (nicely…
Susan
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How many humans have been in my lineage? Is it almost the same for every human currently living?
If I were to count my father, my grandfather, my great-grandfather, and so on up till, say chimps, or the most common ancestor, or whatever that suits the more accurate answer, how many humans would there have been in my direct lineage?
And would it…
laggingreflex
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