#cool science

[mushrooms-and-millipedes]

YO NEW HELL ANT JUST DROPPED

IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE NO LESS

This is from a study just published a few days ago by Lepeco et al. (2025).

Hell ants (subfamily: Haidomyrmecinae) are super cool ants that possessed vertically closing jaws.

Below is a model of the ant's body/anatomy generated via micro-computed tomography

Vulcanidris cratensis is a new species discovered in Brazil. It dates back to the lower Cretaceous, and at the time of writing, is now the oldest known ant to science!

[curlyboys]

Everyone look at these Zero Gravity Indicators NASA has brought on missions to space! 😍🤲🚀😭✨

bonus Buzz on the ISS: 

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

I finally got video of one of my favorite cool elephant things: the way their tongues move.

In this video, this elephant (either Rose-Tu or Shine) is shaking a hay net above her head and catching the bits that fall in her open mouth. Look at how her tongue can roll them into the back of her mouth!

I can't find a good written explanation of why elephant tongues do that. The most I'm finding online is asides about "their tongues being rooted in their mouths" but there's no explanation of that, although it seems to be used to say they don't have a detached/mobile tongue tip.

I did find this diagram in a paper about vocalizations, though, that indicates maybe the main mass of the tongue is really far back in their mouth? That would mean we're seeing them use the body of the tongue to move food back into the mouth.

An additional cool fact for you: elephant tongues can weigh over 20 pounds!

[idril-fay]

So this is happening tonight

[itsmythang]

This is what happens when you wring out a wet towel while floating in space.

When you wring out a wet towel in space:

Water doesn’t fall — there’s no gravity pulling it downward

It forms floating blobs — surface tension pulls the water into round spheres

It sticks to things — including your hands, the towel, or nearby surfaces

It can drift away — becoming free-floating droplets inside the spacecraft

👉 Instead of dripping like on Earth, the water basically clings and floats, creating these mesmerizing floating bubbles.

Astronauts on the International Space Station actually have to be careful with this, because loose droplets can:

get into electronics

float into eyes or noses

contaminate equipment

So yeah—wringing out a towel in space turns into a floating water show instead of a puddle on the floor.

[xanaxfarts]

Rainbow Eucalyptus Trees

Eucalyptus deglupta is a species of tall tree, commonly known as the rainbow eucalyptus, Mindanao gum, or rainbow gum that is native to the Philippines, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. It is the only Eucalyptus species that usually lives in rainforest, with a natural range that extends into the Northern Hemisphere. It is characterized by multi-colored bark which starts with bright green patches that will gradually transform into orange, maroon, and blue hues.

[marinebioblr]

A dreamy flight through the storming night