Latest news with #JohnGilpatrick
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
The Miracle Dogs of Chernobyl Have Evolved Into Something New, Studies Show
Four decades after the world's worst nuclear disaster, something weird—but wonderful—is happening inside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone: the dogs that roam the radioactive area are rapidly evolving. And we don't exactly know why. Watch Pop Mech editors Andrew Daniels and John Gilpatrick explore the strange case of the , who descend from those canines abandoned during the April 26, 1986 evacuation. Despite dealing with extremely cold temperatures, food scarcity, and long-term radiation exposure, the Chernobyl dogs aren't just surviving—they're thriving. And recent studies suggest they're adapting in ways that challenge what we thought we knew about survival. Andrew and John investigate how the dogs that live closest to the reactor have developed genetic traits distinct from other dogs in nearby regions. But the changes don't seem to come from radiation damage; instead, scientists say the animals are adapting through natural selection and transparent toughness passed down across generations. Could the Chernobyl dogs help humans adapt to harsh environments, like, say, the surface of Mars or deep space? Watch the full episode above, and find more installments of the Astounding Pop Mech Show on You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
The Miracle Dogs of Chernobyl Have Evolved Into Something New, Studies Show
Four decades after the world's worst nuclear disaster, something weird—but wonderful—is happening inside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone: the dogs that roam the radioactive area are rapidly evolving. And we don't exactly know why. Watch Pop Mech editors Andrew Daniels and John Gilpatrick explore the strange case of the , who descend from those canines abandoned during the April 26, 1986 evacuation. Despite dealing with extremely cold temperatures, food scarcity, and long-term radiation exposure, the Chernobyl dogs aren't just surviving—they're thriving. And recent studies suggest they're adapting in ways that challenge what we thought we knew about survival. Andrew and John investigate how the dogs that live closest to the reactor have developed genetic traits distinct from other dogs in nearby regions. But the changes don't seem to come from radiation damage; instead, scientists say the animals are adapting through natural selection and transparent toughness passed down across generations. Could the Chernobyl dogs help humans adapt to harsh environments, like, say, the surface of Mars or deep space? Watch the full episode above, and find more installments of the Astounding Pop Mech Show on You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Scientists Found a Third State of Life. It Begins After Death.
What if there's a third state between life and death? And what if your cells are... conscious? Mind-blowing new research shows that, at least for some cells, death isn't the end, but the beginning of something entirely unexpected—and it all manifests in the form of strange little creatures called xenobots. Watch Pop Mech editors Andrew Daniels and John Gilpatrick dive into these tiny clusters of frog stem cells that scientists have designed to move, heal, and even organize on their own. They're not technically alive, but they're also not completely dead. Andrew and John unpack how these 'living robots' challenge our understanding of evolution, consciousness, and even what it means to be human. Along the way, they raise a wild possibility: Could the cells in your body think for themselves? Does consciousness exist not just in brains, but in tissues and organs? Some scientists say yes. Others call it pseudoscience. For now, the debate rages on. Watch the full episode above now, and find more installments of the Astounding Pop Mech Show on You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
One Single Ancestor Gave Rise to All Life on Earth. Even You.
Hey, Pop Mech readers! Welcome to the first episode of The Astounding Pop Mech Show, our weekly video podcast series where we unpack the weirdest, wildest breakthroughs and try to answer the biggest questions in science, tech, and human ingenuity—one mind-blowing discovery at a time. In this episode, hosts Andrew Daniels and John Gilpatrick dive deep into the mysterious origins of all life on Earth—and the ancient microbe that might be our great-great-great (times a billion) grandparent. A study suggests that LUCA, the Last Universal Common Ancestor, may have lived 4.2 billion years ago—earlier than we ever thought—and may have even had an immune system. Andrew and John break down what that means, how scientists figured it out, and why LUCA might just hold the key to understanding your very the full episode above now, and tune in for a new astounding installment every Friday on Get the Issue Get the Issue Get the Issue Get the Issue Get the Issue Get the Issue Get the IssueGet the Issue Get the Issue You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
