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Articles by Caitlin Schrein
Can Rat Bones Solve an Island Mystery?
When I ask her “So how big are the rats?,” E. Grace Veatch, a graduate student in zooarchaeology at Emory University, smiles and immediately holds her hands apart to show the body size of Papagomys armandvillei, the most common species of giant rat on the island of Flores in Indonesia. To my eyes, it is unreasonably large—about the size of a Jack Russell terrier or a raccoon. I mention this to Veatch.
The Revolutionary Genius of Neanderthals
For the last dozen years or so, Geico Insurance has run commercials featuring Neanderthals in modern contexts. The story line varies, but the take-home point does not: Switching to Geico is so easy that “even a cave man can do it,” says the tag line. The Neanderthal’s feelings are invariably hurt, and a stereotype gets perpetuated. Do Neanderthals really deserve such derision?
Sexual evolution - When did sex become fun? - SAPIENS
There are multiple answers to the question of where we come from: early hominins, monkeys, primordial goo, or the Big Bang, to name a few. Today’s answer, though, has probably, just a split second ago, popped into many readers’ minds. Today’s answer is sexual intercourse, a.k.a. “bleeping.” So let’s go back to the beginning, hundreds of millions of years before we invented euphemisms and censorship, and let’s ask: How in the evolutionary world did sex begin?
What Motivated Us to Mate with Neanderthals?
In the winter 1957 issue of the Quarterly Review of Biology, William Strauss and A.J.E. Cave wrote of the Neanderthal, “If he could be reincarnated and placed in a New York subway—provided that he were bathed, shaved, and dressed in modern clothing—it is doubtful whether he would attract any more attention than some of its other denizens.” The “Neanderthal in a hat” image is a bit of a cliché in the field of biological anthropology; it is associated with the idea that Neanderthals were not so...
Why Dwarfism?
✽ In the immortal words of Lennon and McCartney, “I read the news today, oh boy.” By now, you have probably read the news, too, about the discovery of specimens of an extinct, tiny human relative that lived approximately 700,000 years ago on the island of Flores in Indonesia. If not, you can read about it in this SAPIENS article.
Island Dwarfism - SAPIENS
In the immortal words of Lennon and McCartney, “I read the news today, oh boy.” By now, you have probably read the news, too, about the discovery of specimens of an extinct, tiny human relative that lived approximately 700,000 years ago on the island of Flores in Indonesia. If not, you can read about it in this SAPIENS article.
Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh … and Hominins?
Researchers seeking to discover the truth about human origins are turning to animal hybrids for insights. What they’ve found may lead to more questions than answers. ✽ Ligers, tigons, and pizzlies, oh my! What do these critters have in common? They are the offspring of animals that belong to distinct lineages, or populations that have diverged evolutionarily. In other words, they are hybrids. A liger is produced when a male lion and a female tiger mate.
Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh … and Hominins?
Ligers, tigons, and pizzlies, oh my! What do these critters have in common? They are the offspring of animals that belong to distinct lineages, or populations that have diverged evolutionarily. In other words, they are hybrids. A liger is produced when a male lion and a female tiger mate. A tigon is the offspring of a male tiger and a female lion, and a pizzly, as cute as it sounds, is a hybrid of a grizzly bear and a polar bear—so it isn’t an animal you’d want to cuddle.
Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh … and Hominins?
Ligers, tigons, and pizzlies, oh my! What do these critters have in common? They are the offspring of animals that belong to distinct lineages, or populations that have diverged evolutionarily. In other words, they are hybrids. A liger is produced when a male lion and a female tiger mate. A tigon is the offspring of a male tiger and a female lion, and a pizzly, as cute as it sounds, is a hybrid of a grizzly bear and a polar bear—so it isn’t an animal you’d want to cuddle.
When Were Human Ancestors "Domesticated"?
“I do not think any spectacle can be more interesting, than the first sight of Man in his primitive wildness.” —Charles Darwin, letter to J.S. Henslow, April 11, 1833 March 3 was World Wildlife Day, and that got me thinking: Are humans still “wild”? If not, when were human ancestors no longer “wildlife”? In other words, what event or transition in human evolutionary history marks the “domestication” of hominins?
When Sperm Compete, Nature’s Call Leads to Bigger ... Testicles - SAPIENS
Success in the living world is all about reproduction. For living animals with internal fertilization (i.e., within the female’s body), reproductive success is determined by many factors, one of which is males’ ability to fertilize females’ ova (eggs). This depends not only on a male identifying a mate, engaging in copulatory behavior (sex), and inseminating a female, but also on what happens after copulation and insemination, especially when there is sperm competition.
What is an Animal?
What is an animal? Take a moment to think about it. Without doubt your dog and cat are animals, as are the birds singing out your window. What about an earthworm? Or a flea? Certainly they are. Have you ever walked along the beach and spotted a jellyfish or picked up a sand dollar? They are also animals. What do all of these creatures have in common, and what sets them apart from other living organisms? What might the very first animals have looked like, and when did they live?
What is an Animal? - SAPIENS
What is an animal? Take a moment to think about it. Without doubt your dog and cat are animals, as are the birds singing out your window. What about an earthworm? Or a flea? Certainly they are. Have you ever walked along the beach and spotted a jellyfish or picked up a sand dollar? They are also animals. What do all of these creatures have in common, and what sets them apart from other living organisms? What might the very first animals have looked like, and when did they live?
Why are animals cute? Scientists on Twitter compete in #CuteOff of adorable species.
Wild Things Scientists on social media are redefining “cute.” Prompted by two researchers at Virginia Tech, Anne Hillborn and Marcella Kelly, scientists have been posting photos of their most adorable research organisms to Twitter with the hashtag #CuteOff. Whether or not these critters qualify may be in the eye—or the research study—of the beholder.
Why are animals cute? Scientists on Twitter compete in #CuteOff of adorable species.
Scientists on social media are redefining “cute.” Prompted by two researchers at Virginia Tech, Anne Hillborn and Marcella Kelly, scientists have been posting photos of their most adorable research organisms to Twitter with the hashtag #CuteOff. Whether or not these critters qualify may be in the eye—or the research study—of the beholder. The Field Museum wants you to appreciate the squeee-worthiness of this bat. No? Come on, just a little squeee. Look at it! So what’s going on here?
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