A new research project has pitted a set of commercially available shark deterrent systems for surfers against one another, with a device that creates an electric forcefield around it coming out on top.
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Interfering with a shark's sensory system is one of the ways scientists believe we may be able to keep beachgoers safe. Now researchers in Australia (where else?) are exploring a new way of deterring these apex predators, by fixing lights to surfboards to obscure their view.
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A team of biologists and engineers from Harvard University and the University of South Carolina have taken a fresh look at shark scales in the hopes of making drones, planes and wind turbines more efficient.
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New animal species are constantly turning up in the deep oceans, thick jungles, or even dusty museum store rooms. Here’s our favorite new additions to the Tree of Life in 2017, as well as a couple of “Lazarus” creatures that were believed extinct but rediscovered this year.
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If you take a look at the different types of sharks, you'll see that some are sleek and streamlined like fixed-wing airplanes, while others are more bulbous and blimp-like. A new study has determined that this difference in body type is determined by what part of the ocean the creatures inhabit.
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Drones with deep learning AI capabilities will soon be patrolling the beaches of Australian coastlines, constantly scanning and automatically detecting sharks around swimmers and surfers. They'll carry shark repellent, as well as loudspeakers for warning beachgoers.
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Marine biologists currently have to manually compare fin photos in order to see which great white shark is which. Wouldn't it be easier if there was fin-pattern-matching software, like there is for fingerprints? Well, it has been attempted before, and now there's a new effort underway.
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Marine Protected Areas are proven refuges for less-mobile species, but whether they protect wide-roaming creatures has been up for debate. A recent study from Stanford University shows an MPA south of Hawaii provided protection for far-roaming grey reef sharks, holding promise for other species.
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In the 1990s, US researchers discovered that squalamine, a potent antiviral compound found in the dogfish shark that could protect liver and blood tissues. Now, a new study has found it could also be used to treat Parkinson's disease.
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Sharks have been known to reproduce either sexually or asexually, but it’s usually one or the other. Now researchers have observed a zebra shark switching from sexual to asexual reproduction for the first time, which could have important repercussions for conservation of the endangered species.
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