The Secrets Inside Your Dog's Mind

TIME: "Henry the schnoodle just did a remarkable thing. Understanding a pointed finger may seem easy, but consider this: while humans and canines can do it naturally, no other known species in the animal kingdom can. Consider too all the mental work that goes into figuring out what a pointed finger means: paying close attention to a person, recognizing that a gesture reflects a thought, that another animal can even have a thought. Henry, as Kivell affectionately admits, may not be "the sharpest knife in the drawer," but compared to other animals, he's a true scholar.

It's no coincidence that the two species that pass Hare's pointing test also share a profound cross-species bond. Many animals have some level of social intelligence, allowing them to coexist and cooperate with other members of their species. Wolves, for example--the probable ancestors of dogs--live in packs that hunt together and have a complex hierarchy. But dogs have evolved an extraordinarily rich social intelligence as they've adapted to life with us. All the things we love about our dogs--the joy they seem to take in our presence, the many ways they integrate themselves into our lives--spring from those social skills. Hare and others are trying to figure out how the intimate coexistence of humans and dogs has shaped the animal's remarkable abilities."

Fossil Find Challenges Theories on T. Rex

NY Times: "The discovery of the creature, Raptorex kriegsteini, calls into question theories about the evolution of a much larger and heavier dinosaur."

When you've doubled your genes, what's 1 chromosome more or less?

EurekAlert: "For animals, an extra chromosome can result in major problems, but plants are another matter. Many plants can survive an extra copy of their entire genome (polyploidy), and this process often results in a new species, making it an important mechanism in evolution. In fact, over 80 percent of plants may be a product of polyploidy. This research examines how polyploidy and genomic change can lead to evolutionary change, and affect plants' fitness and vigor."

Remarkable Creatures: A Feared Predator, Its Origin Evolving

NY Times: "Great whites, most experts now believe, are not descended from a megatoothed megashark, but from a more modest relative of mako sharks."

Evidence points to conscious 'metacognition' in some nonhuman animals

EurekAlert: "J. David Smith, Ph.D., a comparative psychologist at the University at Buffalo who has conducted extensive studies in animal cognition, says there is growing evidence that animals share functional parallels with human conscious metacognition -- that is, they may share humans' ability to reflect upon, monitor or regulate their states of mind."

Worker Bees In 'Reproductive Class War' With Queen, New Research Discovers

ScienceDaily: "Bee colonies are well known for high levels of cooperation, but new research demonstrates a conflict for reproduction between worker bees and their queens, leading some workers to selfishly exploit the colony for their own needs. The study focused on Melipona scutellaris -- a Brazilian species of highly social stingless bees, found throughout the Atlantic rainforest. Colonies contain around 1,500 workers and are headed by one single-mated Queen."