Driven by Curiosity Content

A Baby Bird’s Wishlist: Mild Weather, Attentive Parents, Not Being the Smallest Sibling

Andy Fell — May 11, 2026 - 10:28am

Experiences in the first days and weeks of life can have a profound impact on humans — and birds. A new study led by Sage Madden, a graduate student in evolution and ecology at the University of California, Davis, shows how weather conditions and family dynamics affect the growth of barn swallow (Hirundo rustica erythrogaster) chicks.

Egghead Weekend Basket for May 8

Andy Fell — May 08, 2026 - 10:24am

This week in UC Davis science news, we go from the far reaches of the Universe to the human heart, survey western wildfires and take a trip to Alcatraz.

Alcatraz Coyote Wasn’t a City Boy After All

Katherine E Kerlin — May 05, 2026 - 1:19pm

After months of fieldwork and scientific analysis, National Park Service researchers have determined that the coyote that drew international attention in early 2026 after swimming to Alcatraz Island likely started his epic swim from Angel Island State Park.

The coyote’s whereabouts remain unknown, but new DNA evidence has helped park staff answer one of the biggest questions surrounding the unusual sighting: where he came from.

Non-Rotating Early Galaxy Is a Surprise to Astronomers

Andy Fell — May 04, 2026 - 3:06pm

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have made a surprising discovery about a galaxy long, long ago and far, far away: It isn’t rotating.

Fish Evolution Accelerated After Adapting to Eat off Hard Surfaces

Andy Fell — April 28, 2026 - 1:47pm

Why are there so many species of coral reef fish? According to a new study, it’s because about 50 million years ago, some fish figured out how to bite food from hard surfaces.

Evolution doesn’t proceed at an even pace: Species evolve in jumps and spurts, followed by lulls. These periods of rapid diversification usually occur after a dramatic environmental change or upheaval, or when a lineage develops a new “innovation” that allows them to use a previously inaccessible resource. For fish, the ability to feed from a hard surface was one such innovation.

UC STEM Fest to Inspire Kids with Science and Engineering

Andy Fell — April 27, 2026 - 3:19pm

Hundreds of local schoolchildren will get hands-on exposure to science, technology, engineering and math at the 2026 UC STEM Fest, to be held Saturday, May 2 from 9 a.m. to noon at Rex & Margaret Fortune Early ��ý High School in Elk Grove.

Egghead Weekend Basket for April 24

Andy Fell — April 24, 2026 - 12:22pm

This week's round up of research ranges from plant clones to wildfires with a detour into helping families in poverty. Also, geese.

Propagating plants without mutations

A cool thing about plants is that you can generally grown an entire new copy of a plant from any small piece of it. People have been doing this for centuries by growing plants from cuttings.

Not All Clones Are Created Equal

Andy Fell — April 24, 2026 - 11:12am

Plant scientists use clones for their research, but they’re different from the kind people grow from cuttings. Scientists grow these clones in Petri dishes by the thousands, along with a potential headache: The resulting little plants can carry loads of mutations that must be culled out for research to continue.

Egghead Weekend Basket for April 17

Andy Fell — April 17, 2026 - 2:56pm

It's the 112th UC Davis Picnic Day tomorrow (April 18) and whether your tastes run to cockroach races or fashion, there's something for every taste on campus. A rundown from Dateline and highlights of arts activities here.

And in research news from the past couple of weeks:

Shields Up! Cosmic Rays a Challenge for Deep Space Travel

Andy Fell — April 09, 2026 - 10:38am

One of the big challenges with traveling to the Moon and beyond is protecting both human bodies and the electronics that support them in space against the onslaught of radiation from the sun and the rest of the universe.