What can cats see that humans can't?

Cats can see UV light, which is invisible to humans.
Cats can do a lot of things their human friends can’t: They can purr, sleep all day without consequence, and jump up to six times their own height in a single leap. But perhaps most impressive of all is their ability to see ultraviolet light thanks to UV-transparent lenses in their eyes that allow UV light to reach their retinas. This will come as little surprise to anyone who’s ever noticed their cat staring at seemingly nothing for minutes at a time, but it’s a fascinating insight into how our feline friends view the world all the same. In fact, their UV vision actually allows them to see their prey’s urine trail while hunting and distinguish between their prey and a similarly colored background.

This ability may not help your housecat in any practical ways on a daily basis, as being fed from a can doesn’t require much in the way of hunting, but it’s still a cool evolutionary trick. And cats aren’t the only animals with this ability. Bees, birds, reindeer, and mice have this enhanced vision as well, though for some of them it comes with the trade-off of not being able to see the color red.


Humans have kept cats as pets for at least 9,500 years.

When we think of cats in the ancient world, Egypt tends to come to mind first. Egyptians considered felines sacred and some even mummified their pets, but they weren’t the first to hold cats in such high regard. There’s evidence to suggest they were beaten to the punch by at least 4,000 years: A grave in Cyprus dating back some 9,500 years contained the remains of a human and cat alongside decorative objects such as seashells and polished stones. Cats aren’t native to the island, meaning they must have been brought there by humans — perhaps “on a kind of Noah’s ark,” as archaeologist Melinda Zeder told National Geographic, theorizing that a number of non-native animals were transported to Cyprus.
#Animals #Cats

Killer whales sometimes hunt moose.
There’s a reason orcas are better known as killer whales. They’re fierce predators, and they don’t always keep to the water in search of prey — in fact, they’ve even been known to hunt moose. This happens when a member of the largest deer species (yes, moose are deer) wades into the water, either in search of food or to elude land-based predators, and finds itself in the unfortunate position of being near an orca, which will eat pretty much anything. Such occurrences have been known to happen in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, with one recorded incident resulting in the deaths of two moose.

Orcas are thought to have received their nickname centuries ago, perhaps from a mistranslation. The theory posits that Basque fisherman observed them killing other whales and referred to them as “whale killers,” which became “killer whales” when translated to English. Their diet depends largely on where they live, but different ecotypes feed on everything from fish and seals to sharks and squid, with the occasional moose thrown in.


No one knows why orcas keep attacking yachts.

If you’ve read about killer whales in the last few years, it’s probably because they keep sinking yachts. There have been incidents in Cape Finisterre as well as the Strait of Gibraltar, with at least 500 orcas encountering boats since 2020. (Most of these go no further than the whales merely approaching the vessels, perhaps out of curiosity, but a number of them have resulted in sunken boats.) Scientists remain unsure about the whales’ motivations. Some think they’re merely having fun or even participating in a fad, which is apparently something killer whales do — for instance, one pod spent the summer of 1987 wearing dead salmon on their heads. Others believe it’s because they’ve had negative experiences with boats in the past, including losing members of their species to the vessels. Whatever the case, the creatures don’t seem to have personal beef with the humans onboard; there have been zero recorded cases of an orca killing a human in the wild.
#Animals #KillerWhales

Word of the Day: Pervious.

ADJECTIVE
1. (Of a substance) Allowing water to pass through; permeable.

Example Sentences.
1. "David realized how pervious his hiking boots were as soon as he stepped in the river."
2. "Pervious soil is crucial for ground-dwelling organisms that require water."
3. "The children's sandcastle was completely pervious; water had already washed it away by the next morning."

Word Origin.
Latin, early 17th century

If this word sounds familiar, you're likely better acquainted with its antonym "impervious." "Pervious," which predates its opposite, comes from the Latin word "pervius" ("having a passage through"). Pervious membranes are crucial for most organic, living things — humans, for example, could not survive without the permeable cells that make up our bodily systems.

Music May Improve Mental Health as Much as Exercise, Research Shows.


Hit the gym or press play — new findings suggest pumping up the jams could be as powerful for your mental state as pumping iron.

Any music lover may tell you that bopping along to your favorite song is a surefire way to feel better, but a scientific review published in JAMA concludes that music’s benefit to mental health is actually comparable to that of exercise. In other words — singing your heart out in the shower could be as good for your mind as a jog around the block. While that alone may thrill those who don’t love the gym, music therapists note broader implications.

Researchers analyzed data from 26 studies involving a combined 779 adult participants. Each study measured the impact of making and listening to music on health-related quality of life The review found “moderate-quality quantitative evidence of associations between music interventions and clinically significant changes in mental, After comparing that evidence to data on other approaches, the authors noted that the results are within the range of the “average effects of established non–pharmaceutical and medical interventions (e.g., exercise, weight loss).”

Research has long shown that the increased blood flow, adrenaline, and other physiological processes exercise invokes can improve sleep, self-esteem, and mood. While the JAMA review doesn’t detail the processes that make music similarly beneficial to mental health, Elisha Ellis Madsen, a board-certified music therapist and founder of Feel Creative Wellness sheds some light.

“Both music listening and active music-making have been shown to activate the dopaminergic pathways,” she told Nice News. Those pathways are involved in cognitive processes like executive functioning and motivation — which is why an upbeat tune may put you in the mood to clean, and classical music may help you focus.

The review looked at studies on recreational music interventions as well as those involving clinical music therapy, which is wide-ranging in its applications. For example, the Pacifier-Activated Lullaby has helped develop feeding skills in premature babies, while therapeutic music programs have improved chronic pain in adults living with terminal illnesses.

Madsen suggested that reviews like this could even aid in achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. She pointed to Goal Three: improving global health and well-being by 2030. “If you’re thinking about the myriad ways we can promote well-being for humans, music therapists have this modality to improve health and wellness in a way that doesn’t have any side effects,” Madsen said.

However, the review is not without limitations, including the broad nature of inclusion criteria and the possibility of bias in the studies analyzed. The authors assert that “future research is needed to clarify optimal music interventions and doses for use in specific clinical and public health scenarios.”

Another music therapist, Juliana Rocha, is also encouraged by the publication of these findings, though. “As more and more evidence-based studies are being conducted, we are seeing a substantial shift in the perceived value of music in medicine and palliative care,” she told Nice News.

Whether you enjoy lifting weights or spinning records, you can rejoice in the knowledge that evidence supports both music and exercise as healthy ways to boost your mood.