New research from SEFS‘ John Marzluff and collaborators from UW’s Department of Radiology shows how crows feel about people–literally. The team scanned the brains of captured wild crows as they were exposed to “threatening” and “care-taking” faces. These scans reveal similar responses in the crows, with different areas of the brain lighting up for feared than trusted faces, as in humans. 

The United States’ collection of climate models should advance substantially to deliver more detailed, smaller scale climate projections, says a new report from the National Research Council. Committee chair Chris Bretherton, ATMO professor, is quoted. Read more here! 

This year, two milestones have been reached in the Arctic Ocean — record-low sea ice extent, and an even more dramatic new low in Arctic sea ice volume. What might this mean for the future of Arctic ice, and its effects on the globe? UW’s PIOMAS model  is cited; read more here. 

The most-studied mass extinction in Earth history happened 65 million years ago and is widely thought to have wiped out the dinosaurs. New research indicates that a separate extinction came shortly before that, triggered by volcanic eruptions that warmed the planet and killed life on the ocean floor. This research was undertaken by ESS‘ Thomas Tobin, Peter Ward, Eric Steig and others.