anxiety: A nervous reaction to events causing excessive uneasiness and apprehension. People with anxiety may even develop panic attacks.
beetle: An order of insects known as Coleoptera, containing at least 350,000 different species. Adults tend to have hard and/or horn-like “forewings” which covers the wings used for flight.
biology: The study of living things. The scientists who study them are known as biologists.
chemical: A substance formed from two or more atoms that unite (bond) in a fixed proportion and structure. For example, water is a chemical made when two hydrogen atoms bond to one oxygen atom. Its chemical formula is H2O. Chemical also can be an adjective to describe properties of materials that are the result of various reactions between different compounds.
conservation: The act of preserving or protecting something. The focus of this work can range from art objects to endangered species and other aspects of the natural environment.
convergent evolution: The process by which animals from totally unrelated lineages evolve similar features as a result of having to adapt to similar environments or ecological niches. One example is how some species of ancient marine reptiles called ichthyosaurs and modern-day dolphins evolved to have remarkably similar shapes.
cortex: The outermost part of an organ, such as the kidney or brain. Or the outer part of some microbes or plant, such as a tree’s bark or a mango’s rind. (in hair)The protein-based layer of a hair shaft (the layer responsible for a hair’s color) that is below the cuticle.
crustaceans: Hard-shelled water-dwelling animals including lobsters, crabs and shrimp.
dopamine: A neurotransmitter, this chemical helps transmit signals in the brain.
ecologist: A scientist who works in a branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings.
environment: The sum of all of the things that exist around some organism or the process and the condition those things create. Environment may refer to the weather and ecosystem in which some animal lives, or, perhaps, the temperature and humidity (or even the placement of things in the vicinity of an item of interest).
evolution: (v. evolve; adj. evolutionary) A process by which species undergo changes over time, usually through genetic variation and natural selection. These changes usually result in a new type of organism better suited for its environment than the earlier type. The newer type is not necessarily more “advanced,” just better adapted to the particular conditions in which it developed. Or the term can refer to changes that occur as some natural progression within the non-living world (such as computer chips evolving to smaller devices which operate at an ever faster speed).
evolutionary biologist: Someone who studies the adaptive processes that have led to the diversity of life on Earth. These scientists can study many different subjects, including the microbiology and genetics of living organisms, how species change to adapt, and the fossil record (to assess how various ancient species are related to each other and to modern-day relatives).
focus: (in behavior) To look or concentrate intently on some particular point or thing.
fruit flies: Tiny flies belonging to the species Drosophila melanogaster. Scientists often use these short-lived animals as a “guinea pig” for lab studies because they are easy to grow, can mature into adults in a short time and their bodies share many of the same traits and responses as more complex animals — including mammals.
insect: A type of arthropod that as an adult will have six segmented legs and three body parts: a head, thorax and abdomen. There are hundreds of thousands of insects, which include bees, beetles, flies and moths.
intelligence: The ability to collect and apply knowledge and skills.
mammal: A warm-blooded animal distinguished by the possession of hair or fur, the secretion of milk by females for feeding their young, and (typically) the bearing of live young.
mechanical: Having to do with the devices that move, including tools, engines and other machines (even, potentially, living machines); or something caused by the physical movement of another thing.
midbrain: An area of the brain located at the top of the brain stem, in the roughly the center of the head. Areas of the midbrain play important roles in sleep, motivation, movement, body temperature and more.
neuroscientist: Someone who studies the structure or function of the brain and other parts of the nervous system.
octopus: (pl. octopi or octopuses) Sea mollusks with a soft, sac-shaped body and eight arms. Two rows of suckers along each arm give the animal an ability to grasp and hold onto things. Cousins of the squids, these animals have a sharp beak-like mouth and good vision.
organism: Any living thing, from elephants and plants to bacteria and other types of single-celled life.
philosopher: Researchers (often in university settings) who ponder fundamental truths about relationships between things, including people and the world. The term also is used to describe truth seekers in the ancient world, ones who sought to find meaning and logic out of observing the workings of society and of the natural world, including the universe.
predator: (adjective: predatory) A creature that preys on other animals for most or all of its food.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences: A prestigious journal publishing original scientific research, begun in 1914. The journal’s content spans the biological, physical and social sciences. Each of the more than 3,000 papers it publishes each year, now, are not only peer reviewed but also approved by a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.
risk: The chance or mathematical likelihood that some bad thing might happen. For instance, exposure to radiation poses a risk of cancer. Or the hazard — or peril — itself. (For instance: Among cancer risks that the people faced were radiation and drinking water tainted with arsenic.)
sentient: (n. sentience) An adjective to describe the ability to perceive or feel things, such as pain, boredom, awe or sadness.
serotonin: A chemical present in blood that constricts blood vessels and communicates signals in the brain and nervous system.
society: An integrated group of people or animals that generally cooperate and support one another for the greater good of them all.
spider: A type of arthropod with four pairs of legs that usually spin threads of silk that they can use to create webs or other structures.
squid: A member of the cephalopod family (which also contains octopuses and cuttlefish). These predatory animals, which are not fish, contain eight arms, no bones, two tentacles that catch food and a defined head. The animal breathes through gills. It swims by expelling jets of water from beneath its head and then waving finlike tissue that is part of its mantle, a muscular organ. Like an octopus, it may mask its presence by releasing a cloud of “ink.”
stimulus: (plural: stimuli) Something that prompts a response in a living organism or in a controlled environment (including a chemical or physical test system).
taste: One of the basic properties the body uses to sense its environment, especially foods, using receptors (taste buds) on the tongue (and some other organs).