Mollusks, features and articles | Educational Science

Apr 27, 2023

Scientists discover never-before-seen brain wave after reading octopuses' minds

Octopuses possess a brain wave that has never been seen before in animals, along with others similar to those found in humans, first-of-their-kind brain recordings reveal. The groundbreaking study captured the first ever brain recordings of freely moving octopuses and was performed by implanting electrodes in the animals’ brains and...

May 22, 2023

Watch an octopus waking up from what scientists think could have been a nightmare

Scientists have filmed an octopus exhibiting strange behaviors in a laboratory in New York that could be explained by it having nightmares. Over the course of a month, researchers watched as the octopus appeared to jolt out of a restful sleep and thrash around, in a behavior that seemed almost...

Jun 8, 2023

Octopuses 'rewire' their brains to adapt to different ocean temperatures

As the seasons change, octopuses rewire their brains to adapt to fluctuating ocean temperatures, a new study finds. Octopuses and other cephalopods are cold-blooded, or ectothermic, meaning they cannot internally regulate their body temperature. As a result, they are vulnerable to external temperatures in the water, which can threaten the...

Jun 13, 2023

How octopuses could have helped avert the Cuban missile crisis

In October 1962, the rules of engagement during the Cold War assumed particular urgency. Soviet nuclear warheads were in Cuba — and ships carrying missiles, launchers, and more warheads were on their way. The U.S. needed to establish new rules to communicate with and relate to the Soviet Union. Gregory...

Sep 20, 2023

See extremely rare photos of alien-looking '7-arm octopus' spotted near Washington coast

A diver in Washington has captured stunning photos of a massive, alien-looking octopus in shallow water along the state's coastline. The rarely seen cephalopod, which spends most of its life in the deep sea, had injuries that suggest it may have been recently attacked by a cookiecutter shark. Underwater photographer...

Sep 29, 2023

Watch ghostly dumbo octopus swim with its massive 'ears' in rare new footage

Researchers exploring an underwater mountain in Hawaii's deep sea recently stumbled across a rare, ghostly dumbo octopus — one of the deepest dwelling octopuses on Earth — flapping its large ear-like fins as it swam near the seafloor, a new video reveals. The unidentified species of dumbo octopus, from the...

Dec 11, 2023

Blue-ringed octopus, one of the most toxic animals on Earth, bites teen after hiding in shell

An Australian teenager had a lucky escape after being bitten by one of the world's most toxic animals, a blue-ringed octopus, after accidentally picking up the deadly cephalopod hiding in a shell. But this was not the only close call — he almost passed the tiny creature to a toddler,...

Jan 21, 2024

4 never-before-seen octopuses discovered in deep sea off Costa Rica

Last month a team of scientists visited an ethereal nursery on the seafloor off Costa Rica, where they watched in awe as a new generation of deep-sea octopuses gently emerged from a quivering cluster of oblong, semitranslucent eggs. Now the researchers have confirmed these deep-sea dwellers are members of an...

Mar 8, 2024

Oldest known sex chromosome emerged 248 million years ago in an octopus ancestor

The oldest known sex chromosome in animals has been discovered, pushing back the date for the evolution of sex chromosomes to between 248 million and 455 million years ago. The ancient chromosome was found in octopus and squid, suggesting that these may have been among the first animals to determine...