National Geographic | National Geographic

National Geographic

HOME REMODELING?
TRY BONE REMODELING.

Friday, February 16, 2024

In today’s newsletter, we explore which vitamins make your bones stronger, commemorate the discoveries in the tomb of King Tut, find the ways that Darwin’s evolutionary theory is still evolving ... and listen to singing bats.

Photo illustration of an x-ray of an arm pouring milk into a glass.

PHOTOILLUSTRATION BY NICK VEASEY, SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Walking on earth stresses your bones. So does reaching for something out of a cabinet or pouring yourself a glass of milk (like the x-ray illustration above). Every day, your bones need to remodel—and need nutrients to do so.

A new study shows they need more than vitamin D. A multivitamin supplement may help, but it is not the best way to remodel those bones.

STORIES WE’RE FOLLOWING

The first pigeon camera, created by German inventor Julius Neubronner in 1907, involved a lightweight aluminum harness and time-delay camera.

PHOTOGRAPH BY RORHOF/STADTARCHIV KRONBERG

Which animal makes the best spy? History might tell. (Pictured above, the first pigeon camera created in 1907.)

Long COVID can destroy your ability to exercise. Now we know why.

When was the First Sack of Rome? It may have been a lot sooner than you were taught.

The world’s heaviest snake has been hiding a big secret

What happens to your body when you’re in love—and when you’re heartbroken

Hang on, Pluto! Some scientists believe it belongs back as our ninth planet.

Is this disease really rare? Or misdiagnosed?

Who was Merlin the Great, really? Here’s the history

Why melanoma diagnoses are rising

Some animals can produce offspring without mating. Here’s how it works.

What can your biological age reveal about your health?

PHOTO OF THE DAY

The golden effigy of King Tutankhamun in a black and white photograph

PHOTOGRAPH BY HARRY BURTON

On this day 201 years ago … King Tutankhamun’s tomb was unsealed, with the king’s golden effigy looking eerily alive thanks to eyes of calcite and obsidian. The pharoh’s funeral shrine contained three more shrines and a quartzite sarcophagus. Inside the sarcophagus lay three mummy-shaped coffins nested within one another. How was his tomb discovered? And what happened after?

Related: What we still don’t know about King Tutankhamun

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

A small ground finch builds a nest on Santa Cruz Island, in the Galápagos.

PHOTOGRAPH BY TUI DE ROY/NATURE PICTURE LIBRARY

Darwin’s evolutionary theory … is still evolving! The finches that Darwin studied when developing his theory of evolution still have a few tricks up their sleeves. With the spread of urban environments, Darwin’s finches are displaying a surprising number of adapted traits—some of which may not be so good, and others that may bode well. (Above, a small ground finch in the Galápagos.)

NEW THEORIES OF EVOLUTION

LAST GLIMPSE

A digital composite image showing a silver-haired bat during flight against a black background

PHOTOGRAPH BY MICHAEL DURHAM/MINDEN PICTURES

Singing bats? Bats are famous for using echolocation to orient themselves in the night sky and find food, but in the winter of 2010, audio recording devices known as “bat detectors” picked up a new sound that had never been heard before in silver-haired bats (pictured above, in a digital composite image illustrating their wing movements during flight). As scientists analyzed the calls, they discovered only the second North American bat species known to sing. Why and how do they do it?

CROONING LOVE SONGS?

Today’s soundtrack: I Can Change, LCD Soundsystem

Happy weekend! This newsletter has been curated and edited by Nancy San Martín, Jen Tse, Nishita Naga, and David Beard. Know someone who might want our newsletter in their inbox? Here’s the signup.

Clicking on the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and National Geographic Channel links will take you away from our National Geographic Partners site where different terms of use and privacy policy apply.

This email was sent to: [email protected]. Please do not reply to this email as this address is not monitored.

This email contains an advertisement from:
National Geographic | 1145 17th Street, N.W. | Washington, D.C. 20036

Stop all types of future commercial email from National Geographic regarding its products, services, or experiences.

Manage all email preferences with the Walt Disney Family of Companies.

© 2024 National Geographic Partners, LLC, All rights reserved.