Dolphins’ powerful sense of taste; 3,000 miles by canoe
|  | Thursday, May 19, 2022 | | | | |
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It was the first sensation we felt as infants—the soothing caress of others. Now researchers are learning more about how crucial hugs and handshakes are to our health, and our humanity.
So says writer Cynthia Gorney in the cover story of National Geographic’s June issue. She follows a man whose lower arm was amputated, but he can “feel” with wires placed in his upper arm. (Pictured above, researchers explore a camera-computer combo with a robot.)
Gorney describes the moment his wife wrapped her fingers around the hand of his experimental prosthetic. “His head snaps up. His eyes widen. His mouth falls open. She’s watching him, but Brandon is staring straight out, plainly not seeing anything. ‘I could feel,’ he told me. ‘I was getting feedback. I was touching her. I was crying. I think she was crying.’ “
She was.
Read the full story here.
And here’s a video explainer on why love and touch were once considered dangerous.
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| | Pictured above, Brandon Prestwood swabbing his upper arm. Implanted wires are connected to a computer stimulator and carry signals to electrodes implanted in his upper arm. Combined with an experimental prosthesis, this can give Prestwood—whose lower arm was amputated after an accident—touch sensations that feel as though they’re coming from that missing hand. | | | |
 | | PHOTOGRAPH BY CHRISTIAN ADAIR/DOLPHIN QUEST | | | Dolphin IQ: How do you spot a friend from a distance? Their laugh, smile, or the way they walk? Bottlenose dolphins (one pictured above) can distinguish their pals not only by their whistles, but by the taste of their urine. A scientist had spotted dolphins swimming through plumes of urine, and thought there might be a reason, Nat Geo reports. (Pictured above, a calf at Dolphin Quest Bermuda, where biologists observed their interactions.) | | | |
 | PHOTOGRAPH BY PETA
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| A stack of scorpions: Human mamas (and papas) carry their newborns on their back. Scorpions are no different. Newborn scorpions, called scorplings, instinctively know that Mom’s back is a safe space. Scorpions protect their babies from predators by giving them rides under their venomous tail. The young are carried for a week or two, until their exoskeleton hardens, and they can live on their own. (Pictured above, a female Edward’s bark scorpion stands completely covered by her offspring.)
Nat Geo Explorer Joel Sartore’s Photo Ark project is a multi-year effort to document every living species in zoos and sanctuaries. Explore his portraits of 12,000 species.
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 | | There is amazing complexity in nature—we need to take the time to look. Looking closely at the natural world is a never-ending reward, given the diverse beings and the dazzling textures, colors and patterns you find. | | | | Anand A. Varma | Science photographer, Nat Geo Explorer
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 | COURTESY THE POLYNESIAN VOYAGING SOCIETY
| | | No compass, no problem: Lehua Kamalu is leading the movement to revive Polynesian wayfaring. She and the 10-member crew aboard the double-hulled canoe Hōkūle’a just completed a 3,000-mile voyage from Hawaii to Tahiti. There was no technology onboard; the sun, stars, waves, and wind served as compass and map. “Everything is done mentally,” says Kamalu, captain and navigator (pictured above). A Nat Geo Emerging Explorer, Kamalu became the first known woman to captain and navigate a long-distance ocean voyage without modern technology when she sailed 2,800 miles from Hawaii to California in 2018. | | | |
| This newsletter was curated and edited by David Beard, Jen Tse, and Monica Williams. Do you have an idea or a link for future newsletters? Let us know at david.beard@natgeo.com. If you want our daily newsletter, sign up here. Have a good weekend ahead. | |
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