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Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

Posted June 14, 2013 8:59 AM

From BBC News - Science & Environment:

Scientists say they have solved the mystery of how marine mammals store enough oxygen to hold their breath for up to an hour.

Read the whole article and watch the video

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SolarEagle
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#1

Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/14/2013 12:17 PM

Really big lungs, really small brain...?

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Dragonsfarm
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#2
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Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/15/2013 1:36 AM

Actually the Sperm Whale has a brain that weighs ninety pounds.

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redfred
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#3
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Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/15/2013 3:47 PM

Don't confuse him with facts.

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SolarEagle
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#4
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Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/15/2013 4:38 PM

Especially incorrect facts....

" The mature adult sperm whale's brain weighs an average of 18 pounds, and can grow to be nearly 500 cubic inches in size. For comparison, the human brain is only about 80 cubic inches. Compared to the exceptional size(50 tons) of the sperm whale, however, the brain itself is not that large: the brain mass is only .02 percent of the total body mass."

http://animals.pawnation.com/mammals-biggest-brains-3914.html

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#7
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Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/17/2013 12:23 AM

I stand corrected. However it is still five times the size of the average human brain. Their language is also one of the most complex in the world.

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#5

Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/16/2013 8:45 PM

Bigger mass doesn't mean they need a bigger brain, sauropods did quite well with a small brain.

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IdeaSmith
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#6
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Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/16/2013 9:19 PM

But they had half the brain stuffed up in their backside! . . .

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JRiversW
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#8
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Re: Deep-diving Mammals' Secret Revealed

06/18/2013 3:10 PM

So do some humans!

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