The Forensic Entomologists That Investigate Insect Contaminated Food There have always been televised programs that portray the nature of police work, and this has been the case even when the popularity of television was in its infancy several decades ago. During recent years, however, television programs shifted to portraying the nature of forensic police work. There exists too many TV shows to name that follow this popular trend. The job of a forensic detective appears quite glamorous, but in reality, the field of forensics is not solely limited to crime solving. There exist many types of forensic science, one of which is known as forensic entomology. Within the field of forensic entomology there exists many subgroups. For example, stored-product forensic entomology is one of the lesser-known types of forensic entomology. Forensic entomologists working within this particular field focus on finding the source

Termites Inspire Growth Instead Of Destruction For A Change Most people know termites as tiny destructive creatures, but termites are also capable of creating large tunneled structures that can reach heights of several feet. This ability has served as a model for engineers looking to create robots that could work together in order to build structures. Recently a group of engineers studied the social behavior of termites in order to build a fleet of robots

Be happy that you are not an insect, because insects are, more often than not, brutal creatures that kill without compunction. In the insect community there exists many different methods

Sometime during the 1950s a rumor started to circulate about praying mantises. The rumor said that killing a praying mantis was illegal, and a violation of this law would result in a steep fine. Basically, many people used to believe, and some still do today, that praying mantises are protected under the law. Of course, this is just a myth since there has never been a law

Are Insects Larger In The Tropics? If you had to guess where the world's largest insects thrive, then you would probably find yourself imagining exotic locations with very little human activity, such as tropical jungles. Perhaps some would guess that Australia is home to the largest insects, while others would insist that South America contains the world's largest bugs. However, both would be right, as any region near the globe's midsection would definitely contain super-huge bugs. The experts agree that the largest bugs can be found

Termite Populations Are Expanding, But Why? We hear a lot about termites, and they are certainly common in the United States, but where? When it comes to ticks, for example, most of the American public knows that ticks are commonly found in the northeast portion of the US, as well as a few other regions. However, most Americans have no clue as to where termite populations thrive. Perhaps this is because termites do not cause disease like ticks can, so knowing where to find dangerous ticks is a matter of public health. But despite the fact that termites don't spread disease, termites can still cause tragic, and life changing problems. Therefore, knowing if you live in a region where termite populations are high can only be a benefit. In the United States, the most common

Down in the abandoned mine shafts in Mexico researchers recently discovered a new species of wandering spider called the Sierra Cacachilas wandering spider

Plastic Objects Floating In The Ocean Is Of Benefit To Insects We have all heard sad stories about marine animals dying as a result of coming into contact with plastic objects in the ocean. Plastic objects can be dangerous to marine life for many reasons. The most common problem involves fish and birds becoming trapped in plastic materials. If one particular region of the ocean becomes concentrated with enough plastic material, the consequences could be detrimental to nearby ecosystems. For example, large amounts of plastic debris have been gathering in the north Pacific Ocean for several decades now, and many environmentalists are concerned for that area's animal life. In addition to all that, seeing large amounts of plastic floating in the ocean is a real eyesore. However, some animals may benefit from these floating pieces of plastic. Insects have been known to use the ocean's floating plastic debris as vessels for their egg sacs

You would think that only the most advanced mammals would be able to recognize faces. Studies have shown that both macaques and sheep are capable of recognizing other members of their animal family based on particular facial features. As you can imagine, the ability to recognize faces is extremely rare in the insect world. In fact, only a few different species of paper wasps are able to detect the faces of others. For a long while scientists could not explain how certain wasps could discern different faces. However, a group of researchers has recently gained a better understanding about the physiological mechanisms that allow wasps to recognize faces