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An African monkey called likweli was first photographed in 2008 but has only now been confirmed to be a unique species.
| Photo Credit: Daniel Rosengren
Central African monkey with striking patch is new species
Researchers have found a new species of African monkey in Central Africa. Colobus congoensis, or ‘Likweli’, lives in Lomami National Park. It was first photographed in 2008 but has only now been confirmed to be a unique species, using genetic tests and field observations in 2018-2022. The Likweli is small, black, and distinguished by a striking orange-cream patch around its mouth and a white patch under its tail. The authors proposed classifying the Likweli as ‘endangered’.
Surprise found in why some ancient brains don’t decay
Scientists have long wondered why human brains are sometimes preserved in archaeological sites while other soft tissues have rotted. A new study using mice found that in wet, low-oxygen environments, certain brain proteins bind into stable structures that resist decay. Surprisingly, the study revealed the proteins most likely to survive postmortem are also the ones involved in brain ageing and Alzheimer’s, indicating the pathways leading to preservation after death mirror those of protein stabilisation in life.
A small imbalance breaks open a soggy physics puzzle
The reverse sprinkler problem is an old physics puzzle: if a lawn sprinkler sucks fluid in instead of spraying it, which way will it spin? After many tests, scientists found a reverse sprinkler will rotate in the opposite direction of a regular sprinkler. As water flows through the curved arms, centrifugal forces make the flow slightly asymmetric. When these skewed jets enter the hub, they create an angular momentum that spins the arms the other way.
Published – July 19, 2026 08:00 am IST
