Science News Roundup: Canada signs deal to send first astronaut on U.S. mission around the moon; 'World's ugliest orchid' among new species named in 2020 and more

Narrow hallways present higher infection risks Kangaroos can learn to communicate with humans, researchers say Kangaroos can learn to communicate with humans similar to how domesticated dogs do, by using their gaze to "point" and ask for help, researchers said in a study published on Wednesday.

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Narrow hallways pose higher infection risk; hospitalized COVID-19 patients often need readmission

The following is a roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus.

Narrow hallways present higher infection risks Kangaroos can learn to communicate with humans, researchers say

Kangaroos can learn to communicate with humans similar to how domesticated dogs do, by using their gaze to "point" and ask for help, researchers said in a study published on Wednesday. The study involved 11 kangaroos that lived in captivity but had not been domesticated. Ten of the 11 marsupials intently gazed at researchers when they were unable to open a box with food, according to the report. Nine alternately looked at the human and at the container, as a way of pointing or gesturing toward the object.

Antarctica rocked by 30,000 tremors in 3 months, Chilean scientists say

More than 30,000 tremors have rocked Antarctica since the end of August, according to the University of Chile, a spike in seismic activity that has intrigued researchers who study the remote, snowbound continent. Scientists with the university's National Seismological Center said the small quakes - including one stronger shake of magnitude 6 - were detected in the Bransfield Strait, a 60-mile wide (96-km) ocean channel between the South Shetland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula.

'World's ugliest orchid' among new species named in 2020

Orchids are not often called ugly, but that is how the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, London, described a new species of the normally vibrant and delicate flower discovered in the forests of Madagascar. Gastrodia agnicellus, one of 156 plants and fungal species named by Kew scientists and their partners around the world in 2020, has been crowned "the ugliest orchid in the world".

China says to share part of lunar samples with scientists from other countries

China plans to share data and samples that the Chang'e 5 probe obtained during its recent mission to the moon, based on international cooperation conventions, said the deputy head of the country's space agency on Thursday. The lunar samples will be mainly used for scientific research, Wu Yanhua, deputy head of the China National Space Administration, told a press briefing.

Canada signs deal to send first astronaut on U.S. mission around the moon

Canada will for the first time send an astronaut to circle the moon on a U.S. mission planned for 2023, Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains said on Wednesday, announcing a formal deal with Washington. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence last week unveiled an 18-strong pool of people who could go to the moon under NASA's Artemis program, which Canada is now a part of.

New and rediscovered species found in pristine Andes of Bolivia

A scientific expedition high in the Bolivian Andes revealed 20 species new to science, including "lilliputian frog" plus four rediscovered species including the "devil-eyed frog" previously thought to be extinct, Conservation International said. The expedition was led by the environmental group and the government of capital city La Paz. It included 17 scientists who went to the Chawi Grande, a locality belonging to the Huaylipaya indigenous community near La Paz.

Thai researcher wonders if chicken feathers on the menu might fly

When Sorawut Kittibanthorn was looking for new types of waste to recycle, the then London-based student was drawn to the millions of tons of chicken feathers being discarded each year. Now back in his homeland of Thailand, the 30-year-old is seeking funding to continue his research into how best to convert the nutrient component found in the feathers into a powder that can be transformed into a lean, protein-rich source of edible food.