Kyoto, Japan -- Many people tend to trust dogs' instincts regarding humans. If dogs gravitate towards you, dog lovers will likely see you as safe and trustworthy, but if dogs are apprehensive around you, some may begin to question your character. Yet how and even if dogs socially evaluate people remains a mystery.

Studies have demonstrated that cognitively complex and social animal species -- such as chimpanzees -- can form reputations of humans either through direct interaction or by observing third-party interactions. The historically intimate relationship dogs have with humans has also made them the focus of considerable research, but findings have proven inconsistent.

Previous research conducted at the Wolf Science Center in Austria found that pack-living dogs and wolves did not form reputations of individual humans after both direct and indirect experience with them. This nonjudgmental attitude may be due to the animals' limited experience interacting with humans, so further study required the participation of more experienced dogs.

A new study adds to evidence suggesting that people’s perceptions of others’ tears as sincere or manipulative likely depends on a variety of contextual factors. The findings suggest tears may be perceived as more honest when shed in non-manipulative social situations and by people who are less expected to cry. Monika Wróbel of the University of Lodz, Poland, and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS One on July 16, 2025.

A new study reveals how political conditions in the home countries of ultra-wealthy elites may influence their strategies for concealing their finances offshore. Ho-Chun Herbert Chang, Brooke Harrington and Daniel Rockmore from Dartmouth College, U.S., present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS One on July 16, 2025       

Billionaires, oligarchs, and other members of the uber rich, known as "elites," are notorious for use of offshore financial systems to conceal their assets and mask their identities. Understanding the transnational offshore finance networks that they utilize has long been a challenge given the secrecy involved. But a new Dartmouth study reveals there are distinct patterns associated with the offshore system, which are specific to where a wealthy person comes from. 

A first-of-its-kind study traces the rise of ant- and termite-eaters, revealing how mammals returned to the evolutionary table — at least a dozen times — to hone traits for feasting on the social insect bonanza that exploded after the extinction of the dinosaurs.