Moon smash-up may have created new Jupiter ring

WASHINGTON – An image taken by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has indicated that Jupiter may have a new ring that was created by a smash between its moons.

According to a report in New Scientist, the possible ring appears as a faint streak near Jupiter’s moon Himalia in the image.
The telescopic camera aboard the Pluto-bound probe … Original source on Gaea Times at : Moon smash-up may have created new Jupiter ring.

IPCC has underestimated climate-change impacts, say scientists

WASHINGTON – A team of scientists has determined that the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2007 4th assessment report underestimates the potential dangerous impacts that man-made climate change will have on society.

According to Charles H. Greene, Cornell professor of Earth and atmospheric science, “Even if all man-made greenhouse gas emissions were stopped …. Original article  : IPCC has underestimated climate-change impacts, say scientists.

Our tree-dwelling ancestors could also walk on two legs 3.6 mln yrs ago

WASHINGTON – Experiments by a team of anthropologists have shown that fossil footprints made 3.6 million years ago are the earliest direct evidence of early tree-dwelling hominids using the kind of efficient, upright posture and gait now seen in modern humans.

More than three million years ago, the ancestors of modern humans were still spending a … Original source on Gaea Times at : Our tree-dwelling ancestors could also walk on two legs 3.6 mln yrs ago.

Nano-based RFID tags may soon make long lines at store checkouts history

WASHINGTON – Those never-ending lines at store checkouts could soon be history, thanks to radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags printed through a new roll-to-roll process that could replace bar codes and make checking out of a store a snap.

Rice University researchers, in collaboration with a team led by Gyou-jin Cho at Sunchon National University in Korea, …. Source article  : Nano-based RFID tags may soon make long lines at store checkouts history.

Why we tend to be nice with strangers

WASHINGTON – People from large industrialized societies tend to be nice with strangers. Now, researchers have found why we are surprisingly fair and trusting with unfamiliar individuals.

This pro-social behaviour results from a change in social norms that allowed us to trust strangers, according to the new study.
The change is likely linked to a rise in … Read more : Why we tend to be nice with strangers.

Indian military experts develop grenade using world’s hottest chilli

WASHINGTON – Reports indicate that military experts in Assam, India, have developed a grenade made using the world’s hottest chilli, which is more than 1,000 times stronger than the average cooking spice.

According to a report in The Sun, the researchers have developed the new crowd control grenade packed with ground seeds from the bhut jolokia … Read more »».

There were 18,500 humans in the world 1.2 million years ago

WASHINGTON – A team of geneticists, with the help of the composition of just two human genomes, has computed the size of the human population 1.2 million years ago, from which everyone in the world is descended, as being 18,500 people.

According to a report in the New York Times, the estimate was made by a …. Original article  : There were 18,500 humans in the world 1.2 million years ago.

World’s oldest temple found in Turkey

WASHINGTON – A team of archaeologists has claimed that a temple being excavated in southeastern Turkey is 12,000 years old and is likely the oldest temple ever uncovered in the world.

According to a report by United Press International (UPI), the site was first identified in 1986 when a farmer tilling his field in Sanliurfa found …. Source article  : World’s oldest temple found in Turkey.

Moon may have bucketloads of water!

WASHINGTON – If reports are to be believed, the Moon may have bucketloads of water, with a NASA release indicating the amount of water ice detected in the north lunar pole as 600 million metric tons, stashed away in 40 craters.

This new announcement comes hot on the tail of a series of water discoveries on …. Original source  : Moon may have bucketloads of water!.

Stem cells used to rebuild 10-year-old Brit boy’s windpipe

LONDON – Great Ormond Street Hospital doctors have carried out a surgery to rebuild the windpipe of a 10-year-old British boy using stem cells developed within his body.

In an operation Monday lasting nearly nine hours, doctors at the centre implanted the boy, who has a rare condition called Long Segment Congenital Tracheal Stenosis, with a …. Source article  : Stem cells used to rebuild 10-year-old Brit boy’s windpipe.

Stiff skin syndrome causes found

WASHINGTON – In a study, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine researchers have shed light on a rare inherited disorder called stiff skin syndrome.

By studying the genetics of the syndrome, boffins have learned more about scleroderma, a condition that leads to hardening of the skin as well as other debilitating and often life-threatening problems.
he findings, … Read : Stiff skin syndrome causes found.

Pretty girls increase risky behaviour in young men

MELBOURNE – Presence of a pretty woman can lead men to throw caution to the wind, says a new University of Queensland research.

To reach the conclusion, Professor Bill von Hippel and doctoral student Richard Ronay, from the university’s School of Psychology examined the links between physical risk-taking in young men and the presence of attractive …. Original article on Gaea Times at  : Pretty girls increase risky behaviour in young men.

Even pre-human ancestors cried while cutting onions

WASHINGTON – The body sensors that bring tears in your eyes when you’re cutting onions have been around for 500 million years, says a new study.

According to a report by Brandeis University scientists in Nature, whenever a person chokes on acrid cigarette smoke or feels like he/she is burning up from a mouthful of wasabi-laced …. Source  : Even pre-human ancestors cried while cutting onions.

In hot Kerala, captive elephants lose cool

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM – Captive elephants in Kerala are feeling the heat of temple festivals. Often working overtime, without sufficient food and water in this hot season, they are going berserk on a daily basis.

“In the past two weeks, several elephants have gone berserk. Elephants are overly stressed, especially in the months from March to May when … Read : In hot Kerala, captive elephants lose cool.

Arizona Game and Fish employee fired after internal probe into 2009 capture, death of jaguar

Arizona state employee fired over jaguar capture

PHOENIX – The Arizona Game and Fish Department has fired an employee based on results of an internal investigation into the capture and death of what was the only known wild jaguar in the U.S.
Officials said Friday that 40-year-old Thornton W. Smith was a field biologist and had been …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : Arizona Game and Fish employee fired after internal probe into 2009 capture, death of jaguar.

Advocates question number of deaths from wild-horse roundup in Nevada

Nevada wild-horse roundup death toll rises

RENO, Nev. – Activists in Nevada are questioning the rising death toll from a government roundup of wild horses from the range north of Reno.
U.S. Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman JoLynn Worley says 77 mustangs involved in the Calico Mountains Complex gather have died so far – 70 at a …. Original article on Gaea Times at  : Advocates question number of deaths from wild-horse roundup in Nevada.

New terrifying dino species discovered in China

LONDON – A British Phd student has discovered a terrifying new species of dinosaur in China, an eight-foot long creature with scythe-like claws.

Michael Pittman and an American colleague stumbled on the near-complete fossil skeleton of Linheraptor exquisitus during a field trip to Inner Mongolia and found that the creature is related to the Velociraptor, one …. Source article on Gaea Times at  : New terrifying dino species discovered in China.

Gov’t Report: Agriculture Department lax in penalizing those who falsely market organics

Report: USDA lax in policing organics marketing

WASHINGTON – The Agriculture Department has failed to enforce penalties against some who falsely marketed foods as organic, according to an internal department investigation.
A report by the agency’s inspector general says the agency needs to step up enforcement of those who sell products under the “USDA Organic” label but … Original source on Gaea Times at : Gov’t Report: Agriculture Department lax in penalizing those who falsely market organics.

Mercury soars to 41.5 degrees in Orissa capital

BHUBANESWAR – The temperature soared to the season’s highest of 41.5 degrees Celsius in this Orissa capital Friday, an official said.

The maximum temperature at adjoining Cuttack town was 40.1 degrees Celsius, the official of the Bhubaneswar meteorological centre told IANS.
He said several other places in Orissa also recorded high temperatures. These include Chandbali 39.6 … Read more >>.

Cabinet clears project on restoring polluted sites

NEW DELHI – The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) Friday approved a proposal for a $75.39 million World Bank-assisted project to develop a national programme for the rehabilitation of polluted industrial sites.

“The objective of the project is to develop a national programme for the remediation and rehabilitation of polluted sites by taking up four … Read : Cabinet clears project on restoring polluted sites.