Fossil of a monster-size reptile has been discovered in a 150 million-year-old Jurassic graveyard on an Arctic island off Norway! The skeleton of the fish-like reptile is about 10 meters (33 feet) long with “vertebrae the size of dinner plates and teeth the size of cucumbers,” says Joern Hurum, an assistant professor at the University of Oslo.
A new species of bird has been discovered in India! The Bugun Liocichla, a kind of babbler, is named after the Bugun tribe in Arunachal Pradesh state. The Bugun measures 22cm and is strikingly hued in various shades of olive with bright coloured patches all over!
You must have heard about self-service restaurants, let me now tell you about a self-serviced orchid! Named Holcoglossum amesianum, this orchid fertilises itself without the aid of insects or wind. The
plant does not take the help of sticky fluids or any other method used by self-pollinating plants.
An island that caused an international dispute in 1831 between Britain, France and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, is actually a peak of a much larger volcano! A horseshoeshaped volcano is lurking underneath the surface of the Mediterranean south of Sicily!
A recent research has revealed that a commonly used sleeping pill, Zolpidem (brand name Ambien), can be used to temporarily awaken braindamaged patients! After being given Zolpidem, the patients in the study could
interact with their environment.
We all know that bats, whales, and dolphins use ultrasound to communicate with each other. A new member has entered this list- a rare Chinese frog Amolops tormotus that lives alongside fastflowing streams in Anhui Province, China.
An endangered North Island brown kiwi was recently hatched at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, DC. The National Zoo is one of the four zoos in the world to breed kiwis outside of New Zealand.
Scientists say that cell phones are ‘harmful for health’. But mobiles are actually ringing out death sentences for gorillas. Coltan, a mineral extracted from forests of Congo, is used for manufacturing cell phones. And the mobile boom has led to rampant mining in previously pristine forests that are the home ground of these animals.
A benzene spill in China’s Songhua river after an explosion at a chemical factory, threatens the Siberian tiger. The massive cats roam the snowy mountainous terrain of northeast China. The endangered species, that number about 500, live along river Amur, located downstream.
The glare of city lights drown out the stars. So many people are plumping for a less bright world. Rome is the latest city to start a dimmimg programme. The 170,000 street lights will be dimmed and signs in shop windows will be turned off.
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