New arround the world
300-million-year-old fossil that of new reptile species
 A
fossil that was discovered on Prince Edward Island, Canada over 14 years
ago by a boy has turned out to belong to a new species of reptile!The
8.5-inch-long fossil was found on the boy's family's farmland in Prince
County and was later taken to the Royal Ontario Museum in 2004.Sean
Modesto, a professor of biology at Cape Breton University, started
researching the fossil, erpetonyx arsenaultorum, four years ago.
He said the fossil is one of the most complete reptile fossils from
the Carboniferous era, which was 300 million years ago. "It's the only
specimen we know of from this particular part of the Carboniferous and
it's the only reptile from that slice of time," he said.Modesto added
that the reptile is the closest and oldest relative ever found of a
group of early reptiles called bolosaurids parareptiles.
Previous research showed that parareptiles had one ancestor that made
it through the Carboniferous era into the early Permian era and that
that ancestor only branched off during the Permian. But this discovery
proves that there was a much higher diversity of reptiles at the end of
the Carboniferous era than we believed - about 80 per cent higher!"This
one specimen allows us to say, 'Yes, reptiles aren't these very
mysterious animals right at the end of the Carbonigerous. Here's
evidence that they're actually more diverse than the fossil records
indicate.'
-Internet
Woman's lucky escape from a runaway truck
A woman had a narrow escape when a runaway moving truck crashed into
the wall of her Northland home. The truck was parked in a nearby
neighbour's driveway, when it rolled and smashed into the woman's living
room. Luckily for her, the truck stopped a few metres short of where she
was relaxing on her couch.
It is believed that the driver of the furniture delivery truck had
only stepped a few metres out in front of the vehicle when he heard the
sound of the brakes releasing. While he considered getting back in it,
in an attempt to stop the vehicle from rolling away, he was left with no
option but to watch it crash into the neighbour's house.While the front
of the house was demolished, it is a miracle that she escaped unhurt.
-Internet
 Doing
dishes
Nobody likes doing the dishes, but it turns out that doing this
mundane task might pay off in an unexpected way. According to a new
study published in the Journal of Paediatrics, washing dishes by hand
instead of using a dishwasher might prevent the development of
allergies.Researchers in Sweden surveyed the parents of 1,029 children
ages 7 and 8. They discovered that children whose families hand-washed
the dishes instead of using a machine were less likely to have
allergies.A Little Bit of DirtEarlier research has shown that dishes
washed by machine are cleaner than those washed by hand. So why would
kids who eat off on slightly dirtier plates be better off when it comes
to preventing allergies? One explanation is based on a theory known as
the "hygiene hypothesis," which says the reason kids develop allergies
is because their surroundings are actually too clean.Your immune system
keeps you healthy by fighting germs like bacteria and viruses. But when
you have allergies, it overreacts and tries to fight ordinary things
like pollen or certain foods.
-Internet
Whales stranded on Farewell Spit
Around 150 whales have died in Golden Bay after getting stuck on
Farewell Spit. They were long finned pilot whales and around 200 became
stranded.Department of Conservation workers manged to refloat some of
the whales but sadly the majority died.Farewell Spit is located at the
top of the South Island and is a whale trap due to the way its shallow
waters. These seem to confuse whales and diminish their ability to
navigate. Pilot whales grow to about 6 metres (20 feet) in length.
-Internet |
