Amazing Facts: 2014

Friday, 6 June 2014

Infection in malaria-transmitting mosquito discovered

Researchers have found the first evidence of an intercellular bacterial infection in natural populations of two species of Anopheles mosquitoes, the major vectors of malaria in Africa. The infection, called Wolbachia, has been shown in labs to reduce the incidence of pathogen infections in mosquitoes and has the potential to be used in controlling malaria-transmitting mosquito populations

"Wolbachia is an interesting bacterium that seems perfectly suited for mosquito control. However, there were strong doubts that it could ever be used against field Anopheles populations," said Flaminia Catteruccia, associate professor of immunology and infectious diseases at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and at the University of Perugia, Italy. "We were thrilled when we identified infections in natural mosquito populations, as we knew this finding could generate novel opportunities for stopping the spread of malaria."

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2014-06-infection-malaria-transmitting-mosquito.html#jCp

"Wolbachia is an interesting bacterium that seems perfectly suited for mosquito control. However, there were strong doubts that it could ever be used against field Anopheles populations," said Flaminia Catteruccia, associate professor of immunology and infectious diseases at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and at the University of Perugia, Italy. "We were thrilled when we identified infections in natural mosquito populations, as we knew this finding could generate novel opportunities for stopping the spread of malaria."

http://phys.org/news/2014-06-infection-malaria-transmitting-mosquito.html

Researchers have found the first evidence of an intercellular bacterial infection in natural populations of two species of Anopheles mosquitoes, the major vectors of malaria in Africa. The infection, called Wolbachia, has been shown in labs to reduce the incidence of pathogen infections in mosquitoes and has the potential to be used in controlling malaria-transmitting mosquito populations

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2014-06-infection-malaria-transmitting-mosquito.html#jCpResearchers have found the first evidence of an intercellular bacterial infection in natural populations of two species of Anopheles mosquitoes, the major vectors of malaria in Africa. The infection, called Wolbachia, has been shown in labs to reduce the incidence of pathogen infections in mosquitoes and has the potential to be used in controlling malaria-transmitting mosquito populations
Researchers have found the first evidence of an intercellular bacterial infection in natural populations of two species of Anopheles mosquitoes, the major vectors of malaria in Africa. The infection, called Wolbachia, has been shown in labs to reduce the incidence of pathogen infections in mosquitoes and has the potential to be used in controlling malaria-transmitting mosquito populations
Researchers have found the first evidence of an intercellular bacterial infection in natural populations of two species of Anopheles mosquitoes, the major vectors of malaria in Africa. The infection, called Wolbachia, has been shown in labs to reduce the incidence of pathogen infections in mosquitoes and has the potential to be used in controlling malaria-transmitting mosquito populations

Saturday, 17 May 2014

Fossils of largest dinosaur found in Argentina

Picture taken on May 16, 2014 showing a technician next to the femur of a dinosaur—likely to be the largest ever to roam the earth—in Rawson, Chubut, some 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) south of Buenos Aires

The creature is believed to be a new species of Titanosaur, a long-necked, long-tailed sauropod that walked on four legs and lived some 95 million years ago in the Cretaceous Period.

The dinosaur "weighed the equivalent of more than 14 African elephants," or about 100 tonnes, said Jose Luis Carballido, a paleontologist at the Egidio Feruglio Museum in the southern Argentine city of Trelew.

"This is a true paleontological treasure," Carballido said in a statement on Friday on the museum website.

"There are many remains and they were practically intact, something that does not frequently happen."

Known fossils "of a giant Titanosaur are scarce and fragmentary."

Museum director Ruben Cuneo told local media that the remains belong to "the largest known specimen" of its kind and "the most complete find of this type of dinosaur in the world".

The fossils were accidently discovered in 2011 by a farm worker in a remote area in the Patagonian province of Chubut, some 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) south of Buenos Aires.

The creature was plant-eating and measured some 40 meters from head to tail, Cuneo said.

Photos posted on the museum website show a fossilized femur larger than the paleontologist pictured next to it.

Experts believe that the remains of seven dinosaurs, as well as the broken teeth of carnivores, are among the 200 fossils found at the Chubut site where the giant femur was found.

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2014-05-fossils-largest-dinosaur-argentina.html#jCp

Wednesday, 14 May 2014

Christopher Columbus' 500-Year-Old Ship Finally Found

London: A shipwreck off the coast of Haiti may be the remains of the Santa Maria, Christopher Columbus' flagship from his first voyage to the Americas, according to reports on Tuesday.

Underwater explorer Barry Clifford believes the expedition he led to find and investigate the wreck may finally have unearthed sufficient proof to establish its authenticity -- 11 years after he first investigated it.

"This is the ship that changed the course of human history," he told CNN.

The ship was found in the area where Columbus said the Santa Maria ran aground more than 500 years ago, Clifford said.

"It is the Mount Everest of shipwrecks for me," Clifford, 68, said.

But the ship is not a new discovery -- he and his team first investigated it in 2003 and brought up a cannon from the depths.

Clifford said archaeologists "misdiagnosed" the cannon at the time.

He said that two years ago, having done his own research into cannons used in Columbus' time, "I woke up in the middle of the night and said, 'Oh my God,' " Clifford said.

So this year he returned to the wreck with a team of experts in tow and took careful measurements of the ship and a range of photographic evidence.

That evidence is "very compelling", said archaeologist Charles Beeker of Indiana University.

The ship "still has attributes that warrant an excavation to determine the site's identity", Beeker said.

"Barry may have finally discovered the 1492 Santa Maria."

Clifford is making plans to return to Haiti next month to meet with local officials and establish what steps to take.

Read More : http://www.ndtv.com/

Tuesday, 13 May 2014

Stunning 'Paleoart' Will Beam You Back Into A Ferocious Prehistoric World (IMAGES)

Ever wish you could jump in a time machine and travel back to the age of dinosaurs? What were terrifying prehistoric beasts like megalodon and T. rex really like? And what happened when these creatures battled each other to the death?

While we may not have time machines, a Canadian paleoartist, Julius Csotonyi, provides us with the next best thing. Check out a selection of illustrations from his new book, "The Paleoart of Julius Csotonyi," below.

"I became interested in drawing dinosaurs as a kid, as do many kids. I never grew out of my ‘dinophile’ phase," Csotonyi wrote in an artist's statement on his website. "Dinosaurs are members of a world that is alien to us, and my fascination with the unexplored and unknown led me to both my interest in illustrating dinosaurs and my current career path in science."

Megalodon stalking Platybelodon

The Miocene epoch (23.03 to 5.332 million years ago) boasted a real life sea monster, Carcharocles megalodon. Whereas the giant shark mainly inhabited the open ocean, this image depicts a hypothetical encounter with a swimming Platybelodon, a prehistoric mammal related to the elephant. The bones of these elephantids sometimes show evidence of attack by sharks....

Read More :http://huff.to/1jayhs3

Thursday, 8 May 2014

Man survives 5,000 feet fall with tangled parachute and no broken bones

LIMA: A Peruvian air force NCO whose parachute malfunctioned during a training exercise survived a 1,500 metre (5,000 feet) fall with nary a broken bone.

"It's a miracle he's alive," emergency room doctor Guillermo Pacheco said. "It was the will of God he survived."

Amasifuen Gamarra, 31, underwent a battery of medical tests at the hospital in Arequipa, in southern Peru, Pacheco said, "and there weren't any fractures."

The doctor said Gamarra jumped from a military plane at 1,500 metres, but when he went to open his parachute, the webbing wrapped around his neck and he lost consciousness.

"We don't know what cushioned his fall, but he's alive. It's a miracle," the doctor repeated.

The sergeant, who served in the air force for eight years, was transferred to a military hospital for additional medical testing.