A 1967 incident was investigated as a serious threat, newly released files reveal.
Also: 
Friday, March 4, 2011
NASA's pricey failure
A rocket carrying a $424 million satellite appears to have crashed into the ocean.
Also: Echoes of the Big Bang Revealed
This all-sky image of the cosmic microwave background, created by the European Space Agency's Planck satellite, shows echoes of the Big Bang left over from the dawn of the universe.
Extreme Super (Full) Moon to Cause Chaos?
Coming up later this month the moon will make its closest approach to Earth in 18 years.
A new or full moon at 90% or greater of its closest perigee to Earth has been named a "SuperMoon" by astrologer Richard Nolle.
This term has been recently picked up by astronomers.
An extreme "SuperMoon" is when the moon is full or new as well as at its 100% greater mean perigee (closest) distance to earth.
By this definition, last month's full moon, this month's and next month's will all be extreme "SuperMoons".
A new or full moon at 90% or greater of its closest perigee to Earth has been named a "SuperMoon" by astrologer Richard Nolle.
This term has been recently picked up by astronomers.
An extreme "SuperMoon" is when the moon is full or new as well as at its 100% greater mean perigee (closest) distance to earth.
By this definition, last month's full moon, this month's and next month's will all be extreme "SuperMoons".
Science News
Amelia Earhart Clue Found in Clumps
Enzyme Brings Back Old Memories
Increased levels of a naturally occurring enzyme could supercharge long-term memory.
Antarctica Growing From The Bottom Up
Early man was 'ancient mariner'
Studies of artifacts on islands off California exhibit differing hunting technologies and foods compared to inland cultures, researchers say.
Enter the Anthropocene
The 'Age of Man'
The official name for the geological epoch we are in now is the Holocene. But there is a movement among those who study such things to refer to the current stage of geologic time as the Anthropocene epoch, a term coined by Dutch chemist Paul Crutzen, which means “age of man.” This would seem obvious to historians, but in the context of global geology, does the presence of man make that much difference?Way back in the 1870s, an Italian geologist named Antonio Stoppani proposed that people had introduced a new era, which he labeled the anthropozoic. Stoppani’s proposal was ignored; other scientists found it unscientific. The Anthropocene, by contrast, struck a chord. Human impacts on the world have become a lot more obvious since Stoppani’s day, in part because the size of the population has roughly quadrupled, to nearly seven billion. “The pattern of human population growth in the twentieth century was more bacterial than primate,” biologist E. O. Wilson has written. Wilson calculates that human biomass is already a hundred times larger than that of any other large animal species that has ever walked the Earth.More and more, geologists are coming around to the idea that humankind has such an effect on the earth that we are, indeed, living in the Anthropocene epoch. Read the entire story at National Geographic in a feature article that is part of the year-long 7 Billion project.
In 2002, when Crutzen wrote up the Anthropocene idea in the journal Nature, the concept was immediately picked up by researchers working in a wide range of disciplines. Soon it began to appear regularly in the scientific press. “Global Analysis of River Systems: From Earth System Controls to Anthropocene Syndromes” ran the title of one 2003 paper. “Soils and Sediments in the Anthropocene” was the headline of another, published in 2004.
What Wiped Out The Ice Age Giants?
In the past two centuries, many images of huge creatures have surfaced in various caves around the world. Recently, in northern Colorado, researchers dug up the bones of a giant Ice Age mammoth. Also, in Utah, another piece of rock art was discovered that depicts a giant mammoth.
All around the world, frozen carcasses and other remains of oversized animals such as bison, musk oxen, elk, saiga antelope and even woolly rhinos and mammoths have been excavated by researchers, which indicates that giant animals were in existence around 8000 BC.
So, what wiped out these Ice Age giants?
Prehistoric giant hyena's bone-cracking habit
Giant hyenas were true scavengers
Scientists have established how the largest bone-cracking carnivore to have ever lived went about its business.
The giant hyena, Pachycrocuta brevirostris, roamed Africa more than 2.5 million years ago. Using new evidence uncovered from recently unearthed fossils, and a biomechanical analysis of the hyena's jaws, scientists have worked out what it ate and how.
Animal News
Dolphin, Manatee Deaths Baffle Scientists
'Euthanized' Dog Rises from the Dead
North America's Lake Monsters
Super-Elusive Leopard Filmed for the First Time Ever
Photo: YouTube
Just a few weeks back, researchers working in Indonesia identified a remarkable new species of cat -- the stunning Sundaland clouded leopard. But now, for the first time ever, the elusive animal has been caught on film -- a rare peek at one of the most beautiful and ghostlike creatures on the planet.Article continues: Super-Elusive Leopard Filmed for the First Time Ever
New Zombie-Ant Fungi Found
The world just got a little weirder: Scientists have identified four new species of brain-controlling fungi that turn ants into zombies that do the parasite's bidding before it kills them.
New 'Jaguar' Catfish Found in Amazon
In a previously unexplored area of the Amazon rain forest, scientists have discovered a new species of catfish swimming in a tributary to the great Amazon River.
Thinking of having a monkey as a pet?
This month at National Geographic's Flashback Gallery are various exotic pets and working animals.
Look at this idyllic scene from 1942:
Bottom left: Dorothy Lamour with a performing chimpanzee on the set of "The Jungle Princess".
Bottom right: "Mrs. E. Kenneth Hoyt, of Habana, Cuba, acquired the gorilla in 1932 when he was three months old. Mr. Hoyt had just shot Toto's father in the French Congo. African villagers, without the knowledge of the Hoyts, then killed the mother. Mrs. Hoyt, unwilling to see the baby die, procured an African nurse for the gorilla and he thrived on human milk."
Look at this idyllic scene from 1942:
(images credit: National Geographic)
Bottom left: Dorothy Lamour with a performing chimpanzee on the set of "The Jungle Princess".
Bottom right: "Mrs. E. Kenneth Hoyt, of Habana, Cuba, acquired the gorilla in 1932 when he was three months old. Mr. Hoyt had just shot Toto's father in the French Congo. African villagers, without the knowledge of the Hoyts, then killed the mother. Mrs. Hoyt, unwilling to see the baby die, procured an African nurse for the gorilla and he thrived on human milk."
Bemused cows look on as seal swims 50 miles inland to say hello
They probably don't get many visitors. So these cows were no doubt a little curious when a stranger appeared in their field. Unfortunately, it seems, the seal didn't share their desire for a quick tete-a-tete. The visitor did its best to frighten them off before disappearing back into the water.
But the cows couldn't resist one last look at the stranger who had disrupted their peace and quiet. The seal had traveled 50 miles upriver before flipping itself up onto the bank of a tiny brook off the Great Ouse. However, when the herd went to investigate the intruder it lunged towards them, frightening them away, before sliding back into the river.
The encounter in a field in Holywell, Cambridgeshire, was caught on camera by retired engineer Doug Scott, who lives nearby. Keen wildlife photographer Mr Scott, 72, said: 'When I looked out of the window I saw the seal just staring at the cows.
'At one point it lunged towards them and frightened them off a bit. But then it just kept swimming around before swimming off along the brook towards the main river. It was curious about the cows and curious about me, but it stayed and let me take pictures of it. It must have traveled at least 50 or 60 miles to get to my garden. I haven't seen it since Sunday, so it must have swam back.'
Photo from SWNS.
But the cows couldn't resist one last look at the stranger who had disrupted their peace and quiet. The seal had traveled 50 miles upriver before flipping itself up onto the bank of a tiny brook off the Great Ouse. However, when the herd went to investigate the intruder it lunged towards them, frightening them away, before sliding back into the river.
The encounter in a field in Holywell, Cambridgeshire, was caught on camera by retired engineer Doug Scott, who lives nearby. Keen wildlife photographer Mr Scott, 72, said: 'When I looked out of the window I saw the seal just staring at the cows.
Photo from SWNS.
'At one point it lunged towards them and frightened them off a bit. But then it just kept swimming around before swimming off along the brook towards the main river. It was curious about the cows and curious about me, but it stayed and let me take pictures of it. It must have traveled at least 50 or 60 miles to get to my garden. I haven't seen it since Sunday, so it must have swam back.'
Thursday, March 3, 2011
The Daily Drift
The Daily Drift
Today's horoscope says:You don't have to be a poet, songwriter or novelist to know how to be creative with your words.
Creative writing is a gift everyone has -- and everyone should develop.
So today, try to do the unexpected in your written words.
Throw a rhyming scheme into your emails, achieve a lot of alliteration in an agenda, and see what happens if you begin a memo with 'Once upon a time.'
It might seem silly, but creativity is supposed to be fun!
Some of our readers today have been in:
Montreal, Quebec Canada
Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan, Malaysia
Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
London, England, United Kingdom
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Bangkok, Krung Thep, Thailand
Milton Keynes, England, United Kingdom
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Santander, Cantabria, Spain
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
North Bay, Ontario, Canada
Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan, Malaysia
Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
London, England, United Kingdom
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Bangkok, Krung Thep, Thailand
Milton Keynes, England, United Kingdom
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Santander, Cantabria, Spain
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
North Bay, Ontario, Canada
as well as Slovakia, Malta, Bulgaria, Israel, Finland, Austria, Norway, Georgia, Mexico, Peru, Kuwait, Serbia, Bangladesh, Latvia, Greece, Scotland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Wales, Iran, Singapore, Poland, Taiwan, Sweden, Afghanistan, Belgium, Tibet, Croatia, Pakistan, Romania, Paraguay, Sudan, Vietnam, Argentina, Cambodia, Egypt, France, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Maldives, Qatar, Brazil, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, China, Iraq, Ecuador, Nigeria, Colombia, Chile, Honduras, Paupa New Guinea, Moldova, Venezuela, Germany, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Norway, Finland and in cities across the United States such as Rio Rico, Camp Pendelton, West Sacramento, Hickory and more.
Today is:
Today is Thursday, March 3, the 62nd day of 2011.
There are 303 days left in the year.
Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are:
I Want You To Be Happy Day
and
What If Cats and Dogs Had Opposable Thumbs? Day.
and
What If Cats and Dogs Had Opposable Thumbs? Day.
Don't forget to visit our sister blog!
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