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News Briefs 03-11-2006

Whudaya know! ‘One man’ can change the world, a pun can be relatively pain-free, and, contrary to popular opinion, a few sane humans still inhabit the globe.

  • Update: Octopus – Genius of the deep. (Read, save, or pay-per-view later.)
  • Archaeologists believe they have found a third Jellinge stone – a Viking-era stone engraved with ancient Danish Rune writing.
  • Hoard of Viking-era silver coins found in Sweden.
  • Norwegian archaeologists have found a Viking farmer buried with horse, sword, spear and shield.
  • Scholar’s long-discredited theory on Dead Sea Scrolls finds support in new archaeological dig.
  • When did Native Americans first arrive on the North American continent, and where did they settle? Researchers say this question can only be addressed underwater, and plan a multiyear expedition to chart ancient coastlines, now underwater, in order to find the first settlements. More here. As I suggested, they may also look in underwater caves.
  • 30,000 year old fossils found in Romanian cave display mixture of modern human and neanderthal features.
  • Eighth-century Buddhist caves discovered in Afghanistan.
  • Arrgh! ‘Recovering artifacts‘ my eyepatch! Marine archaeologists are ‘looting’ the Queen Anne’s Revenge, Blackbeard’s lead ship.
  • You will forget the world at Deir Mar Moussa. Large photos follow text; not for the faint of bandwidth.
  • 92-year-old Turkish archaeologist acquitted in headscarf case.
  • Enviro-cataclysm of the week: Major study says that by mid-century, there will be virtually no fish left in the seas. Brits will have no more fish and chips by 2048. Seafood gumbo and clam chowder will also be distant memories.
  • Giant shockwaves around a distant cluster of galaxies could be generating some of the mysterious cosmic rays that strike Earth. They could also give us a clue as to why the universe is threaded with magnetic fields.
  • When the Phoenix spacecraft takes off for Mars in August, 2007, it will take along a DVD with messages from visionaries of our time to future visitors or settlers on Mars. Sign up here, and this DVD will also include your name.
  • UK doctors find that novel new treatment heals congestive heart failure.
  • Scientists use stem cells to grow artificial human liver.
  • A study in Nature has found that obese mice on a high-fat diet got the benefits of being thin – living healthier, longer lives – without the pain of dieting when they consumed huge doses of red wine extract (roughly equal to a human consuming 100 glasses a day) containing resveratrol, which spurs mitochondrial activiity and regrowth. Researchers are using words like spectacular, astounding, and Holy Grail.
  • In a controversial study, researchers have resurrected a retrovirus that infected our ancestors millions of years ago and now sits frozen in the human genome.
  • Forgetful? The Mayo Clinic says a virus may be eating your brain.
  • Are social attitudes inherited? Political scientists and geneticists are questioning 8,000 sets of twins, to test their theory that politics may be in the genes.
  • A traditional healer in Samoa may have found the cure for HIV.
  • Psychiatrists probe what happens in the brain when people ‘speak in tongues’.
  • Global study dispels what we thought we knew about sex.
  • Think-tank study says Britain’s teenagers are among the most badly behaved in Europe. Why UK teens struggle to cope.
  • About two years ago in Sydney, Juan Mann quietly began offering ‘Free Hugs‘. Now, thanks to 10,000 people signing a petition, a Sick Puppies video on YouTube, and a visit to The Oprah Show, the ‘Free Hugs’ movement is spreading like wildfire.

Thanks Rico.

Quote of the Day:

Details are all that matters; God dwells there, and you never get to see Him if you don’t struggle to get them right.

Stephen Jay Gould

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