| Famed Tasmanian devil euthanized after tumor found By KRISTEN GELINEAU 2010-09-01T07:44:54ZSYDNEY (AP) -- A Tasmanian devil named Cedric, once thought to be immune to a contagious facial cancer threatening the iconic creatures with extinction, has been euthanized after succumbing to the disease, researchers said Wednesday.... hosted.ap.org |
Six to watch: science shows Some TV science series set off a chemical reaction to capture the public's imagination, so which are your favourites?The study of physics and science might be sadly declining, but television has a noble history of creating science shows that have a spirit of adventure and sense of wonder – and importantly don't make viewers cringe. So which science shows have proved to be the best televisual experiments? Here are six of our favourites – for grown-ups and kids. Let us know whether they'd have been your choices and which shows you'd add to the list.The Men in White: 2006Channel 4's much mourned and often very funny kids show where three funky scientists (Adam Rutherford, Basil Singer, and Jem Stansfield, the latter popping up later on bang Goes The Theory – see below) tried to solve average, everyday problems, consequently creating a fart detector and "pimping" a false leg.Horizon: 1964 –Popular wisdom insists that Horizon has gone downhill, but it was still water-cooler TV before offices had water coolers. Complex ideas were explained to audiences willing to understand, and scrolling down the list of titles reveals an innovative social conscience – such as the 1989 episode Black Schizophrenia. The moving 1991 episode Inside The Chernobyl Sarcophagus meanwhile, was terrifying, informative and beautiful. Richard Hammond's Blast Lab: 2009 –Yes I know – it stars Richard Hammond, but what could be better than persuading his "Ninja Nan" to help blow stuff up (or in this case to lie down peacefully as she gets splattered with eggs)? Add in the competitive element and miniaturised former science teacher Mini Miss, and you have informative chaos – although frankly, shouldn't these kids be in detention?Tomorrow's World: 1965 – 2003It could be a bit worthy, but featured Kraftwerk more than once, including an enthusiastic Maggie Philbin next to their dancing robots. Never embarrassingly hip and always informative, the guilty pleasure was waiting for the Heath Robinson-esque demonstrations to fail, epically. Presenter and cult-hero Raymond Baxter was a former second world war fighter pilot. (Brilliantly, there's a huge collection of Tomorrow's World programmes that you can watch via the BBC Archive.)Wonders of the Solar System: 2010Brian Cox is the new hero of getting "the kids" involved in science, and has had some endearingly human moments where even a boffin such as he struggles to explain quantum physics, making it all the more engaging. Cox is watchable, passionate, and you can imagine that younger viewers want to hang around with similar people. But in a good way.Bang Goes The Theory: 2009 -BGTT has shown magnetic cows, non-lethal weapons, and this latest series has already investigated Deepwater Horizon (described accurately as an engineering disaster) and the way "gloopy" crude oil especially has an impact on wildlife. A highpoint is 2009's sobering "Human Power Station", where a team of cyclists pedal-powered the energy consumption of an average home.TelevisionPenny Andersonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Mystery Bird: Eurasian collared dove, Streptopelia decaocto | GrrlScientist What is this Old World species doing in southern California? My friends at BirdNote Radio answer this questionEurasian collared dove, Streptopelia decaocto, sometimes hyphenated as Eurasian collared-dove or known simply as the collared dove, photographed in San Dimas, Los Angeles county, southern California, USA. Image: Steve Duncan, 19 April 2009. [how about looking at this bird with binoculars?]Question: If you can identify this mystery bird, then I have a question for you: what is it doing in southern California?Response: This is a Eurasian collared dove, Streptopelia decaocto, hanging around in southern California. What is this Old World species doing there, so far from home? Embedded below is a 2 minute podcast of the popular radio programme BirdNote Radio, by some of my Seattle birding pals. In this episode, they talk about the Eurasian collared dove and answer this question:If you have bird images, video or mp3 files that you'd like to share with a large and appreciate audience, feel free to email them to me for consideration.GrrlScientistguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Ahmadinejad endorses new nuclear talks with West By NASSER KARIMI 2010-10-17T11:45:36ZTEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iran's president on Sunday endorsed the resumption of talks with the international community about his country's nuclear program, the latest in Tehran's recently intensified push to get those negotiations going again.... hosted.ap.org |
Council abandons gas plan Cobar is unlikely to have access to natural gas in the near future with the Shire Council abandoning further investigations into the proposal. abc.net.au |