| Big quake aftershocks plague New Zealand city By ROB GRIFFITH 2010-09-08T11:35:10ZCHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand (AP) -- A strong aftershock rocked terrified residents of New Zealand's earthquake-stricken city of Christchurch on Wednesday, as officials doubled their estimate for repairing the damage following nearly 300 temblors in five days.... hosted.ap.org |
Letters: Another Quiet Hero (1 Letter) A letter to the editor. feeds.nytimes.com |
Today's Mystery Bird for you to identify | GrrlScientist Today's Mystery Bird could be dubbed "the blue bird of happiness", except that it is not really blue at allMystery Bird photographed at Heritage Community Park, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]Image: Audrey DeRose-Wilson, 2 October 2010 (look at this bird with binoculars).Nikon D80, 70-300mm, f/5.6, 1/400, iso: 160This neotropical migrant's blue plumage is not based on pigments at all. Instead, it uses another strategy to create blue feathers. Can you tell me about that?Daily Mystery Bird Rules: 1. Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification, keeping in mind that more than one field mark is often necessary to distinguish between species. IDs without any supporting information are not valid and may be deleted by the moderators. 2. Expert and intermediate level birders: do NOT try to be the first to blurt out the mystery bird's ID. Instead, please provide helpful hints, such as descriptions, literary references, puns, personal anecdotes, and other forms of discussion and assistance for beginning birders and for those following on their iPhones without naming the species. Expert and intermediate birders are free to name the bird species 24 or more hours after it was first published.3. Each mystery bird is usually accompanied by a question or two. These questions can be useful for identifying the pictured species, but may instead be used to illustrate an interesting aspect of avian biology, behaviour or evolution, or may be intended to generate conversation on other topics, such as conservation. 4. Each bird species will be demystified 48 hours after publication. 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 |
Dozens killed by incorrectly placed acupuncture needles Professor of complementary medicine calls for adequate training for all acupuncture practitioners after survey reveals punctured hearts and lungs among causes of death over past 45 yearsEighty-six people have been accidentally killed by badly trained acupuncturists over the past 45 years, according to Britain's leading expert on alternative medicine.A review of patients who died soon after acupuncture found a history of punctured hearts and lungs, damaged arteries and livers, nerve problems, shock, infection and haemorrhage, largely caused by practitioners placing their needles incorrectly or failing to sterilise their equipment.Many of the 86 patients, aged between 26 and 82 years old, died after being treated by acupuncturists in China or Japan, but a handful of fatalities were recorded in the US, Germany and Australia. The most recent death, of a 26-year-old woman in China, occurred last year.The most common cause of death was a condition called pneumothorax, where air finds its way between the membranes that separate the lungs from the chest wall and causes the lungs to collapse.In most of the cases, doctors were certain that acupuncture was to blame, but in some the cause was less clear.Describing his research in the International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine, Edzard Ernst, professor of complementary medicine at the Peninsula Medical School in Exeter, said: "These fatalities are avoidable and a reminder of the need to insist on adequate training for all acupuncturists."The number of deaths was likely to be "the tip of a larger iceberg", he added.Medical researchAlternative medicineHealth & wellbeingHealthIan Sampleguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Cuckoos no match for local birds There is a limit to how convincingly the common cuckoo can mimic other birds, according to new research. news.bbc.co.uk |