According to a new study by Nasa, Antarctica’s Larsen B ice-shelf is on course to completely disintegrate within the next five years. Studies show that the 10,000-year-old ice shelf, after partially collapsing in 2002, is “quickly weakening.” “These are warning signs that the remnant is disintegrating,” said Ala Khazendar of Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. “Although it’s […]
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It’s “ a fascinating irony of the pro-life movement,” said David Frum. Abortion rates are plummeting in the U.S., largely because of prolifers’ efforts. But at the same time, out-of-wedlock births are soaring—and among the poor and the lower middle class, are actually becoming the norm. There were 730,000 abortions in 2011, according to the latest official tally—the smallest number […]
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On Aug 12, two blasts ripped through a warehouse in Tianjin Port, where large amounts of toxic chemicals were stored, including around 700 tonnes of sodium cyanide. Death toll from the blasts exceed 160. Thousands of dead fish washed up on a riverbank near the site of the explosions last week. White foam filled the streets during the first rain […]
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European researchers have once again warned that the thinning of the Antarctic ice shelf means that the flow of glaciers on the frozen continent could accelerate, with a consequent rise in sea levels. They examine, in two separate studies, the increasingly precarious state of some of the ice shelf. When the shelf, consisting of ice floating on the ocean, melts, […]
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WASHINGTON, D.C. During a press conference last month, NASA released a slew of odd sound recordings and video from the Messenger probe just moments before it’s impact on Mercury. Scientists are working to decipher the meaning of the data, but some agree that the recordings sound like human voices crying out in agony. The Messenger probe had been orbiting Mercury […]
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Plant a notion “Going green” doesn’t have to be a daunting task that means sweeping life changes. Simple things can make a difference.The contents of this list might not be new, but they bear repeating. Sometimes it takes a few reminders for things take root. 1. Change your light If every household in the United State replaced one regular lightbulb […]
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Scaphism was a method of torture that caused its victims to be eaten to death by bugs. It’s even more horriffic than it sounds. Scaphism, also called “the boats,” was an ancient Persian method of torture and, inevitably, execution. The victim would be placed in a boat, and then another boat would be placed on top. The victim’s feet, head […]
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Feeling itchy from a sunburn, a bug bite or some other skin irritation is miserable, but the pleasure you get from scratching it isn’t just the absence of pain. It feels legitimately good to scratch, and the reason is fascinating. A 2008 study at Wake Forest University hooked people up to a MRI scanner and monitored brain activity when they […]
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High blood sugar doesn’t just increase your risk of developing diabetes—studies have also shown a link between blood sugar and dementia. Researchers tracked the blood glucose levels of more than 2,000 older adults for seven years and found that those who had high glucose levels—but not diabetes—were nearly 20 percent more likely to develop dementia than those with low levels. […]
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An international team of astronomers has detected a colossal black hole that is 12 billion times more massive than the sun—so big that it is challenging accepted cosmological thinking. Scientists discovered the enormous celestial body, which is 12.8 billion light-years from Earth, at the center of a brilliantly glowing quasar, a cloud of gas that gets superheated and gives off […]
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