New frog, gecko and spider found in New Guinea
Robot fish to detect marine pollution
British scientists have developed a 1.5 metre long robot fish that is smart enough to navigate its own way underwater and transmit information about marine pollution to shore using Wi Fi technology. The scientists have chosen to mimic the shape of real fish because it is the most energy efficient. “The design was created by hundreds of millions of years’ worth of evolution,” explained Rory Doyle, of MBT Group, which developed the fish.
Indians march against Monsanto
People say if farmers don’t want problems from Monsanto, just don’t buy their GMO seeds.
Not so simple. Where are farmers supposed to get normal seed these days? How are they supposed to avoid contamination of their fields from GM-crops? How are they supposed to stop Monsanto detectives from trespassing or Monsanto from using helicopters to fly over spying on them?
Monsanto contaminates the fields, trespasses onto the land taking samples and if they find any GMO plants growing there (or say they have), they then sue, saying they own the crop. It’s a way to make money since farmers can’t fight back and court and they settle because they have no choice.
Marine dead zones expanding rapidly
The number of marine dead zones have doubled every decade since the 1960s and show no sign of abating, warn scientists writing in the journal Science.
Dead zones have expanded across the ocean at alarming rates. Currently 415 sites—usually along coastlines—have shown signs of seasonal to persistent hypoxia—a severe lack of oxygen. In a review, researchers Robert Diaz and Rutger Rosenberg argue that marine dead zones have “become a major worldwide environmental problem”, occupying a portion of the ocean equal to that of the United Kingdom. Growth continues to accelerate.
Worlds seafood to disappear in 40 years
The world’s oceans could be devoid of seafood in forty years, a study revealed last week. The combined effects of pollution, overfishing, sharkfinning, acidification and draining of the world’s wet lands is placing stresses on marine systems that will cause their rapid and total collapse, according to Dr Boris Worm, quoted in Natural News. The University of Virginia last week revealed a study of the marine deadzones which shows they doubled in number every decade and now cover more than 96,000square kilometers. The report described the deadzones as a result in oxygen depletion caused by algal blooms from fertilizer run-off.
Pharma ships bird flu to Europe
A major pharmaceutical company has delivered thousands of flue shots containing the live avian flu virus, it was revealed last week. The influenza vaccine produced by Baxter International Inc was contaminated with live H5N1 avian influenza virus. The possibility of a major outbreak of the fatal disease has shocked the medical world and caused panic in the European nations where the vaccine was distributed and administered. The newsletter of the Australian Vaccination Network highlights Baxter’s international contracts to develop an Avian influenza vaccine as a possible motive for spreading the virus deliberately.