World's Biggest Bird In Threat Of Extinction

The Saharan race ostrich, largest representative of its species, has been extirpated across 95 per cent of its range. Within Niger, the bird is wiped out in the wild.

There are still roughly 100 pure-bred Saharan race ostriches in small privately-held imprisoned flocks scattered across the country. A land-locked country in Western Africa, the Republic of Niger is remarkably poor, but with some modest support those caring for ostriches can considerably improve the chances of these birds breeding fruitfully and rearing young.

Given how productive ostrich can be, there is every reason to believe that with the right material and technical support, Niger can breed desert ostrich and return them to the wild in relatively short order.

The Sahara Conservation Fund (SCF) is now focusing on improving the diet and promoting natural incubation until such time as Niger has the ability to manage artificial incubation and chick-rearing operations. SCF, in partnership with the AZA Ratite TAG, has developed its Adopt-an-Ostrich Programme to maintain the acquisition, care and feeding of pure-bred Saharan ostrich in Niger; to help maintain the ostrich facilities; and to improve capacity for ostrich management.

‘With your help, we can get Saharan ostrich back on the road to recovery in Niger,' said an SCF spokesman. ‘This is a great opportunity for all of us to make a connection between our interest in the Sahara and the conservation of the largest bird on the planet.'

Tibetan Mastiff Named World's Most Expensive Dog

An 11-month-old red Tibetan mastiff named "Big Splash" has formally nabbed the record for world's most expensive pet. If dogs didn't already know they were better than us, they perhaps do now.

The pup was sold to a Chinese businessman for a whopping $1.5 million. His native name is Hong Dong, he clocks in at around 180-pounds - and he's still growing.

Big Splash's breeder, Lu Liang, says the price tag is totally warranted and that his dog is a "perfect specimen."

"We have spent a lot of money raising this dog, and we have the salaries of plenty of staff to pay," he explains.

Crazy enough, this breed has been raking in the dough for years. In 2009, a mastiff named Yangzte No. 2 apparently was sold short at $500,000 and last year, a mastiff was priced at approximately $1.47 mil.

Apparently, this breed has come to signify wealth and status in China, becoming a hot commodity among the nation's best.

Samuel Wilkinson's Bulb Wins Design Of The Year Award

British designer Samuel Wilkinson and product design company Hulger received the prize for their light Plumen 001 at a ceremony held at the Design Museum.

2011 jury chair Stephen Bayley said: “The Plumen light bulb is a good example of the ordinary thing done extraordinarily well, bringing a small measure of joy to an everyday product.”

Design Museum director Deyan Sudjic added: “A valuable winner that is both beautiful and smart. It does away with the superfluous to attain maximum economy of means. It’s a bulb that doesn’t need a gloom and so goes a long way to make up for the loss of the Edison original.”

The light bulb beat six other finalists, with an open air library in Germany by Karo Architekten, to the overall prize. All shortlisted designs are on demonstration at the Design Museum until August 7.

Plumen bulbs are at present available in the UK and Europe. They will be accessible in the US and the rest of the world soon, according to their website. They sell in the UK for £19.95, or about $32.

Iran And China To Build World’s Tallest Dam

Iran has announced plans to start working on what will be the tallest concrete dam in the world in the forthcoming Iranian calendar year -beginning March 21.

“The construction of the 315-meter-tall Bakhtiari dam, which is the conceit of the nation, will begin next year by a joint Iranian-Chinese company,” IRNA quoted the managing director of the Iran Water and Power Resources Development Company (IWPCO) Mohammad-Reza Rezazadeh as saying.

The double arch Bakhtiari dam will have an ability of 4.8 billion cubic meters which is the largest in the country after the Karkheh dam.

Rezazadeh said a 1,500 megawatt reactor would be constructed at the site of the dam to produce electricity.

He said the project is in cooperation with China's Sino Hydro construction company and added that overall 70 percent of the project's work would be approved out by Iranian contractors.

The project requires upward of USD 2 billion in venture of which 85 percent will be provided by the Chinese partner.

Honeybee Colonies Under Threat From Chemicals

Bee colonies around the world are under threat, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said, charging that this was as an effect of factors such as chemicals used in farming and pollution.

New dangerous fungal pathogens are also being spread through global trade movements, hurting the bee population, according to a new UNEP report entitled ‘Bees under Bombardment’.

“The decline of bee populations has serious consequences for food security,” said UNEP. Biodiversity would come under additional pressure without the pollinators.

Declines in managed bee colonies have accelerated since 1998, particularly in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom. The United States, Asia and Africa are also affected.

“Bees are early caution indicators of wider impacts on animal and plant life,” said UNEP, calling for farmers to be offered incentives to reinstate pollinator-friendly habitats.

Junrey Balawing To Become World's Smallest Man

Tiny Junrey Balawing is set to make a little speck of history – when he becomes the world’s shortest man.

At 22in, the 17-year-old is not much larger than a baby but he can’t remain for his big day in June when he hits 18 and is probable to be named as a world beater. Junrey, who is five inches shorter than the present record holder, said: “If I were the smallest man, it would be very cool.”

He is the eldest of four children but has to stay at home all day so his mother Concepcion, 35, can look after him. She said: “Junrey can only saunter with help and he can’t stand for too long because he’s in too much pain.

“But he loves it when I tell him he’s the smallest man in the world. He smiles with arrogance.” Concepcion and Junrey’s blacksmith dad, Reynaldo, who live in a remote part of the Philippines, realized something was mistaken when he was two. But medicine’s were unable to help. At 12, he was told to get vitamins they could not pay for.

Nino Hernandez, 24, of Colombia, is at present the world’s smallest man at 27 inches. But he’s about to be undercut by another small miracle.

America’s Oldest Bird Becomes Mom At 60

The oldest known wild bird in North America - a female albatross that's over 60 and has outlasted five tracking bands - is now a proud mother, U.S. officials announced.

"She looks immense," Bruce Peterjohn, head of the North American Bird Banding Program at the U.S. Geological Survey, said in a statement. "And she is now the oldest wild bird documented in the 90-year history" of the program.

The Laysan albatross, nicknamed Wisdom by researchers, was spotted a few weeks ago with her baby chick at breeding grounds on the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge in the Pacific Islands.

She was first banded in 1956 and probable has raised at least 30 chicks, Peterjohn said. Albatross lay only one egg a year, and then it takes much of the second year to hatch and raise the chick.

"Since adult albatross mate for life, with both parents raising the young, it makes one speculate if Wisdom has had the same partner all these years or not," the USGS said in its statement.

The service also anticipated that Wisdom has probably flown about 50,000 miles a year as an adult - or at least 2 to 3 million miles since she was first banded. Albatross scheme from the Pacific Islands to feeding grounds off western North America.

"To put it another way, that’s 4 to 6 trips from the Earth to the Moon and back again with plenty of miles to standby," the service stated.

Life isn't peaceful for albatross, however. Of 21 species, 19 are threatened with extinction, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Threats include: lead paint poisoning; accidentally being hooked on fishing lines; egg-eating rats and feral cats; and plastic trash in the seas.

"The birds swallow large amounts of marine debris," the USGS said, "by some estimates 5 tons of plastic are mistakenly fed to albatross chicks each year by their parents. Although the plastic may not kill the chicks directly, it reduces their food intake, which leads to dehydration and most likely lessens their chance of endurance."

Albatross might not be the oldest birds around - parrots in custody can live several decades longer - but, given those obstacles in the wild, the fact that Wisdom is still an active mom is quite special.

"To know that she can still effectively raise young at age 60-plus," said Peterjohn, "that is beyond words."

Natalia From Moscow Crowned Miss Russia 2011

Natalia Gantimurova from Moscow is now authoritatively the most beautiful woman in Russia. On March 5 in the concert hall Barvikha Luxury Village in Moscow she was named Miss Russia 2011. The lucky beauty will symbolize Russia in Miss Universe 2011 in Brazil. Meanwhile the first runner-up will represent Russia in Miss World 2011. Natalia is 19 year old and stands 1.81m.Natalia Gantimurova was crowned by outgoing queen Irina Antonenko and by the reigning Miss Universe Jimena Navarrete.

Reportedly, the crown adorning the new Miss Russia’s head is count as the most luxurious in the world. This white gold crown is decorated with 2,358 diamonds and 14 rare pearls, and expected to be worth more than $1 million!

Supreme Court To Deliver Its Verdict On Aruna’s Life

As the Supreme Court is set to deliver its decision on whether Aruna Shanbaug should be allowed to live or die, the nurses who have been concerned in her care for over three decades speak out for the first time on camera.

They say as long as Aruna has people to care for her, she should be permitted to live. "I don't want her to be killed like this," said Sister Kushe.

Now 80 years old, Sister Pramila Kushe was at KEM hospital when Aruna was sexually battered by a sweeper 37 years ago and was the among the first to see her that dreadful morning.

"Aruna was in a sitting position with a chain around her collar. As soon as she saw matron Bellimal, tears started running down her face. She tried to say something but words would not come. She tried for a few minutes but only her mouth moved. And then gradually she lost consciousness," recalls Sister Kushe, now a retired Matron.

It's KEM hospital's nurses that have affectionately cared for Aruna for over three decades. They take pride in the fact that she in no way had any bed sores. In fact in the past when one dean moved her to a different hospital, the nurses struck work to bring her back.

Matron Durga Mehta was among those who cared for Aruna for 20 years. She says despite her vegetative state, Aruna can still converse and respond in her own way.

"I talk to her, Aruna how are you? She makes noise..aaahhhhhaa like that," Durga says.

"When food touches her lips she opens her mouth. She would masticate, and not just gulp. She even listens to music sometimes but could not find the direction of the song," said Sister Pramila Kushe.

Almost every nurse at KEM has been put on Aruna's caretaking responsibility one time or the other in her career. So they all feel personally concerned as they wait for the verdict. Under strict instructions not to converse to the media all they can do now is hope for the best, silently.

Dolphin Babies Dearth Puzzles Scientists

This winter an distressingly high number of young bottlenose dolphins in the Gulf of Mexico (map) have been washing up dead on U.S. shores, government scientists report.

The reason for the die-off is a mystery, and experts are urging caution in drawing any connections to last year's BP oil spill.

Since January 1, 80 dead dolphins have been found along the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida, according to the latest NOAA figures.

Forty-two of the dead were calves. Most of the juvenile dolphins are washing up in Mississippi and Alabama, because dolphins usually give birth and raise calves along the shallow shores of those states.

The normal gestation period for the dolphins is one year, and mothers typically give birth in March and April, so scientists think the affected calves are either being aborted, stillborn, or born prematurely.

Known causes of dolphin die-offs include oddly cold waters, ocean biotoxins, and diseases. NOAA's Mase said scientists are investigating all of these factors and are not ruling out a likely connection to the BP oil spill. "It's something that we are including in our investigation," Mase said.

IMMS scientists are at present performing necropsies on the dead dolphins to try to conclude causes of death. The process—including analyzing tissue samples for signs of diseases, viral infections, and toxins—could take some weeks or months, Solangi said.

Chinese Man Becomes The World's Most Typical Person

Lots of people call themselves the 'average person on the street', but this guy actually is. The most typical human face on earth has been discovered as a 28-year-old Han Chinese man, after researchers found there are nine million of them in the world.

The ‘Face of Seven Billion’ image was created as a composite of 190,000 Chinese photos, but experts consider the average person will come from India by 2030.

The picture was created by the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, which had collected the photos over a ten-year period from technology research programmes.

It was developed for National Geographic’s ‘Population 7 Billion’ series on the human race, which also showed that males just about outnumber females in the world.

The series also exposed how the world’s most typical person is right-handed, makes less than $12,000 per year and has a mobile phone but no bank account.

Researchers compared life expectancies and heights – with the distinctive Dutch man measuring 5ft 11in but the average Peruvian male standing at under 5ft 5in.

Japan’s typical female lives to nearly 86-years-old, but the average female in Afghanistan dies aged 45.

The typical American uses 100 gallons of water at home per day - compared to 2.5 gallons in parts of Ethiopia, where some use eight hours per day collecting it.

A first language of Mandarin is spoken by 13 per cent, compared to five per cent English - and 19 per cent of people are Chinese, compared to four per cent American.

One-third of the world is Christians, with 21 per cent Muslim and 13 per cent Hindu, and more than half of people (51 per cent) live in urban environments.

In the working work, 40 per cent are engaged in the services sector, 38 per cent in agriculture and 22 per cent in industry – and more than four in five of us are literate.

World’s Rarest Mammal Spotted And Pictured In Indonesia

A Javan rhinoceros triggers a camera trap in Indonesia's Ujung Kulon National Park in late 2010. The picture was released this week by WWF-Indonesia and Indonesia's National Park Authority.

A motion-activated video camera also recorded "dramatic" footage of four of the rhinos, deemed gravely endangered by the International Union for Conservation for Nature. At fewer than 40 individuals, the Javan rhino may be the rarest mammal on the world, according to WWF.

Though the videos and pictures are "great news," the animals still face serious threats, WWF-US chief scientist Eric Dinerstein noted in a statement.

For instance, an explosion of the nearby Anak Krakatau volcano could easily wipe out all life on the peninsula that the rhinos call home.

"There are no Javan rhinos in confinement," he said. "If we lose the population in the wild, we've lost them all."

Tokyo's Sky Tree Claims To Be World's Tallest Tower

Tokyo's Sky Tree has become the world's tallest self-supporting broadcast structure, according to a statement by the project's owners, having reached 601 m.

The tower, structure of which is being managed by Tobu Tower Sky Tree Co., has now passed the 600 m-high Canton Tower in China's south-western city of Guangzhou.

When completed later this year, the tower will be 634 m-high and will restore another tower, the 332 m-high Tokyo Tower.

Construction of the remaining 30 m-plus is regarded as the most significant phase of the project as it involves installation of a digital antenna.

Japan's six top broadcasters are building the tower, which is anticipated to bolster television and radio transmissions across the capital and beyond.

The tower will also consist of house retail outlets, restaurants and entertainment venues.

Designed by Japanese architect Tadao Ando and sculptor Kiichi Sumikawa, the Sky Tree is constructed on a triangular base and its "body" turns into a cylinder as it reaches upward.

World's Richest Man To Unveil A New Museum

The world's richest man is unveiling a new museum in Mexico City that he says will let him share his huge art collection with the public.

Carlos Slim's new Soumaya Museum will exhibit a rotating selection of his 66,000 artworks. The collection includes pieces by Mexican artists such as Diego Rivera and European masters like Auguste Rodin, Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dali.

Slim presented a preview Tuesday of the high structure, which is dramatically angled and covered with 16,000 aluminum hexagons.

It opens to the public March 29, and entrance will be free.

The museum is named after Slim's late wife, Soumaya. It replaces a smaller museum of the similar name in southern Mexico City.

Supatra Titled As World’s Hairiest Girl

A young girl, dubbed “Wolf Girl” has gained the title of World’s Hairiest Girl, as recognized by Guinness World Record.

Supatra had been teased her whole life because of a rare genetic condition causing thick hair to grow all over her face.

Two years ago she was plagued by other children calling her 'monkey face' and 'wolf girl'. It often left her in cry because of strangers stopping in the street to point at her.

But since then ten-year old Supatra - nicknamed Nat - has been named the 'hairiest girl in the world' and astonishingly, her new-found fame has helped her become one of the most popular girls in her school.

Supatra, from Pranakom, Thailand, says: 'I'm very happy to be in the Guinness World Records. All I did was answer a few questions about myself and then they gave it to me.'

Supatra reveals that getting the award has boosted her assurance and she has taken up dancing, singing, and acting.

She loves listening to Thai pop music and makes her own dance routines to the newest hits with her friends.

Fossil Of Wormlike "Walking Cactus" Discovered

Fossils of an ancient, thorny creature dubbed a "walking cactus" have been found in China, a new study says.

The 2.4-inch-long (6-centimeter-long) Diania cactiformis had a worm-like corpse and ten pairs of armored and likely jointed legs. It would have lived about 500 million years ago during a period of fast evolution called the Cambrian explosion.

Study leader Jianni Liu discovered the animal during a 2006 excavation in southwestern China's Yunnan Province.

"I was actually surprised. I said, What's that strange guy with the soft body with very strong legs?" said Liu, an earth scientist at Northwest University in Xi'an, China.

"When I went back and observed it under the microscope, I realized it's not only hilarious, it's very important."

"Walking Cactus" a hint to Arthropod Evolution?

That's because the newfound animal does not look like other lobopodians, a primitive group of creatures that flourished in the Cambrian seas.

Although the walking cactus is part of this group, it has robust appendages like those of new arthropods—joint-limbed animals such as spiders and crustaceans.

The walking cactus's unusual limbs fortify the theory that modern arthropods evolved from lobopodians, the study authors say.

Liu, who found about 30 fossil specimens of the walking cactus, also has some hypotheses for how the being hunted.

For instance, she suspects D. cactiformis may have sucked up tiny creatures in the mud with its nose or used its bristly legs to arrest larger prey.

World's Smallest Computer To Treat Glaucoma

Scientists have created the world's smallest computer system to assist treat glaucoma patients. At just one square millimetre in size, the minute device is a pressure monitor that is implanted in a person's eye.

It may be small but it packs a heavy punch, containing an ultra low-power microprocessor, a pressure sensor, memory, a thin film battery, a solar cell and a wireless radio with an antenna that can broadcast data to an external reader device.

Developed by researchers at the University of Michigan, the unnamed unit - which is anticipated to be commercially available in several years - is already being touted as the future of the computing industry.

Its creators - Professors Dennis Sylvester, David Blaauw and David Wentzloff - assert that as the device's radio needs no tuning to find the right frequency it could link to a wireless network of computers.

The researchers' computer system is at present a pressure monitor designed to be implanted in the eye to continuously track the progress of glaucoma, a potentially blinding disease.

Mizoram Man Has The Biggest Family In The World

Joint family an Indian concept prevalent among Hindus is not usually followed in Northeast India. In this Christian dominated part of the country, people are typically more educated and ‘westernized’. But Ziona Chana from Mizoram thinks ‘differently’.

Chana is the ‘proud’ head of a huge sized family of 39 wives, 94 children, 14-daughters-in-laws and 33 grandchildren. To lodge his huge family he has constructed a 100-room, four storey building in Baktwang village. It almost looks like a hotel.

Ziona mansion with 100 rooms is the biggest concrete structure in the hilly village of Baktawng

'I consider myself a lucky man to be the husband of 39 women and head of the world's largest family' says Chana. The family is organized with approximately military discipline, with the oldest wife Zathiangi organising her fellow partners to perform household chores such as cleaning, washing and preparing meals. One evening meal can see them pluck 30 chickens, peel 132lb of potatoes and boil up to 220lb of rice.

Chana family stuff just to make a meal

He sleeps in his own double-bedded room while his wives have to regulate in dormitories. The younger wives stay in rooms closer to his room.

He keeps the youngest women near to his bedroom with the older members of the folks sleeping further away - and there is a rotation system for who visits Mr Chana's bedroom.

Surprisingly, all the wives get along very well and there is barely any infighting among them.

Mr Chana is not finished yet. “To expand my family, I am willing to go even to the United States to marry” he proudly says.

Princess Diana's Wedding Dress On Show

Princess Diana's wedding dress, the world's most eminent wedding dress so far, will be seen on NBC-TV's “Today Show.”

The wedding gown Princess Diana wore for her 1981 wedding to Prince Charles is probable to be seen live between 7 and 8 a.m. in the broadcast from New York City.

The wedding dress's visit to the Grand Rapids Art Museum ended last week and the dress with its 25-foot train departed West Michigan last weekend for a fast trip to New York City.

“We're praying for no snow and no jackknifed trucks,” said NBC-TV reporter Peter Alexander, who was in Grand Rapids throughout the exhibition.

It'll soon be on its way to Kansas City along with the rest of the show “Diana – A Celebration,” which opens March 4 for a 14-week stay in the city's Union Station.

The dress with its 25-foot train is the world's most famous wedding dress for the instant, but only for a few more weeks. Royal watchers and bridal buffs all have their eyes peeled for their first sight of the gown Kate Middleton will wear for her marriage to Prince William on April 29.

The fashion industry continues to buzz about who Middleton will decide to create the gown for the next royal wedding of the century, which will be an instant icon the moment it's seen by worldwide spectators.

“Approaching 1 billion public saw her coming down the aisle of St. Paul's,” Alexander said.

Last, First World War Veteran Celebrates 110th Birthday

Florence Green, the world's last surviving female veteran of World War I, and one of only three people still living from that war, celebrated her 110th birthday, the Independent reports.

Hailing from King's Lynn, Norfolk, Green joined the Women's Royal Air Force to fight in the world conflict when she was 17 years old in the summer of 1918. At 110, Green will now follow that honor by joining a extremely exclusive club of "supercentenarians."

Mrs Green (circled) in 1919 with the rest of her WRAF Narborough team

"It's not much different to being 109," said Green, who was only recognized as a surviving veteran in 2008 when a researcher found her service record listed under her maiden name, Patterson.

While Green never saw action on the front line, her service in the Women's Royal Air Force (WRAF) qualifies her for veteran position. Green is also only one of two Britons still living from the war. The other, Claude Stanley Choules, a Royal Navy veteran, now lives in Australia and will be 110 in March, according to The Independent.