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Death Adders Are Causing Their Own Extinction

Australia's death adder is contributing to its own extinction. Moving around to hunt their prey is not their method. An adder tempts its victims by laying in ambush and wiggling its tail tip. By wiggling its tail, however, it is noticed by cane toads, frogs and lizards who eagerly gulp down the tasty meal.

After cane toads were introduced into Australia death adder numbers plummeted. Ironically as the cane toad attacks the snake it is bitten, so after its meal the cane toad dies - mutual suicide. Even if the snake eats the toad it will end up dead because cane toads are poisonous.

For millions of years death adders have survived by enticing their prey within easy reach. Now this behavior is leading to their demise. Man cannot intervene to prevent this. There is nothing that can be done.

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Wildlife

Abelisaurids Took the Place of T.rex in Australia

Tyrannosaurus rex did not roam ancient Australia. Perhaps another animal had already filled the niche. A new kind of dinosaur could have been the Australian killer and scavenger. The animal had stubby arms and could not live in central Australia because it was a vast desert.

The abelisaurid was a strange looking creature but it was the top killer. They not only dominated Australia. Their presence was felt right across the Southern Hemisphere. Different species of the animal reigned in various regions. The 21 foot long abelisaurid enjoyed a hot climate that changed from very wet to dry.

They existed for a long time, right back to Pangea the supercontinent. Like Tyrannosaurus rex they had a vicious bite. Abelesaurids had arms even less useful than Tyrannosaurus rex : abelesaurids had no wrists.

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Paleontology

Cat a Lot

"Wow! Is that all for me?"

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Funny Animal Photos

Dog Breath

"Gorblimey! Can't you do something about your bad breath?"

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Funny Animal Photos

Fungal Infections Kill Many People

Fungal infection is the most difficult thing to treat. Taking medication and applying ointment may seem to solve the problem - for a while. Unfortunately, the skin may appear to be free of infection but it is still there and will reappear.

It is not commonly known that deaths from fungal infection are higher than all the deaths from malaria and tuberculosis. Treatment for other ailments can involve immunossuppressive medication. This allows fungal infections to run wild.

You would think there is enough demand and money for pharmaceutical companies to develop better anti-fungal drugs. However, sufferers do not know how deadly the "disease" can be, so they are not prepared to pay a high price for new treatments. This is despite the fact that fungal infection can appear in any part of the body.

Unfortunately, the World Health Organization shows little interest in the problem. Doctors also tend to brush aside fungal infections when examining patients. If asked, doctors say it is common and people live with it without treatment. This is a great mistake. It should be treated when first seen in order to stop it becoming well established, because long term fungal infection is difficult to treat.

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Health

Dog Star

"I'm a star!"

If you move as fast as superman you may be able to make yourself invisible, but for the ordinary person it is just not possible. Theories exist though that "prove" it is possible to make yourself invisible. Doctor Jensen Li and Professor John Pendry have written a paper which surmises making invisible paint.

Such material has to be extremely thin, having a structure smaller than the wavelength of visible light. Scientists have already made a small object invisible by cloaking it in a material comprised of tiny structures. If a material can be developed from nano-sized pieces it could be painted on an object and it would "bend" the light away from sight, i.e., the background would be visible.

Such a material has to be made from silica and silicon because variation in interpreting light is necessary. A person viewing a cloaked object would see a mirage of the background. Don't be too hasty though - we are not in the Star Trek world yet. A person would experience only an illusion of the background!

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Science

Duck Trains Dogs

"I know dogs are not suited to be trained as marines: unlike myself - I'm a duck!"

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Funny Animal Photos

Blaming Rewiring of the Brain for Chronic Pain is Too Simplistic

What a cop out, medical "professionals" are now saying chronic pain is caused by a mixed-up brain. This cannot be the case when you have an open wound and it really hurts. They are saying we should not feel any pain at all. People with leprosy feel no pain and look what damage they do to themselves.

Pain is functional. It stops one using a limb when there is damage to it. Otherwise, it wouldn't heal properly. Most back pain is caused by damage to the spine that cannot be detected with current technology and knowledge.

Those "in the know" are now saying the brain rewires itself when there is an injury so that when the damage is repaired pain still continues. If this is the case then it is very selective. Why doesn't this happen when you cut your finger? We know if a limb is lost pain can continue, but saying the brain rewires itself after an injury is far too simplistic.

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Health

Don't Talk About This Dog

"You're not talking about me, are you?"

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Funny Animal Photos

Labels: after , angry , bite , dog , get , going , look , puppy , sneer , you

New Anti-Melanoma Treatment Is Promising

Australia has the highest rate of melanoma in the world. People will not listen. Many still regularly tan themselves in the sun or even go to solariums. Any improvement in treating melanoma is sorely needed in this country.

Tumors put up defences against drugs that aim to destroy them. Combining drugs can break down these barriers. A new kind of anti-melanoma drug, the BRAF inhibitor, has been developed. It is not a "golden bullet". Life expectancy can be increased from 8 months to 15 months.

Better results have been obtained by combining BRAF with another inhibitor called MEK. They slow down the growth of the cancer. Some tumor were shrunk. Though the tests were done on only 24 patients, improvement in treatment is promising.

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Health

Cats on the Funny Side

"Can't you see the funny side?"

"Well frankly, I cannot!"

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Funny Animal Photos

Worry Over Job Security Increases With Casual Work

Gone are the days of local business monopolies where shops, for example, had a higher profit margin so they could keep employees in secure employment for decades. In the past shopping centers didn't exist and a firm had a local licence. Only one type of business could operate in a regional center. If a shop had the fish licence and decided to sell only fish, no fish and chips, you as a customers had to go without a quick hot meal.

The proportion of casual workers is increasing every year. Just how these employees manage to build up capital for retirement is anyone's guess. Holiday pay is said to be built into casual rates, but this is a myth. Such workers hardly ever take a day off because they will not get any pay.

People worry more over job security than anything else. Despite all the troubles in the world, Macquarie University found employees experience more anxiety over losing their jobs than any other issue. This affects men more than women. Seventy per cent of men worry compared to 60 per cent of women. Young people suffered most: eighty per cent were concerned.

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Society

Sherlock Dog

"It's elementary my dear Watson."

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Funny Animal Photos

Magnets Stop Crocodiles Returning to Their Home Range

We have been told that magnets have wonderful powers: not only can they be used to generate electricity, they can be used to reduce pain, etc. Now a new use has been found: crocodiles have been fitted with magnets to stop them returning to their home area.

In Florida they have been carrying out an experiment to find out if magnets can be used to disrupt crocodiles' homing ability. Though small in number, crocodiles do cause problems when they wander into populated areas. People fear them even though they are are small and usually run away from humans. In contrast alligators are larger and more dangerous.

Once a "rogue" crocodile has been caught it is relocated to an area free of humans. Magnets are put on the crocodile's head. This affects the animals natural homing abilities so that it remains where it is placed. The population has increased because fewer wander onto roads. This is a good thing as the species is endangered.

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Nature

Cat Swimming Lessons

"My swimming lessons are going well, thank you."

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Funny Animal Photos

Higher Rates of Birth Defects With "Injected" ICSI Babies

For many years we have heard nothing but good things about test tube babies, how they are strong and grow faster, etc. Maybe the "authorities" are telling us what we want to hear, with women choosing to have children later in life.

Older women having babies had their age taken into account when measuring birth defects. If they smoked this was also given a mathematical allowance. This could be distorting the true picture.

There has been a change in the way the "art" of test tube babies is done. Today, an individual sperm is injected into an egg. In the normal fertilization process only the fastest, healthiest sperm is successful.

Evaluation of babies shows that birth defects occur in "injected" babies at a rate of 10 per cent. This compares to 6 per cent for naturally conceived babies. Couples who choose the older form of freezing embryos had normal rates of healthy babies. The attempt to get more embryos by injecting sperm, ICSI, seems to have backfired.

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Health

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