Nature
Samoa Cancels Friday
29 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
At the moment, Samoa is the last country to see the sun go down every day, but a change in the international dateline will now make it the first to see the sun rise. Samoa is getting ready to skip a day and shift its time zone forward by 24 hours.
Shell Announces Huge Oil Spill Off Nigerian Coast, Worst In A Decade
23 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Shell has just alerted Nigerian coastal communities that up to 40 000 barrels of crude oil was spilled on Wednesday off the coast of the Niger delta while it was being transferred to a tanker about 120 kilometres off the coast. The spill is likely to be the biggest in a decade.
Scientists Invent Solar Paint
23 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
A team of scientists has finished developing a cheaply manufactured paint-like product prototype that they hope you will eventually be able to put on the outside of your home. The paint will generate electricity from light – electricity that can then be captured and used to power the appliances and equipment on the inside of your home.
Rhino Horn Smuggler Sentenced As Death Toll Rises To 443
15 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / 1 Comment
National Geographic announced yesterday that we have lost a staggering 443 rhinos to poaching this year – a number that seems to climb exorbitantly on a daily basis. It’s with open arms that the country welcomes the sentencing of Hsu Hsien Lung to six years imprisonment for his part in rhino horn smuggling.
Toronto’s Gay Penguins Not Gay – One Mates With Female
13 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Two male African penguins recently made worldwide headlines after it appeared the two might be gay. As it turns out, Toronto Zoo’s gay penguins were not really gay after all. A female has come between them, and they have officially been split up.
Life Is Possible In “Large Regions” Of Mars
12 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
It’s official – Earth and Mars are similar enough for terrestrial life to be sustained on the red planet. Australian scientists have confirmed that organisms from our planet can survive on a substantial percentage of Mars. This study is said to be the best estimate yet of how habitable Mars is for Earth-dwelling microbes.
Earliest Known Human Beds Found Near Durban
09 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Not only are the beds about 77 000 years old, but it appears they were also designed to ward off insects like mosquitoes. The fossilized material has been found at an ancient cliff shelter known as Sibudu, which is near to Durban on our east coast, and continues to fuel the debate that modern man evolved out of Africa.
Kruger Park Halts Rhino Info On Maps And Notice Boards
07 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
On the back of the dreadful statistics that poachers have killed a new record of 405 rhino’s in South Africa since the beginning of the year, comes the news that the Kruger National Park will immediately halt the posting of rhino sightings on its notice boards.
Taiwan Bans Open Water Shark Finning
02 Dec 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Taiwan has the fourth largest shark-finning industry in the world, but it will soon become the first Asian country to ban the practice of removing shark fins in open water. But the majority of Taiwan’s glamorous hotels have refused to take shark-fin soup off the menu in order to do their bit for the cause.
Science: Neutrinos Probably Didn’t Travel Faster Than The Speed Of Light
22 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
In September, the science world was left in shock when workers at the world’s largest physics lab announced they had recorded subatomic particles travelling faster than the speed of light. Now, measurements by an opposing team of physicists suggest neutrinos cannot have travelled faster than the speed of light.
Thailand Flooding Ingenuity [PICS]
16 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Thailand’s Thai Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department confirmed that a total of 562 people have already died during the more than three-month long flooding taking place there, which is the worst in over 50 years. Nevertheless, some Thai residents affected by the flooding have begun dealing with the lemons that life has thrown at them in unique ways.
Barack Obama Takes Out Crocodile Insurance For Australia Visit
15 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Barack Obama will visit Australia tomorrow, and the US President isn’t taking any chances with those fearsome Aussie crocs. He’s been issued with a crocodile attack insurance policy, which will pay out more than $50 000 on the off-chance that he should be fatally attacked during his tour of crocodile-infested Darwin, where ‘Crocodile Dundee’ was set.
Klerksdorp Farmer Gouged To Death By Pet Hippo
14 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / 3 Comments
“Humphrey’s like a son to me, he’s just like a human. There’s a special relationship between me and Humphrey”. These words were uttered by Klerksdorp farmer, Marius Els earlier this year. Pictures were also taken of him happily riding on his 1 200kg pet bull hippo’s back. But on Saturday night, Humphrey the hippo gouged Els to death by repeatedly biting him.
Black Rhinos Transported Upside Down By Air [PICS]
07 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / 10 Comments
The Black Rhino Range Expansion Project recently successfully transported 19 black rhinos 1 500 kilometres across South Africa. They did this by airlifting each rhino by its ankles before carrying it upside down! Read exactly why they do it this way, and see some amazing images of this process, after the jump.
Two Rhino Poaching Suspects Arrested
04 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
If you’ve been following the development of the rhino poaching issue in South Africa recently, you will be pleased to know that two Thai nationals, suspected to be central to an international rhino poaching syndicate, were arrested at OR Tambo International this morning.
Surfer In Trouble For “Riding” A Sea Turtle
04 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Jamie O’Brien is a well-known Hawaiian pro-surfer. He recently decided to create some awareness surrounding fibropapillomatosis – a herpes-type virus that affects sea turtles. His “campaign” involved posting a picture of himself “riding” one of these turtles underwater. But it turns out he may have instead broken laws against harassing turtles, as well as offended fellow Hawaiians who consider these creatures as ancestral guardian spirits.
Science To Tear Space A New One With Ultra Powerful “Laser”
01 Nov 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
A new laser is to be built that is as powerful as “concentrating the rays of the sun for the entire earth onto the tip of a pen”. Scientists claim it could allow them boil the very fabric of space, AKA the vacuum. Because that’s a fantastic idea. It is official, mankind has a death-wish.
Australian Officials Issue Order To Hunt Shark
24 Oct 2011 by Jasmine Stone / 1 Comment
A second fatal shark attack, believed to be by a Great White, has occurred off the Australian west coast – the second such attack in 12 days. A 32-year-old US man was mauled to death off Perth’s Rottnest Island on Saturday. By Sunday, Australian authorities were hunting the shark.
Pictures Of “Cyclops Shark” Caught In Mexico Authentic
19 Oct 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
Pictures of a “cyclops shark” , taken in Mexico, appeared online recently. Too strange to be true, it was quickly written off as a hoax. Until now. Scientists have revealed that it is in fact a 22-inch-long dusky shark fetus. It has a single, functioning eye that’s front and centre on its head.
Table Mountain And Signal Hill Roads Closed At Night
19 Oct 2011 by Jasmine Stone / 1 Comment
Sometimes, taking a loved one, or a potential loved one, on a scenic drive and stop-off along either the Table Mountain or Signal Hill roads, is quite a winner. Romantics, be aware, the roads have now been closed to unauthorised vehicles, between 22h00 and 05h00, in an attempt to prevent crimes from occurring around these charming routes.
Lions, Tigers, Bears, Cheetahs Escape In Ohio As Owner Is Found Dead
19 Oct 2011 by Jasmine Stone / 2 Comments
As many as 48 wild animals, including lions, tigers, bears, wolves and cheetahs could be on the loose in the vicinity of Zanesville, Ohio, after they escaped from a private wildlife sanctuary, police said last night. Officer’s say they have shot 25 of the animals so far, but it’s not clear exactly how many escaped, or where they are now.
Crocodile Tries To Take Down Elephant Mum [PICS]
14 Oct 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
These amazing images were captured in Zambia next to the Luangwa River by Martin Nyfeler. Watch as an elephant mum finds herself in a wild tug of war with a crocodile after it gets hold of her trunk. Scared and unable to help, her baby hides behind its mother as the crocodile attacked. See how this story ends inside.
Mountain Biker Gets Owned By Red Hartebeest [Mind-Blowing Video]
10 Oct 2011 by Seth Rotherham / 6 Comments
Just quietly get a load of this video of mountain biker, Evan van der Spuy of Team Jeep South Africa, getting taken out. It’s COMPLETELY off the charts! The guy’s lucky he was wearing a helmet. Click ‘Continue Reading’ below to see the video.
The Taj Mahal Will Cave In Between Two And Five Years
06 Oct 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
India’s most famous tourist attraction, the 358-year-old Taj Mahal, will collapse within five years unless something drastic is done. The wooden foundation is becoming brittle and disintegrating due to a lack of water. This is because the river crucial to its survival is being blighted by pollution, industry and deforestation.
Cape Town Introduces Baboon Committee
23 Sep 2011 by Jasmine Stone / No Comments
This is exactly what Cape Town needs. A committee whose sole purpose is to reconcile relations between the city’s residents and baboons. Capetonians have lived in fear of their sandwiches being stolen for long enough.
“Forest Boy” Keen To Go Back To The Bush
20 Sep 2011 by Jasmine Stone / 2 Comments
A teenage boy who has been dubbed “forest boy” by the international media is apparently keen to go back to the bush. The boy, believed to be a 17-year-old English language speaker, handed himself over to German officials in Berlin earlier this month after walking for about two weeks. Officials describe his story as “incredible”.
Volunteer Wildfire Services Family Day – Sunday
19 Sep 2011 by Seth Rotherham / No Comments
A guy from Volunteer Wildfire Services emailed me. His name is Michael Brandt. No spice. More than enough reason to show you this flyer. We at VWS Jonkershoek will be holding our second Fire & Fynbos Awareness Day on the 25th September 2011. Our focus is once again on creating awareness of what our volunteer […]
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