Clipmarks | Newfman's 'nature' clips

The Primate Police: Monkey Cops Keep Groups in Line

Fri, 11 Jan 2008 02:45:46 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

New research reveals that monkey cops help keep social groups in line.

Not having guns or nightsticks, they leverage their group seniority, craft intimidating reputations and count on good voter turnout.

Take the primate police out of a group, as researchers did, and the rest get more violent and aggressive. Interaction between cliques drops significantly.

"It's not just that violence goes up, but a whole range of behavior involving a whole range of individuals suddenly disappears," said David Krakauer of the Santa Fe Institute. "It's like saying you take police out of human society, and all of a sudden people stop going to the opera, or something more important."

The study, detailed in today's issue of the journal Nature, also uncovered a complex monkey "voting" system for appointing the peacekeepers.

Instead of a paper ballot, inferior monkeys bare their teeth to a more dominant member of the group.

Woman Accused of Wiping Her Nose on Cop's Shirt Charged With Battery

Thu, 27 Dec 2007 22:00:13 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

DUNBAR, W.Va. — Sometimes you need a police officer; sometimes you need a tissue. Confuse the two, and it could cost you.

A woman in this Charleston suburb was charged with battery on a police officer after the officer said she wiped her nose on the back of his shirt.

Cpl. S.E. Elliott said he had arrested the 36-year-old woman last week after seeing her slap a man, bite him on the elbow and spit in his face. Elliott said the woman wiped her nose on him as he led her into the police station for booking on a charge of domestic battery.

Battery on a police officer is defined as intentionally making physical contact of an insulting or provoking nature with an officer.

Single brain cell's power shown

Sat, 22 Dec 2007 13:46:22 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

There could be enough computing ability in just one brain cell to allow humans and animals to feel, a study suggests.

The brain has 100 billion neurons but scientists had thought they needed to join forces in larger networks to produce thoughts and sensations.

The Dutch and German study, published in Nature, found that stimulating just one rat neuron could deliver the sensation of touch.

One UK expert said this was the first time this had been measured in mammals.

The complexity of the human brain and how it stores countless thoughts, sensations and memories are still not fully understood.

Researchers believe connections between individual neurons, forming networks of at least a thousand, are the key to some of its processing power.

However, in some creatures with simpler nervous systems, such as flies, a single neuron can play a more significant role. The latest research suggests this may also be true in "higher" animals.

Arkansas Boy, 5, Kills 445-Pound Black Bear

Wed, 12 Dec 2007 01:55:52 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

While most kindergartners are thrilled by an action-packed afternoon of finger-painting and clay sculpture, an Arkansas 5-year-old is shooting for something a little more dangerous.

Tre Merritt was in a stand with his grandfather when a black bear came from a thicket at the side of the road, Little Rock news station KATV-TV reported. From about 50 yards away, Tre shot the bear with his youth rifle.

The boy’s grandfather, Mike Merritt, told KATV-TV that Tre’s 10th great-grandfather was Davy Crockett, a legendary outdoorsman who killed a bear at just 3 years old, according to folklore.

Mike Merritt taught his grandson how to shoot when the boy was 2 years old and bragged to KATV-TV that he already had killed three deer.

The family plans to get a life-sized mount of the bear but is not sure where they will put it, KATV-TV reported.

Tags: nature

Something big this way comes

Tue, 04 Dec 2007 23:57:45 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.futilitycloset.com

On May 19, 1997, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration detected an unprecedented sound in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Deep and vast, it descended in frequency over about 7 minutes. Here's a sound file, sped up 16 times.

A few months later, and about 2,500 miles closer to Cape Horn, a Navy hydrophone picked up a mysterious "bloop." This one matched the audio profile of a living creature; if so, it must have been gigantic, as the sound was audible more than 5,000 km away. Here's a sound file of that one, similarly sped up.

No one knows whether the two are related; if something huge was headed for Chile, it never arrived. Neither sound has been heard since.

Tags: nature

Nature Creates a River

Thu, 29 Nov 2007 20:40:03 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: m3.lackcolor.com

Tags: weather

Great wallpaper site for nature/animal lovers

Fri, 23 Nov 2007 03:00:37 GMT

clipped by: Newfman
clipper's remarks: Animals: African
Animals: Cats & Kittens
Animals: Dogs & Puppies
Animals: Homeless Cats
Animals: Horses
Animals: Marine Life
Animals: Polar
Animals: Tigers
Animals: Various
Nature: Architectural
Nature: Beaches
Nature: Buildings 1280x1024
Nature: California
Nature: City Night Scenes
Nature: Clouds
Nature: Floral Designs
Nature: Flowers
Nature: France
Nature: Fruits
Nature: General
Nature: Historical Buildings
Nature: Italy
Nature: Nat Geographic
Nature: Rivers
Nature: Seasons
Nature: Snow
Nature: Space
Nature: Spain
Nature: Sunsets
Nature: World Travel

Clip Source: nature.wallpaperme.com

Tags: wallpaper

Manitoba dogsled team led by blind husky.......beautiful animal.

Mon, 19 Nov 2007 10:41:20 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.cbc.ca

Isobel, a six-year-old husky cross, has all the great qualities of a sled dog. She loves to run, has strength and endurance, and works well alongside the other dogs tethered to the sleds that take tourists out on the subarctic terrain of Churchill, Man.

It takes a while for visitors to notice that she is completely blind.

"The dog lost its vision, but it didn't lose its spirit," Dr. Evan Fisk, Isobel's Winnipeg-based veterinarian said in a recent interview.

"It can smell, hear and feel other dogs nearby."

Isobel not only follows other dogs on the sled team owned by Jenafor Ollander and her common-law husband, she sometimes runs lead in tandem with another husky.

Isobel is sometimes put up front with another dog for races, and has beat other dog teams in head-to-head competitions.

Tags: nature

Surfer Dude May Be Next Einstein

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 22:48:25 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

A surfer dude with no fixed address may be this century's Einstein.

A. Garrett Lisi, a physicist who divides his time between surfing in Maui and teaching snowboarding in Lake Tahoe, has come up with what may be the Grand Unified Theory.

That's the "holy grail" of physics that scientists have been searching for ever since Albert Einstein presented his General Theory of Relativity nearly 100 years ago.

Even more remarkable is that Lisi, who has a Ph.D. but no permanent university affiliation, solves the problem without resorting to exotic dimensions, string theory or exceptionally complex mathematics.

A successful Grand Unified Theory would use a series of equations to show how the four fundamental forces of nature — gravity, electromagnetism and the strong and weak nuclear forces — relate to each other.

Tags: science

FBI: Al Qaeda Eyeing Mall Attacks Over Holidays

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 23:27:30 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

The FBI confirmed it has issued an "intelligence information report" warning of possible Al Qaeda attacks on Los Angeles and Chicago shopping malls over the holiday season.

The warning states Al Qaeda has been planning the attack for the past two years with the intension to disrupt the U.S. economy, but it notes the latest threats fit a pattern that has emerged every holiday season since the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.

FBI officials say details of the threat have come from a reliable source, but said much of the information is second- and third-hand, leaving FBI officials uncertain about the reliability of the intelligence received.

"This information was obtained through a lengthy chain of acquisition, and was provided to the source by a sub-source who spoke in confidence. The veracity of the information is uncertain but the threat is being reported due to the nature of the information," the FBI said in a statement.

Tags: terror

Massive Wall of Water Expected to Slam East Coast of England

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 23:25:52 GMT

clipped by: Newfman
clipper's remarks: Heads Up, Mates!

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

LONDON — Thousands of people along the the eastern coast of England were told to evacuate their homes and move to higher ground Thursday ahead of a potentially devasting 10-foot wall of sea water predicted to slam the island nation Friday morning.

More than 10,000 homes and businesses are affected by the order, according to the British Environment Agency, which has issued seven severe flood warnings for people living on the Norfolk and Suffolk coast near Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft.

Environment Secretary Hilary Benn warned of potentially historic flooding in the next 48 hours.

In anticipation of the surge the Thames Barrier, which protects London from flooding, was to be closed Thursday night to cope with water levels four feet higher than usual.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown convened an emergency meeting of officials Thursday afternoon to coordinate potential mass evacuations and rescue efforts.

Tags: nature

Australian scientists decode whale sounds

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:26:57 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian scientists studying humpback whales sounds say they have begun to decode the whale's mysterious communication system, identifying male pick-up lines and motherly warnings.

Wops, thwops, grumbles and squeaks are part of the extensive whale repertoire recorded by scientists from the University of Queensland working on the Humpback Whale Acoustic Research Collaboration (HARC) project.

Recording whale sounds over a three-year period, scientists discovered at least 34 different types of whale calls

A purr by males appeared to signify the male was trying his luck to mate a desirable female. High frequency cries and screams were associated with disagreements, when males jostled to escort females during migration

A wop sound was common when mothers were together with their young

Tags: nature

Mantis stuck in suburbia

Sat, 03 Nov 2007 20:55:52 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.flickr.com

Tags: nature

If you're a mouse, and you look up and see this..........

Mon, 15 Oct 2007 10:41:09 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.palemale.com

Tags: nature

Moose Use Human Shields to Defend Against Bears

Sat, 13 Oct 2007 18:02:03 GMT

clipped by: Newfman

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

In a strange new twist of nature and adaptability, moose now apparently can take advantage of human development and use it as a shield against predators.

When it's time for pregnant moose to give birth in Yellowstone Park, they move closer these days to roads, and therefore people, to protect their newborns from bears, scientists say.

Wildlife Conservation Society researchers figured this out by tracking moose and brown bears in Yellowstone Park for 10 years, from 1995 to 2004. Brown bears can prey heavily on moose calves.

Over that decade, scientists found the number of bears increased rapidly, apparently due to conservation efforts.

At the same time, pregnant moose apparently moved a whopping 400 feet (125 meters) closer, on average, to paved roads each year to give birth.

Brown bears typically shy away from human traffic, avoiding areas within about 1,600 feet (500 meters) of roads in Yellowstone and elsewhere.

Tags: odd