Plants

Bastard Quiver Tree (Aloe pillansii) is a Critically Endangered tree aloe occurring primarily in the mountainous Richtersveld area of the Northern Cape, South Africa and southern Namibia. A decline in the population has reduced the numbers to less than 200 mature individuals. No recruitment has been recorded at any of the main sub-populations probably due to the impacts of grazing by goats and donkeys and the older plants are dying. The species is sought after by collectors and owing to past depredations was listed on CITES Appendix I. The species is the focus of a major new survey and possible reintroduction programme by members of the IUCN/SSC Southern African Plant Specialist Group.

Golden Pagoda (Mimetes chrysanthus) is a Vulnerable member of the Proteaceae family. This magnificent species was only discovered as recently as 1987. Since that time, a number of small sub-populations have been found along the mountain ranges bordering the Little Karoo, Western Cape, South Africa. The main sub-population is in a nature reserve; however, frequent wild fires and invasive alien species pose a constant threat to this species. Plants are now in cultivation and the species is rapidly becoming popular in the horticultural trade. Careful management of the wild population is required through removal of alien invasive species and the prevention of frequent wild fires.

Reptiles

Asian Three-striped Box Turtle (Cuora trifasciata) is one of the most Critically Endangered freshwater turtles in Asia. Known to be native to southern China and northern Viet Nam, and almost certainly in Lao PDR and perhaps Myanmar, it is also arguably one of the most beautiful. The population has declined drastically because C. trifasciata is believed to have cancer-curing properties in traditional Chinese Medicine. In addition, it is a rare species that is highly sought by the pet trade. While the harvesting of many Asian turtle species for the food trade may slow once each species reaches a commercial extinction threshold, individual C. trifasciata will continue to be hunted even as individuals become harder to find because of the high perceived value of each turtle. The establishment of secure insurance colonies or heritage collections will probably be the only solution to prevent complete loss of C. trifasciata in the short-term.

 

Mammals

 

Red-shanked Douc Langur (Pygathrix nemaeus) is a handsome, yet Endangered Asian colobine monkey found in south central Viet Nam and parts of neighbouring Laos and Cambodia. It is threatened throughout its limited range by habitat destruction and hunting, the latter both for food and for body parts, which are used to prepare traditional medicines. While a number of Douc Langur populations can still be found in parks and nature reserves, wildlife laws established to protect this and other threatened species are too often poorly enforced in the face of lucrative and illegal wildlife trade.

Ethiopian Wolf (Canis simensis), listed as Endangered, is confined to the highlands of Ethiopia in northeast Africa. It is estimated that there are 360–440 adults surviving, with less than 250 mature individuals (see IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria for the definition of 'mature individual'). The species is less common and has a more reduced range now than in the past mostly because of habitat destruction through expanding agricultural activities. Human persecution triggered by political instability in the past is currently less severe and is associated to conflicts over livestock losses. Rabies is a potential threat to all populations. An Action Plan has been published which provides a detailed strategy for the conservation and management of the remaining populations. A number of important conservation measures have already been taken to protect this species, including vaccination of wolves affected by rabies, community education programmes, strengthening national park capacitiy within the species. range, and ongoing wolf population surveys and monitoring.

South American Marsh Deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) is the largest of the Neotropical deer and occurs in seasonally wet marshes and inundated grasslands and forests of south central South America. The total population of Marsh Deer is currently unknown. However, ongoing decline is apparent in all areas as a result of poaching, cattle diseases, and habitat loss due to agricultural activities and dam constructions. In Uruguay the species is thought to be extinct: the last record from this country was in 1958.

World Nearing 3% of Ocean Protection

Marseille, France, 24 October 2013 – Marine protected areas now cover 2.8% of the global ocean – an area larger than Europe – according to the official map released today based on data provided by the World Database on Protected Areas, run by IUCN and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The map shows an increase of 0.6% in the ocean area protected since 2012. In 2010, most of the world governments agreed to protect at least 10% of the world’s marine and coastal zones by 2020.

It’s encouraging to see the progress we’ve made so far, says Carl Gustaf Lundin, Director of IUCN’s Global Marine and Polar Programme. “Protecting less than 3% of the ocean is still not enough to ensure its sustainable conservation. However, if we continue to increase this area by one percent each year, we should be able to reach the agreed 10% by 2020. We’re hoping that this map will make this process much more efficient.”

The map makes global marine protected areas easily accessible to marine specialists and the public for the first time. It offers the possibility to track progress towards protecting the ocean and identify those protected areas that have not yet been included in the map.

The map clearly shows how progress in the last few years has been boosted by the addition of large offshore marine protected areas, complementing the many smaller sites that exist in inshore waters of many countries. Such developments are visible around the national waters of Australia, France and West Africa.

Countries that are doing well should help others that are having difficulties in protecting their marine heritage due to overpopulation or lack of capacity and resources, says Dan Laffoley, Principal Advisor on Marine Science and Conservation of the IUCN Global Marine and Polar Programme. This map should make it easier for countries to collaborate with others. It provides a new level of transparency drawing from the official statistics to track progress against the 10% target.

The oceans cover more than 70% of the earth’s surface. More than 3.5 billion people depend on them for food, energy and income. By protecting the ocean’s natural and cultural resources, marine protected areas play a central role in addressing some of the global development challenges of today, such as food and energy security, poverty and climate change.

The map was released at the 3rd International Marine Protected Areas currently taking place in Marseille, France. Co-organized by IUCN and the French Marine Protected Areas Agency, IMPAC3 gathers over 1,200 of marine specialists and ministers from around the world with the aim to evaluate the progress made so far and propose new solutions for the conservation and sustainable development of the ocean.

The map and statistics on marine protected area coverage will be updated regularly as marine protection actions scale up across the globe, says Brian MacSharry from the Protected Area Programme of the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

Old Man of the Lake

 The Old Man of the Lake is a 30-foot (9 m) tall tree stump, most likely a hemlock, that has been bobbing vertically in Oregon's Crater Lake since at least 1896. At the waterline, the stump is about 2 feet (60 cm) in diameter and stands approximately 4 feet (120 cm) above the water. Its surface has been bleached white by the elements. The exposed end of the floating tree is splintered and worn but wide and buoyant enough to support a person's weight. Fontinalis, a moss present in the waters of Crater Lake at a depth of 394 feet (120 m), also grows on the Old Man of the Lake, the only place the moss is found near the surface.

History

Joseph S. Diller published the first geology of Crater Lake in 1902, the same year the area became a national park. In his work, Diller briefly describes a great stump he had found in the lake six years earlier. Thus, in 1896, The Old Man floated just as it does now, giving it a documented age of over 100 years.

The Old Man's movements have long been observed. In 1896, Diller established that it could travel by tying baling wire around it and pulling it a short distance. Five years later, Diller observed the Old Man to be 0.25 miles (400 m) from the location he had previously noted. The earliest known photograph of the trunk dates to this period.

As the result of an inquiry from Washington, D.C., the project of recording The Old Man's location was undertaken between July 1 and September 30, 1938. Those observations indicated that it travels quite extensively, and sometimes with surprising rapidity. During the period of observation in 1938, the Old Man traveled at least 62.1 miles (99.9 km). The greatest movements occurred on days of high wind and waves.

Since it can be virtually anywhere on the lake, boat pilots commonly communicate its position to each other as a general matter of safety.

In 1988, submarine explorations were conducted in the lake, and the scientists decided to tie The Old Man off the eastern side of Wizard Island to neutralize the navigational hazard until their research work was complete.

As of January 2012, tour boats regularly pass The Old Man on their journeys to view the sights around Crater Lake. Around thirty feet of the tree's trunk can be seen below the waterline.

Seven Tips for Men to Understand Women Better

A new survey has helped compile seven tips on how men can rise above others in their dealings with women.

1.      Firstly, communication should not be a problem, as for the women there is nothing as appealing as a man, who listens to them. If a man wants to tell them something they wouldn't mind knowing it but face-to-face is always preferable and if that is not possible men can contact them via texts, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. 

2.       Secondly, complimenting women is nice, as sometimes they do need a bit of verbal assurance. Phrases that might help men in a crisis: "Your hair looks awesome tonight!" "Is that a new dress?" "You blitzed it in that tennis match/speech/insert other awesomeness here!" 

3.       Thirdly, a man should not be a penny pincher instead he should pay on his first date if they want to see the lady again. 

4.       Fourthly, they should organise their social life and there are two obvious problem areas there: First, the man who never does anything off his own bat, women may find it nice if they went and did something interesting occasionally. Second, a male who simply does too much, women would like that person to take out some time for them.

5.       Fifthly, some thought should be put by men in the presents that they give to women. 

6.       Sixthly, men should try to get a bit stylish and should invest in a fool-proof man outfit: nice jeans, a T-shirt and unscuffed trainers and for more smart-casual occasions, substitute in a good quality shirt and some leather shoes. 

7.       Lastly, when men don't know the direction of a place they should admit it and not pretend about knowing it.

Snakes

1. The black-necked cobra, which lives mostly in Africa, spits its venom into the eyes of its victim, to cause it blindness.
2. There are no snakes in New Zealand.
3. The venom of the king cobra is so deadly that one bite can kill twenty people or one elephant.
4. The fastest moving land snake is the Black Mamba, which can move up to 7 miles per hour.
5. The King Cobra has enough venom in its bite that it can kill up to 13 adults.
6. The Australian Brown Snake's venom is so powerful that only 1/14,000th of on ounce is needed to kill a human being.
7. Taipan snakes have 50 times more toxic than a cobra snake.
8. Snake venom is ninety percent protein.
9. Snake is a delicacy in China.
10. Most snakes have six rows of teeth.
11. A snake charmer in Bangladesh once found 3,500 poisonous cobras and their eggs hidden underneath the floors of two suburban homes.
12. Sea snakes are the most poisonous snakes in the world.

Allergies as Cancer Prevention

Airborne allergies such as hay fever are among the worst allergies one can experience. While foods that trigger allergies may be readily avoided and many chemical exposures can be reduced, avoiding grass, dust, pollen and mold may be exceedingly difficult. However, scientific research indicates that there may be a bright side to the scourge of spring and summer. Exposure to airborne allergens appears to tinker with the immune system in such a way that the risk of cancer is mitigated in allergy suffers. Preliminary research suggests statistically significant reductions in cancer among human study samples suffering from hay fever due to an immune stimulation effect similar to inoculation.

 

Sex Facts

• There are approximately 100 million acts of sexual intercourse each day.
• The sperm count of an average American male compared to thirty years ago is down thirty percent.
• An adult esophagus can range from 10 to 14 inches in length and is one inch in diameter.
• Men sweat more than women. This is because women can better regulate the amount of water they lose.
• The average amount of time spent kissing for a person in a lifetime is 20,160 minutes.
• The average adult has approximately six pounds of skin.
• Infants spend more time dreaming than adults do.
• In one day, adult lungs move about 10,000 liters of air.
• The condom made originally of linen was invented in the early 1500's. Casanova, the womanizer, used linen condoms.
• Sex burns about 70-120 calories for a 130 pound woman, and 77 to 155 calories for a 170 pound man every hour.
• Impotence is grounds for divorce in 26 U.S. states.
• There are approximately 45 billion fat cells in an average adult.
• Kissing can aid in reducing tooth decay. This is because the extra saliva helps in keeping the mouth clean.
• During the female orgasm, endorphines are released, which are powerful painkillers. So headaches are in fact a bad excuse not to have sex.
• During World War II, condoms were used to cover rifle barrels from being damaged by salt water as the soldiers swam to shore.
• According to psychologists, the shoe and the foot are the most common sources of sexual fetishism in Western society.
• A kiss for one minute can burn 26.

 

Pregnancy Facts

• The world's first test tube twins are Stephen and Amanda Mays born June 5, 1981.
• Some people drink the urine of pregnant women to build up their immune system.
• The first known contraceptive was crocodile dung, used by Egyptians in 2000 B.C.
• Every day, over 1,300 babies are born prematurely in the USA.
• During pregnancy, the average woman's uterus expands up to five hundred times its normal size.
• Changing a cat's litter box can be dangerous to pregnant women, as cat feces sometimes carry a parasite that can cause harm to the developing baby.
• A pregnant woman's dental health can affect her unborn child.
• May babies are on avearge 200 grams heavier than babies born in other months.
• When a women is pregnant, her senses are all heightened.
• Studies show that couples that smoke during the time of conception have a higher chance of having a girl compared to couples that do not smoke.

Human Body Parts

• Our heart beats around 100,00 times every day.
• Our blood is on a 60,000-mile journey.
• Our eyes can distinguish up to one million colour surfaces and take in more information than the largest telescope known to man.
• Our lungs inhale over two million litres of air every day, without even thinking. They are large enough to cover a tennis court.
• Our hearing is so sensitive it can distinguish between hundreds of thousands of different sounds.
• Our sense of touch is more refined than any device ever created.
• Our brain is more complex than the most powerful computer and has over 100 billion nerve cells.
• We give birth to 100 billion red cells every day.
• When we touch something, we send a message to our brain at 124 mph.
• We have over 600 muscles.
• We exercise at least 30 muscles when we smile.
• We are about 70 percent water.
• We make one litre of saliva a day.
• Our nose is our personal air-conditioning system: it warms cold air, cools hot air and filters impurities.
• In one square inch of our hand we have nine feet of blood vessels, 600 pain sensors, 9000 nerve endings, 36 heat sensors and 75 pressure sensors.
• We have copper, zinc, cobalt, calcium, manganese, phosphates, nickel and silicon in our bodies.

Amazing Facts of the Human Body

• Our heart beats around 100,00 times every day.
• Our blood is on a 60,000-mile journey.

• Our eyes can distinguish up to one million colour surfaces and take in more information than the largest telescope known to man

Understanding Depression

 

Our Close Proximity Prevents us From Seeing Earth in its Entirety

To completely view our own planet, we must leave its surface and journey into space. From the vantage point of space we are able to observe our planet globally, as we do other planets, using similar sensitive instruments to understand the delicate balance among its oceans, air, land, and life. Viewing Earth from the unique perspective of space provides the opportunity to see Earth as a whole. Scientists around the world have discovered many things about our planet by working together and sharing their findings.

Earth Has One Natural Satellite

Earth's Moon (called Luna) orbits at a distance of 384,000km, with a radius of 1738KM and a mass of 7.32e22kg. However, there are thousands of small artificial satellites which have been placed in orbit around the Earth. Also, asteroids 3753 Cruithne and 2002 AA29 have complicated orbital relationships with the Earth; they're not really moons, the term "companion" is being used.

Because of its size and rocky composition, the moon has also been called a terrestrial planet along with Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. It has no atmosphere, but there is water ice in some deep craters. The moon is the only extra-planetary body that a human has visited.

Early Philosophy had the Earth as the Center of the Universe

Although Aristarchus of Samos, in the 3rd Century B.C., figured out how to measure the distances to and sizes of the Sun and the Moon, and concluded that the Earth orbited the Sun, this view didn't attract followers until Nicolaus Copernicus, a Polish astronomer, published "On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres" in 1543.

 

Earth is the Fifth Largest Planet

The diameter of the earth at the equator is about 7926 miles, but that's not the whole story. Because the earth is not a perfect sphere but is slightly flattened at the poles, the diameter of the earth measured around the North Pole and the South Pole is about 7899 miles.

Google More Popular Than Yahoo

• Google overtook Yahoo as the second most popular Internet destination for Web surfers worldwide in November while Microsoft held on to the top spot, ComScore has reported. Slightly more than 736 million people around the world traveled the Internet last month, with 475,713 of them visiting Google websites and 475,262 going to Yahoo online properties, according to industry tracker ComScore.

• Websites of Redmond, Washington-based software giant Microsoft were visited by 501,720 people, the rating tally revealed. Hot video-sharing website YouTube placed tenth in the ComScore Media Metrix rankings but showed the largest surge in visitors, with the number catapulting by more than 2,000 per cent to 107,944. Google's results did not include visits YouTube, which it bought in October. The popularity of Google websites was up nine per cent from the same month a year earlier, while visits to Silicon Valley rival Yahoo grew by five per cent and to Microsoft by three per cent in the same comparison.  

• Online auction pioneer eBay was ranked in fourth place, with the number of visitors slipping by one per cent from November of 2005 to 250,848. Time Warner Network site visits also notched down one per cent, tallying 222,107. The number of people going to the communally-edited Internet encyclopedia site Wikipedia more than doubled to 171,945 in November as compared to that month last year.