Scientists advocate for monarch butterfly conservation
College Station, Texas (UPI) Sep 4, 2014 -
Monarch butterflies have begun their 3,000-mile trek southward; with summer coming to a close in Canada, it's time to make their way to Mexico for the winter. It sounds like a nice life, but it's a life that's increasingly under siege, scientists say. Now, some are arguing federal protections are warranted.
Studies show the monarch's milkweed habitat continues to lose out to industrial ...
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50 feared dead as bus plunges into gorge in India
Srinagar, India (AFP) Sept 04, 2014 -
Flood waters swept an overcrowded bus carrying a wedding party into a gorge on Thursday with all 50 on board feared dead in India's Himalayan Kashmir region, officials said.
Rescue teams have been deployed to the flooded gorge south of Kashmir's main city of Srinagar but they have so far been unable to reach the bus, police said.
Heavy rains that have hit the region in the last 24 hours ...
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Erickson, RADWIN win contracts from California cities
Portland, Ore. (UPI) Sep 4, 2014 -
Aerial firefighting services will continue to be provided to the City of Los Angeles by Erickson Incorporated under a five-year contract renewal.
Under the award, Erickson will provide one S-64 helicopter equipped with a 2,650-gallon fire suppression system, a detachable water tank and eight coverage levels for targeted fire suppression for use in fighting blazes in the greater Los Ange ...
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Chinese firm serves up 'smart chopsticks' for food-wary diners
Beijing (AFP) Sept 04, 2014 -
From recycled cooking oil to fox meat and chemicals, a litany of food scandals have turned Chinese diners' stomachs, but a new "smart chopsticks" concept by Internet search giant Baidu could put the answer in their hands.
The device, which the firm says can tell consumers whether the food in front of them is safe to eat, was born of an April Fool's video, a spokesman said Thursday.
Baidu ...
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Key Pacific panel agrees to 50% cut in young tuna catch
Tokyo (AFP) Sept 04, 2014 -
Countries and regions that fish in the northern Pacific agreed Thursday to cut by half the number of young bluefin tuna they catch in a bid to double the ocean's stock over 10 years.
A four-day subcommittee meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) closed in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, where Tokyo's proposal for a drastic reduction on the 2002-2004 average catc ...
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New deep sea mushroom-shaped organisms discovered
Copenhagen, Denmark (SPX) Sep 05, 2014 -
Scientists discovered two new species of sea-dwelling, mushroom-shaped organisms, according to a study published September 3, 2014 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Jean Just from University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and colleagues.
Scientists classify organisms based on shared characteristics using a taxonomic rank, including kingdom, phylum, and species. In 1986, the authors of this s ...
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Rising risk of failed seasons as climate change puts pressure on Africa's farmers
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (SPX) Sep 05, 2014 -
Small-scale family farmers across Africa- already struggling to adapt to rapidly rising temperatures and more erratic rains-risk being overwhelmed by the pace and severity of climate change, according to the 2014 African Agriculture Status Report (AASR).
The analysis, prepared by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), with contributions from several African scholars, provide ...
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