ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 540
March 13, 2016
What Is Meldonium, The Drug At The Heart Of The Maria Sharapova Doping Case?
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Maria Sharapova tested positive for meldonium at the Australian Open. Kevork Djansezian / Stringer / Getty Images
The world of sport was left reeling once again this week as yet another high-profile athlete failed a drug test. However, unlike previous doping cheats such as Lance Armstrong and Justin Gatlin, Maria Sharapova apparently did not know that the substance she had taken was illegal in sport. Known as meldonium, the drug has been in the spotlight this week, but what exactly is it?
Mongooses and Warthogs Combine Against Parasites
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A warthog puts up with getting its hair pulled by a mongoose in return for having parasites removed. A. Plumptre
Humans aside, mammals seldom form symbiotic relationships with other mammalian species, but one example has been confirmed in Uganda where banded mongooses (Mungos mungo) groom warthogs (Phacochoerus aethiopic). A deeper study of this cooperation may help us understand how humans came to domesticate animals, a major step in our rise to global domination.
Virgin Galactic Space Tourists Happy To Wait For Their Shot At The Stars
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Virgin Galactic recently unveiled its new SpaceShipTwo vehicle, called VSS Unity, but when will it fly? Jack Brockworth
It’s 2010. You’ve just stumped up a fifth of a million dollars for a ticket on a rocket plane that will take you into space for seven minutes. You’re giddy at the prospect of joining the several hundred humans that have left Earth’s atmosphere.
Study Links Gum Disease To Alzheimer’s
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Smile! Alex Tsarik/Shutterstock
Brushing your teeth may not just be about keeping good dental hygiene. A new study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, has shown that gum disease may be linked to a greater rate of cognitive decline in those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.
The Democratic Republic Of Congo Will Allow Logging In Its Rainforests
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These rainforests are teeming with life. GUDKOV ANDREY/Shutterstock
The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has said that it plans to remove a moratorium on industrial logging in the Congo Basin. At 500 million acres, it is larger than the state of Alaska, twice the size of Texas, and contains the second-largest tract of tropical rainforest in the world.
March 12, 2016
Robots Sent To Clean Up Fukushima Power Plant Have “Died”
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The Fukushima power plant two years after the meltdown in 2013. IAEA Imagebank/Flick CC BY-SA 2.0
The robots who went into Fukushima's no-man's land have not returned after radiation levels in the power plant proved too strong for their circuit boards to handle.
The clean-up continues almost five years to the day after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station experienced three meltdowns after a tsunami crashed into the coastal power plant in 2011. The deathly high levels of radiation means it’s impossible for humans to go into areas of the plant to dispose of or contain the radioactivite materials. And it turns out, robots don't fare much better either.
Adorable Baby Kangaroo Adopts Police Officer As Its Mom – Watch It Climb Into His “Pouch”
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The orphaned joey was brought into Cue Police Station, Western Australia, last week. Cue Police/Twitter
When its mother was hit by a car and killed, the future didn’t look so bright for a little orphaned kangaroo. That is until it was given to Western Australian police offer Scott Mason, who has taken the little joey under his wing, or into his shirt, rather.
A Bizarre Spike Of Radiation Was Detected In Helsinki’s Air
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Jyrki Kymäläinen/Flickr. (CC BY-ND 2.0)
An “exceptionally high amount” of radioactivity was detected over Finland's capital on March 3 and 4.
Officials from the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) have said their rooftop air sampler in Helsinki detected 4,000 microbecquerels of the radioactive isotope caesium-137 per cubic meter of air. This is around 1,000 times the regular amount they detect.
$1bn Bank Heist Foiled By A Rather Hilarious Mistake
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Hurst Photo/Shutterstock
When there’s billions of dollars on the table and you’ve been snooping around the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank, make sure you have your spell checker turned on.
During a series of online heists on Bangladesh’s central bank last month, sloppy spelling cost hackers millions and millions of dollars, Reuters reports.
One Of The Rarest Animals In The World Was Just Spotted For The First Time In Five Years
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Mexico's National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP)
This weekend saw the return of “Gallon of Milk,” the albino gray whale.
Mexico's National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP) spotted the all-white whale in the waters of Ojo de Liebre Lagoon, on the west coast of Mexico.
The female whale was first spotted in 2009, and hasn’t been seen for over five years.
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