By Heidi Harley

science / science - 6 years ago

Niger to move protected giraffes as habitat shrinks

Part of a group of a rare giraffes that has become a Niger tourist attraction is to be moved to a reserve 600 kilometres (400 miles) away owing to encroaching desert, farmland and increasing instances of them being struck by vehicles, officials said Wednesday. "It's to give the species better prote...

science / science - 6 years ago

10 of the Oldest Cities in the World

History can be an imprecise discipline -- ancient history perhaps even more so. While the designation for the oldest city on earth may not be decided yet, there are a handful of cities thought to be strong contenders. Although the exact age of Aleppo is unknown, an ancient temple discovered in the...

science / science - 6 years ago

Nasa and SpaceX to test rocket that will carry people to space

Nasa and SpaceX are about to launch a rocket that could mark the future of American spaceflight. The two organisations will team up to blast the Crew Dragon spacecraft, on the top of a Falcon 9 rocket, as part of a major test. For years, the US has been unable to launch its own astronauts to the s...

science / science - 6 years ago

The average American turkey just keeps getting bigger

Americans’ love of turkey is driving producers to make the bird larger than nature intended. The average weight of a turkey before it’s slaughtered has more than doubled since 1930, to more than 30 lbs. Turkeys wouldn’t have gotten this large without humans. We wanted bigger birds,...

science / science - 6 years ago

536 Was a Garbage Year for Mankind (So Give 2018 a Break)

In A.D. 536, Europe had a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad year. It started when a mysterious fog swept over the continent, veiling the sun in a blue haze and casting Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia into darkness 24 hours a day, for 18 months. Michael McCormick, a medieval historian...