Oldest non-stromatolites found, according to Nature News and Views, vol. 563, pp190-191 8 November 2018. In 2016 scientists claim to have identified fossilised algal mats, knowns as stromatolites, in rocks of the Isua Supracrustal Belt, Greenland, dated as 3.7 billion years. This made them the oldest stromatolites ever found, displacing 3.45 billion year dated rocks […]
Prince Charles has described the fight against global climate change as a war, with the Doomsday Clock “ticking ever closer to midnight” according to BBC News, 14 February 2008. “Surely, this is just the moment in history for which the European Union was created?” BBC Were you helped by this item? If so, consider making […]
Global flood didn’t happen, claim BioLogos. On the day that Answers in Genesis opened their Ark Encounter (7 July 2016) the theistic evolution organisation BioLogos published an article condemning Answers in Genesis and all young earth creationists, claiming “Young-earth creationist teaching is causing unnecessary harm to the reputation of the Church and creates a stumbling […]
Great flood in china found, according to articles in BBC News, ScienceDaily and Science (AAAS) News 4 August 2016, Science vol. 353, pp. 579-582, doi: 10.1126/science.aaf0842, and Science Perspective, vol 353 pp538-539, doi: 10.1126/science.aah4040, 5 August 2016. An international team of scientists have found evidence of a massive flood in the Jishi Gorge at the […]
Cuttlefish colour vision theory described in Science (AAAS) News 6 July 2016 and PNAS doi: 10.1073/pnas.1524578113, published online 5 July 2016. Cuttlefish, octopuses and squid, collectively called cephalopods, can rapidly change colour to match different surroundings, and they also signal to one another using colour changes. This has intrigued scientists because their eyes only have […]
Hagfish eyes reverse evolution, according to ScienceDaily 2 August 2016 and Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, doi: 10.1098/rspb.2016.1151 3 August 2016. Hagfish are eel-like jawless fish with simple eyes that do not have a lens or eye muscles pigment granules in the retina. As such, hagfish eyes were considered to be an […]
Sharks swim sideways according to reports in New Scientist 27 July 2016 and Nature Communications doi:10.1038/ncomms12289, 26 July 2016. Hammerhead sharks are well known for their strange head shape, but they also have unusual fins. Most sharks have longer pectoral fins than dorsal fins. They use their pectoral fins to stop themselves from sinking, while […]
Orchids made on 3D printer reveal Dracula secrets according to articles in ScienceDaily and Science (AAAS) News 23 February and New Phytologist 2016; doi: 10.1111/nph.13855, published online 15 February 2016. A team of scientists from University of Oregon have been studying a group of orchids named Dracula orchids, which grow in the cloud forests of […]
Snails pollinate smart plants, according to Annals of Botany blog, 5 July 2016. A plant named Volvulopsis nummularium, a low growing plant of the convolvulus family, has short lived flowers, which open in the morning and only last for about half a day. It is pollinated by bees, but if it is raining and bees […]
Bear diet extinction theory reported by Science (AAAS) News, 1 July 2016. European cave bears, Ursus spelaeus, once inhabited northern Europe from Britain to Russia and were depicted on cave walls. However, they are now extinct, yet other bears have survived to this day. Looking for clues to their extinction, two scientists from University of […]