Stats. Europe. Fun. Myth. Babygaga. Planet's loneliest bug revealed. A bug which lives entirely on its own and survives without oxygen in complete darkness underground has been discovered in South Africa. Desulforudis audaxviator, or bold traveller as it is known in English, relies on water, hydrogen and sulphate for its energy. Because it gets by without oxygen, it could offer clues as to whether life exists on other planets.
The loneliest living species known to science was found inside a gold mine. The rod-shaped bacterium was found 2.8km (1.74 miles) beneath the surface of the Earth in the Mponeng mine near Johannesburg, living in complete isolation, total darkness and 60C (140F) heat. The find represents the first known ecosystem with a single biological species, scientists say. It was identified in DNA extracted from water-filled cracks in the mine. Dr Dylan Chivian of California's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, who is part of the team that made the discovery, explained its significance. Ukraine: Why the Orange Revolution ran out of steam. 10 March 2011Last updated at 00:35 By Daniel Sandford Moscow correspondent, BBC News Zaporizhzhya is one of Ukraine's main industrial cities: It is built on the East bank of the majestic Dnieper river - where the mainly-Ukrainian speaking, more agricultural West gives way to the mainly-Russian speaking, more industrial East.
A Russian-speaking city, Zaporizhzhya was one of many areas of Ukraine to turn its back in 2010 on the country's Orange Revolution as anti-Russian rhetoric grew and crippling corruption spread through society. At first sight it is just another sprawling former Soviet city. Its huge chimneys silhouetted against the winter sky, belching out white smoke. Cossack raiders But it has a special place in Ukraine's history and also in the annals of the Soviet Union. Hundreds of years ago this was a strategic site. The Zaporozhets was the cheapest Soviet car so the most affordable vehicle for common people The raiders are seen by many as the founders of the Ukrainian nation.
Zoos are giving chimps mental illnesses. Why Germans Have Longer Vacation Times and More Productivity ... Brazil Reticent on Releasing Papers on Country's ... The possible release of secret documents dating back to 1864/70 Brazil-Paraguay war is causing concern among members of the Brazilian government. The papers also deal with the taking over of the state of Acre from Bolivia in 1903, current military exercises along the Brazilian border, nuclear research, among other issues. Brazilian diplomats have warned that revealing the archives of the Triple Alliance (Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay) war against Paraguay could affect current relations, according to the influential daily newspaper Folha de S.
Paulo. At the time the Paraguayans virtually fought to the last man, with almost all the male population 10 to 60 years killed during the war and forcing the Brazilians to leave behind the Army. In recent years the construction of the world' largest operational hydroelectric dam, Itaipu, shared between Brazil and Paraguay could also expose alleged 'dealings' between the dictatorships of both countries at the time (1970).
Mercopress.