Bones of largest-ever rat found

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Bones of largest-ever rat found CANBERRA, Australia (UPI) -- Australian researchers say they've found the remains of the largest rat ever known, weighing more than 13 pounds and about the size of a small dog. Scientists from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization found the bones of the species in a cave in East Timor, an island nation north of Australia, the Australia Broadcasting Corp. reported Monday. The large rats survived until about 1,000 to 2.000 years ago, CSIRO scientists said. They dominated the animal kingdom on East Timor about 5 million years ago, the research team said. "It was rat land with at least 13 species of rodents on an island that isn't that big," archaeologist Dr Ken. Aplin said. "So it's incredible diversity," he said. A CSIRO team plans to investigate an area of swampy rainforest where some rare grass-eating rat species may still survive. "I do hold out that hope that some of the smaller species and some of possibly one or two of the largest animals, these grass-eating specialists, might still survive," Aplin said. "And if so we need to act quickly to conserve them." Copyright 2010 by United Press International
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Study: Students too trusting of Web search EVANSTON, Ill. (UPI) -- A study of U.S. college students says they are too trusting of results offered up by Internet search engines like Google, and give them too much credibility. Northwestern University researchers found students were only clicking on Web sites that showed up at the top of Google searches when completing assigned class tasks, assuming them to be the best and most accurate, a university release said Monday. "Many students think, 'Google placed it No. 1, so, of course it's credible,'" said Eszter Hargittai, associate professor of communication studies. "This is potentially tricky because Google doesn't rank a site by its credibility." Researchers gave the students a variety of hypothetical information-seeking tasks to perform online. "Search engine rankings seem extremely important," Hargittai said. "We found that a Web site's layout or content almost didn't even matter to the students. What mattered is that it was the No. 1 result on Google. "Just because younger people grew up with the Web doesn't mean they're universally savvy with it," he said. "Educators should show specific Web sites in class and talk about why a source is or isn't credible." Copyright 2010 by United Press International
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More than water key in other Earths search POTSDAM, Germany (UPI) -- The hunt for Earth-like planets in the universe, which usually looks for where water might exist, should consider photosynthesis instead, German scientists say. Researchers at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research argue while primitive life can exist without photosynthesis, it would be necessary for more complex multicellular organisms to emerge, Astrobiology Magazine reported. "Photosynthesis-sustaining habitable zones" around stars, the researchers say, would be where the average surface temperature of a world in the zone stays between the freezing and boiling points of water, 32 degrees to 212 degrees Fahrenheit. The search should also be for planets where there are sufficient levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which photosynthetic life would consume to make oxygen and create organic matter, the scientists say. Institute physicist Werner von Bloh estimates our Milky Way galaxy might host up to 2.5 million worlds suitable for complex multicellular photosynthetic life. "Finding signs of life on other planets might be the most challenging goal in astrobiology," von Bloh said. Copyright 2010 by United Press International
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New deal puts fusion reactor back on track BRUSSELS (UPI) -- The European Union and six partner countries have reached a deal on building and financing a nuclear fusion reactor in France, officials said. The EU and China, India, Japan, the United States, South Korea and Russia agreed on a new funding level and construction timetable for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, BNO News reported Wednesday. The agreement was reached after massive cost overruns and project delays almost derailed the project, the Dutch news service said. The cost of the project was initially estimated at $6.5 billion with construction to be finished by 2018. Updated figures in the new agreement say the ITER will be ready for operation by 2026 at a cost of $19 billion, with the EU covering half. Copyright 2010 by United Press International
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