If Spider-Man was to climb walls like true spider, he would need ridiculously enormous feet, study finds

A latest study has found that in case superhero Spider-Man had to climb walls like a true spider, he would have required ridiculously huge feet.

Alike spiders, many critters can scurry up walls, like some species of lizard, beetle and cockroach. However there is a reason why geckos are the biggest animals that can scale walls this way. The researchers said that bigger and heavier animals would require titanic-size sticky footpads to climb tall buildings.

Global Ocean warming has doubled over the past two decades, study shows

A latest study has shown that the total amount of man-made heat energy consumed by the oceans worldwide has become twice since 1997. The Huffington Post wrote that since long, scientists were aware that nearly 90% of global warming-produced heat energy ends up in the world's oceans.

However a new study has provided latest data on how much heat the oceans have absorbed during the last 150 years. Scientists used data from belonging to a back as the 1870s, collected from British research ship Challenger, and utilized data from technologically advanced underwater monitors and computer models.

Chances of cataclysmic events which could affect survival of humanity soaring, warns Stephen Hawking

Renowned physicist Stephen Hawking said the chances of cataclysmic events which may have a bad impact on the survival of humanity are high and it's humans who are to be blamed for such a scenario.

While recording the annual BBC Reith lectures, the famous physicist claimed that the occurrence of the disaster in planet Earth in the coming 1,000 to 10,000 years is almost certain.

However, he also insisted that humanity will probably survive, because by the time the disaster will strike, humans shall have made colonies on other worlds.

Prof. Hawking said that, however, humans aren't going to establish self-sustaining colonies in space for at least the coming century, thus the natives of Earth have to stay very alert during this period.

Watch Five planets align in morning sky for a month

Those fond of watching celestial events will be in for a treat Wednesday as they will witness a spectacle of the ‘fab five’ planets aligning in one direction. The planets, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter, will be headlining across the dawn sky early in the day and the parade will repeat itself every morning until late next month.

And what more, stargazers can see these five planets simultaneously with the naked eye, said Jason Kendall, who is on the board of the Amateur Astronomers Association of New York. It is the first-of-its-kind show in more than a decade, which will last from January 20 to February 20.
The best period to watch all the planets, though, would be from the end of January until the first week of February when Mercury would be at its highest points.

FAO Figures Underestimate Fish Catches

A study led by researchers Daniel Pauly and Dirk Zeller of the University of British Columbia’s Sea Around Us project has revealed that the data on the amount of fish caught, received by the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) from several nations, is not quite accurate.

According to FAO’s data, global fish catches reached its maximum of 86 million metric tons in 1996 and thereafter decreased slightly. The actual data suggests that 130 million metric tons of fish was caught in 1996 and it has been declining at an annual rate of 1.2 million metric tons since then.

The actual data has been gathered by combined efforts of over 50 global institutions. The two lead researchers revealed that FAO records all ’no data’ sectors as zero, which is inaccurate.

Highly Pathogenic H7N8 Avian Influenza Found in Commercial Turkey Flock in Indiana

Bird flu has found its first victim since the end of last year’s outbreak, and it’s Indiana. A report of the Unites States government states that highly pathogenic H7N8 avian influenza has been found in a commercial turkey flock in Dubois County of the Midwestern state.

The US Department of Agriculture’s Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service inspected the case and found that the strain has affected a flock of 60,000 birds. The strain is different from last year’s outbreak, the agency reported in a statement on January 15. It also said that authorities are investigating the nearby areas to find if the strain is present in other flocks too.

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