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Corn insecticide linked to great die-off of beneficial honeybees


Terra Daily / SPX
Thu, 22 Mar 2012 14:55 UTC
Image
© Unknown
New research has linked springtime die-offs of honeybees critical for pollinating food crops - part of the mysterious malady called colony collapse disorder - with technology for planting corn coated with insecticides.

The study, published in ACS' journal Environmental Science and Technology, appears on the eve of spring planting seasons in some parts of Europe where farmers use the technology and widespread deaths of honeybees have occurred in the past.

In the study, Andrea Tapparo and colleagues explain that seeds coated with so-called neonicotinoid insecticides went into wide use in Europe in the late 1990s. The insecticides are among the most widely used in the world, popular because they kill insects by paralyzing nerves but have lower toxicity for other animals.

Almost immediately, beekeepers observed large die-offs of bees that seemed to coincide with mid-March to May corn planting. Scientists thought this might be due to particles of insecticide made airborne by the pneumatic drilling machines used for planting.

Comment: Or, could the bee die-off be related to this: Study Says Insecticide Used with GM Corn Highly Toxic to Bees

For a more in depth look at What is killing the bees? read the following articles carried on SOTT.NET:

Wik-Bee Leaks: EPA Document Shows It Knowingly Allowed Pesticide That Kills Honey Bees

Beekeepers Suggest Pesticide is Destroying Insect Colonies

Bayer in the Dock Over Pesticide Linked to Colony Collapse Disorder

Germany Suspends Pesticide Approvals After Mass Death Of Bees

Have Bees Become Canaries In the Coal Mine? Why Massive Bee Dieoffs May Be a Warning About Our Own Health
The decline of bees has been in the headlines for several years, and theories to explain their deaths abound. But perhaps there is not just one single cause. University of California San Diego professor of biology James Nieh studies foraging, communication and health of bees. "I would say it's a combination of four factors; pesticides, disease, parasites, and human mismanagement," says Nieh. Bees might be weakened by having a very low level of exposure to insecticides or fungicides, making them more susceptible if they are attacked by viruses or parasites. "It's kind of like taking a patient who is not doing so well - very weak, poor diet, exposing them to pathogens, and then throwing more things at them. It's not surprising that honeybees are not very healthy."

One class of pesticides, neonicotinoids in particular has received a lot of attention for harming bees. In late 2010, the EPA came under fire from beekeepers and pesticide watchdog organizations. This happened when Colorado beekeeper Tom Theobald spoke out about how the EPA allowed clothianidin to be used without any proof it was safe and despite the fact that the EPA's own scientists believed it "has the potential for toxic risk to honey bees, as well as other pollinators."


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Bizarro Earth

Papua New Guinea - Earthquake Magnitude 6.6.


US Geological Survey
Wed, 21 Mar 2012 18:08 UTC
PNG Quake_210312
© USGS
Earthquake Location
Date-Time
Wednesday, March 21, 2012 at 22:15:05 UTC

Thursday, March 22, 2012 at 08:15:05 AM at epicenter

Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location
6.244°S, 145.959°E

Depth
105.9 km (65.8 miles)

Region
NEW GUINEA, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Distances
66 km (41 miles) ESE of Goroka, New Guinea, PNG

114 km (70 miles) S of Madang, New Guinea, PNG

382 km (237 miles) NNW of PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea

2469 km (1534 miles) NNW of BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia
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Info

Coldest, Deepest Ocean Water Mysteriously Disappears


OurAmazingPlanet
Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:43 UTC
Bottom Water
© NOAA
A layer of Antarctic Bottom Water colder than 0ºC (colors, with darkest blue areas having the thickest layer, and white none) covers the ocean floor around Antarctica (center, shaded grey). Rates at which this layer is thinning during the study period (red numbers in meters per decade) are shown for for each deep basin (outlined by thin grey lines). These rates are estimated using data from repeated oceanographic expeditions (ship tracks shown by thick black lines). Note that seawater at the ocean surface stays liquid even at temperatures approaching -2ºC because of its high salt content.

The coldest deep ocean water that flows around Antarctica in the Southern Ocean has been mysteriously disappearing at a high rate over the last few decades, scientists have found.

This mass of water is called Antarctic Bottom Water, which is formed in a few distinct locations around Antarctica, where seawater is cooled by the overlying air and made saltier by ice formation (which leaves the salt behind in the unfrozen water). The cold, salty water is denser than the water around it, causing it to sink to the sea floor where it spreads northward, filling most of the deep ocean around the world as it slowly mixes with warmer waters above it.

The world's deep ocean currents play a critical role in transporting heat and carbon around the planet, which helps regulate the Earth's climate.

Previous studies had indicated that this deep water has become warmer and less salty over the past few decades, but a new study has found that significantly less of this water has also been formed during this time.

Oceanographers examined temperature data collected from 1980 to 2011 at about 10-year intervals by an international program of repeated ship-based oceanographic surveys in the Southern Ocean.
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Blackbox

Strange noise: Ireland residents tormented by 'mysterious' night time 'helicopter noises'


Derry Journal
Tue, 20 Mar 2012 08:46 UTC
Roe Valley residents are mystified over strange late night noises high in the sky, which has left them scratching their heads. The late night noise surfaced recently in Drumsurn, according to local Sinn Fein councillor Brenda Chivers. "It's very annoying. It starts around 7pm and can go on until 2-3am. People have been out searching to see what it is, but they see nothing. There's no plane, just this constant drone, and nobody seems to know what it is; unless it's flying saucers! It's a mystery."

A similar noise was reported in Derry recently, but there was never any conclusion as to what it was. In the meantime, residents around the Roe have been "tormented" by late night "helicopter noise". "People are telling me they are hearing this noise at a time when children are either going to or are in bed, and it has wakened some and prevented others from getting to sleep," said DUP Colr. Alan Robinson, who said no one could tell him the source of the noise. "Someone knows the answer and I hope it will be discovered soon and the usual quiet Limavady nights return."
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Cloud Lightning

Super-bolt rumbles in skies over Oklahoma


The Extinction Protocol
Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:43 UTC
It woke up sleepy Tulsans, set-off car alarms and freaked out the family pet. Many people thought it was an earthquake that hit Tulsa at 3:33 this morning. Instead, says National Weather Service Meteorologist Steve Amburn, is was a "Super Bolt." Amburn says a super bolt is a positively-charged cloud-to-ground stroke of lightning. Computer records indicate a single "super bolt" struck in the heart of South Tulsa just after 3:30. No damage from the super bolt is reported.
Image
© Unknown
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Blackbox

Mysterious rumblings bring down a barn in Vancouver Island, BC, Canada


Sooke News
Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:37 UTC
A barn on the 4000-block of Otter Point Road collapsed after a series of unexplained tremors rumbled through the region on Thursday, March 15. Barrie Hanslip, owner of the 35-acre property where the barn was located, said the steepled barn tumbled downward after a large "boom" and rumble at 11:30 a.m. The large tremor was preceded by two smaller shakes around 9:00 a.m.

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Magic Hat

Massive drill in Mexico coincides with real earthquake


Telediario
Tue, 20 Mar 2012 07:32 UTC
Translated from Spanish by Sott.net

The government of the state of Chiapas had prepared for today at 12:00 a massive drill ("mega simulacro") of a 7.9 earthquake in the Richter scale.

mega simulacro

A poster of the government of the southern state of Chiapas announcing a massive earthquake drill
Monterrey - It was nothing but a moment of panic, as there are no lost lives, the president of Mexico Felipe Calderón Hinojosa confirmed today in Monterrey, commenting on the 7.8 earthquake in the Richter scale with epicenter in the borders of the state of Guerrero and that was felt in Mexico City and several other states.

In view of the scale of the event and because there have not been any lost lives, it is noteworthy that the government of the state of Chiapas had prepared precisely for today at 12:00 a massive drill ("mega simulacro") of the earthquake - something that is being actively discussed in social media networks.

Comment: A three-minute difference and almost the same intensity? It is too much coincidence to let it pass unnoticed.

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Bizarro Earth

7.4 quake shakes Mexico, 100s of homes damaged

Katherine Corcoran
Associated Press
Tue, 20 Mar 2012 22:58 UTC
A woman comforts her children outside a school at the Roma neighborhood after a earthquake felt in Mexico City
© AP Photo/Alexandre Meneghini
A woman comforts her children outside a school at the Roma neighborhood after a earthquake felt in Mexico City Tuesday March 20, 2012. A strong, long earthquake with epicenter in Guerrero state shook central southern Mexico on Tuesday, swaying buildings in Mexico City and sending frightened workers and residents into the streets..
Mexico City -- A strong 7.4-magnitude earthquake hit southern Mexico on Tuesday, damaging some 800 homes near the epicenter and swaying tall buildings and spreading fear and panic hundreds of miles away in the capital of Mexico City.

One of the strongest to shake Mexico since the deadly 1985 temblor that killed thousands in Mexico City, Tuesday's earthquake hit hardest in border area of southern Oaxaca and Guerrero states. In Guerrero, officials confirmed that some 800 homes had been damaged, with another 60 having collapsed.

Hours after the shaking at noon local time (18:02 GMT), there were still no reports of death or serious injury, even after a less powerful, magnitude-5.1 aftershock was felt in the capital and several other aftershocks near the epicenter in a mountainous rural region.

"It was very strong, very substantial," said Campos Benitez, hospital director in Ometepec, about 15 miles (25 kilometers) from the epicenter.
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Cloud Lightning

Devastating 'Mini-Tornado' Hits Australian City

Martin Parry
Agence France-Presse
Tue, 20 Mar 2012 00:00 UTC
Image
© Agence France-Presse
The devastation caused by a "mini-tornado" after it tore through the Australian city of Townsville, ripping roofs off houses, bringing down power lines and injuring nine people
A devastating "mini-tornado" tore through the city of Townsville on Tuesday, ripping roofs off houses, snapping trees in half and injuring 13 people as wild weather pounded northern Australia.

The Queensland State Emergency Service (SES) said it received dozens of calls for help, with 13 people needing treatment, mostly for cuts and abrasions. Three were hospitalised.

"Rapid Damage Assessments in the Townsville area have recorded approximately 60 homes with varying degrees of roof damage," the SES said, adding that at least six of the properties suffered significant structural damage.

Meteorologists, who said the freak storm could not officially be called a tornado as there was no funnel, recorded winds of up to 111 kilometres (69 miles) per hour, leaving thousands of homes without power.

The weather bureau forecast further heavy rain.

One resident told Sky News that when the storm hit it sounded like "a jet taking off". Another said it was like "being in a washing machine".

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh, who faces being thrown out of office in state elections this weekend, said it was a frightening experience for the people affected.
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Attention

Big Earthquake Hits Mexico, No Major Damage Reported

Cyntia Barrera and Dave Graham
Reuters
Tue, 20 Mar 2012 00:00 UTC
Image
© Reuters/Edgard Garrido
Mexico City residents stand outside their buildings after feeling the tremors from an earthquake in the southern state of Guerrero, in Mexico City March 20, 2012.
Mexico City - A major earthquake struck Mexico on Tuesday, unleashing panic as it damaged hundreds of buildings and caused homes in the capital to bounce like "trampolines".

Office workers fled into the street when the 7.4-magnitude quake shook Mexico City for more than a minute. Cell phone lines went down, building were evacuated, traffic snarled and the stock exchange had to suspend trading early.

The governor of the southwestern state of Guerrero, Angel Aguirre, said he had received reports of 500 homes damaged, with some of them knocked down, but he gave no more details.

The tremor was one of the strongest since the devastating 8.1-magnitude earthquake of 1985, which killed thousands in Mexico City.

No deaths were reported on Tuesday and the quake caused no major disruptions to air travel or to oil installations, but it scared many residents.

Martha Suarez, an Argentine living in the capital's Roma neighborhood said she had never known anything like it.

"My TV set fell over, the building felt like it was on a trampoline. This one was like no other I have felt before," Suarez said, holding her little dog close.

Emergency services said 800 houses were damaged in Guerrero state, many of them in Ometepec, near the epicenter of the quake. Officials in Guerrero, which is home of popular Pacific beach resort Acapulco, could not say if buildings had collapsed.
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