Scientists have identified the genetic mutation responsible for the first blue chicken eggs in South American Mapuche fowl and their European descendants, Araucana, 200 to 500 years ago.

They used the unique genetic resources conserved by heritage or “fancy” poultry breeders to identify the exact location of the mutation in the genome in blue egg laying chickens and an additional genomic study to reveal the genetic cause of the blue colored eggshell is a harmless ancient retrovirus in the domestic chicken.
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This is Washoe, the first non-human to use sign language. When her caretaker Kat suffered a miscarriage, and Washoe was told that her baby had died, she signed "CRY", drawing a path down her cheek with her finger to mimic a tear. Chimpanzees don't shed tears, and Kat said this one sign told her more about Washoe's mental capabilities than all of her longer, grammatically perfect sentences.

People who suffer from congenital analgesia can’t feel pain, and often end up hurting themselves as they don’t know when something is too hot, or making them bleed. Researchers have discovered that mutations in the gene SCN11A are responsible for this disorder, which blocks the transmission of pain signals. ...

Barely half an hour after being jolted by a major earthquake on Tuesday, people of the Pakistani coastal town of Gwadar had another shock when they saw a new island emerge in the sea, just over a kilometre from the shore.


It has a rough surface, much of which is muddy and some parts are mostly made up of fine- to coarse-grained sand. ...

Briton Peter Higgs (right) and Belgian ">François Englert (left) have won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physics, 'for something small that makes all the difference' – the Higgs boson.

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In 2005 Swedish millionaire Johan Eliasch purchased a 400,000-acre (1,600 km2) area of land in the heart of the Amazon rainforest from a logging company for the sole purpose of it’s preservation.

Johan Eliasch, born in Sweden, is the Chairman and CEO of Head N.V. the global sporting goods group, and is the former Special Representative of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

In 2005, Johan Eliasch created the Rainforest Trust and purchased for preservation purposes a 400,000-acre (1,600 km2) rainforest area in the heart of the Amazon rainforest near the Madeira River. Johan Eliasch co-founded Cool Earth in 2006, a charity he co-chairs, which sponsors local NGO's to conserve endangered rainforest and has over 120,000 registered members. ...

Chang’e-3 and the lunar rover Yutu (Jade Rabbit) landed on the lunar surface on December 14 at about 1:11 pm UTC. This is the first successful landing on the moon by any spacecraft in more than 30 years.