Interesting stories on December 20th
Scientists have found what is thought to be the first example of a two-headed reptile in the fossil record. The abnormal animal, belonging to a group of aquatic reptiles, was unearthed in northeastern China and dates to the time of the dinosaurs.
The specimen reveals that it must have been very young when it died and became fossilised, says lead researcher Eric Buffetaut. Details of the fossil appear in the UK Royal Society journal Biology Letters.
This animal was a choristoderan, an extinct reptile that reached a length of one metre in adulthood and was characterised by a long neck - two in this case.
The animal's spinal column divided in two at the point where the neck emerges from the body. This formed two long necks that ended in two skulls.
Choristoderans seem to have been common aquatic reptiles during the Cretaceous Period (144 to 65 million years ago) in what is now northeastern China.
The space shuttle Discovery has undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) after an eight-day stay on the orbiting outpost. Early on Tuesday, astronauts fixed jammed solar panel on the ISS during an unscheduled fourth spacewalk. A US astronaut on the space station has switched places with a member of the seven-person Discovery crew and will travel back to Earth on the orbiter.
Discovery detached from the space station at 2210 GMT.
"We finished all the mission objectives so we are very pleased. It's a great day for the ISS programme and the shuttle programme," said Kirk Shireman, deputy manager of the ISS programme.
The mission had three main objectives: installation of a two-tonne truss to the girder-like ISS structure, the rewiring of the power and thermal systems, and the retraction of an old solar array to allow a new one to collect solar energy.
The first foundation columns have been laid for the Freedom Tower that will replace the World Trade Center in New York.
On September 11, 2001, two hijacked planes hit the two towers and they fell, killing 2,749 people.
Norway tackles toxic war grave
It was not quite the deadly legacy the Germans had in mind when they deployed a U-boat on a daring mission to Japan
In the last desperate months of World War II a German U-boat (U-864) set sail in December 1944, packed with 65 tonnes of weapons-grade mercury destined to help the Japanese win back supremacy over the US in the Pacific - and divert American attention away from Europe in the process.
Neither the cargo nor the 73 men on board made it. The U-boat was torpedoed to the bottom of the North Sea floor by a British submarine.
More than 60 years on, its toxic cargo is slowly leaking into the waters off the coast of Norway, an ecological time bomb threatening marine - and potentially human - life.
Now the Norwegian government is set to act, following recommendations that the wreck be hermetically sealed to prevent any more of the mercury from escaping.
Are you spending or saving at Christmas?
Are you flashing the cash or counting the pennies in the run up to Christmas? With Christmas just a few days away, the retail world is becoming increasingly polarised.While some companies are performing well others are struggling with sales down.The BBC has been asking people to send them their comments.
Two comments:
I have spent sufficient to keep the family and friends happy.When young, my family did not mention Christmas until half way through the month, and decorations went up on the eve.It now lasts too long, with people trying to outdo each other with expensive gifts, trendy toys and other things that are electrical fashion items.
Jeremy, UK
I spend less at Christmas than at any other time of the year. At the supermarket my usual groceries are sold out. Pubs are closed or full of loud people so better to stay home. I can't understand why people spend, spend, spend. It just annoys me that my workplace closes for a week - so I can't go to work and earn money even though I want to. What is the point of being on holiday from work when the weather is crap.
JR, UK
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