Washington: A new research has shown that untamed pigeons can recognize individual people regardless of their change of clothes, suggesting that the birds have developed abilities to discriminate between humans in particular.
Researchers have shown that urban pigeons that have never been caught or handled can recognise individuals, probably by using facial characteristics.
Although pigeons have shown remarkable feats of perception when given training in the lab, this is the first research showing similar abilities in untrained feral pigeons.
In a park in Paris city centre, two researchers from the University of Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense, of similar build and skin colour and wearing different coloured lab coats, fed pigeons.
One individual simply ignored the pigeons, allowing them to feed while the other was hostile, and chased them away. (ANI)
Wrongfully jailed US Black Panther dies at 63
Los Angeles: Elmer ‘Geronimo’ Pratt, a member of the African-American Black Panthers movement who was wrongfully imprisoned for 27 years, has died at the age of 63, US media reported.
Pratt’s sister Virginia on Thursday told Stuart Hanlon, Pratt’s longtime attorney, that he died in a small village in Tanzania where he had been living, the Los Angeles Times reported. She did not give a cause of death. Pratt became a symbol of racial discrimination when he was jailed in 1972 for allegedly killing a woman and seriously wounding her husband in a mugging that netted just $18. Key testimony in the case came from a one-time Black Panther who, according to government records, was working as an FBI informant at the time. (IANS)
Japanese car-makers to work on weekends
Tokyo: Japan’s car manufacturing plants will work on the weekends as part of the nation’s energy-saving plan in the wake of a recent earthquake and tsunami, the NHK television company said Saturday.
The country, whose major nuclear power plant in Fukushima was badly affected by the quake in March, launched a campaign to cut energy consumption by 15 percent Friday at the government’s initiative. The campaign involves 18,000 enterprises and offices in the north and northwest of the country serviced by the TEPCO and Tohoku Electric Power companies. (IANS)
Kate fears hubby William will have an accident during risky operations
London: The Duchess of Cambridge has for the first time confessed that she lives under constant fear regarding her husband Prince William’s safety.
Kate is scared that William, who is an RAF pilot, will have an accident on one of his helicopter rescue missions.
The 29-year-old confided her disturbing thoughts in a military wife on the couple’s royal tour of Canada.
“I always worry but my job is to support my husband. You should always support your husband,” she said.
“I always worry when William goes off on a mission. I find it very difficult. You always fear for them not knowing if something is going to happen and it can be very hard,” she added.
Middleton’s fears are justified considering that just 48 hours after announcing his engagement, the Prince was called out to a dramatic rescue mission 3,000ft up Mount Snowdon in treacherous, stormy weather.
William has already been involved in several daring missions working as a search and rescue pilot at RAF Valley in Anglesey, North Wales. (ANI)