S African lion cubs conceived artificially in world first
Brits (South Africa): Two lion cubs at a conservation centre outside of South Africa’s capital Pretoria have become the first ever to be born by means of artificial insemination – the first such pair anywhere in the world,” announced the University of Pretoria, whose scientists are researching the reproductive system of female African lions. The two cubs, a male and female, born on August 25 are healthy and normal, said Andre Ganswindt, the director of the University of Pretoria’s mammal research institute. His team’s breakthrough came after 18 months of intensive trials. “We collected sperm from a healthy lion,” Ganswindt told AFP. Then when the lioness’ hormone levels were found to be viable, she was inseminated artificially,” said Ganswindt. He said the breakthrough could be repeated, with scientists hoping the technique can be used to save other endangered big cats. (AFP)
Experimental Martian soil for USD 20 per kg
New York: The University of Central Florida (UCF) in the US has a unique product to sell – experimental Martian and asteroid soil. Interested buyers can get it for $20 a kg plus shipping. For creating the Martian and asteroid soil known as simulants, the researchers developed a scientifically based, standardised method. The formula that helped the astrophysicists at the university develop the experimental Martian soil is based on the chemical signature of the soils on Mars collected by NASA’s Curiosity rover, according to a study published in the journal Icarus. They believe there is a market for the simulant. At $20 a kilogram, plus shipping, it may be easier to send UCF an order, than to try and make it in labs. The team already has about 30 pending orders, including one from Kennedy Space Center in the US for half a ton, UCF said in a statement this week. (IANS)
