The Wikipedia article of the day for April 10, 2016 is Masked shrike.
The masked shrike (Lanius nubicus) is a bird in the shrike family, Laniidae. It breeds in southeastern Europe and at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, with a separate population in eastern Iraq and western Iran, and winters mainly in northeast Africa. It is the smallest member of its genus, long-tailed and with a hooked bill. The male has mainly black upperparts, with white on its crown, forehead and supercilium and large white patches on the shoulders and wings. The throat, neck sides and underparts are white, with orange flanks and breast. The female is a duller version of the male, with brownish black upperparts and a grey or buff tone to the shoulders and underparts. The species’ calls are short and grating, but the song has melodic warbler-like components. The masked shrike eats mainly large insects and occasionally small vertebrates; it sometimes impales its prey on thorns or barbed wire. Decreasing in parts of the European range, but not rapidly enough to raise serious conservation concerns, it is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a species of least concern.
Archives for April 2016
Wikipedia article of the day for April 10, 2016
Wikipedia article of the day for April 9, 2016
The Wikipedia article of the day for April 9, 2016 is Typhoon Sudal.
Typhoon Sudal was the strongest typhoon (the Northwestern Pacific Basin equivalent of a hurricane) in half a century to strike the island of Yap in the Federated States of Micronesia. The entire island, only 17 km (11 mi) in length, experienced typhoon-force winds (at least 119 km/h or 74 mph), and 90% of the structures were damaged or destroyed. The storm formed on April 2, 2004, to the east of the country and attained tropical storm status on April 5. On April 9, it passed just south of Yap, and shortly thereafter its peak winds were estimated at 240 km/h (150 mph). After moving northwest and then northeast, Sudal became an extratropical cyclone on April 16 and dissipated two days later. Overall damage was $14 million, most of which was on Yap. No fatalities or serious injuries were reported, but more than 80 percent of the islanders were without clean running water after the storm. The name Sudal (Korean for “otter”) had been contributed by South Korea for the Pacific tropical cyclone list; due to the heavy damage, the name was retired.
Sleeping for Two | The Scientist Magazine®
An interesting article on the importance of good quality sleep for pregnant females.
Link
Poor slumber during pregnancy may have consequences beyond gestation.
Masters/PhD Vacancy: Closed
Greetings,
I’m looking for a Masters or PhD (full research) candidate to work on the following topic at the Faculty of Chemical & Energy Engineering, UTM Skudai.
“Metabolite profiling of engineered E.coli producing xylitol”
Requirements:
-background in Biochemistry/Biotechnology/Bioprocess/Chemical Engineering or any related science or engineering field (min CGPA 3.00).
-interested to work in a multidisciplinary area. This work will involve cell culture, analytical chemistry, cell biology, statistics and/or bioinformatics.
-strong research and analytical skills.
Student will be funded RM1300-RM1500 (MSc) or RM1800-2000 (PhD) per month, with an opportunity for a short-term overseas attachment.
For details and application, please contact Dr Zanariah (zanariahhashim@utm.my).
Thank you.
