http://www.mail.com/subjects/719890-living-things.html Mail.com - the best personalized free web-based Email en en http://sec-s.uicdn.com/mail.com/2.20/img/mailcom_logo_rss.png http://www.mail.com/subjects/719890-living-things.html http://www.mail.com/news/us/1764452-huge-dna-code-christmas-tree-revealed.html NEW YORK (AP) — To millions of people, the Christmas tree is a cheerful sight. To scientists who decipher the DNA codes of plants and animals, it's a monster. We're talking about the conifer, the umbrella term for cone-bearing trees like the spruce, fir, pine, cypress and cedar. Apart from their Yuletide popularity, they play big roles in the lumber indus... Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:03:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/1764452-huge-dna-code-christmas-tree-revealed.html 2012-12-13T16:03:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1761708-scientists-seek-to-solve-mystery-piltdown-man.html LONDON (AP) — It was an archaeological hoax that fooled scientists for decades. A century on, researchers are determined to find out who was responsible for Piltdown Man, the missing link that never was. In December 1912, it was announced that a lawyer and amateur archaeologist named Charles Dawson had made an astonishing discovery in a gravel pit in sout... Wed, 12 Dec 2012 17:13:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1761708-scientists-seek-to-solve-mystery-piltdown-man.html 2012-12-12T17:13:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1757718-pet-apps-clutter-free-gifts-owners.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — Apps aren't just for people anymore. Here is a roundup of popular pet apps for mobile devices. The cost of apps ranges from free to a few dollars. For the iPhone, iPod or iPad: — Dog Park Finder Plus, a list of more than 6,000 dog parks and beaches in North America. Also lists 12,000 dog-friendly r... Tue, 11 Dec 2012 11:19:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1757718-pet-apps-clutter-free-gifts-owners.html 2012-12-11T11:19:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1757716-holiday-gifts-pets-high-tech-trend.html LOS ANGELES (AP) — A holiday present for Fido or Fluffy used to be an extra table scrap or a new squeeze toy. But as with gifts for their human counterparts, pet presents are becoming increasingly high-tech. Like presents for young children who lack the dexterity to enjoy their new playthings, pet gifts are usually for the human who owns the pet. Allie Ro... Tue, 11 Dec 2012 09:01:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1757716-holiday-gifts-pets-high-tech-trend.html 2012-12-11T09:01:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/1757370-ap-interview-mexico-leader-to-continue-drug-fight.html MEXICO CITY (AP) — Newly elected President Enrique Pena Nieto says he will continue combatting all illegal drug production and trafficking in Mexico, including marijuana, despite its legalization in two U.S. states and liberalized use for medical purposes in others. In an interview with The Associated Press late Monday on goals for his new administration,... Tue, 11 Dec 2012 06:16:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/1757370-ap-interview-mexico-leader-to-continue-drug-fight.html 2012-12-11T06:16:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1756742-pot-legalized-colo-with-govs-proclamation.html DENVER (AP) — Marijuana for recreational use became legal in Colorado Monday, when the governor took a purposely low-key procedural step of declaring the voter-approved change part of the state constitution. Colorado became the second state after Washington to allow pot use without a doctor's recommendation. Both states prohibit public use of the drug, an... Mon, 10 Dec 2012 23:02:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1756742-pot-legalized-colo-with-govs-proclamation.html 2012-12-10T23:02:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/1757132-9-maine-students-suspended-pot-laced-cookies.html CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine (AP) — Marijuana-laced cookies taken by a student to a Maine high school on a day ethics and values were being discussed have sickened some classmates. Nine students have been suspended, and police are investigating. Cape Elizabeth schools superintendent Meredith Nadeau says it's unclear if all the students who ate the cookies were a... Mon, 10 Dec 2012 23:02:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/1757132-9-maine-students-suspended-pot-laced-cookies.html 2012-12-10T23:02:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1756618-pot-legalized-colorado-with-govs-proclamation.html DENVER (AP) — Using marijuana for recreational use is now effectively legal in Colorado. Gov. John Hickenlooper declared a voter-approved marijuana legalization amendment as part of the state constitution on Monday. It was the last procedural step needed for the amendment to take effect. The drug became legal in Washington state last week. ... Mon, 10 Dec 2012 18:54:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/politics/1756618-pot-legalized-colorado-with-govs-proclamation.html 2012-12-10T18:54:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/1756130-coat-wearing-monkey-caught-toronto-store.html TORONTO (AP) — Shoppers at an Ikea store in Toronto weren't monkeying around when they reported a primate on the loose. Customers spotted a monkey — clad in a pint-sized shearling coat — wandering around the store's parking lot Sunday afternoon. The baby monkey, named Darwin, made its way through rows of parked cars and ended up outside a set of store doors. Mon, 10 Dec 2012 16:47:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/1756130-coat-wearing-monkey-caught-toronto-store.html 2012-12-10T16:47:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1753942-crew-tows-whale-carcass-malibu-to-sea.html MALIBU, Calif. (AP) — A tugboat towed the decomposing carcass of a whale from a Malibu beach out to sea, several days after it washed ashore and created a stench near the homes of movie stars and millionaires. The remains of the 40,000-pound fin whale were towed Saturday about 20 miles from shore by a crew hired by a homeowners' association, Los Angeles C... Sun, 09 Dec 2012 09:30:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1753942-crew-tows-whale-carcass-malibu-to-sea.html 2012-12-09T09:30:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1752596-rotting-whale-carcass-malibu-towed-to-sea.html MALIBU, Calif. (AP) — The decaying carcass of a whale that washed onto a California beach was towed out to sea Saturday, five days after it washed ashore and created a stench near the Malibu homes of movie stars and millionaires. A tugboat hired by a homeowners' association towed the carcass of the huge fin whale about 20 miles from shore, Los Angeles Cou... Sun, 09 Dec 2012 04:28:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1752596-rotting-whale-carcass-malibu-towed-to-sea.html 2012-12-09T04:28:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1752846-blighted-icon-volunteers-aim-to-revive-chestnut.html WEAVERVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Jim Hurst has doted on his trees, arranged in three "families" on a bluff high above the rushing French Broad River. He installed a drip irrigation system to help rejuvenate this former hayfield's powdery, depleted soil. To protect against browsing deer, he girded the delicate sprouts in plastic sleeving and wire mesh. In the four... Sat, 08 Dec 2012 14:04:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1752846-blighted-icon-volunteers-aim-to-revive-chestnut.html 2012-12-08T14:04:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1750422-rotting-whale-sad-spectacle-malibu.html MALIBU, Calif. (AP) — The decaying corpse of a huge fin whale was a sad spectacle Friday on the shore of a cove where it washed ashore nearly a week earlier. With no government agency taking action to remove the rapidly rotting mammal from Little Dume beach, it appeared that the job would be left to decomposition and nature's scavengers. A few people wand... Fri, 07 Dec 2012 23:45:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1750422-rotting-whale-sad-spectacle-malibu.html 2012-12-07T23:45:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1751646-puerto-ricans-fight-caiman-onslaught.html VEGA BAJA, Puerto Rico (AP) — When heavy rains begin to pelt a flood-prone neighborhood along Puerto Rico's north coast, people start sharpening their knives and preparing their lassoes. The floods herald the arrival of caimans, a close relative of the alligator, whose population has exploded in and around the lagoon next to Los Naranjos neighborhood in t... Fri, 07 Dec 2012 20:55:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1751646-puerto-ricans-fight-caiman-onslaught.html 2012-12-07T20:55:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1750846-brazil-remembers-famed-architect-with-vigil-samba.html RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The city where architect Oscar Niemeyer was born 104 years ago said goodbye Friday with a public vigil, flowers and, yes, samba. After a viewing in Brasilia, in the presidential palace he himself designed, Niemeyer's body was flown to Rio for a vigil. Men and women filed by his wooden casket covered by a Brazilian flag and three red ... Fri, 07 Dec 2012 19:56:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1750846-brazil-remembers-famed-architect-with-vigil-samba.html 2012-12-07T19:56:00Z http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1750874-coffee-elephants-gut-fills-50-cup.html GOLDEN TRIANGLE, Thailand (AP) — In the lush hills of northern Thailand, a herd of 20 elephants is excreting some of the world's most expensive coffee. Trumpeted as earthy in flavor and smooth on the palate, the exotic new brew is made from beans eaten by Thai elephants and plucked a day later from their dung. A gut reaction inside the elephant creates wh... Fri, 07 Dec 2012 15:13:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/entertainment/lifestyle/1750874-coffee-elephants-gut-fills-50-cup.html 2012-12-07T15:13:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/1747668-legal-pot-wash-questions-answers.html SEATTLE (AP) — Marijuana became legal under Washington state law Thursday. So, bong hits and funny brownies for everybody? Not quite. Pot legalization in the Evergreen State has raised many questions, some that likely won't be answered for a while. Here's a quick primer: WHO CAN USE MARIJUANA? Adults over the age of 21 can possess up to an ounce. ... Thu, 06 Dec 2012 22:26:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/1747668-legal-pot-wash-questions-answers.html 2012-12-06T22:26:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1749290-drought-revives-water-war-river.html JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The water wars are raging again in America's heartland, where drought-stricken states are pleading for the increasingly scarce water of the Missouri River — to drink from their faucets, irrigate their crops and float the barges that carry billions of dollars of agricultural products to market. From Montana to West Virginia, offi... Thu, 06 Dec 2012 20:51:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1749290-drought-revives-water-war-river.html 2012-12-06T20:51:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/world/1747552-royal-molecatcher-outlives-versailles-king.html VERSAILLES, France (AP) — The king is dead, but the molecatcher lives on. He even signs SMS messages: "Molecatcher to the king." It's been over two centuries since Louis XVI was guillotined on Paris' Place de la Concorde, but the job of hunting the underground pest that so troubled French monarchs on the grounds of the Versailles palace still exists. ... Thu, 06 Dec 2012 11:26:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/world/1747552-royal-molecatcher-outlives-versailles-king.html 2012-12-06T11:26:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1744448-clashes-financing-threat-un-climate-talks.html DOHA, Qatar (AP) — The world's poorest nations on Wednesday called for significant financing to cope with the impacts of global warming, setting up a potential clash with rich countries that could slow progress on reaching a global climate pact by 2015. Rich countries, including the United States, said at U.N. climate talks in Doha that they have fulfille... Wed, 05 Dec 2012 18:04:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1744448-clashes-financing-threat-un-climate-talks.html 2012-12-05T18:04:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1744884-apnewsbreak-feds-funnel-millions-gulf-coast.html HOUSTON (AP) — Days before a newly formed council focuses on long-term Gulf of Mexico cleanup, a report released to The Associated Press shows that one federal agency has committed more than a half-billion dollars to the region in the past two years, nearly one-fifth of it on projects directly linked to recovery from the 2010 oil spill. The U.S. Departmen... Wed, 05 Dec 2012 16:09:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1744884-apnewsbreak-feds-funnel-millions-gulf-coast.html 2012-12-05T16:09:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1744590-poachers-kill-4-rhinos-1-kenyan-wildlife-park.html NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Officials at a wildlife park in Kenya say they found four dead rhinoceros shot by poachers in a two-day span. The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy said Wednesday that two male black rhinos and two female black rhinos were killed. The bodies were discovered on Saturday and Sunday. Lewa has lost 10 rhinos to poaching in the last three years. ... Wed, 05 Dec 2012 08:47:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1744590-poachers-kill-4-rhinos-1-kenyan-wildlife-park.html 2012-12-05T08:47:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742998-grizzly-managers-toward-hunts-rockies.html BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — With bear-human conflicts on the rise, wildlife managers in the Northern Rockies are laying the groundwork for trophy hunts for grizzlies in anticipation of the government lifting their threatened species status. It's expected to be 2014 before about 600 bears around Yellowstone National Park lose their federal protections, and poss... Tue, 04 Dec 2012 22:05:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742998-grizzly-managers-toward-hunts-rockies.html 2012-12-04T22:05:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742142-fast-growing-fish-wind-up-your-plate.html WASHINGTON (AP) — Salmon that's been genetically modified to grow twice as fast as normal could soon show up on your dinner plate. That is, if the company that makes the fish can stay afloat. After weathering concerns about everything from the safety of humans eating the salmon to their impact on the environment, Aquabounty was poised to become the world'... Tue, 04 Dec 2012 21:57:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742142-fast-growing-fish-wind-up-your-plate.html 2012-12-04T21:57:00Z http://www.mail.com/news/us/1742582-in-cold-blood-murderers-investigated-florida.html OSPREY, Fla. (AP) — At the end of 1959, two families of four — one in Kansas, the other in Florida — were brutally murdered. Two men were arrested, charged and executed in the Kansas case, and writer Truman Capote captured the horrific tale in his iconic true crime book, "In Cold Blood." The Florida murder of two parents and two children was investigated ... Tue, 04 Dec 2012 20:11:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/news/us/1742582-in-cold-blood-murderers-investigated-florida.html 2012-12-04T20:11:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742718-foreign-poachers-target-cameroon-elephants-expert.html YAOUNDE, Cameroon (AP) — Despite armed guards, Cameroon's dwindling elephant population is being decimated by heavily armed gangs of international poachers, according to a top official of the World Wide Fund for Nature. Tighter security has been mounted because intelligence shows that two gangs of poachers from Sudan are heading for the area, said WWF Cam... Tue, 04 Dec 2012 18:46:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1742718-foreign-poachers-target-cameroon-elephants-expert.html 2012-12-04T18:46:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1741660-study-lion-ranges-populations-dropping-africa.html JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The lions that roam Africa's savannahs have lost as much as 75 percent of their habitat in the last 50 years as humans overtake their land and the lion population dwindles, said a study released Tuesday. Researchers at Duke University, including prominent conservationist Stuart Pimm, warn that the number of lions across the continent h... Tue, 04 Dec 2012 12:26:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1741660-study-lion-ranges-populations-dropping-africa.html 2012-12-04T12:26:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1736918-upon-review-giant-sequoia-tops-neighbor.html FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — Deep in the Sierra Nevada, the famous General Grant giant sequoia tree is suffering its loss of stature in silence. What once was the world's No. 2 biggest tree has been supplanted thanks to the most comprehensive measurements taken of the largest living things on Earth. The new No. 2 is The President, a 54,000-cubic-foot gargantuan ... Sun, 02 Dec 2012 14:29:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1736918-upon-review-giant-sequoia-tops-neighbor.html 2012-12-02T14:29:00Z http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1738038-pacific-nations-alarmed-tuna-overfishing.html MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Pacific island nations and environmentalists raised an alarm Sunday over destructive fishing methods and overfishing that they say are threatening bigeye tuna — the fish popular among sushi lovers worldwide. Palau fisheries official Nanette Malsol, who leads a bloc of Pacific island nations, said at the start of a weeklong tuna ... Sun, 02 Dec 2012 14:27:00 GMT http://www.mail.com/scitech/news/1738038-pacific-nations-alarmed-tuna-overfishing.html 2012-12-02T14:27:00Z